People often ask us why we do what we do, they wonder what’s so fascinating about climbing a rock face. We try to explain to them but no matter how many times they just don’t seem to understand. There’s more to climbing than just the thrill it gives you, it’s all the places you go, the people you meet and the things you see that makes it so special. It really opens your eyes to the things that most people tend to overlook; the next thing you know, climbing is changing your perspective and the way you look at life.
The above passage is taken from an old BMX video I recall from my teens and tailored to suit. I can’t recall the name of it exactly but I feel the very paragraph sums up what climbing is to me, beautifully.
I first started climbing in November 2012 when my younger brother Chris took a friend and me to our local indoor wall and from that dark and rainy yet fateful evening, I’ve been hooked. Climbing has turned my perspectives on life upside down, it’s shown me that there’s more to life than work and material objects and that there’s so much beauty right on our doorstep that we overlook.
Earlier this year my brother (Chris), fiancée (Clare) and I visited Fontainebleau for the very first time. A trip that summed up everything I feel about climbing. I got to see Europe on a shoestring budget with the people I love, meet new people on our journey and spend countless hours having fun in one of the most enchanting of places on earth.
At 27 I’m not going to be pushing the grades of the elites but that doesn’t matter. Climbing has given me so much and shown me that there’s much more to life than I could have ever imagined.
Profile:
Name: Liam Gallagher
Location: Cheshire
Website: http://www.liamg.co.uk
Twitter: @liamrg