From water polo to ultimate frisbee, McCallum offers a number of unique sports. Over the past few years, many students have taken up another niche sport- climbing. Although McCallum doesn’t have a formal climbing team, many students climb recreationally and competitively at local gyms around the area. One climbing gym that has grown in popularity especially in recent years is Crux Central, where four McCallum students climb on the gym’s competitive team and others climb recreationally. A short way from McCallum, climber and coach Felipe Centeno believes that Crux Central’s proximity to the school has encouraged students to try out the sport.
“There’s a bunch of kids who come in and just climb for fun and then they end up joining one of our programs to continue climbing in a more organized and structured fashion,” Centeno said.
“It’s awesome to have them in.”
Juniors Bryce Masthay and Lucy McTeague, as well as freshmen Nias Thomas and Jack Taylor, all climb on Team Crux, the gym’s youth travel team. Having coached many of the McCallum students for several years, Centero appreciates the students’ approach to the sport.
“It makes me super proud that not only have they continued climbing for this long, but also they’ve continued to pursue it as something that they can train for, something that can involve discipline, consistency, healthy lifestyle, and ultimately foster community,” Centero said.
McTeague has climbed for over six years and joined Crux’s recreational team as a way to find community after moving from Flagstaff, Ariz. to Austin at the end of eighth grade. Since then, she has worked her way up to representing Team Crux and recently qualified for divisionals.
“From the start, I felt very accepted and comfortable to climb there,” McTeague said. “Whenever I step into the gym and see my coaches or my teammates I feel joy.”
McTeague’s decision to start climbing stemmed from her parents’ love of the sport. Both of her parents climbed in college. However, as McTeague has grown as a climber, she says the sport has gained a new significance for her.
“When I first started, I wanted to continue on their climbing,” McTeague said. “But for me, it’s become something different–something I fully do for myself and for my community.”
Masthay’s decision to start climbing was also influenced by a family member. Growing up in Louisville, Ky., his mom took him climbing one day and encouraged him to pursue the sport. Now, Masthay climbs alongside McTeague on Team Crux and dreams of going to the Olympics for speed climbing. However, Masthay has many goals before then.
“For this season, I want to go to finals at the Speeding National Championships and finals at the Vale North American Cup Series round, “ Masthay said. “And the year after that, national team trials.”
Masthay might well be on his way to achieving his dreams, qualifying last year for Nationals in speed climbing. Masthay believes that Crux’s support has been essential to his growth as a climber.
“They built us a speed wall, which cost a lot of money,” Masthay said. “They gave me the resources.”
However, Crux’s support extends beyond providing resources for their climbers. What draws Masthay back to the gym is not only its training but its unique community.
“There’s been a lot of great coaches in the past and they’ve provided a great environment,” Masthay said. “It’s a very niche community. It’s not a corporate gym.”
Because of the environment at Crux, Masthay and McTeague decided to work there. Now, the two juniors pick up shifts after school and on the weekends, manning the front desk and running birthday parties and other events.
“They both started working because they liked the community and they wanted to have a similar impact to what their coaches have had upon them,” Centero said.
One of McTeague’s favorite parts of the community at Crux is the opportunity to get to know different people outside of school.
“There’s so many cool people that climb and everybody’s different,” McTeague said. “There’s not like one specific group of climbers. It’s just cool to meet all these different people and see how much everybody loves it.”
In the time he has coached McTeague and Masthay, Centero has noticed the two McCallum students’ growth in and out of the gym.
“I’ve seen them grow not only as climbers, but also as individuals with their confidence,” Centero said. “Whenever you’re growing up, you have that little voice, that saboteur in your head who will tell you that you can’t do these climbs, that they’re too hard. So watching them overcome those personal struggles and physical struggles has been awesome.”