Canadians Dominate North American Ice Championship

The first UIAA Ice Climbing World Cup took place at the Bozeman Ice Climbing Festival in December 2015. Part of the event was the North American Championships. Five Canadians took six of the podium spots. Gord McArthur and Sarah Hueniken placed first, Nathan Kutcher and Karlee Hall placed second and Noah Beek rounded off the all-Canadian men’s podium. For the women, Katie Bono finished in third. “The atmosphere was incredible,” said McArthur. “We went f rom destruction of the structure to a rebuilt tower. The world came together and to see so many athletes perform at a high level is a great experience.” It was a warm fall on the West Coast, which meant prime conditions for bouldering. Jamie Finlayson sent a difficult project called Shelter V13 and said, “The cold conditions made those tiny crimps feel pretty good.” Squamish crusher Nathan Hall sent The Method V12 at the Apron Boulders. Ben Harrington sent Vince Pinch Low V13 and a new route he called Roundabout at the Dark Side boulders. He noted that it’s V14, but V12 if you’re very tall.