Cheer Each Other On, Don’t Knock Each Other Down
Wendy Eliot
Today I’m thrilled to introduce you to Wendy Eliot, formerly of Atlantic Climbing School in Bar Harbor, ME. Besides having an extremely strong tutu game (as you can see above) Wendy is an AMGA certified Single Pitch instructor, massage therapist, health and fitness coach, outdoor educator, clinical mental health therapist in training, loving caregiver, and all-around awesome person. We cover a lot of ground in this conversation (and that’s not even taking into account the 20 odd times Wendy moved between Maine and North Carolina).
We talk about the role climbing can play in empowerment of self and others, how women can sometimes be their own worst enemy, and why a good belayer is everyone’s BFF.
Wendy shares some stories about being the only female climbing instructor a lot of the time - and her insights might surprise you. We also talk about the important work of Pivot Point WNC, an organization that’s close to Wendy’s heart and now benefiting from her outdoor skills and leadership.
Wendy is such an inspiration, not only for all the things she’s doing out in the world, but also for her commitment to her dad and her graceful handling of the challenges one needs to handle as the caregiver for someone with dementia.
I hope you’ll give Wendy a follow on Facebook, and for sure also check out Pivot Point’s amazing work.
And if you find yourself itching to hit a few of the epic climbing spots Wendy and I talked about, we’ve got you covered:
Devil’s Lake (WI)
Rumbling Bald (NC)
Red River Gorge (KY)
Potrero Chico (Mexico)
Plus, some other awesome climbing intel: