RGP Fights Poodle Security Threat
On Wednesday Rock Gym Pro blocked access to their software from computers using older versions of Microsoft’s Internet Explorer web browser. The change was in response to news of a security flaw dubbed POODLE found in an outdated but still commonly used security tool used to encrypt traffic between a browser and a web site.
Earlier in the week researchers at Google had released a paper detailing the vulnerability. Computers using older versions of Internet Explorer browser (version 7 and older) could allow someone on the same network, such as a public wi-fi connection, to access and decrypt their web data.
RGP founder Andy Laakmann told CBJ that the POODLE vulnerability did not put any information on RGP servers at risk, nor did the flaw make it possible to access credit card transaction data. “At risk were those end-users of the RGP booking system or waiver system who were interacting with those services on public networks using the outdated browsers,” he said. “Any data transmitted over those public networks was exposed via the vulnerable encryption technologies before arriving at RGP’s web servers.”
In an email communication to customers RGP advised everyone still using old systems to upgrade to Service Pack 3, which will force an upgrade to Internet Explorer 8. They also urged customers still running Windows XP, which was released almost ten years ago and is no longer supported by Microsoft, to invest in new computers.
While POODLE’s impact appears limited, other recent security flaws like Heartbleed and Shellshock, combined with ever increasing numbers of credit card hacks, have highlighted the importance of keeping computer systems up to date.
SCS Open Goes To Central Rock
Press Release
Boulder, Colorado – October 10, 2014
USA Climbing, the United States National Governing Body for the sport of competition climbing announced today that it has awarded the 2015 Sport Climbing Series (SCS) Open National Championships to Central Rock Gym in Watertown, MA.
This event will be hosted by USA Climbing as part of the highly successful Ring of Fire lead climbing competition series that has been developed by the management team at Central Rock Gym over the last four years. The competition will feature the best adult athletes in the United States competing in the disciplines of Lead and Speed Climbing for a spot on the US Climbing Team and their share of a $20,000.00 prize purse.
“We established the Ring of Fire competition to give pro climbers a much needed independent series in rope climbing,” said Joe Hardy. “This new partnership with USAC is incredible because it brings so many talented people together in the name of competition rope climbing. We are incredibly humbled to have this opportunity to work with USA Climbing, and look forward to learning from their experience. If you are a competitor, you will not want to miss this joint venture. The setting, the lighting, the organization will all be mind blowing. Boston has been a hot-bed of great climbing events for years, and this partnership will build on that history.”
“I can’t express how excited we are to work with the CRG team,” said USA Climbing CEO Kynan Waggoner. “Because of our cumulative competition management experience and the diehard climbing community that exists in the Boston area, this event is going to be a great opportunity to promote our sport and the disciplines of Lead and Speed Climbing in the United States.”
Touchstone: Expanding The Empire
Touchstone Climbing Incorporated has been operating climbing gyms in the San Francisco bay area for almost 20 years, and only recently ventured south into the Los Angeles area with the opening of LA Boulders early in 2013. This initial foray into southern California was followed by the announcements this year of three additional facilities in the LA area: A traditional gym in Pasadena and another in Culver City plus a bouldering-only facility in Hollywood.
What does it take to run this empire and at the same time expand it? CBJ reached out to Touchstone to see how it’s done.
Finding the Right Partners
Entering a new market presents a variety of challenges. Not least of these is making sure that you are placing your business in the best location possible. You have to consider quantifiable things like the demographics of the neighborhood, highway access and real estate prices, but also factor in the intangible vibe and culture of the community. For Touchstone, tackling this successfully meant finding good partners. “When we began to look at the Los Angeles area, the first step was identifying the underserved communities that felt right to us,” said Touchstone Climbing CEO Mark Melvin. “Creative Space, a real estate broker in the Arts District, understood our logistical and cultural needs in a building and community. They have done a good job finding us four locations in LA that we’re excited about,” he said. Finding a good partner also seems to mean sticking with a good partner. Since 2012 Touchstone has been working with Walltopia to design and build all of their climbing walls. “We love working with Walltopia … They are innovative, leaders in the industry, and are excellent at turning our detailed design requirements into a reality,” said Melvin. Perhaps more importantly, Touchstone is confident that Walltopia is fully capable of building three locations at the same time and has the ability to keep pace with the company’s rapid growth. “It’s all about who we work with. A broker that prides itself in pairing a business with communities that will embrace it, contractors that will travel to work with us repeatedly, and a staff that gets excited about challenge instead of shying away from the greater work involved,” Melvin added.Keeping it Local
With nine locations in operation and three more on the way, Touchstone takes a decidedly small scale approach to the branding of their gyms. Each location has its own name and logo that reflects the community: Dogpatch Boulders, Great Western Power Company, Mission Cliffs. This diversity is not accidental. “While having nine different names and logos might be seen as a branding nightmare, it makes sense for Touchstone,” said Marketing Director Lauryn Claassen. “Each location is so different because it is comprised of different communities. We try to focus on allowing that identity to grow organically and serve that membership base accordingly.” Allowing each location to develop its own identity and culture may seem to dilute the value of the Touchstone brand, but it does help each gym grow a loyal following. “It works out for each location because they take pride in saying ‘I’m a Dogpatch Boulders member’ or ‘I climb at The Studio’, and it works for us because we’re not consistently trying to force them into a mold,” Claasen said. “It’s more flexible and empowering for everyone.”Inspiration
As the biggest gym developer in the country, CBJ expected that Touchstone’s management might be looking to other industries for inspiration and guidance as they grow. We were surprised to hear that most of their inspiration comes from other climbing gyms around the country. “We don’t really look to outside companies; there are plenty of great ideas within the climbing industry from which to draw inspiration,” said General Manager Jeffery Bowling. “We frequently visit other gyms and speak with gym owners and employees to see what others are doing, and that pushes us. We are lucky to be in such a creative and passionate industry.” Touchstone’s move away from traditional climbing facilities into operating bouldering gyms was one such idea they borrowed from the climbing community. “Dogpatch Boulders would never have been built had we not been so inspired by a trip to Seattle in 2012 to visit Seattle Bouldering Project, Vertical World, and Stone Gardens,” said Bowling. Other aspects of successful climbing gyms will be showing up in Touchstone’s next facilities. “The Brooklyn Boulders Summerville location has inspired us to put more ‘work collaboration’ spaces into our new gyms,” Bowling added. “EarthTreks Golden has a great kids area. And the dedicated training area at the new Momentum gym has inspired us to have a greater focus on training for future projects.” Even though Touchstone is the big kid on the block, it seems that the evolution and growth of the indoor climbing community is forcing them to continue to improve their own operations and to looking forward rather than backward. “Being able to see what others are doing in the industry has helped us push ourselves to be on our toes rather than sit back on our heels,” said Claassen.Leaders Gather to Talk About The Future of Climbing
In Golden, CO last week an informal group of leaders in the climbing industry gathered to discuss the future of climbing. Organized by Earth Treks’ founder Chris Warner, the roundtable included Presidents and key staff from Earth Treks, American Alpine Club, American Mountain Guide Association, Access Fund, USA Climbing, Climbing Wall Association, Climbing Business Journal, Petzl, and Walltopia.
The idea behind the roundtable was to bring organizations that are helping to grow indoor climbing and groups that support and advocate for outdoor climbers into one room to talk about the the challenges and opportunities facing a sport that is seeing rapid growth in participation.
The meeting featured short presentations by each of the attendees followed by open discussion about the issues each group is facing, and how the groups might work together to address the challenges.