A local climbing facility is putting up a wall to honour a Red Deer man who tragically died in November 2019.
Lucas Chabot, who was a member of Trailhead Climbing and Fitness in Gasoline Alley, was 21, when he suffered a heart attack at a bouldering competition in Calgary.
READ MORE: 21-year-old Red Deer climber dies at competition
A GoFundMe page was launched shortly after his death, with the goal of building a wall in his memory at Trailhead. The online fundraiser brought in more than $17,500.
“This wall is a wonderful addition to our community and will stand as a memorial to Lucas’ love of climbing and the climbing community’s love of Lucas,” Lucas’ mother Tracy Chabot told the Red Deer Advocate in an email Saturday.
The new kilter board wall has hydraulics which allows it to be inclined to a 55-degree angle, Tracy explained.
The wall is covered with 445 holds that have the ability to be lit up individually. This allows any user to utilize a phone app displaying a grid of the wall – the user is then able to touch any pattern of holds on the app to light up the route on the actual wall.
“Our family is so incredibly grateful to (Trailhead owner Kurtis Paul) and team for their vision and unwavering support. We cannot express our gratitude enough to all who contributed,” Tracy said.
Lucas Chabot was an “integral part” of the climbing community from before Trailhead was even open, a post on the Trailhead Climbing Facebook page said March 4.
“Lucas was known for his big goofy grin, warm heart and his unnaturally strong climbing ability,” the Facebook post said.
“His presence is still missed at Trailhead.”
The GoFundme page said Lucas discovered indoor rock climbing at the Collicutt Centre.
“Lucas had found his passion and became one of Red Deer’s most passionate and skilled rock climbers,” the fundraiser page said.
He worked at Trailhead in different capacities up until his death, the GoFundMe page added.
“Our family is so grateful that Lucas found his second family at Trailhead. … You could not find a more supportive, wholesome and fun-loving group of people.”
sean.mcintosh@reddeeradvocate.com
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