Khaled: How are you doing, guys?
Fatima: We’re good!
K: Tell me your names.
F: My name is Fatima, I am from Iran. I have been here for three years in Victoria. I was doing my Master’s in Education. Now I am working at George Jay Elementary, working with kids. I have two kids. They are climbing the monkey bars and they have the same thing on their hands—
K: Oh, the callouses! [laughs] That’s very nice. What about you?
Hossein: My name is Hossein. I’ve been climbing for seven or eight months. I took the beginner class with Catherine.
K: Cat is a great instructor.
H: Yeah, she really is.
K: Seven months you’ve been climbing. Wow, that’s very new! And you’re doing what, 5.12a now, right?
H: Yeah, 5.12b is the hardest I’ve done. Just top-roping, but…
K: That is really good. That is so impressive. Did you do any sports before?
H: I used to do wrestling when I was a kid, teenager, but not many others.
K: Wrestling! We just had a wrestling show.
H: I saw!
K: It was a silly wrestling show. Why did you start climbing?
H: I came here because it’s the only climbing gym downtown with the tall walls. The staff are really friendly, helpful… and the vibe is really good.
K: I see you come here and work at lot, Fatima.
F: Yeah, I am starting to learn French and when I burn out at home I come here to feel good. The vibe is perfect and I can feel how everyone is working hard for their purpose, so I can do the same thing.
K: You two are married, right?
F & H: Yes.
K: So you don’t climb, Fatima, you just come here and hang out, right?
H: She climbs once a month.
F: I like this sport, but my favourite sport that I am working on is swimming. In my country, I used to be a lifeguard, but here after a few years not swimming, that’s what I focus on for my sport.
K: You’re not curious about climbing?
F: No, I am! I like it.
H: Definitely she is.
K: I mean you’re always here! [laughs]
H: More than me, more than the staff, she’s always here [laughs]
F: For me, it’s a library, haha.
K: You just come for the vibe. I like that. By the way, Hossein, you were in the top ten most checked-in at the gym over the last few months. How does that feel for you?
H: I would really like to climb at least three times a week, so if I don’t feel good, I still go to the gym. The gym will push me and give me some energy, so you see people climbing, how hard they are pushing… It’s one motivation.
K: What made you decide to take the lesson and get into climbing? What was the first push?
F: It was his dream!
H: Seven or eight years ago when we were going out together, camping, we saw some crazy people climbing the cliff nearby. We were like, “What’s going on…” At first, I had no idea what climbing was, how strong you have to be, so that was the first time we saw people climbing.
K: Have you been outside? Would you want to go?
H: Yes, definitely. Especially since it’s about to be summer right now.
K: I might go in June with some friends, so I will let you know. There are a lot of nice outdoor areas around here.
H: I’m really looking forward to it.
K: You’re going to be stronger than me outdoors, you’ve done 5.12b!
H: That’s my hardest one ever, I’m not sure about that.
K: My hardest is 5.11-something! You’re doing really good and you have great technique already as well. A lot of people just use muscles, but you have really good technique in combination with that. I think the next step is for you to get into lead climbing.
H: I took the lead course a couple weeks ago!
K: Oh, you did the course! How did it feel?
H: Lead is more technical than top rope. You have to be extra cautious about climbing just because you have to clip and find the right spots. It’s more challenging and more scary than top rope. It’s a bit more spicy.
K: With top rope, you get used to the height. With lead, you never get used to it. You’re always supposed to be a little scared. More adrenaline, more of a rush.
H: I’m definitely going to try it, I just need to find a time with my climbing partner so we can take the test
and start lead climbing.
K: You’ve tried climbing here, Fatima, right?
F: I like learning about it. Every month I come in on his guest pass and I try it out.
H: She started to climb as my guest and she was pushing.
F: I was crying at the top! I couldn’t come down, I had to climb down.
H: First time she was on autobelay, and halfway she just wanted to come down.
F: Now I do 5.8, which is better.
K: How was finding people here at the gym, making friends to climb with?
H: One of my favourite parts of climbing is asking random people if they need belays, if we can help each other. Making new friends here is really nice.
K: When I first came to Canada, I didn’t know anyone as well, so I thought, “Well, I need to do something.” So, I Googled ‘Indoor Activities’ and saw climbing gyms. This is how I started climbing, making friends… and now I work here and have made my career out of it. Climbing is what made me who I am now in Canada. The community is wonderful.
H: Wow, that’s so nice.
K: Last question: what would you like to see in Crag X that you think would improve or add to it?
H: More overhang boulders!
K: You know what, that’s a good one. Or slab! Have you tried slab?
H: No not yet.
K: If I were to add something, I’d add slab. But you want overhang, so we are total opposites!
F: For me, if we could use guest passes twice a month [laughs]
K: Haha. We try to encourage people to come and if they like it to do the lesson, but if you do more than that, some people won’t do the lesson and learn!
H: I like being able to bring different people each time so they can try it out for the first time and get a sense for how it feels, how the holds feel, how hard it is.
F: We brought a friend who is here today doing her lesson! Every month we try and ask new people to come and try it.
K: That’s great, thank you for doing that! Thank you so much for also doing the interview.
F & H: Thank you!
