If your idea of fun is hanging out there by your fingertips several metres above the ground, you might find a friend with the Climb Sudbury.
If you meet Marco Foladore of Sudbury, you will find he, too, is passionate about rock climbing, but he's not any sort of wild adrenaline junkie looking for a new fix.
"Everybody thinks we're thrill seekers, but thrill seeking is as far from climbing as you can get," said Foladore.
"When you're climbing and the adrenaline starts kicking in, that means something has gone wrong. You should not be feeling adrenaline. It should be very calm, cool and methodical. And no adrenaline.”
Foladore is passionate about the sport. And as much as there is an obvious physical aspect to rock climbing, Foladore said it also requires mental strength.
"There's a very psychological aspect of the sport as well,” he said. “For me it's problem solving. There is a mental aspect. How am I going to get from Point A to Point B, preserving as much energy as I can for the cruxes of the climb? Yes, it is basically a puzzle and understanding how that puzzle is what kind of movement I need to do to get from the bottom of the climb to the top of the climb.”
He agreed that the popularity of rock climbing has indeed reached new heights in recent years with so many people wanting to try it
"Nowadays, there are so many gyms everywhere, so you're able to really start out in a controlled environment in a rock-climbing gym,” Foladare said. “Sudbury has one here and it allows you kind of get a little taste of what climbing can give you and then as you advance you move to the outdoors. And I mean for me that's where the real climbing starts is in the outdoors.
“We use the gyms to train as well. I think it's a certain level you can train in the gym, but then outdoors is where it's at."
Foladore said spending time in nature is an attraction in itself.
"I mean, all climbers are very generally very outdoorsy people. (But) there are climbers in this day and age, because of the amount of gyms, that never step outside and they just climb in the gym and they're very content doing that," he said.
Foladore sees things differently. He recently visited Nevada for a climbing experience. He said he spent time in the desert which he said made him think differently.
"Absolutely it's a spiritual experience. You go out there, you're in the desert. It's not like the deciduous forests or the conifers, or the pines that we have up here. It's a different landscape. And it's pretty incredible," he said.
Foladore encourages newcomers to do some research to see if they would like to try climbing. He said the Climb Sudbury website is a good place to start because it showcases many of the local climbing spots along with individual ratings that show how club members rate the difficulty of some of their favourite climbing places.
Foladore said there is a lot of interest from local climbers in developing new climbing spots.
"But the interesting thing about the North here is there's so much development going on. There are quite a few climbs and bragging rights come with what we call an FA, or first ascent," he said.
He said many of the local climbers like to put a written description of their climbing experiences on the local website to outline how they tackled a specific climb for the first time. If they are the first individual to post their experience they can claim the bragging rights.
The website also provides safety disclaimers to let newbies know if they might experience some difficulties. Foladore said safety is a significant concern because climbing has some inherent challenges where people can be injured.
He said it's not from falling or being hit by falling debris as some might suspect, but rather things such as scrapes and sprains and the occasional twisted ankle.
Getting an injury is part of climbing, said Foladore. It doesn't mean you've done something wrong, just the usual wear and tear. Sometimes people try too hard and can pull a muscle or sprain a tendon.
He added that people with different body types will approach a climb differently. A tall person might be able to reach farther and get a better grip in a higher spot on a rockwall. A shorter person might find it easier to pull themselves into a tight spot, he said.
In his regular work life, Foladore is a helicopter pilot for ORNGE, the provincial air ambulance service. He said one of the benefits of that is he occasionally sees wilderness locations where there are some challenging rock faces that can be checked out as possible climbing venues.
Foladore said he sees his sport as a lifetime pursuit.
"I've got so much love for the sport. Again, I've been doing it for over three decades and I plan to do it for many, many more." he said.
While it provides more adventure for the local climbers, the website also warns climbers to always check local properties to ensure they're not encroaching on private property or climbing anywhere they're not welcome.
Len Gillis is a reporter at Sudbury.com. Bold is made possible by our Community Leaders Program.
