Offwidths Are for Girls
This is what I've learned about Vedauwoo so far: It is always windy. The rock is always sharp. The rock here greatly resembles Dr. Seuss poop. And as the locals put it: “The climbing here weans out the soft, the weak, and the spineless." In the Voo, everything is working against you and all at the same time: the size, the lean, and the flare. Heel toes, stacks, and chicken wings started feeling a tiny bit more secure—which is about as close to feeling “nice” as I’m probably going to get.
Grit is an interesting thing. You grit your way through growing up, through high school, college, relationships and so on. Grit can be the key to success but is often an unpleasant thing and it’s kind of how I feel about wide cracks. Pretty much at the end of every day here, I’ve told myself: This sucks and I'm leaving. Every. Single. Day. But also every day, I make the conscious decision not to get in my car and leave. Spending the summer here has been a humble reminder of humility and perseverance. Basically, after this summer, I will be Creek-ready. Besides, somebody told me that “offwidths are for girls” because of our smaller size and stature—and I’d never miss an opportunity to prove somebody right.
Cover photograph courtesy of Nick Lanphier