I was the age of fourteen
And quite nervous I was
To take the next step
To becoming a better climber

It was in the spring
Of 2009
When I took the leap of faith
And learned to fall a great distance

I remember it vividly
Like a flashbulb memory
I was with my coach Scott
And my friends were there too

We were learning to lead climb
Where we clip along the way
And if one makes a slip
They will fall a great ways down


On the Edge is where I was at
Surrounded by intimidating walls and climbing holds
As I’m climbing up
The walls seem to be infinite

I remember hearing my friend freak out over the littlest thing
And I was surrounded by the smell of chalk and sweat
And as I progress on my climb
I get more nervous… and the blue carpet below gets farther

I was so nervous about the fall
That I begin to feel weakness in my fingers
And if I let go of a hold
It would be worse than the planned fall

At the fourth clip I finally reached
My designated falling spot
And my coach yells at me to let go
So I release all tension and decide to drop

The fall wasn’t so bad
Only ten to fifteen feet big
And then I became excited
Because I had just learned to lead climb