Volunteer Spotlight: LADY CRVSH CREW

Posted on by nandabacc

The Bay Area Climbers Coalition recently collaborated with the LADY CRVSH CREW at an Adopt-A-Crag at Indian Rock in Berkeley.

The LADY CRVSH CREW was formed by Sabrina Padua in May 2018. Formerly, the group was named Lady Crush Crew and was changed to LADY CRVSH CREW, where the “V” represents the V scale in bouldering grades. The mission of the group is to bring women (trans and cis), non-binary, two-spirit, and friends together through outdoor orgym meetups, and stewardship through crag cleanups. Additionally the LADY CRVSH CREW brings visibility to the underrepresented demographic of climbers by sharing stories, pictures and video on their social media platforms. The group has now grown to having more than 20 leaders and ambassadors across Northern and Southern California. 

We caught up with some of the Crew volunteers and asked them some questions about how they learned about BACC and what stewardship means to them.

A side portrait of Maggie looking behind her shoulder. The background is blurred. Her hair is a bright purple and she is wearing a pink tank top.
Maggie Gierard Photo Credit: Vanessa Vun (@rocketnessa)

Maggie (she/her) learned about the BACC through her involvement in the local climbing community and her desire to help take care of local crags. She mainly boulders and sport climbs at Mission Cliffs and Dogpatch as well as Indian rock, Mortar Rock, and Great Stone Face. Maggie initially started attending LADY CRVSH CREW meetups and finds the group to be a very supportive and fun space. She is currently one of the SF Crew Leaders for the group. For Maggie, “Stewardship to me is honoring and taking care of the land that we enjoy and climb on. I want future generations and everyone to be able to enjoy this land and I want to respect the people who have lived on this land for a very long time.” 

Tags: @ladycrushcrew@mags.at.crags

Rebecca sitting on a bouldering crash pad looking back over her shoulder and smiling towards the camera. There is another crash pad next to the one she is sitting on that is underneath a boulder. The boulder has several chalk marks on it.
Rebecca Taggart bouldering at Salt Point State Park. Kashaya Pomo territory. Photo credit: Mike Madigan.

This was Rebecca’s (she/her) third clean up with the BACC said, “I love meeting new people at these events. It’s always super well organized and it’s a lot of fun. It feels great!” Rebecca lives in Berkeley and can often be found climbing at Mortar Rock and Berkeley Ironworks. She also takes weekend trips to Tahoe or Yosemite with her husband, Mike, who she met through climbing. Rebecca is a NorCal Ambassador for the LADY CRVSH CREW. She joined the group to encourage new climbers so they can feel supported in the community. She said, “[Stewardship] means paying attention to our local crags, and leading by example for others who are new to climbing. I think it’s really important to give back to our local climbing areas. Either that is helping with local clean ups, or just picking up trash when you are out climbing.” 

Tags: @ladycrushcrew @rtag

You can get to know more about the LADY CRVSH CREW via their social media platforms:

If you have a volunteer story you’d like to share, please email info@bayareaclimberscoalition.org!