Dierdre Wolownick Honnold and Maureen O’Brien’s athletic journeys defy expectation
Dierdre Wolownick Honnold rock climbs at 70
You may have seen or heard about the movie Free Solo, a sports documentary that follows Alex Honnold, the first person to climb El Capitan, a landmark rock formation in Yosemite National Park, without any safety equipment. Very impressive, if very dangerous! As the old adage goes, behind every great man is a great woman.
Alex Honnold’s mother, Dierdre Wolownick Honnold, is an accomplished athlete in her own right. A shining example of the saying, “It’s never too late!” Dierdre began her sports journey later in life. After taking up running at 55 and rock climbing at 59, she became the oldest woman to scale El Capitan at 66. A few years later, she did it again to celebrate her 70th birthday.
Hiveclass co-founder Paul Suhr is lucky to call Dierdre a friend. He and his family met her while climbing in Sacramento, CA, in 2013. Paul later reached out to Dierdre for advice for young people today. Here’s what she had to say:
Do what you love, and know who you are. Journaling can help with that. If you’re not absolutely sure of your path and whether you can walk it, you won’t get there. Life can be distracting, and every goal has challenges! If you’re not sure that you can follow through and deal with those challenges—if you’re still figuring yourself out—you won’t have the bandwidth to be the best you can be and achieve your goal. This is the oldest human advice. Socrates, in ancient Greece, said it perfectly—Know yourself. That must be the first step toward any goal.
Watch the documentary Climbing Into Life: The Dierdre Wolownick Story to learn more about Dierdre’s journey, and check out her book, Success in 7 Steps for more advice about achieving your goals.
Maureen O’Brien knows her worth
Maureen O’Brien was born dribbling. She pursued sports at a time when it was considered radical for a young woman to so much as cut her hair short (a bold choice she also made). In 1958, at 17, she had the opportunity to see the Texas Cowgirls—the female equivalent of the Harlem Globetrotters—perform near her hometown. Entranced by the players’ skills, Maureen approached the head coach after the event and boldly told him she could do everything the players on his team were doing and then some. Impressed by her spirit and intrigued by her claim, he invited her to try out for the all-female team.
Maureen wrote in her memoir-in-progress:
“To my astonishment, he pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket and asked me to jot down my name, address and telephone number. One week later, I received a telegram, inviting me to try out for the team in Washington, DC, and Atlantic City. The rest, as they say, is history.”
Maureen spent the next several years touring the US as a Cowgirl. Maureen’s granddaughter and Hiveclass’s marketing consultant, Tierney, even has a black-and-white photograph of Maureen in her Texas Cowgirl uniform. Basketball uniforms have changed a lot since then!
Later in life, Maureen added tennis and golf to her sports repertoire, worked as a coach and leadership trainer, and wrote a book called, Who’s Got the Ball?
