Ollie Sandeman
I grew up in Mid Wales discovering paddle sports on a trip to an outdoor centre, my parents then bought me one of the centres Pyranha masters and then I started to head out on the rivers around Mid Wales. Following an outdoor education course at college I started my career working in the Aosta valley in 2007, this opened my eyes to alpine whitewater kayaking with the Dora Baltea on my doorstep. The next couple of years was spent leading canoe trips on the Ardeche, often considered a rite of passage for canoe coaches. Spending time over here converted me to love spending time in a canoe as much as a kayak and rocketed my paddling heading for trips on the Allier and in the French alps at any opportunity. I then returned to the UK and started working freelance, coaching and guiding canoeing on the Wye and kayaking on the Usk in the Winter months. I spent over a year working and living on the West coast of New Zealand working as a kayak guide and exploring the fantastic whitewater New Zealand has to offer. I then started working freelance providing coaching and British Canoeing courses in North and South Wales gaining some great experiences and mentorship from some exceptional coaches before setting up my own paddle sports business. I’ve had the pleasure of paddling and working in some amazing locations with canoeing in the Canadian wilderness and heli kayaking in New Zealand being the highlights. I’ve been working at Plas y Brenin a little while now and can’t think of anywhere better to be based for the variety of spectacular locations for paddling on our doorstep.
Ambitions
More time on the salty stuff in a sea kayak, getting out on the amazing whitewater we have on our doorstep at any opportunity and taking my trad canoe into unusual locations is on the agenda.Bigger plans would be to plan a steep creeking trip abroad and a big canoe expedition to Canada.
Louise Beetlestone
I grew up in Mid Wales, where I climbed a lot of trees, played in the river, and walked with my Mum and Sister. At 10 years old, I ascended my first mountain, Drygarn Fawr, and did my first rock climb on a school residential.
I went on to Coleg Powys Brecon to study Sports Science including some modules of Outdoor Education, before starting work as a Trainee Instructor at Longtown Outdoor Centre in the Black Mountains. The next year, I got a NVQ Level 3 in Outdoor Education, followed shortly by my Rock Climbing Instructor Qualification, then Mountain Leader. The Mountain Leader was my first interaction with Plas y Brenin, who provided the course!
I moved to North Wales and pursued my Winter Mountain Leader and Mountaineering and Climbing Instructor qualifications. I took part in the Instructor Scheme at Plas y Brenin starting in 2010. In 2016, I was the Welsh mountain running champion, and the following year I got my Winter Mountaineering and Climbing Instructor qualification.
Additional accomplishments include completing the Paddy Buckley round (47 peaks), and in 2019 I learned to ski as well as climbed over 56 peaks in the Alps over 4,000m.
Emma Warren
I was part of the Army Cadets from 1995-2000, before completing the Ten Tors Bronze in 1997. Shortly after, I also completed a Silver Duke of Endiburgh's Award, before being introduced to Plas y Brenin in 1999 with an Introduction to Rock Climbing course. I took part in a World Challenge trip to India and spent the following gap-year travelling from London to Hong Kong overland, leading my first climb on a new route in Iran. In the next decade, I completed a BSC in Outdoor and Environmental Education at Liverpool John Moores University, and led 16 trips for World Challenge to India, Nepal, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Morocco, Madagascar, and Vietnam. After getting my Mountain Leader and Rock Climbing Instructor qualifications, I instructed at Venture Trust, and was part of the Hot Rock trip from South Africa to Jordan. By 2011 I was employed in the Plas y Brenin Instructor Scheme. I got my Winter Mountain Leader qualification and did a PGCE in Geography at Aberystwyth University shortly after, and instructed/taught at Plas Dol y Moch. Since then, I have achieved my Mountaineering and Climbing Instructor, International Mountain Leader, and Winter Mountaineering and Climbing Instructor awards.
Pete Catterall
Pete has been working in the outdoors for over 30 years. During this time he has worked in a variety of centres and organisations from the local education authority outdoor centre to privately owned adventure companies. Pete got into the outdoors on a trip to North Wales for a week of outdoor education as an 11 year-old and was totally hooked. He decided then that was what he wanted to do. Pete has coached international athletes and has mentored and trained the coaches who work with Olympic athletes. He now heads up the instructional team at Plas y Brenin.
Bradley Reed
- Having taken the modern route into rock climbing (starting on a climbing wall), the sense of freedom and adventure which wild places gave me led me to become immersed in climbing, especially the adventurous side of it. This led me towards a career in the outdoors, where I have a special interest in coaching and personal growth. I love introducing people to and aiding personal development within adventurous settings.
- I moved to north Wales to develop my personal passion for rock climbing and discovered a warm and open community of like-minded people who love to be outdoors.
Achievements
- I’ve climbed first ascents in Morocco and repeated routes across Western America, including climbing Half Dome, New Zealand and Thailand. I also love climbing local North Wales routes up to 8a and E6. My wife, then girlfriend, embraced South American culture by cycling 4500km through temperate rainforests, flat grasslands, high (nearly 5000m) passes and desserts, stopping to climb and trek along the way.
- I’ve built a climbing wall in my garage to keep my skills sharp throughout lockdown.
Ambitions
- My climbing tick list is ever-growing, with Lord of the Flies is at the top, but mainly I would love to continue climbing regularly and learning more about the nuances of climbing and how to teach it.
- I’ve postponed my Winter Mountaineering and Climbing Instructor Award but walking, biking and swimming in wild places closer to home have given me a new perspective on what adventures can be.
Rich Gentry
- My year is split between North Wales and the West Coast of Scotland. I spend the majority of the year working in sunny North Wales, which is where I call home, and spend the winter based around Fort William where the snow and ice conditions are better. I also like to spend time working on the Cuillin Ridge on Skye in the spring as it’s totally amazing.
- In addition to UK work, I run overseas expeditions, primarily trekking trips to less travelled locations.
- I enjoy spending time with lots of interesting people and the variety that comes with the work. For example, I could spend one week working on a Mountain Leader course, including camping and night navigation for people who want to work in the Industry. The next could be a rock-climbing course climbing on classic crags around the area with people that are really keen to climb independently.
Achievements
- I spend time climbing and travelling in wild and adventurous places. Some highlights include climbing along the Andes in South America, trad climbing in Morocco and countless days on the sea cliffs of North Wales.
Ambitions
- I like to combine adventurous trad climbing and interesting travel. I’d love to get to Wadi Rum and climb the sandstone cracks and the old Bedouin routes, then head down and check out the ancient city of Petra to finish. In the short term, I’m planning to spend more time climbing the sea cliffs of Scotland.
Iona Pawson
- Family holidays spent walking and skiing inspired Iona’s passion for the mountains. Leaving her full-time education and passing her Summer Mountain Leader Award kick-started her career in the outdoors. Since she has moved from being a Centre Assistant at Plas y Brenin to a fully-fledged instructor with a specialism in land-based mountain sports.
- In her spare time, she enjoys going on ski mountaineering trips where she combines all of the mountain skills she has learned from camping and navigating to decision making, and hopefully skiing some good powder too. Highlights have included traversing the Bugaboos, skiing in Mongolia and reaching the summit of Mount Logan.
Ambitions
"To keep learning, enjoying and challenging myself in the outdoors."
- Currently, her winter work is changing from teaching skiing in the Alps to working in the UK as a newly qualified Winter Mountain Leader.
"Personally, I always have a range of dots on my Google Earth, expedition reports to read, and suggestions from friends. Who knows where my next ski expedition will take me, but it will probably involve some remote self-sufficient type 2 fun!"
- She has also been learning to Mountain Bike, which is a very good reminder of what it is like to be a scared beginner! However, she is hoping to go on some bike packing journeys and combine this new skill with her love of self-sufficient travel.
- She is also a keen vegetable gardener and enjoys baking bread and cakes. Each year she sets herself a new cooking challenge and at the moment she’s tackling croissants
Will Nicholls
- I started climbing after a friend introduced me to it as a teenager. I then attended a weekend climbing course at Plas y Brenin with another friend and loved it. Our instructor’s parting words, ‘you know just enough to go and really hurt yourselves – be careful,’ were spot on. We were keen and thought we were cool, as we didn’t know anyone else who climbed. We also imagined our climbing would make us irresistible to the girls at school. It didn’t!
- Soon enough we’d passed our driving tests – that’s when things really kicked off. We’d mainly head to Eryri (Snowdonia) or the Peak District and take a long time to climb a single route, but it didn’t matter – we felt like a ball. I joined a local mountaineering club and had my first taste of winter climbing. I was so green I even took my crampons to the bottom of the route, still in their box, with no idea how to attach them to my boots. Someone kindly showed me, and then we climbed Parsley Fern Gully and finished the day by topping out on Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon). It felt amazing. I was buzzing when I related my weekend adventure to my friends at college the next day.
- My parents were supportive of me doing whatever I wanted in the future, as long as I grafted for my A Levels. By then, I knew I wanted to work in the outdoors – I’d been inspired by the instructors I’d met while learning to ski and at Plas y Brenin. I remember going through the Plas y Brenin brochure, highlighting all the courses I’d need to attend to get to the last stage in the qualification range, the MIC (now Winter Mountaineering and Climbing Instructor). I steadily ticked my way through the qualifications; it took me ten years to go from attending my Mountain Leader training during the Easter holidays to passing my MIC assessment. I loved the process and all the brilliant trips and experiences I’ve had from climbing and skiing.
I'm really wimpy with cold water, so you'll never see me in a kayak!
Achievements
- My motivations for climbing and skiing vary depending on the day and who I’m with. If I feel I’m climbing well and confidently, I enjoy the challenge of a tricky route. Equally, if I’m not in the right mindset to climb something hard, I acknowledge it and choose a different crag or route, where the enjoyment comes more from the situation and company than the difficulty. I think this is what I like most about climbing and skiing, there’s always something to do, and it (almost!) always feels great.
Ambitions
- I’m more environmentally aware and conscious than I used to be. My focus has shifted from overseas trips to the UK or European destinations which can be reached on public transport. There’s so much to go at! I spent a week climbing in north Cornwall and Devon the other summer. I seconded a pitch that I think is probably the best climbing I’ve ever experienced, called Darkinbad The Brightdayler. Pat Littlejohn made the first ascent. We were blown away by the quality and quantity of his routes in that region – thanks, Pat! I would love to go back and lead it at some point – I’d say that’s my main climbing goal.
- Skiing-wise, the Castle gullies on Ben Nevis and the Holzer Couloir in the Dolomites are top of the list. I’d also like to go ski touring again; it’s been too long since our last epic!
- I’m really looking forward to introducing our son to adventures in the outdoors.
Spike Green
- I work across all the instructional departments at Plas y Brenin. I've been working in the outdoor industry exclusively since 1982, so I've amassed quite a range of experience in most areas of our work.
Highlights
- Making the first descent of a river in a super remote area of the eastern Peruvian jungle. After a day or so (of a 12-day trip), I said to the head of the National Park in which we were travelling (who was also with us) that I felt it be a real privilege to be the first Westerner to have ever visited this area of the jungle. She said, “No, you misunderstand; WE are the first humans to have EVER been to this area!”
- The local tribes have a detailed oral tradition which records where they have been. None of them had any collective memory of visiting the area we were in. Our footprints were the first; the wildlife had never seen humans before. That was a truly remarkable experience.
Dave Evans
- I have been instructing at Plas y Brenin for 15 years and have been a full-time instructor for the last three. I work entirely in the mountaineering department on pretty much the full range of recreational and instructional courses, from introductory walking and leadership to Mountaineering Instructor.
- In the last few years, I have been heavily involved in the development and delivery of the BMC FUNdamentals coach education modules and am a member of the BMC’s Training, Youth and Walls committee. I am a course director for every instructional and leadership course administered by Mountain Training and run most of these a few times per year, and am occasionally involved in doing bits of work specifically for them.
- I have been hillwalking, scrambling, climbing and mountaineering since before I can remember. Family holidays were generally in Scotland, the Lake District or Snowdonia, and later on throughout the French Alps. I have been skiing since I was 7 and continue to do so now. In the last 15 years, I have climbed all over the place, from America to China and Big Walls to Alpine North Faces. I am still generally most motivated by UK Trad rock climbing.
