When freshman Kerry Scott’s father took her to the rock-climbing wall at what was then known as Galleons as a purely fun activity, he had no idea that he was introducing her to her future passion.
Kerry starting climbing for fun with her brother and father at Galleons when she was 4 years old. At age 7 she started to practice the sport at a higher level.
“I went there every Saturday with my brother and dad,” Kerry said. “After a while I got good for a 7-year-old, so the man who worked there told me to go to a gym.”
Kerry trains five or six days a week for about three hours at the Earth Trek Climbing Center in Rockville. She competes on Earth Treks’ team.
According to Kerry, she trains for endurance and power. Her exercises include pull-ups and push-ups because in rock-climbing, strong arms and a strong core are essential for success.
“I come up with different drills and workouts that work on different types of moves, terrains, climbing styles and techniques every week,”her coach Mike Lyons said.
Kerry competes in local, regional, national and international competitions. Most competitions Kerry competes in are red-point competitions, which let the climber pick a climb. The harder the climb, the more points it is worth. 
“Climbs are hard with bad holds and difficult movements,” Kerry said. “If you finish, you get points.”
 On Nov. 24 and 25, Kerry placed fourth in the Pan-American games in Ibarra, Ecuador against climbers from North and South America.  This competition involved eight climbs over two days. She competed in the bouldering section, a type of climbing in which the walls are short and there is no rope or belayer, a partner on the ground who can release rope to allow the climber to get higher.
“You’re in isolation,” Kerry said. “You can’t watch other people climb, and you have five minutes to look and go.  Whoever gets the furthest up wins.”
While climbing without a rope or belayer may seem frightening for Kerry, it’s simply par for the course. Instead, she believes leading, a type of climbing in which the climber is held from a rope attached below, to be the scariest type of climbing.
“If you fall, you fall twice the distance,” Kerry said. “My worst fall was when I fell from 50 feet to 10 feet, but I was caught.”
Kerry enjoys being part of such an unusual sport. She hopes to go to a college with a rock-climbing wall and continue to climb as she gets older.
 “I like how it’s different,” Kerry said. “Besides the fact that not a lot of people do it, they change the climbs and it’s always exciting.”