Queerclimbtastic Leadership
Queerclimbtastic is fully volunteer led event that brings in about 130 people every year. Our diverse leadership team helps organizes and manages this event while maintaining an equitable space for all.
Our Board
Jason Traylor (He/Him)
DEI and Programs Director
Jason began his climbing journey in his hometown of Atlanta, GA, back in the spring of 2013. Since then, he has made it his mission to make climbing more accessible to all. Jason founded a nonprofit with this goal in mind: Climb Beyond the Barrier Inc. He currently serves as the president of this organization, where he continues to foster safe and welcoming spaces for LGBT+ individuals and other underrepresented communities. These spaces include events such as The Chattanooga Kiki, The Alabama Potluck and Werk the Red. Jason first attended Queerclimbtastic in the summer of 2022 and is now proud to join the Queerclimbtastic team.
Jamie Sampson (She/Her)
Communications Director
In November 2022, Jamie joined the group GLAM in Austin, TX and started their climbing adventures through indoor bouldering. The following year in March, Jamie geared up for their first experience indoor and outdoor rope climbing. Since then, Jamie has attended Queerclimbtastic twice in 2023 and 2024 and is excited to take part in planning future events that encourage a diverse and welcoming climbing community for all.
Ben Smith (He/Him)
Director of Community Activities
Ben is a new addition to the leadership team, but a long time attendee of Queerclimbtastic. He spends 10 months of each year teaching elementary school, and the other two months traveling to national parks (40 of 62 visited so far)
Ben can usually be found hammocking at the crag, but is good for a belay and the occasional climb. He can also be counted on for carrying the first aid kit, and an abundance of snacks.
Ben came t0 Queerclimbtastic alone, nursing a heartbreak in 2013 and found a warm and welcoming community, and he hasn’t missed a gathering since.
Leigh Rye (They/Them)
Graphics & Visuals Director
Leigh started climbing 10 years ago as a supplement to their other sports. They quickly fell in love, and became an active member of their local queer climbing community. Some of Leigh's other hobbies include running, hiking, backpacking, and hanging out with their dog. A professional Graphic Designer and Fine Artist, they often find inspiration while climbing in the outdoors. Leigh is passionate about working to make climbing and the outdoors a welcoming space for everyone.
Chris Jones (He/Him)
Hospitality Director
Growing up on the coastal plains of Alabama, Chris had never met a real rock. This remained mostly true until he moved to Austin, TX in 2012. It was there he realized that the world was not just one continuous flat swamp, there were mountains and river canyons out there waiting to be explored. It was this that inspired him to search the web for other queer folk that were also into rocks. That is how Chris found Queerclimbtastic, GLAM, a husband, and his chosen family. “Rock climbing provided a way for me to explore the world and challenge myself in ways that I had not been challenged before. I’ve been able to meet so many great people and I look forward to giving back to the community in anyway that I can.
Cyn Nist (They/Them)
Silent Auction Director
Cyn began climbing at CRG Atlanta (formerly Stone Summit Atlanta) a decade ago, initially focusing on ropes before transitioning to bouldering. In 2022, encouraged by their friend Jason Traylor, they attended their first Queerclimbtastic. As a nonbinary, neurodiverse individual and future social worker, Cyn values meaningful representation and affinity spaces for marginalized groups, especially within the climbing community. While pursuing their graduate degree in social work at UGA, Cyn interned at Lost N Found Youth (LNFY), an organization supporting unhoused LGBTQ+ youth in Atlanta, where they collaborated to introduce youth to Unharnessed Pride meetups and the sport of climbing. Cyn also played a key role in organizing the first trans and nonbinary climb for the 2024 Queerclimbtastic. They currently balance their time between coursework, interning at the Atlanta Veterans Health Administration, working at The Overlook bouldering gym, spending time with their partner, and climbing with friends. Excited to join the QC board, Cyn is eager to help create safe, welcoming spaces for climbers across the spectrum.
Dori Boggess (She/Her)
Treasurer
Born and raised in California, she grew up climbing in the Sierra Nevada foothills and visiting Yosemite. For the past 20 years, she has called Chattanooga home, where she owns a housekeeping business. Passionate about climbing, she enjoys introducing new climbers to the sport and helping gym climbers transition outdoors. She’s an active member of the Chattanooga Queer Climbers group and loves paddleboarding, hiking, snowboarding, and gardening. When indoors, she enjoys board games, RPGs, home improvement projects, and relaxing with her cat.
Our Ambassadors
Kevin Niu (He/Him)
POC Meetup Leader
Kelly Nguyen (She/Her)
Ladies & Theydies Meetup Leader
Manny Cruz (He/Him)
Trail Day Leader
Clinton Nguyen (He/Him)
Discord Moderator
Zia Zhao (He/They)
Trans & Nonbinary Meetup Leader
Rachel Harmon (She/They)
Registration & Analytics
