I’ve been climbing since I was 12-years-old and I started in 1998, which means I’ve been at this thing for 22 years now! I started for a homework assignment in the 6th grade. We had to learn how to do something that we had never done before, write a how-to book on the subject, and give a presentation on our book and the activity in our “Reading” class. My grandfather, who used to climb back in the 60s and 70s, suggested I see if there was “one of those new-fangled rock climbing gyms” in my hometown of Las Vegas, NV, and as I’m sure is no surprise to you, there was. I tried climbing once and I was instantly hooked. By the time I had finished that semester-long project, I had joined the youth team and started competing, even though it was several years before I actually became competitive.