Since being at college, Kat Lalilberte, a third-year kinesiology major at the University of Rhode Island, wanted to find an opportunity to climb while attending college.
Being from Kingston, RI, Laliberte already knew many people coming into college. However, she wanted to find a way to branch out and meet new people. Trying to find an opportunity to climb on campus, Laliberte discovered that URI had no clubs that provided climbing, and she wanted to change that. So at the beginning of 2023, Laliberte established URI’s climbing club, and little did she know, many other students at URI shared the same interest in climbing as she did.
The first climbing club meeting was described as “complete chaos.”
“I was an 18 year old girl trying to wrangle like 40 people in a room that only fit 10,” said Laliberte.
Despite this chaos, Laliberte enjoyed the fact that many people at URI were also interested in the same activity.
“It started as just a bunch of people who wanted to climb together, ” Laliberte said, “It’s really cool to see people who didn’t know what climbing was taking on leadership responsibilities.”
One example of a student new to climbing taking on a leadership role comes from Brandt Ogden, a second-year computer science major. “I was in the Outing Club and knew a few friends in the climbing club who introduced me,” Ogden said.
Since joining the club, Ogden has constantly practiced rock climbing, eventually becoming a part of the club’s executive board. Another student who has helped develop the Climbing Club is Emilia Delemontex, a fourth-year political science major. Delemontex has known Laliberte since middle school, and when she heard that Laliberte started up a climbing club, Delemontex immediately wanted to join. Currently, Delemountex serves as the climbing club’s treasurer.
Not only does URI’s climbing club want to be an opportunity for students to learn and practice climbing, but the club also has aspirations of adding competition.
“Right now we’re switching over more towards competition,” Laliberte said. “We’re working towards a common goal of becoming better climbers rather than just hanging out.”
By adding a level of competition into the club, Laliburte believes it can bring out more of a sense of “community.”
“Competing is a good end goal because you get to meet so many other people,” Delemontex said.
So far, the Climbing Club hasn’t set up any official competitions yet. However, they have set up “community” competitions and have met up with both Brown University and the University of Connecticut’s climbing teams checking out the gyms they use. Since the majority of members have never competed, the possibility of competing is an idea that has gained excitement from many members.
Delemontex described climbing as a “vulnerable sport.” In other words, climbing is a sport that requires a lot of trust between two people. Some of that trust includes making sure the person that is climbing is safe, supporting said person when he or she is struggling, and so many other examples. So if a student at the URI is looking to make close-bonded friendships, this is the perfect club to do so. Additionally, climbing is a great activity for students looking to stay active while also having a fun time doing so.
“You’re getting a great workout while also meeting great people,” Ogden said.
The climbing club hosts practices every Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Rock Spot Climbing in Wakefield. For more information, check out the climbing club’s Instagram page under the handle: @uriclimbingteam.