Mckinlay Mountaineering — Local services in Leeds

Absolutely fantastic service. I used Mckinlay Mountaineering for both my RCI Training and Assessment. Dan’s courses are expertly run by passionate and dedicated climbers who clearly love the sport and are keen to share this with others.

My assessment course was 17-18th April and so was one of the first courses that could be run this year. Mark Smith, who ran the course was clearly genuinely excited to be back running the course and immediately did everything he could to set us at ease. I sent the below to Dan Mckinlay the evening after my course.

“ Firstly, thank you for being so flexible for me in the run up, I know it’s a difficult time and it’s not helped by people like me putting it off three times so thank you, you really helped!

Secondly, I’d just like to say how well run the weekend itself was. Mark was absolutely incredible and everything you could want from an assessor. He made me feel really comfortable and absolutely set the tone to get the best out of me. He was open to ideas and whilst rigorous also made it clear the whole weekend was a learning process which meant that I felt like I not only got to show the best of myself, I could also try new things and pick up new ideas. Rowan, who came along as well, was a fantastic addition to the team and was great at sharing ideas and inspired us...

Just completed my RCI assessment with Dan, ably assisted by Mark. It was a fantastic two days, despite the weather which was truly honking! The assessment was extremely thorough and expertly delivered, but the only pressure I felt was that which I put on myself. Dan and Mark were not in your face at all, but allowed us the time and space to set up and prepare whilst watching from a distance, then appearing out of the rain at the right time to give friendly yet perceptive questioning and feedback. Dan and Mark both treated the assessment as a development opportunity as well, and I certainly learned a lot from both of them to further my climbing and instructing skills. With many different activity providers out there, I cannot recommend Mckinlay mountaineering enough if you want a valuable, comprehensive and above all enjoyable experience whatever your...

I’ve done many training and assessment courses with Dan since the start of my career. They have always been thorough, well organised and professional. Dan himself is a very calming character under sometimes stressful situations and his wealth of knowledge and experience really shines through in his delivery. On top of that he has always made himself available for advice and guidance after the courses have finished which is a huge + for budding instructors who are unsure.

My most recent course with Dan was the RCDI training run from Bamford. Again the course was extremely well run under challenging circumstances from the weather and COVID, the content delivered was top notch, and Dan really took the time to ask for our feedback and opinions throughout the duration of the course so that his future courses continued to improve.

Will...