New Gym Leads the Way for 24-Hour Access in Western Colorado

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Climbing Business Journal
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The new 24-hour gym in Western Colorado
According to co-owner Mike Kimmel, Grip Bouldering will be the only 24-hour climbing gym in Western Colorado. Construction of the gym’s climbing walls―like the prow pictured here―is already underway. (All images courtesy of Grip Bouldering)

Grip Bouldering
Grand Junction, Colorado

Specs: The 5,000-square-foot, bouldering-focused Grip Bouldering gym will feature 2,400 square feet of climbable surface. Amenities will include two Lifesaving Walls from OnSite, as well as a “competition spray wall,” a Lattice Board, and Lattice Climbing Assessments. The gym will offer 24/7 access to its members and feature a competition team. Youth and adult instruction, as well as personal training and outdoor guided trips, will also be offered.

Elevate Climbing Walls

 

Grip Bouldering’s co-owner Mike Kimmel, in particular, brings 15 years of experience building and developing youth climbing programs. Kimmel was previously the head coach at Grand Valley Climbing―Grip Bouldering’s neighbor in Grand Junction―and the Vail Athletic Club in Colorado, as well as Edgeworks Climbing in Tacoma, Washington.

Grip Bouldering's competition team
The Grip Bouldering competition team has been training and competing for a year―without a true facility. That will change upon the completion of the gym’s construction, of course. But interestingly, the team still managed to place third in the region, even without a gym.

Walls & Flooring: OnSite
CRM Software: GymMaster
Website: www.gripbouldering.com
Instagram: @gripbouldering, @gripclimbingteam

In Their Words: “Growing and supporting the climbing community of Grand Junction is the vision of Grip Bouldering. The focus of our facility is to help all climbers learn and enjoy movement through quality routesetting, modern walls and holds, and purposeful training and instruction programs. We are excited to be the only 24-hour access climbing gym on the Western Slope, and the only facility in Colorado offering Lattice assessments.”
—Mike Kimmel, Co-Owner

Another rendering of Grip Bouldering
Kimmel tells CBJ that “growing and supporting the climbing community of Grand Junction is the vision of Grip Bouldering,” shown here in concept art.
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