Eastern Youth Regionals 2012

Hello!! :)


This past weekend True North held the 2012 Eastern Youth Regionals. On Saturday, athletes aged 19 and under from across Ontario and Quebec competed in the two qualifying flash format rounds. On Sunday, isolation opened for the semi-final round. Our semi was a hard tech-y face climb with two large slopers proving to be the crux for our category. Unfortunately, my foot popped off as I was establishing myself on the first sloper and I fell. Luckily I made it through to the final round. Our final route was really fun. The route started in a more over-hanging section of the gym and ended in a vertical dihedral and had a nice mix of technical and powerful movements. After a bit of a funky section at the top, I clipped the chains and wound up as the only one to finish it. It looked as though the other categories had some really fun routes as well. All in all, the competition was great. Congratulations to everyone who competed and big props to my little sister Estella who brought home a gold medal in her category, topping her route as well :) (below are the results from finals, I will try and update with results from the entire competition). Also, big thank you to the coaches and the True North staff who helped organize such a successful event, as well as the great setting crew and Eric who fore-ran. Unfortunately this was the last competition for a while that I got the chance to climb a route set by my close friend Dustin Curtis as he is moving out West for at least a year :( Thanks buddy! See you all next year! :)

Next up are Youth Provincial Championships at Climber's Rock on May 5th and 6th and then Youth Nationals. Stay tuned!!!

Iyma

Click here for photos by Aidas Odonelis.

Finals results (in blue are the Boulderz crew :)) :

Girls/Boys D

1. Estella Lamarche-Dykeman / Zach Richardson
2. Emily Belleau / Mitchel Haight
3. Poet Bernard / Laurent Bilodeau
4. Luca Gagnon / William McIlroy
5. Indiana Chapman


Girls/Boys C
1. Mika Mercey / Vincent Knesevitch
2. Justine McCarney / Ben Whattam
3. Courtney Belleau / Spencer Hebb
4. Katrina Whitacker-Lee / Joshua Maragoni
5. Catharine Carkaner / Jack Wyett


Girls/Boys B
1. Erica Meister (USA) / Nathan Smith
2. Audrey Larochelle / Samuel Tiukuvaara
3. Flavie Martin / Lucas Uchida
4. Beth Vince / Arnaud Roy
5. Olivia Wyett / Johannes Tiukuvaara
6. Charle Prosser


Girls/Boys A
1. Iyma Lamarche / Nathen Leblanc-Limoges
2. Pia Graham / Francis Bilodeau
3. Corinne Baril / Jean-Simon Damours-Cyr & Olivier Plante (tie)
4. Emilie Rouleau 
5. Marie-Eve Lebreux / Taylor Cameron
6. Esti Tweg / Philippe Thompson


Girls/Boys Junior 
1. Victoria Belanger-Trudel / William St-laurent
2. Brianne Kay / Timothe Beaudoim
3. / Will Goodwin
4. / Phillipe Noel
5. / Tyler Gilroy

Tour de Bloc Nationals and season write up :)

Hello!

For me, the Tour de Bloc season had a bit of a rough start. I spent all last summer climbing routes and training endurance for Youth Worlds and getting back into pulling on plastic was a struggle. I was super psyched but my power just wasn't there. The other problem was my mentality. I found at the end of last season that I was relying on those around me for encouragement so much that my self-motivation and self-reliance had become non-existent. So, in October I began training on a different path than ever before. I decided to train solo. This decision undoubtedly changed my mentality and climbing in a huge way. It's not to say that it made me some super-woman climber with a head of steel. In fact, it was the opposite. I spent more time reflecting on my experiences and I climbed less. I wasn't necessarily improving in my climbing but ultimately the sport was (and still is) making me happier and feel more fulfilled. To me, that's worth it. 

I entered my first TdB with a completely different head game than ever before. On top of it, my body was weak and I was very unsure of myself. The result wasn't pretty. In the end, I ended up getting so frustrated that I over-worked my body and hurt my wrist on the second problem. Not good Iyma! 

From then on I found that I got this sense of motivation from within myself that was pretty different. I started training hard because I wanted to. The hard work payed off. In January I won my first TdB. But it wasn't winning that made me feel the happiest or most fulfilled. It was the feeling  that I had exerted all my energy and climbed to the best of my abilities. That feeling after a comp that the tank is empty and I did my best is something I strive to feel. It could even be the reason I compete...hmmm... 

The next few comps went well. I got the opportunity to meet Thomasina Pidgeon, who has inspired me since I was a kid and she taught me some really valuable lessons, for which I am extremely grateful. My mindset seemed to solidify as I went along and I had tons of fun. 

Nationals was great. I love the facility and staff and some of my favourite route setters travelled to the comp to make the climbing possible. The first day went very well and I loved the blocs. The second day didn't go so hot for me. I went into the comp with what I thought was a stable mind-set. I was feeling good until my foot slipped on the first bloc. It all went downhill from there. Usually I'm okay at recovering from a slip or fall off the bat but this was different. I knew going into the final round that every fall would count, and it did. I tried to pull myself together but my head just wasn't in the ideal place. Thankfully I flashed the second bloc but then I completely misread the third. The fourth and fifth were easier and I managed to flash those. In the end it was the foot slip that got me. As frustrating as that is, my great friend Elise Sethna ended up on top with a great performance. The steadiness of her mind-set is enviable. Congratulations girl!!! It was great to climb with such a strong field of women. Congratulations to all the finalists and big congrats to Sean McColl for winning the men's field. The cup winners were Sebastien Lazure and Elise- CONGRATULATIONS!!!

This season has taught me a lot. First: going into any comp, your best is the best you can do. And your best changes from day to day. Second: anything can happen in a comp. Third: Have fun. It's something that coaches, my parents and my peers tell me, it's even something I tell myself, but I think it's the easiest thing to forget, and it's the most important thing to do. 

Though the season ended with Nationals, this season has kicked off a series of TdB seasons to come that will be just as awesome. For now, I have the rest of my youth season to look forward to, which will end with Youth Nationals in May. I also have some sweet potential climbing trips planned for this summer... PSYCHED!!! 

Thank you so much for the encouragement!

Happy climbing :)

Iyma

TdB Nationals final results!!!

Hello everyone!! Here are the final results of TdB Nationals 2012!!!

Mens results from TdB Nationals!!!

And here are the men's results from qualifiers here at TdB Nationals!!!

Womens results from TdB Nationals!!!

Hi all!


Women's qualifiers have just finished, here are the results!!!

Countdown to TdB Nationals

Hello :) and Happy Easter!

I woke up this morning to the pitter patter of my little cousins and my sister running around the house collecting eggs. This is my last weekend of mental and physical rest before the final rush of school and competitions. First up on the comp roster is Tour de Bloc Nationals. I competed in my first TdB Nationals last year at Climber's Rock in Burlington. The atmosphere was amazing and the problems were very fun to climb. The other thing I love about nationals is the isolation format qualification and final - it always gets me very psyched. This year, nationals is taking place in Montreal at Centre d'escalade Vertical. I love this facility and I can't wait to see what the route setters will have in store for us. For now, its time to eat some chocolate eggs and enjoy some family time in preparation for a busy school week.

I hope to give an update on results and the running order after qualifiers on Saturday. Stay tuned!

Iyma

A New Chapter!

Hello and welcome to my Blog!

I started thinking a while ago of ways to organize my thoughts and ideas of climbing and school and this crazy thing called life. I tried some journals and diaries but none of them seemed to last more than a couple of days. Finally I decided that blogging is the way to go. I am completely new to blogging as I’m sure is already evident but I’m going to try my best at keeping this thing running, if not for the public, for myself. I hope to give regular updates on competitions, outdoor trips and events. There are lots of cool things coming up so stay tuned!

Iyma