FACES: Luke Rodley Rocks the Wall

Still a teen, Luke Rodley takes to climbing like he’s been doing it for decades.

Being a competitive climber has shaped Luke Rodley into the person he is today. Through climbing he has made life-long friendships and been shown the world

A constant clamor of shouts and clanking metal echoes through the building as Luke Rodley, 15, hangs onto a 30-foot man-made rock face. He is in a very vulnerable position, but is in his zone. His focus and physical power is evident as he begins to climb further up the wall.

There is a sense of pure focus as he pulls himself higher, each step methodically planned and calculated quickly in his mind. Rodley is now three quarters of the way up from the top of the rock climbing wall at the Vertical Hold training facilities in Del Mar, California. With a final explosion of energy, he quickly walks with all four limbs up the remaining 15 feet of the wall in about five seconds.

Immediately as Rodley touches the top, he launches himself into midair and falls back to the ground, hanging on his ascending rope and he bounces back and forth from the wall. As he touches the ground, he quickly unbuckles himself from the climb-ing restraints. The 27 seconds it took him to climb 35 feet was praiseworthy.

“I actually did alright that time,” Rodley shrugs quickly. “I could of climbed a lot better.”

Although he is a tough self critic, Rodley is an internationally ranking sports rock climber on the youth circuit.  He has been climbing for the last four years, ever since his mother enrolled him in a climbing summer camp to expose him to new hobbies.

Luke Rodley developed a passion for climbing almost instantly and quickly excelled at it. He is a normal high schooler, living in San Diego, but in his free time he loves to climb, along with a handful of other things he has a passion for. He is actually a very talented teen.

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