AJ and I set two V1’s together yesterday on the new bouldering walls and AJ set a V5 (the orange route in the photo above) in addition to that. It was great working with AJ and being around his creativity! He’s a really good teacher, too – he bounces the question back off of you when you have one, and he does so in a way that helps you find your own answer. “What would you do? Which way do you want them to go? What do you want them to do? How would you force them to do that? If they come off the wall, which way are they going to come off? Which way do you want them to come off? What are you trying to do? How would that move affect the next move? What angle would you want to put that at?” AJ is an accomplished mentor and I’m eternally grateful for him and his patience. I told him I appreciated him and he replied, “You might be pissed off at me by the end of the day.” No. I’m learning, and I expect to get shot down. The thing about AJ, though, is that he doesn’t shoot people down. He lets them redirect themselves and their project or route or whatever they’re working on through the Socratic method, which is the best method I know of to teach with. It was fun getting to set with AJ again! I haven’t gotten to do that in a while and I always enjoy it. So, AJ, if you’re reading this, I want to tell you that it’s great setting with you again!!! And I can’t wait until outdoor climbing season is back!!! There are so many climbing adventures to be had!!!
