Our Team

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General Manager/Setter

Johanna is an avid adventurer with a passion for wellness, active living  and building community. Over the past 10 years, Johanna has worked as a climbing instructor, an outdoor educator for NOLS, a guide and a teacher. She  is driven to help make climbing more accessible to people of all backgrounds, identities and abilities through community engagement and lowering barriers to entry. When Johanna isn’t climbing, you can find her trail running with her pup, gardening, creating art or baking. 

Director of Operations/Setter

Morgan was born and raised in Corvallis, Oregon. He started climbing at a very young age and as a kid growing up in Corvallis regretted the lack of climbing opportunities the area provided. He has continued to follow his passion for climbing, majoring in outdoor recreation, working as a guide, instructor, and route setter, and exploring the worlds climbing areas. All of his knowledge and experience finally bringing him back to his childhood dream of opening a climbing gym in Corvallis. Morgan also enjoys fishing, playing soccer and foraging for wild food! 

Head Setter/Program Coordinator/Instructor

Michael began climbing during his undergraduate studies on steep sandstone in the Midwest. Since then he has been fortunate to work as a route setter, coach youth climbing athletes, and take his passion for outdoor climbing across several countries. Michael has been living in Oregon since 2018; recently graduating from Oregon State University with a master’s degree in Environmental Science.  Michael is passionate about creating an inclusive, equitable, and supportive community around climbing, education, and stewardship.

Floor Manager, Instructor

 Justin has been passionate about sports for as long as he can remember. He used to be a swimmer until he started climbing 2 years ago and has found himself climbing whenever he has the chance. He just graduated with a degree in Biology at Oregon State University with interests in the medical field and marine biology. Oh! And he LOVES to cook and has a weird obsession with making and eating lasagna. 

Operations Assistant 

 Michael is originally from La Crosse, Wisconsin. He moved to Corvallis in 2017 to study Environmental Engineering at Oregon State, and has since graduated with a Bachelor of Science in 2021. He hopes to develop sustainable practices for use in business and industry, or work in water resource management and conservation. Michael enjoys climbing, surfing, camping, cooking, and listening to music. He likes the beach, coconut water, sushi, and taking a siesta after work. His favorite fruit is cantaloupe, and his favorite color is blue.  

Team Member/Setter

 Cellina is a 4th year student at OSU. She climbed for the first time when she was five in Portland, and joined the climbing team in middle school. She competed in bouldering, sport, and speed all through high school, and got to travel to cool places like Alaska and Quebec! Her favorite place to climb is Bishop, and her favorite mountain she's climbed is Mt. Hood. She also loves snowboarding, is on the ultimate frisbee team at school, and likes to skateboard on the rare occasion that it’s sunny out. 

Team Member/Setter/Instructor

  Evan Powers has recently moved to Oregon from the southeast, where he has spent most of his life. He went to college in Tennessee for a degree in audio engineering and music production. While in college, Evan discovered rock climbing, and spent many years enjoying the high quality rock the southeast has to offer. He considers places like Red River Gorge, Little Rock City, and Horse Pens 40 to be his home. He has spent several years managing a gym, routesetting, and leading outdoor trips. Evan is excited to utilize his skills and knowledge with the team to help build Valley Rock Gym into a quality establishment. 

Setter

Justin has three great passions in his life petting doggies, cooking for friends and climbing. Originally from Texas, Justin moved to Oregon back in the fall of 2019 and has been in love with it ever since. When he is not at the gym you will usually find him either out at The Garden or Eagles Rest. If not there he’s probably whacking his way through overgrowth in search of new projects and climbing areas. 

Justin has been climbing for over 15 years now and in his youth was an active part of the Houston competitive climbing scene. With over 7 years of setting experience, he is now looking forward to challenging himself by setting more parkour and comp style boulder problems. Justin’s favorite climbing areas include Horseshoe Canyon, Red Rock Canyon and Hueco Tanks. 

Team Member/Setter/Instructor

Born and raised in Medford Oregon, Tyler discovered rock climbing freshman year at OSU and has been in love with the sport ever since. He especially loves bouldering both in a gym and at the crag. He has spent the past couple years working at the OSU rock gym and has greatly enjoyed route setting and engaging with the community through classes and climbing. Tyler is a product design engineering major hoping to work designing outdoor equipment someday. His other hobbies include skiing, rafting, fishing, and backpacking. He also loves making climbing playlists so let him know if you have any song recommendations!

Team Member

Lisa just graduated Oregon State University with a degree in nutrition dietetics. She's from Ventura, California but has lived in Oregon for 5 years and loves all the hiking and nature Oregon has to offer. She spends her time outside of school spending time with friends, playing guitar, baking, working out and crafting. Her time working for the OSU athletic department as a fueling station manager has inspired her to pursue a career in sports nutrition after graduating from OSU.  Lisa has been climbing recreationally since she was in elementary school and is excited to be a part of this team so she can climb more! 

Team Member

Chelsea is passionate about living a healthy and sustainable lifestyle. She earned a bachelor’s degree in nutrition science, and over the last five years has worked in event marketing to promote natural and organic products. She brings with her a genuine enthusiasm to connect with everyone she meets, as well as a drive to make healthy choices accessible to all. She is a mother of two young boys, and looks forward to introducing them to the rock climbing and outdoor lifestyle. Chelsea is excited to be part of a team providing safe, inclusive and fun climbing for our community. 

Team Member

Mark Frost is a mechanical engineering student at Oregon State University from Oakland, California. He has a background in construction but his true passions have always involved spending time outdoors. At the end of middle school, he began climbing and has been in love ever since. It is his way to spend time with friends, disconnect from the world, and reset. Additionally, Mark is an avid cyclist, skier, and backpacker. 

Team Member

Duncan was born and raised in the PNW with a passion for the outdoors. Over the years he got into Bouldering/Climbing, Mountain Biking, Whitewater Kayaking and Hiking to name a few of his interests. He wanted to show what the outdoors has to offer and share amazing outdoor experiences with those around him and found the perfect opportunity through the Tourism and Outdoor Leadership major at OSU Cascades. He graduated in 2019 and has continued to encourage and lead anyone interested in pursuing new outdoor activities in hopes that that will spark those people to share that experience with others too.

Team Member

 Matt was raised in Corvallis and North Carolina and fell in love with rock climbing shortly after moving back to Corvallis in 2017. He is the owner of an excellent crag dog named Bosley and you can find them climbing at Broughton or Smith most weekends. Matt also works with teenagers at the Children's Farm Home and when he isn't out climbing he enjoys traveling, cooking, sewing, and playing soccer at the sports park. 
 

 Team Member

Hunter has been climbing for five years, favoring bouldering and multi-pitching when he can climb outside. He is an Oregon native and has been attending OSU as a mechanical engineering major. During his free time Hunter enjoys climbing at Smith Rock, whipping around corners with his trusted Yamaha R6, and dancing on the weekends with friends. He is most looking forward to contributing to the climbing community and to encourage a passion in new and veteran climbers alike.  Hunter’s next goal is to break into big wall climbing, and is looking forward to leading more climbing excursions. If you were to ask him why he climbs, he would say “sharing in experiences with fellow climbers and learning from the challenges that we come across.” Next time you see him around the Valley Rock Gym, don’t be afraid to strike up a conversation! 

Team Member

 Garrett is currently a Master's student at Oregon State University pursuing a career in athletic training. Originally from Bend, Oregon is where his passion for the outdoors began. His main interests include competitive sports, hiking, skiing and of course climbing! One of his favorite accomplishments is backpacking part of the PCT and summiting Mt. Whitney. In his studies, Garrett hopes to bring more awareness about the sport of climbing to his future career field to improve injury prevention and performance. He is proud to be a member of the Valley Rock Gym team and looks forward to creating a beneficial impact for the community 

Team Member

Isabella is currently pursing her Masters of Public Health in Epidemiology at Oregon State University. She is passionate about promoting preventative based approaches in health care and discovering the underlying determinants of disease. She is an aerial acrobat and in her free time enjoys creating art, spending time with friends, climbing, and exploring the outdoors. Isabella is excited to be a part of the Valley Rock Gym community and cannot wait to see the positive impact that climbing has on the community! 

Yoga  

Lauren Bartholomae is a certified 500 hour yoga teacher, specializing in a Baptiste style power vinyasa flow.  She completed her 200 hour training with Willamette Valley Power Yoga in Corvallis in 2018,  and her 300 hour training with Listen and Know Yoga in Portland in 2019.  Lauren has been teaching yoga at Willamette Valley Power Yoga in Corvallis since September 2018.  As a yoga teacher, Lauren loves the opportunity to connect with a community of people through the power of breath and movement.  When not in the yoga studio, Lauren can be found adventuring with her husband and 2 children.  She loves anything active and outdoors, and will try almost any adventure activity at least once (but probably more times).

Fitness

 Riley has been living in Oregon for over 3 years. He has worked as a wildlife technician, doing avian surveys all over Oregon while sneaking in rock climbing when he has time. His love for climbing really took off while working in Southern Oregon, spending much of his time training at the Rogue Rock Gym in Medford. In 2019, he obtained certifications through the NAFC and worked as a personal trainer focusing on teaching proper body mechanics and overall health and wellness. His goal is to create classes that will build better mobility, strength, and flexibility while mixing in exercises that will benefit climbing. Riley currently works for the Forest Service here in Corvallis and is originally from Cedar Rapids Iowa. 

Yoga 

 Prior to being a mom, Erin enjoyed travelling the world to climb and to do service. With a toddler in tow, she finds herself increasingly grateful to engage in the simpler moments of life, such as biking to Valley Rock Gym with her son and partner.  Erin currently works full-time at Oregon State University as the Yoga Coordinator.  She is also a counselor who specializes in neurodiverse adults.  Erin sees a strong connection between yoga, climbing, and well-being. Her doctoral work investigated the use of these activities, coupled with self-compassion, to support growth post trauma.  One of Erin's top teaching priorities is to nurture an experience of self-compassion in her student's.  Erin also enjoys trail running, reading, laughing, and eating cupcakes. 

Yoga

Haley Rayo received her 200RYT in Hatha Yoga in Florida, but has since incorporated other teaching styles such as Yin, Restorative and Yoga Nidra. For the past 5 years she has been practicing and teaching in Austin Texas. She began practicing Yoga in 2008 as a way to help counteract the mental and physical stresses of her job as a zookeeper.(If you are ever curious about the profession she has some wild stories!) Since 2008 she received a BA in Psychology with a concentration in Applied Behavior Analysis, which she uses everyday on her dog, her spouse and herself. Her professional and personal experiences have given her a unique insight into what a wellness practice can do for you. She wants to inspire the students in her classes to be their own keeper, so to speak. To ask “what kind of care do I need today?” When you start on one aspect of wellness the other habits will follow. Her classes encourage building your intuition, self compassion and humor. Her teaching technique is to teach from the ground up encouraging students to build the pose making the class more accessible to all. To be successful at yoga you just have to come to the mat as you are.

When she's not teaching Yoga she loves being outside in her garden or hiking with her partner and dog, Archer. She is an avid baker and cook(hot tip: she almost always has baked goods in her purse). She unwinds by settling in for a Bollywood movie and bowl of popcorn or a good book and some tea. Her favorite thing in this world is sitting around sharing good food, music, and conversation. 

Yoga

Elena renace cada día como aprendiz, así como maestra de materias relacionadas con la energía de la expresión individual y de la conciencia colectiva. El arte, la lengua materna, el contacto con la Madre Tierra –Juya Annia- y la Yoga son senderos que le permiten compartir estos descubrimientos. Elena y su hija Ita recibieron el regalo de la Yoga de Shelley Brown y agradecidas por siempre practican a diario desde hace siete años. Elena obtuvo su certificado de instructora de Hatha Yoga en junio 2018 para hacer extensiva esta práctica de Paciencia y Perseverancia a todas, todos y todes. Transformemos nuestras vidas respirando, con cada inhalación y con cada exhalación. Descubramos que Tú eres mi otro yo.

Elena reinvents herself each day as an apprentice, as well as a teacher of maters related with the energy of individual expression and collective consciousness. Art, mother tongue, contact with of our Madre Tierra –Juya Annia- and Yoga are paths that allow her to share her discoveries. Elena and her daughter Ita received the gift of Yoga from Shelley Brown and gratefully for life they have sustained a daily practice for the last seven years. Elena obtained her certificate as Hatha Yoga instructor in June 2018 with the intention of making extensive this practice of patience and perseverance with everyone who is eager to transform his/her/their life breath by breath and discover that Tú eres mi otro yo.

Yoga 

 Chloe received her 200 RYT in 2018 at Wasatch Ayurveda and Yoga in Salt Lake City, where she focused on deepening her Vinyasa and Ashtanga practice. Since then, yoga has been an important part of how she maintains her wellness. She is committed to helping people find wellness through building strong foundations in asana and mindfulness practices. The mental and physical application of yoga to climbing can be quite impactful and she's excited to explore that with folks at Valley Rock Gym. She moved to Corvallis about a year ago for grad school where she studies environmental toxicology and water quality. During an abnormal year, VRG has been a wonderful way to connect with community and she is excited to become more involved with the community. When she's not in the lab or in the studio, she enjoys climbing, rafting, birding (to name a few outdoor hobbies), reading, making playlists and baking.