Bringin’ Back The Curtsy

Lynda Dechief bringin' back the curtsy. © Melissa Welsh

Cursty: a respectful bow made by women and girls, consisting of bending the knees and lowering the body.

Why wouldn’t you show your belayer a little bit of respect before starting a climb? They are after all taking on the responsibility of saving your life.

I was reading Vince’s “Three Things You Should Do On Every Climb” and remembered a hilarious conversation a group of us had recently at Skaha. We were talking about the three things Vince mentions in his post and then suggested we add a forth thing. Imagine climbing around the world and, as Canadians, having the ridiculous ceremony of curtsying before a climb. The Spanish kiss each other on the cheek, the French roll cigarettes – so why shouldn’t we have a signature pre-climb ritual?

For those of you who are wondering where exactly you would insert the curtsy into your pre-climb routine, I have outlined it here for you.

Climber: “Figure 8′s good. I’m double backed.”

Belayer: “Beaner locked. You’re good to go.”

Climber curtsies.

Climber: “Climbing.”

Belayer: “Climb on.”

Now if you’re a man out there, let me save you a lot of embarrassment by explaining that curtsying is only done by women. If you would like to show some respect to your belayer, the appropriate way would be to bow at the waist.

And so there you have it. Our new Canadian, pre-climb, show-your-belayer-a-bit -of-respect ritual.