Gripped

The Wedded Senders

SABRINA + RYAN CHAPMAN

- Story by Leslie Timms Leslie Timms is one of Ontario’s strongest female climbers and lives near her favourite Escarpment crags.

If you find a climbing partner that you trust with your life, motivates and inspires you and that is also your best fr iend/true love, you should pin that person down and marry them.That is exactly what Sabr ina and Ryan Chapman did. It truly is a special find to have a climbing partner, best fr iend and spouse all in one. Especially between two climbers who share similar goals, styles and motivation­s on the rocks. That sounds like a recipe for success and the story of when Sabr ina met Ryan.

Growing up in southern Ontario, they met at Sher idan College where they were studying arts and crafts design. It was climbing that brought them together, after Ryan brought Sabr ina to try indoor climbing at the Rock Oasis, in Toronto. They both caught the climbing bug and have been hooked on it, and each other, ever since. After learning to tie knots together, they tied the figurative knot and married. They have been climbing partners ever since, both motivated to push themselves further in the sport. Sabr ina says, “Our climbing relationsh­ip is super supportive; we tend to feed off of each other’s psych. I can think of six different times when we’ve sent our projects on the same day, one r ight after the other.”

Ryan and Sabrina love to project sport climbs that are close to their absolute limit, rather than working up the typical climbing grade pyramid. Last summer at Lions Head, Ont., they could be found, at least two days a week, swapping burns on their mega projects. Their first attempts on the routes were “gong shows,” as Sabrina put it. They both love the process of hard projecting, and the concept of making hard moves, learning the subtleties and then eventually executing the route. Ryan comments, “I love focusing on pushing my physical limits. I spend most of my time projecting. I love the process of trying moves and sequences that can seem impossible at first, but can eventually be unlocked, making them sometimes feel almost effortless.” And Sabrina is on the exact same page. “What I enjoy about projecting is learning the small intr icacies and details of moves that enable me to put the whole route together seamlessly,” she says.

With similar goals and shared inspiratio­ns for the limestone sport climbing of Lions Head, they share each other’s dr ive and send their projects on the same day last summer. Sabr ina climbed Maxi Pista, 5.13c, and Ryan climbed Titan, 5.14a. Their positive and encouragin­g climbing relationsh­ip is pushing them to climb at their full potential. “We have a great climbing relationsh­ip. No one gets me psyched like Sabr ina. She knows the climbs I’m working on so well, and can give me the encouragem­ent or micro beta reminders I need at the r ight time. I think we’re probably a little competitiv­e with each other, but in the best of ways. Sabr ina always gets a good laugh when I fall off a real scrunchy move,” said Ryan. A little fr iendly competitio­n never hurts either as Sabr ina puts it, “If I watch Ryan complete a move or sequence or route before me, it motivates me, but I’ve never resented his achievemen­ts. I think it’s possible that I get more excited when he sends than he does!”

Sabr ina and Ryan aren’t slowing down. They stay motivated through the winter by training at climbing gyms, focussing on their finger strength and power endurance, all while dreaming about the next Lions Head test-piece. “It’s great retur ning to different crags after a winter of training and seeing the progress you’ve made as a climber,” Ryan said. “I plan on growing by continuing to try routes that intimidate me, because those are the ones I learn the most from,” Sabr ina adds. When Ryan and Sabr ina aren’t at the cliff or training in the climbing gym, Ryan is putting his car pentry skills to the test as a cabinet maker by and Sabr ina does administra­tive work for a non-profit women’s organizati­on.

Ryan and Sabrina Chapman make a great combinatio­n on and off the rock. Future plans include taking down more of the classic Ontario sport lines at Lions Head, Old Baldy and Metcalfe Rock and continuing to inspire each other to push the grades.

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