Outdoor Retailer PreShow - Summer 2019 - 22

FEATURE 1

Kai Lightner and
Shane Messer work
out a problem-as
they have done since
Kai was 6-at Central
Rock Gym in Watertown, Massachusetts.

became the Youth Sport World
Champion at 14. Connie says that
ever since Kai was young, it was
always "OK, what's the next goal?"
The following year, now eligible
for the adult comp circuit, he won
the Open Sport Nationals. It was
around this time that Kai went
through a 12-inch growth spurt in
less than two years. He started experiencing injuries that would take
him out for two to three months at

a time, derailing his training and
competition performance.
Thanks in part to Messer's
big-picture coaching style, the poor
results didn't faze Kai. He went
back to what Messer had first told
him when he didn't do well in a
competition. "You are entitled to be
upset and not to be satisfied with
your performance," Messer would
say, "but when you come off the
wall, all these kids look up to you."

/ SUMMER MARKET 2019

For Messer, coaching has always
been about developing athletes as
people, not just as climbers.
"Some people are win-at-anycost; that's never been Shane
Messer," Connie says. "He's always
had integrity and high morals. It's
about being a role model." Messer's dad, a military man, taught
him to always keep a level head.
"If you let emotions take over,
you do and say things you don't

mean," Messer says. "You make
decisions that will impact you negatively in the future. The biggest
compliment I get as a coach is,
'Hey, I hung out with your kid, and
he was so respectful-a joy to be
around.' Who cares if they win?"
In 2017, Kai graduated as valedictorian from Reid Ross Classical High School, earning him
full scholarships from multiple
colleges. He chose Babson College
for its top-billed entrepreneurship
major-and because it's in Boston, where Messer works as the
director of routesetting for Central
Rock Gyms.
"Having my coach there would
keep me more disciplined," Kai
says. "I mean, I love the gym, but
sometimes it's hard to get me
out of bed. Messer knows how to
motivate me and keep me sane."
The latter came into play this past
January when Kai found himself
struggling to keep up with a rigorous academic schedule, training
five days a week, and traveling to
competitions that would hopefully
lead to a spot in the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. Balancing college
with an ever-changing competition
calendar proved a near impossibility. Kai consulted with Messer
and Connie over the course of a
month, ultimately making the
tough decision to put his Olympic
dream on hold in favor of focusing
on academics. For now.
Kai will keep on climbing, with
his sights set on more outdoor
climbs as well as the 2024 Olympics. As his relationship with Messer has evolved from coach-to-kid to
peer-to-peer, it's clear that competition is just a part of what they
share. In the face of this latest challenge, Messer told Kai what he's
been telling him before every comp
for 13 years now: "He said he'll love
me and support me regardless of
what happens," says Kai. "He just
wants me to be happy."
A former Climbing magazine
editor-in-chief, Julie Ellison
writes, shoots, and edits stories
about climbing and the outdoors.

Outdoor Retailer PreShow - Summer 2019

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