Just a few thoughts
Our climbing hubs are beloved places with unfolding stories, and all eyes have been on Salt Lake City’s of late. In the past 30 days, the city welcomed multiple IFSC comps, the first North American Cup, USAC Paraclimbing Nationals, and will host the CWA Summit in 2022. The next chapter is always unwritten, and this is far from SLC’s last page-turner.
PS: routesetters, please take the 2021 Grip List survey by June 30th
Insider Stuff
Podcast: Untelling The Story (Alex Honnold, Climbing Gold)
Diversity in Climbing – How You Can Help (Rachel Carr, UK Climbing)
“When you think about it, it’s not hard to understand why our climbing walls aren’t more diverse, and quite frankly, the why doesn’t really matter. What does matter is the how: how do we change it?” – Rachel Carr
Why Aren’t There More Black Climbers? These Athletes Know Why and Aim to Make a Difference (Corey Buhay, Climbing)
”If there is a need to talk about a diversity problem in any demographic, it means there aren’t enough allies and mentors.” – Connie Lightner
Woman Dies In Climbing Gym In Auto-Belay Accident (Michael Levy, Climbing)
“Our hearts go out to this person’s friends and family. Many of our staff are also quite shaken by this event and we are all still trying to cope.” – Ascent Studio
GoFundMe To Support Children of Auto-Belay Accident Victim
“We are asking the community to help us support this family as they navigate through this difficult time. While nothing can replace what they have lost, we as a community can show our compassion and support for this family and these two children.” – August Barber
Etiquette & Fun
The Five Do’s and Don’ts of Gym Climbing (Noah Walker, Gripped)
“Social change takes more than a night, but effort is always rewarded in climbing. The very least any of us can do is treat everyone with respect and when things get wacky, take a breath. Climbing is supposed to be fun.” – Noah Walker
Good to be Back at the Climbing Gym (Gripped)
“Summer is usually a time when climbers take a break from the gym, so that they can head outdoors, but when your local gym opens, be sure to support them because every facility in Canada has taken a hit over the past 15 months.” – Gripped
Video: Gym Climbing Sketch Comedy (Louder Than 11)
Olympian Updates
Olympic Outfits – Sport Climbing Style at Tokyo 2020 (Natalie Berry, UK Climbing)
The Tokyo Olympics will be Akiyo Noguchi’s First… and Last (Owen Clarke, Climbing)
“When I heard the news, I decided to play for four more years…If it was held in another country, or if it were not the first-ever Olympic sport climbing event, I think my motivation would have been different.” – Akiyo Noguchi
Olympian Alannah Yip Took the Long Road to the Games (Delaney Miller, Climbing)
“On and off, I practice meditation. I find that helps me stay grounded and just put things into perspective. Sometimes when you get nervous, everything seems way bigger and more important than it really is.” – Alannah Yip
Aleksei Rubtsov Proves That You Don’t Have To Start Young To Be The Best (Delaney Miller, Gym Climber)
“Develop a lot of skills rather than putting all the emphasis on strength. Life is long, the main thing is to maintain health and self-confidence, then everything will work out.” – Aleksei Rubtsov
Non-Olympics Comp News
Results From 2021 Paraclimbing National Championships (Owen Clarke, Gym Climber)
Q&A with Pro Climber and Full-Time Student Natalia Grossman (Zoe Leibovitch, Training 4 Climbing)
“The most difficult part about balancing school and training is the feeling of fatigue that I get from looking at a screen all day. It can be hard to do all my work when I am faced with sitting at a computer for hours on end.” – Natalia Grossman
Video: Shauna Coxsey Retires: 5th Greatest Female Comp Boulderer of All Time? (Tyler Norton, Plastic Weekly)
Team France Triumphant In First-Ever Boulder Mixed Team Event (IFSC)
“It was pretty clear from the beginning that this was an experiment and mostly for fun, so we put together two teams that we thought were going to be able to do those things: play with the format and have some fun.” – Meg Coyne
Video: Boulder Mixed Team event tested for the first time ever (IFSC)
Routesetting & Training
Video: Setting a Dynamic Easy Boulder (Kegan Minock, DoughJo Setting)
You Can Get Stronger Then Ever In Your 40s, 50s and Even 60s (Neil Gresham, Climbing)
“Seek to evolve and refine your game each year, rather than merely repeating the same routines—or mistakes…There are always new things to do.” – Neil Gresham
Video: Warming up at the Crag (Lattice Training)
CBJ Originals
Wanted: Routesetter Opinions For Grip List 2021 Survey
2022 CWA Summit Moving to Salt Lake City
“The new location in Salt Lake offers a larger meeting space, more things to do, and easier access to world class climbing facilities.” – CWA
HWOW 62: Garage Wall Through Roof
Climbing Business Journal is an independent news outlet dedicated to covering the indoor climbing industry. Here you will find the latest coverage of climbing industry news, gym developments, industry best practices, risk management, climbing competitions, youth coaching and routesetting. Have an article idea? CBJ loves to hear from readers like you!
