On campus, students are constantly encouraged by teachers to push their limits in pursuit of academic success. But senior Ernest Lin takes scaling heights beyond the classroom through rock climbing, challenging his physical capabilities and continuously striving to improve himself. 

Since the fall of 2023, Lin has participated in recreational indoor rock climbing at Sender One Climbing in Santa Ana after being encouraged by his cousin and senior Jayden Chan to try out the activity.

“It’s one of the things that we both enjoy,” Lin said. “And I, personally, find that very valuable for improving our relationship. Even the senior that we used to rock climb with, when we hung out a lot back then after climbing, I would say that really helped strengthen my relationships with the people that I go rock climbing with.”

Specifically, Lin participates in bouldering, a form of rock climbing without the use of ropes and harnesses, according to USA Climbing. Bouldering includes walls of different heights and slanted angles, offering a wide range of difficulty for climbers of all backgrounds.

“Rock climbing is like playing sports — it’s relaxing but also exciting,” Lin said. “When you’re up on the wall, there’s a lot of adrenaline pumping, which is why I find rock climbing so enjoyable.”

Yet the recreational activity can also be strenuous. Lin said he has faced physical challenges involving specific climbs, even spending hours in pursuit of one route. Particularly challenging routes may require him to go to his rock climbing gym for two or three days in order to complete the route.

“Not only is it fun to do it, but I’m also getting benefits on the health side of things,” Lin said. “I’m becoming more healthy when I rock climb, just like playing other sports. So that’s why I kept on doing it.”

From his experience, the biggest obstacle that Lin has faced is having enough strength to complete each route, as rock climbing is not only cardio-intensive but also requires a lot of pure physical power. Calluses and scrapes on hands are common for beginner rock climbers, according to Lin. As a former track and field athlete, where he competed in the long jump and triple jump events, Lin is familiar with having to fight both physical and mental challenges in sports.

“The idea of persevering — it’s hard,” Lin said. “It can be hard to keep going when you feel like you’ve failed over and over again. But then once you’ve completed a route that you spent a few days on, it’s very satisfying. You feel pretty good about it, or at least I do, because it helps me recognize, ‘Oh, I’m stronger than myself before I did it.’”