Early Risers
Even though she’s an 18-year-old Running Start sophomore at Eastern Washington University, Melissa Main’s body doesn’t seem to have learned about the basic forces of gravity.
She moves vertically up a climbing wall with the ease of a spider.
Since her father introduced her to sport climbing eight years ago, she has ascended to the elite handful of American females.
“It’s hard not to watch her when she climbs; she’s so fluid,” said Timon Behan of Wild Walls climbing gym. “When her dad first brought her here as a kid, she climbed something like 5.10 the first time.”
Translation: “Holy cow!”
“She was into gymnastics,” Behan said. “She was probably awfully good at that, too. They’re in great shape and they know where their bodies are.
“But the difference I saw in Melissa was determination. I’d leave the gym and she’d be practicing a move. I’d come back an hour and a half later and she’d still be working on it. Remember, there’s no coach making her do it.
“She’s also just a nice person. With all her talent, she’s not pretentious.”
Main said she doesn’t adhere to a rigorous athletic training schedule. “Mainly I climb,” she said. “I love to be on rock, like up in Deep Creek (Riverside State Park). But I do go to Seattle to train with other top-level climbers.”
She’ll be competing in the U.S. nationals youth 18-19-year-old division in California this summer for a shot at representing the USA in this year’s World Cup in Australia.
“It’s all about what your priorities are, and right now, climbing is one of mine,” she said, noting that she plans to attend college next year in Boulder, Colo. – “it’s a hotbed for climbing” – and pursue a career in international relations.
Claim to fame: Main has finished second in her class in national competitions and as high as fourth in international competition. She’s competed around the country and in South America, Europe and China in seven youth nationals and three youth world cups. Her most recent international competition was last year in Ecuador, where she placed third in her class.