The Strength of Women (and there is plenty of that.)

When outdoor rock climbing, I am always in awe of the skills of the men and women around me who are tackling harder climbs. It’s very impressive to see them maneuver their way around all sorts of tricky situations which involve a particular set of skills and both mental and physical strength.

I’d say that 90% of the time, I look at a climb and think, oh that looks achievable, then when it really comes down to it, I find myself halfway up the rock, facing a real technical challenge and thinking, oh, it definitely looked easier when looking up from below.

I’ve only done top roping – where a rope is tied securely from something at the top of the climb and then fixed to my harness. If I fall, that rope and the person belaying me with the other end attached to them on the ground, will stop me plummeting down the rock face.

The first time I tried outdoor rock climbing, the fear was overwhelming. I cried before I’d even left the ground, the anxiety was bubbling away below the surface of my brave face and spilled over the top before I even put my foot on the wall in front of me. It was such a release though, and in no way was I prepared to let my nerves stop me from trying – I am just an emotional being. So why do it?! Why put myself through it? For the pure challenge of course. To know that at least I tried. But also the satisfaction of completing a climb is incredible, having faced my fear and used my strength and skill to achieve my goal.

During a climbing trip to the Peak District in England three years ago, I tried a climb that both my instructor and I suspected I wouldn’t complete. However, we both knew that the attempt is what mattered, the struggle and the subsequent learning from the experience was what really counted. A large proportion of rock climbing is about failing, or falling, as that is exactly how you learn.

This fall was before I’d even got a few feet off the ground. I walked away from this climb both knowing that one day I would get up there and also what skills I would need to build on to achieve that goal.

A friend of mine is also in the same position as me, where she doesn’t go rock climbing regularly, so naturally doesn’t scale the climbs like a pro. The lockdown rules had eased a bit and a group of us met up for some outdoor rock climbing recently. It was great to be outdoors in the sun, socialising, supporting each other and having fun. I later learnt that earlier in the day, my friend had been trying to start a climb, and had been struggling in the same way that I had been in the Peak District. It was at this point, that a man, being the gentlemen he obviously is, decided that whilst passing by, he would make a fleeting, sarcastic comment that he would see her in exactly the same place, next year. I am unsure of what he was trying to achieve with this comment, apart from put her down and make her feel self-conscious and belittled. Which is exactly how she ended up feeling.

I then got to thinking – I wonder if he would have said that if she wasn’t a woman, if in fact she was actually an over six feet tall, muscly man, struggling with the start to a climb. Interesting. Or maybe he might not have felt the need to say anything at all, as that six foot tall, muscly man would have the advantage of height and strength to help him get started. Just saying.

It is a clear and obvious fact, that half the human race are female, and it is decided in our genes that typically, if your sex is male, you will have a higher bone and muscle mass.

That all said, we live in a world where women are free climbing one of the most challenging rock faces in the world – El Capitan, a 3000ft monolith in Yosemite National Park, in less than a day. With the most recent – Emily Harrington, completing it even after falling and injuring her head during the process, whilst also setting a new record as the first woman to free climb the Golden Gate route. Not only does that take incredible physical strength and stamina, but mentally, her strength is admirable and I celebrate her determination and bravery. In fact, the very first person to free climb El Capitan at all was a woman – Lynn Hill, and by free climbing, I mean climbing just using her hands and feet on the rock, with only her harness and the rope as a safety precaution.

The New York Times reported that according to Ms. Harrington, free-climbing El Capitan is still very much “a male-dominated thing, despite the fact that Lynn was the first to do it, I always received so much advice from men, people telling me how I should do things, how I’m doing it wrong, but in the end I just decided to do it anyway despite the fact that a lot of people felt that maybe I couldn’t or maybe I didn’t belong there.”

So my point. It is not essential to be a strapping man to be an incredible rock climber. That is obvious. But perhaps what is less obvious to some, is that women still require, and deserve respect, and that is regardless of what your climbing abilities may be.

People who are familiar with the passion that drives a lot of my work will know that it is my admiration of women and their strength that inspires me. One of my more recent pieces of 2021 “Own Your Power” was an attempt to empower women and portray that admiration.