Sensitive Subjects

breasfeeding
Photo: metroparent.com
Owners of climbing facilities have a lot to worry about: risk management, member recruitment, employee retention, the list goes on. Most of these issues can be addressed with straightforward and uncontroversial strategies. However, gyms face a number of issues, from dress codes to free speech, same-sex family passes, breastfeeding, transgender locker room access and public prayer, that are much thornier issues to navigate. These hot button issues are challenging for gyms, not only because of their controversial nature, but also because many of them are protected by state and federal laws. Therefore it’s essential for business owners to have clear policies in place before an issue arises that could expose a business to bad publicity or a legal battle. Tom Margolis, a Madison, Wisconsin-based attorney who has expertise in the fitness industry told Club Industry that it’s important for fitness facilities to have policies in place for all aspects of their business that could have legal ramifications. “If they wait to handle things when they occur, as opposed to before they occur, the damage could already be done,” he said.

Letter of the Law

Despite being a private business, if you offer services to the public you are subject to federal law that dictates how you can treat your customers. The Federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion or national origin. First and foremost, all operational policies should be written down and reviewed by a knowledgable local attorney to ensure that they comply with federal, state and local law. Second only to that is ensuring that you have adequate staff training on these policies. “Staff should be involved from the standpoint of being educated on issues that could have a legal impact on the health club,” Margolis said. “Discriminating against a same-sex married couple, for example, by even one uninformed staff member could lead to legal action against the gym, as well as potentially damage the gym’s reputation from word of mouth and/or negative publicity.”
Photo: Chris Ayers

Hot Topics

Breast Feeding Over the past few years many private fitness facilities and community centers have faced public outrage and lawsuits over breast feeding. One gym in Texas faced issues after asking a woman to move to the locker room to breast feed her 13-month-old, while a fitness center in California ran afoul of the law after escorting a mother out of their club after telling her she could not breast feed her son in the locker room. Forty-nine states, the District of Columbia and the Virgin Islands have laws that specifically allow women to breast feed in any public or private location  (Idaho is the odd one out). Although the laws regarding breastfeeding vary from state to state, many explicitly state that women are allowed to breast feed a child anywhere they are otherwise authorized to be. Transgender Bathrooms Currently there are no federal or state laws requiring businesses to allow transgender customers to use the bathroom of the sex they identify with. However, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has issued a Guide to Restroom Access for Transgender Workers that urges employers to give transgender employees access to bathrooms that correspond to their gender identity. The guide is explicit that restroom access for transgender workers is both a civil rights issue and a health and safety one. “It is essential for employees to be able to work in a manner consistent with how they live the rest of their daily lives, based on their gender identity,” the OSHA guide advises. Implementing a transgender bathroom policy may not be easy. Planet Fitness received a lot of unwelcome media earlier this year after a member complained to a front desk employee about a transgender woman in the women’s locker room. The employee cited policy that allows people to use changing rooms based on “their sincere, self-reported gender identity.” Planet Fitness’ corporate headquarters told the member the same thing when she called to complain. The unhappy member began complaining to other members about the policy, which management found to be in violation of their membership agreement. They canceled her membership and the member sued for damages. Planet Fitness stands by the decision and says that it aligns with the company mantra of being a “Judgement Free Zone”. The lawsuit is pending. Despite varying opinions on the topic, many agree that the best possible bathroom setup for businesses to provide is single-occupancy, unisex bathrooms and showers. Dress Code As private facilities climbing gyms have the right to set standards on what customers wear. While a few require everyone to wear shirts (the “no nipple rule”), most gyms in North America choose not to set a specific standard for their members. It is more common to see specific dress codes for members of the youth climbing team. Many coaches have found that requiring adequate coverage prevents some unnecessary distraction amongst their teen members, and is an opportunity to ensure that team members, which are ambassadors of the organization, are presenting a respectful and family-friendly image. It still may be a good idea for gyms to have a written dress code policy. Employees shouldn’t have to make a judgement call on how to respond to a sensitive topic such as: a customer walks in wearing a shirt with an offensive message written on it; a member complains about someone wearing a revealing outfit; or someone questions the safety of a member climbing in a long headscarf or hijab.

Are Climbers Special?

These issues may seem remote for some climbing gym operators.  In fact when CBJ reached out to the community for examples of climbing gyms that had dealt with these situations we received no negative examples.  We did hear from a gym owner in Canada who said, “We already live in a city which embraces all sorts of people from different walks of life, and the climbing community tends to attract those who really embody that spirit.” This sentiment was found across the climbing industry.  Is this because climbers are more highly evolved than the average person?  A Texas gym manager responded to our query, “When you put as much trust in people who are basically strangers as quickly as we do (spotting each other and trading out belays). I think that takes out a lot of the initial barriers of acceptance. As climbers we are all a little out there anyway, and we’ve all got some weird stuff” As climbing gyms become more main stream and attract a broader audience it’s inevitable that some feathers will get ruffled.  But as the Canadian owner told us, “I think we’re pretty lucky in that we live in a very progressive community and don’t really have to deal with the tough issues like that (not yet, at least). Everyone just sort of gets along on their own.”

Smashed: New Dyno World Record

16 year old Celine Cuypers from Belgum, smashed the Dyno World Record by 17.5 cm setting the new record at 2 m 37.5 cm on September 27th 2015 at the IFSC Lead Climbing World Cup in Puurs, Belgium. The previous record dates from 2012 held by the Canadian Elise Sethna. The new record was validated by IFSC Delegate Vincent Caussé, IFSC Jury President Jérôme Chapelle and IFSC Judge Lieven Vlassenroot and an audience of nearly 2000.

New Marketplace Connects Industry

ecommerce
Photo: Skubana
CBJ has launched a new online marketplace to help connect indoor climbing operators, investors and developers. At its core the marketplace is a classifieds service where climbing gyms can sell everything from a few dozen used climbing holds to 10,000 square feet of old climbing walls. It is also a place where climbing gym owners can sell their entire business — everything from the physical assets to brand, member base and operating procedures. Beyond buying and selling, the marketplace allows new and expanding gym operators to reach out to investors that may want to invest in a new indoor climbing facility. Developers that have land or a building that would be an ideal location for a climbing gym can also advertise their location to existing and potential gym operators. Over the past few years the editors of CBJ have received many inquiries from people in the indoor climbing industry asking for advice on how to find investors, connect to developers and where they could sell equipment. There are, of course, numerous websites like Craigslist, BizBuySell and Funding Circle that offer these types of services, but these services generally don’t attract people that are knowledgeable about the indoor climbing industry. So, CBJ is pleased to offer this service to the tiny but mighty world of indoor climbing. Check out the new Marketplace here. CBJ Markeplace As always, we would love to hear your feedback about this new tool.

Turn Your Climbing Wall Into a Video Game

Playing the game at Brooklyn Boulders.  Photo: Randori.
Playing the game at Brooklyn Boulders. Photo: Randori.
Climbers have been making up different ways to use their local climbing wall since the the first holds were glued to concrete. But Jon Cheng, a member at Brooklyn Boulders near Boston took climbing games to the next level by bringing his coding hobby and a lap top into the climbing gym during a recent community night. The result was a game “That made people think about climbing and wall usage in new ways,” wrote Cheng the creator of the game on his company blog Randori.
“To make it more accessible, I needed to make sure that the movements players would use were varied enough that climbers of all sizes and skill levels could play. I also needed to be able to mold the game mechanics to the holds that were already on the wall. Last, I wanted an arcade style high score board so that the people who wanted to compete could try to battle for the top score.”
The “Randori” game is played by using any holds on the wall with the goal of touching the white dots in order as fast as possible. Instead of a specific route that players were required to use, they can explore whichever holds work best for their body type. The fastest time wins. The response from the climbers and the gym was very positive. “The gym liked it so much, they asked if I could run the game for other events they had planned,” Cheng wrote.

Climbing Officially Proposed for 2020 Olympics

2020olympics Climbing was one of eight sports officially proposed to be included in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics today. This decision completes phase II of the process to get climbing into the Olympics and not, as some have reported, the final decision. Sport climbing, bouldering and speed climbing will make up the climbing events that could be seen in Tokyo. The seven other sports shortlisted are baseball/softball, karate, skateboarding, and surfing. These sports beat out twenty six others in a process that started in May of 2015 and will end when the IOC makes the final decision at the 129th IOC Session in Rio in August 2016. It is unclear how many of the proposed sports the IOC will chose for 2020 Tokyo or if they will chose all of them.
Photos from the recent IOC meeting.
Photos from the recent IOC meeting.
“It is a great honor to have been chosen. We thank the Tokyo 2020 Additional Event Programme Panel for this fantastic opportunity and the recognition within the Olympic Movement. Of course, there is still a long way to go, and all of us at the IFSC are deeply committed to meeting the challenges ahead. Together with our athletes and the National Federations, we are reaching new heights”, Marco Scolaris, the IFSC President wrote in an IFSC press release. From the IOC website:
“This package of events represents both traditional and emerging, youth-focused events, all of which are popular both in Japan and internationally. They will serve as a driving force to further promote the Olympic Movement and its values, with a focus on youth appeal, and will add value to the Games by engaging the Japanese population and new audiences worldwide, reflecting the Tokyo 2020 Games vision.”
Recent years have seen an impressive growth of climbing gyms in Japan. The country is fostering a lively and vibrant climbing community and several world-class athletes, in both senior and youth categories. “Now more than ever, we are convinced that Sport Climbing would be the perfect complement to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games program, and be a source of inspiration to the 500,000 Japanese climbers and all the spectators who will discover this sport in real conditions” says Yagihara Kunio, JMA (Japanese Mountaineering Association) President. “The IFSC is now fully dedicated to the next steps that will take to the final decision at the 129th IOC Session in Rio in August 2016. Until then, the IFSC will continue to work with the Athletes and the National Federations to reinforce and improve its organization to prove the solidity of this choice.”

Solving Problems With Problems

depression We all know that hitting the climbing gym can make us feel better. But why? Now we know thanks to a one-of-its-kind study by a group of German researchers. The researches at the University Hospital in Erlangen, Germany put forth a hypothesis asking whether climbing, specifically indoor bouldering, can have a therapeutic effect on people suffering from depression. The short answer, yes!

Methodology

The study, conducted by researchers at the University Hospital in Erlangen, Germany, spent 16 weeks studying 47 participants, half of which (the “intervention group”) took part in this unique combination of mental and physical therapy to treat depression, while the other half served as a control. The “bouldering therapy” consisted of a 8-week prescription of weekly bouldering sessions lasting three hours each. The therapy was held in groups of about 12 patients under the supervision of two mental health therapists (psychologists or registered nurses with a specific psychiatric qualification) who had undergone training in “therapeutic rock climbing” at the Austrian “Institute for Therapeutic Rock Climbing”. One of the therapists in each session was a climbing instructor certified by the German Alpine Association. The therapists also had several years of climbing experience themselves.
Each session began with a short meditation or mindfulness exercise; thereafter, the subject of the specific session was given, followed by a short psychoeducation on this subject. The session proceeded with subject-related bouldering games or exercises. Participants were encouraged to engage in new experiences (for example, bouldering blindfolded). After a break, the last part of the session consisted of free bouldering by which participants in small groups worked on their individual projects supported by the therapists. Each session ended with another mindfulness meditation and a gathering about what was experienced and how this could be integrated into daily life.

The Science

To measure the severity of participants’ depression and its increase and decrease during the study, the researchers used a multiple-point questionnaire called the BDI-II. The BDI-II is used to measure the intensity of depression. During the 8-week bouldering therapy, the “results indicated positive effects on the measures of depression” with the intervention group. Their BDI-II score improved by 6.27 points, which is considered more than one severity grade on the BDI-II. For the same time period, the control group’s BDI-II improved by only 1.4 points. The study also showed that participants with higher symptoms of severity showed greater improvement compared with those with lower symptoms of severity.

Solving The Problem

Why might bouldering therapy be effective in treating depression? The authors think it something to do with the physical activity itself. Similar to other research directed at depression, being physically active has shown to have a positive influence on depressive symptoms. However most of these intervention studies consisted of running or aerobics, and aimed at improving or maintaining one or more components of physical fitness. Bouldering, on the other hand, focusses in particular on the mental aspects. For this reason the authors wrote that, “Bouldering may be especially interesting as a therapeutic tool since many people with depression have poor physical health, low levels of fitness and physical self-worth, and less motivation for heavy physical effort.” The authors noted that bouldering allows for a different level of challenge for any skill level. So people of different fitness levels can therefore easily boulder together in the same group without being underchallenged or overstrained. In addition, the authors hypothesise that bouldering enhances feelings of self-efficacy as the mastering of bouldering problems can be seen and felt directly and within a short amount of time.
Bouldering Session. Photo domworrall.co.uk
Bouldering: Not just for fun! Photo domworrall.co.uk

Get Social

Physical activity seems to be important in treating depression, but the authors note that, “It seems to be more effective if it is conducted in groups (higher endorphin release) and if it is done regularly.” Bouldering’s popularity is due in large part to its high degree of social interaction. This sociability is especially encouraged in bouldering therapy as participants are trained to support each other, to work together on bouldering problems, and to provide feedback and even applause. “Social interaction might therefore be a strong therapeutic component of the bouldering therapy,” the authors wrote. This idea was supported in the study by the data, which showed a significant increase in coping strategies and a trend toward diminished interpersonal sensitivity. Another hypothesis put forth focused on the mindfulness that is necessary while bouldering and that was stimulated by the meditation exercises the participants practiced. The authors note that one of the main symptoms of depression is rumination, an issue where mindfulness and concentration training has shown to be an efficient therapeutic approach. In contrast to other sports (e.g. running or cycling), bouldering challenges not only the physical but also the cognitive and emotional resources of the individual. Climbing or bouldering combines many of these aspects because rock climbing requires high concentration, can be varied according to the fitness level of the person, needs a high level of coordination, can easily be carried out in groups, and activates intense emotions (such as fear, pride, lust, anger, and more). As bouldering gyms become more popular and are opened in new markets, it seems a logical development to use the positive aspects of bouldering as a therapy for depression and other mental illnesses. While some psychiatric hospitals in Germany already use rock climbing as a therapeutic approach, to date, there have been only case reports or small observational studies on the effects of bouldering or climbing in the psychotherapeutic field. These studies on therapeutic climbing suggest that there might be positive effects on anxiety, ADHS, depression, cognition, self-esteem, as well as in the social domain. Even though the results from this study were positive the authors caution that the “hypothesis should be tested in future studies.”

Momentum is Going To Houston

The planned Momentum climbing center in Katy, Texas: Photo: Courtesy Momentum Indoor Climbing via Coveringkaty.com
The planned Momentum climbing center in Katy, Texas: Photo: Courtesy Momentum Indoor Climbing via Coveringkaty.com
CoveringKaty.com, a local news outlet for the tony suburb of Houston is reporting that Salt Lake-based climbing gym developer Momentum will open the largest full-scale climbing gym in Texas in 2016.
The unique 36,000-square-foot facility will feature rock climbing, including 50-foot climbing walls, fitness and yoga areas and abundant natural light in a climate controlled environment.
The real estate brokerage firm associated with the deal, Baker Katz, announced that they completed a 3.95-acre land acquisition on behalf of Momentum Indoor Climbing. “The fast growing city of Houston is the perfect place for Momentum to introduce climbing to an active population,” said Momentum Indoor Climbing Co-Founder Jeff Pederson. Currently Houston is served by three climbing gyms. The newest, InSpire Climbing, having opened up in 2013. Momentum currently operates two full-scale climbing gyms as well as one bouldering only facility in the Salt Lake, Utah area.