A Quebec man who grew up climbing trees for fun will compete against the world’s fastest tree climbers in an international competition next month.
By day, Leilak Anderson, 35, works as an arborist, a job in which he prunes trees to keep them healthy. For fun, the Wakefield, Que. man competes in the niche sport of tree climbing.
“Once we got him into the harness there was no holding him back,” his father, Jeb Anderson, told CTV Ottawa.
Competitors use special rigging to scale trees as fast as they can and ring a bell. Since he first entered the competitions more than a decade ago, Anderson has won championships in both Quebec and North America, earning him a reputation as one of the fastest tree climbers on Earth.
His next goal: to win the International Tree Climbing Championship, which is scheduled to take place in Ohio in August.
“It’ll be a combination of speed, safety, and innovation and some new techniques,” Anderson explained.
It’ll be a tough feat. Climbers from New Zealand have dominated the standings in recent years, with five of the last seven champions hailing from the South Pacific nation.
No matter how Anderson fares in Ohio, his father says he’s proud of how far his son has taken his passion.
“He’s taken it right up to the top,” he said.
The very first tree climbing competition was held in 1976 in St. Louis, Mo. Annual competitions are now held in countries across the globe.
With files from CTV Ottawa
