In these days where the typical progression seems to be gym to toproping outdoors to leading indoors to leading sport outdoors to following and leading trad outdoors, my story raises some eyebrows.
I used to hike a lot in the mountains and got bored with trails, so I started wondering what I might see from the top of that mountain behind the lake I'd hiked to or where the ridge might lead from the pass. So before I ever knew what the YDS was, I had scrambled some easy 5th Class routes.
Then I discovered there was rock climbing just 15 minutes from home, so I got a helmet and some shoes and started free soloing all the easier routes. Eventually, I wanted to climb harder stuff, so I took a couple courses on the basics and on anchors. Then I learned how to toprope and lead solo, and I was off.
My favorite thing is easy/moderate multi-pitch trad and alpine, but I now live in a place dominated by single-pitch sport climbing, so I mostly do that.
One regret now that I am almost 50 and I didn't really get into it until 41 and now my body is protesting is that I didn't get into it back in my 20s when I first started exploring the mountains. Without ever training in the gym, I've gotten to leading 5.10 trad and 5.11 sport, and I might have some 5.12 sport routes in me, but I fear I've basically plateaued.
Not that it matters so much since what I really love is hours and hours of 5.6 multi-pitch where the climbing is just spicy enough to be interesting and I can enjoy the movement and placing the gear. I'll take 8 pitches of 5.5 over redpointing a 30' sport 11b any day.