2016 Vancouver International Film Festival: Interview with Tom Wright

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The 2016 Vancouver International Film Festival is just around the corner and Squamish Climbing Magazine is more than excited to be a part of it. The film festival has long been an event that brings the climbing community together to celebrate the virtue of adventure and this year is no exception. With any event of this magnitude, it simply doesn’t put on itself. Behind the scenes there are cogs and gears moving long before any of the films hit the screen. From volunteers to directors, people are dedicating hours and hours to making the festival happen.

One of those people who has taken on a pretty big role over the past six years in bringing the festival together is Tom Wright. Tom Wright spent the first 20 years of his life living a typical middle class English life. A life changing year studying in Montreal introduced him to rock climbing, snowboarding and Canadians – all of which he loved immediately! A natural move out West followed and for the past 7 years Tom has immersed himself in the coast mountain culture. He now lives in Squamish with his girlfriend Vikki and their dog Tundra. His official title at VIMFF is the Director of Film and Programming but he is also the guy who is there every night trying to make sure that things run smoothly. We thought it would be a great idea to interview Tom and get his thoughts on the festival this year and some of the highlights he is looking forward to.

Tom Wright on the VIMFF stage
Tom Wright on the VIMFF stage. Photo courtesy of VIMFF ©

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Video: Crooked in the Front featuring Climbing in Oman

Read Macadam, Arnaud Petit and Alex Ruscior travel to Oman to explore new routes!

In January 2016 I invited Arnaud Petit and Alex Ruscior to join me to explore and equip new routes in the heart of Arabia, the Sultanate of Oman. Follow our antics! Crooked in the front… The full film “Valley of Giants – A Bouldering Odyssey in Oman” will be screening at the dolomitifest.com/ on Feb 12 and at Festival Gorniskega filma gorniski.si/ on 17 February and will be publicly available after that! valleyofgiantsfilm.com

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Video: Seb Bouin Climbing in Rodellar

A great little video featuring Seb Bouin Climbing in Rodellar.

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Climber’s Access Society of BC (CASBC) AGM Wednesday, Feb. 3rd, 2016 @ The Hive North Shore

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Just a reminder to all those members and non-members, The Climber’s Access Society of BC (CASBC) will be hosting their Annual General Meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 3rd, 2016 at The Hive North Shore. The meeting will start at 730pm.

Come out to support CASBC, as they talk about some of the issues surrounding climbing access in BC. They will also be electing new directors for the upcoming year. Be sure to support CASBC tomorrow or at the very least, purchase your membership here.

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Tommy Caldwell @ Patagonia Vancouver | Monday, Feb. 1st, 2016 7pm

For all you Tommy Caldwell fans, Tommy will be presenting ‘A line Across the Sky’ tonight at the Patagonia Store Vancouver. Doors open at 7pm and there is a rumour of beer! All donations for this event will go towards the Squamish Access Society and it will be a great time to renew your membership if you haven’t already!

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Video: Squamish Obscurities ‘Report All Poachers ‘

Here is a video from Tim Matthias featuring the route ‘Report All Poachers’ located on Riant Ridge, Valley of Shaddai area, in Squamish BC.

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Live: 2016 USA Open Bouldering National Championships SEMI-FINALS

The 2016 Us Open Bouldering National Championship semi-final and final rounds take place today and will be live streamed thanks to LT11.TV. With a number of strong competitors including Daniel Woods, Jimmy Webb, and Ty Landman leading the charge, the event is surely not to be missed. It should be noted that during the qualification round, local BC climber Elan Jonas McCrae placed 25th in a very tough field. Best of luck to Elan as he starts out his competition season strong.

Here are the feeds for Semi-finals and finals below:

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Video: Black Diamond: Project Siurana

Black Diamond athletes pitch in to clean up Siurana.

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Squamish Access Society AGM | Sunday, Jan. 31st, 2016

Just a reminder for all those Squamish Access Society members that the SAS Annual General Meeting will take place this Sunday, Jan. 31st at Ground Up Climbing Centre.

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Post Competition Interview with Tiffany Melius

Last week, we ran an interview with Tiffany Melius as she prepared for the 2016 BC Open Bouldering Provincials. Going into the event, Tiffany was ready to defend her title as Provincial Champion in a strong group of female competitors. However, her goals for that event did not go as planned. Tiffany ended up placing in sixth during the competition putting her in second place overall in the BC Provincial rankings, with the 2016 BC Open Provincial Champion title going to Alannah Yip.

Often in our interviews with competitors, we focus on the preparation for these events and then the outcome, but rarely do we have a chance to stop and reflect on what happens when an athlete doesn’t meet a goal that they set for themselves. In the sport of climbing, our personal goals are often set just below failure and in doing so we need to be able to weather the storm, reflect on those moments, and get back up and try again. Tiffany was open enough to talk about some of her reflections after this weekend and here is what she had to say.

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Tiffany Melius at 2016 Provincials. Photo by Ken Chow ©

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