Just a few thoughts
It’s a special thing when new life is found for old things, and especially when there’s a sustainability purpose. Worn shoes can often be resoled, grimy holds cleaned and rented or sold, and retired ropes turned into works of art. Even when it’s hard to see, little things do add up. What around you can be recycled?
Insider Stuff
Mental Health Awareness Month Events (Memphis Rox)
How the Affinity Ice Climbing Clinic is Welcoming BIPOC Ice Climbers (Chris Donovan, Climbing)
“Growing up as a person of color in a rural area of Northern California, I always identified as being the only brown person I knew who was into mountaineering and action sports like ice climbing. I never saw anyone like me in the magazines, on film, or in real life. I knew this clinic and my photos might be a way to change that.” – Chris Donovan
Podcast: A Grant for Change feat. Kris Hampton (Sends And Suffers)
“The Catalyst Grant will award over $20,000 to individuals and teams who face barriers in accessing the climbing community and identify with an underrepresented group.”
Climbing’s Popular. What Did You Think Would Happen? (Andrew Bisharat, Evening Sends)
“The point is to remember that each of these disparate stories have one thing in common: they are the externalities of climbing’s unbridled growth and popularity. This is the new world we live in—and it’s a world that we all had a hand in creating.” – Andrew Bisharat
Honor the June Closure at Devils Tower (Access Fund)
“Access Fund fully endorses this voluntary closure, and we encourage all climbers to respect it and take the time to understand its significance. The June ceremonies that the Plains tribes hold at Devils Tower, such as the Lakota Sun Dance, are among these tribes’ most important spiritual practices.” – Access Fund
Just For Laughs
Video: Climbing on Household Objects – Mousetraps, Traffic Cones & Spinning Wheels (Bouldering Bobat)
Video: Alex Honnold Breaks Down Climbing Scenes From Movies & TV (GQ Sports)
Why the Eff Isn’t Freehanding in the Olympics? (Rex Dangerman, Climbing)
“Freehanding demands the ultimate blend of composure, skill, and commitment, which puts it light years ahead of the milquetoast events they’ll be trotting out in Japan.” – Rex Dangerman
Training Tips
Video: Lumbricals – Strange but Important Hand Muscles (Hooper’s Beta)
Finger Injuries – What’s Causing the Pain? (Gudmund Grønhaug & Cristiano Costa, UK Climbing)
“Fingers are the most common place to have an injury or develop pain in climbing. A total of 41.3% of those who have had a climbing injury in the last 6 months reported a finger-related injury.” – Gudmund Grønhaug and Cristiano Costa
Podcast: 5 Strategies for Improving Your Climbing Endurance (Eric Hörst, Training4climbing)
Comps & Gyms
Brooke Raboutou – An Eye on Olympic Gold (John Burgman, Climbing)
“Brooke Raboutou is the first American climber to become an Olympian. She is perpetually busy and trains with persistence, whether in San Diego, at the USA Climbing Training Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, or quarantined at home in Boulder, Colorado. And she’s still aiming for Olympic hardware.” – John Burgman
Video: A Cobertura dos Campeonatos de Escalada feat. Tyler Norton (Revista Blog de Escalada)
Video: Pro Climber’s Private Climbing Wall – Domen Škofic (EpicTV)
Video: Biggest Climbing Gym EVER! New gym! (Magnus Midtbø)
CBJ Originals
Old Ropes, New Art: Behind the Desk with Elliot Lacroix (John Burgman)
“We are always taught Leave No Trace principles these days whenever we go to do recreation outside, but why don’t we do this with all recreation? We throw away so much gear and equipment once it has been used or broken, and only rarely do we have the means to recycle it properly.” – Elliot Lacroix
Well-Known College Town to Get a New Gym
“We know how isolating the world can be. Climbing aims straight at the heart of that, so if Stone Co. can cultivate a welcoming and healthy community that changes lives for the better, we reach our highest goals.” – John Pritchard
HWOW 56: All Season Backyard Midwest Homewall
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!
