Ever wish you could wake up as an elite competitive athlete? For one ice climber, that wish came true. Author: Corey Buhay Publish date: May 14, 2019 Updated on May 14, 2019 Chalk clouded the air like smoke in a billiards bar. A slackline pulsed with the pounding house music. Shirtless bros dynoed all around the room. It’s hard not to be self-conscious at The Spot, especially when management has told you to stay in the corner and wear a helmet at all times. In the fall of 2018, I started going to the Boulder, Colorado, bouldering gym two nights a week. It was the only gym within 90-miles that permitted training for competitive drytooling. Don’t worry if you haven’t heard of it—the sport has a small following in the U.S. Most people aren’t interested in climbing plastic holds with ice tools and crampons. Surprising, right? But competitive drytooling is popular in countries like Russia and Korea. While traditional competition climbing tends to be fast and dynamic, drytooling is a game of grace and slow motion, superhuman strength and control. Competition holds often have metal plates pocked with dimples no bigger than those of a golf ball. You set your…