Rock Climbing 101

Geared up and (sort of) ready to go 

You're not alone if you're surprised to learn that I recently went on an outing at a rock climbing facility. It was a blast! But let me back up a little. 

You may have heard me wax eloquent about The Bay. It is a gem in our community. The public park hosts everything from fitness classes and dance lessons to concerts and movies. It was designed to be "one park for all" and achieves its mission daily. But I digress -- sort of. I mention The Bay because it was a friend from an exercise class there who suggested a rock climbing outing at Hexrock Climbing. Nothing ventured...

We arrived at different times so we were oriented by different staff members. Our guy was kind of a "wham, bam, thank you ma'am" sort. "Here's how you put on your gear. Here's how you clip in. Have fun." Um, okay. I was sort of jealous that other people did a practice fall onto the bouncy mat just in case they took a tumble. I'm happy to say that I still don't have that experience. Now on to the climbing. 

Hexrock offers more than 14,000 square feet of climbing surface, with walls that range from 15' to 35' in height. While there are other climbing options, newbies generally stick to the top rope approach, which means you are anchored to a rope at the top of the wall. It's the most straightforward and "easiest" style of climbing, but it was plenty challenging for me. I am not kidding when I say my triceps started squawking the first moment I began pulling myself up. Seriously? 

Almost to the summit! 

Shockingly, the others in our group had a somewhat easier time than I did. Perhaps I should consider adding bootcamp to my workout routine. The mere thought of it makes me want to get a massage and then take a nap. But I digress. 

The difficulty of the climbs is marked so you know what you're about to tackle. The rating isn't based on how high you can climb but on the relative security of the foot and handholds. You can see that the wall I'm climbing here has different options. I found moving up the purple "boulders" sufficiently challenging without stressing me out. I'm confident I would have gotten the chance to test out how cushy the mats were had I tried the green "pebbles." 

Teri also tackled lower walls that you climbed without the benefit of a harness. You know, like in the movie "Free Solo." It might not have been exactly the same experience, but I still give her a lot of credit. She had arrived well before I did, and I could barely lift my arms by the time she was not only climbing this wall but still smiling. Go, girl!   

Climbing was a breeze for Teri

I don't have much more to say about the outing per se, but it did make me wonder how indoor climbing became a thing. Originally, indoor climbing facilities were a means to an end, with the end being a way to stay in shape off season for real rock climbing. The holds were made from rocks or wood to replicate a real climbing experience. As an aside, practice climbers in Los Angeles did things a bit differently. Instead of going to an indoor facility, they glued handholds onto the bottom of highway underpasses and climbed there. There's nothing like the sound of traffic overhead to help you focus. 

It wasn't until the mid-'80s that French climber Francois Savigny realized that you could make the holds out of plastic, put a bolt in the middle of them and move them around on a wall. With that, a sport became a recreational activity. Today more than 700 indoor climbing facilities can be found across the country with a collective market value in excess of $3.5 billion. That's a lot of rocks. But back to our outing. 

After a couple of hours of climbing and chatting, my shoulders ached and I was dreaming of hot tub jets loosening them up. (A hot shower had to suffice.) Although I haven't discovered a new passion, I would definitely go back sometime. New experiences keep us young, right, despite what my body might say about it. With that, it's time to retire to my couch and watch some soccer.