Youth Climbing Article #4 Part 1 - Tyson Schoene
Team Vertical World!
Tyson Schoene
Tyson is the Head Coach of Team Vertical World and Head Setter of the Vertical World Gyms in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. He began coaching in 2002 when the team coach quit and he was asked to take over temporarily until they could find a replacement. Tyson quickly got hooked and now, at the age of 35, he is still running the very large and successful team he has fostered.
Tyson spent several years involved with the USA Climbing National Team. From 2004 until 2009 he was a member of the USA Climbing Coaches Committee, and from 2005 - 2009 he was a US National Team Coach.
Tyson’s coaching ability is intertwined with his own climbing ability. In the early 90s he had quite a good run winning youth comps from Vancouver to San Diego. He has climbed many mid-13s and several V10s and since 2000 has set organized over 75 comps including many regionals and a divisional.
We tracked Tyson down to find out all we could about coaching, setting, and what he believes it takes to help youth climbers find success.
Tyson and Team Vertical World winning the Team Championship at 2010 ABS Junior Nationals. Alex Johnson joined them for their photo.
CFH: Your start in coaching was kinda unintentional. Why were you hesitant at first, and why did you end up sticking with it?
TS: At the time I didn’t want coaching to get in the way of my climbing, but then I realized what it was doing for the kids and more importantly what it was doing for me and my growth as a person and a mentor.
CFH: How did your first season go?
TS: My first year I coached seven kids at one of our gym locations. All seven qualified for the national and out of the seven, two qualified for the national team. That really started it for me. I saw what was possible and what the kids and myself were capable of achieving. I saw what big programs like Team Texas and Coach Kyle were doing. It was really inspiring and made me want to grow the program and compete at a higher level. I then connected the teams at all our locations and coached and oversaw all three gyms. That connection was huge for the program and allowed us to grow with each other and really become a tight unit. Since then between boulders and difficulty/speed we have had close to 100 National Team Member qualifications, about 10 National Champions, about 20 Divisional Champions, dozens of Regional Champions, 15 or so Regional Team Championships, a handful of Divisional Team Championships and 5 National Team Championships.
9 years later - Team Vertical World at 2011 SCS Nationals
CFH: Does being a setter affect how you coach? How?
TS: Yes it does, quite a bit. Since I was a routesetter first, it is always on my mind when I’m coaching, and when I’m setting, coaching is always on my mind. If you have been setting for a while you usually have a really good idea of climbing movement, positioning etc. This in turn allows you to see these things in your climbers and help them adjust and understand movement better. I really couldn’t imagine coaching without setting. Setters are the creators of the movement that is being put up in our gyms and the coaches are the creators of the young people who are climbing that movement. I tend to think I am pretty good at setting. Not the best by any means. My stuff isn’t the most creative. You wont see me setting an ABS National. But I do think that my setting works really well with the body and flows properly and naturally. By setting this way I help my kids learn to understand and read natural sequences. Pretty much every time I put up a route I am thinking of the kids and what this route could teach them.
Tyson (middle) with Team Texas’ Coach Kyle and honorary Vertical World Team Member, Brendan Mitchell of Team Texas
CFH: Speaking of your kids, how young do you start them? Is there an age you think they should start at? Is there a “too young”?
TS: No, I do not think there is a “too young.” I think the sooner the better. The sooner they start the sooner their body adjusts to the strains that climbing has on a young person’s body. If you start climbing at 5 years old, your fingers and joints have a chance to strengthen while you are light and small. If you start climbing when you are 13 or 14 and then all of a sudden you are climbing V6 on V6 or harder holds, you are much more open to injury. Your early teens are when the growth plates in your body, but more so in our case as climbers, your fingers, are coming together. If you have prepared properly from the ages of 8-12 then you are much less likely to have problems.
It is very hard for us as coaches to prevent injury when we don’t get climbers until they are in their early teens. Over the last 10 years I have seen quite a few broken growth plates in young boy’s fingers. I’ve actually only seen it in one girl. Most all of my kids who start with me when they are 8 or 9 years old tend to stay injury free for most of their careers. But those who start later than that and really focus and try to take it to a high level tend to have an injury or two before it is done. I mean, injury in athletics is going to happen, no matter what. Look at all sports and look what happens. Climbing is no different. But honestly, look at any soccer team and count the injuries over a season and then look at a climbing team. You will see a huge difference. But injury aside, when kids are young, they learn technique without it being taught. Your body moves naturally at an early age and it adjusts much better than when you are older. Their bodies are like sponges and they learn to climb very well when they are small. And then when they are bigger they still have all those short person techniques.
Lil Sid and Melina sittin’ in the chairs at 2011 SCS Junior Nationals
CFH: Do your kids do multiple sports? Why or why not?
TS: Most of our kids start out doing multiple sports. But over a period of time it pretty much becomes a choice, climbing, or multiple sports. The reality is that if you want to compete at a high level in any sport, you need to focus most of your time and energy to that sport. The competition is too great now. I don’t necessarily encourage one or the other, but I do lay it down for the climber and the family at a fairly young age. I would be lying to them if I told them they could do swim team, play soccer, baseball and compete at a national level in climbing. So I ask them where they want to take it and most of them choose climbing. But don’t get me wrong, if one of our kids is playing select soccer and has a chance to go really far in that sport, I often encourage them to do that. Choice in athletics is pretty hard and you don’t have many athletic kids that are only good at one sport. It usually is the one that they choose to focus on that they become better at. If they choose climbing, I want to help them get to a high level and reach their goals.
CFH: What about cross-training? What kinds of exercises does your team do?
TS: I try to get my kids to run. But it is like pulling teeth on these guys. I am a big runner, not just for running’s sake, but for what it does for your climbing. Running helps you recognize rhythm and pace, which is crucial in climbing. It also allows you to control your heart rate and your breathing, which is also crucial in climbing. In general it teaches you more about your body and what is possible than most other activities. It keeps you light, fit and focused. The sooner young climbers start treating themselves and their bodies like athletes, the sooner they will excel.
Team member Alex Fritz at 2011 Sport Nationals
CFH: What about outside climbing?
TS: I strongly encourage outside climbing with our team. At a national, you can tell who spends a ton of time outside and who doesn’t. It opens your eyes and minds to so much more.
CFH: So do you take your kids outside?
TS: I used to take my kids out quite a bit when I first started coaching. It helped them quite a bit climbing wise but it also helped solidify our relationship as coach and athlete. When the team got quite a bit bigger I stopped taking them out. For a few reasons, but mostly because of the responsibility it puts on me as the adult. If something happened to the kids when I am responsible for them, I don’t think I could live with myself. It doesn’t mean I won’t go out with them, but I won’t initiate and take kids out by myself.
CFH: So who takes them out?
TS: A very large number of our team parents climb, so for the past 5 or 6 years it has really been up to them and a lot of older aged-out team kids. I have a wonderful group of families that are more than psyched to take their and everyone else’s kids outside to go climbing. Pretty much every weekend there isn’t a comp, I have families that will take out large groups of our team. In more ways than one I am super thankful for that. The more they are outside the more they have a chance to try all types of climbing.
CFH: What about projects, do you encourage your kids to project hard climbs?
TS: I like it when they get a ton of mileage, but I also like it when they send hard projz. Once they start sending hard projz their confidence goes through the roof. And confidence is key to competition and climbing in general. There is always a balance. If they want to climb 5.13, I encourage it, but there of course is a relative base that they need to get first. Each young climber is different. A young climber who flashes 5.13 their first time outside doesn’t need to spend a ton of time climbing 5.10. I mean, they probably should, but what are you gonna do. They already got the bug. Some of them can walk out the door to 5.13 and some of them need to spend 3 years climbing 5.12. I try to evaluate each one and give suggestions for their outside training based on what I see.
Vertical World Team member Drew having a big day out on Chain Reaction (5.12c) at Smith Rocks, Oregon
Stay tuned for Tyson Part 2 where you’ll learn about his theories on coaching, community, and competition. If you missed the earlier articles in this series, make sure and check ‘em out:
#3 Robyn Erbesfield-Raboutou / Raboutou Children and Team ABC
