ROCKTOWN BLOG

New Projects and Summer Stuff

2011-04-29T18:50:00.000-07:00

We've got a lot of stuff on our list to work on this Summer. In progress right now is a new "training room." This room will include a training/campus board, multiple hangboards, and some workout equipment. The room has been funded through support generated for the Oklahoma Climbing Team; namely, all those recycled-rope bracelets we sell.

Following the training room we are going to be renovating the bouldering room to give it a fresh new look. We'll keep you posted on that project as it develops.

We unveiled a new route with multiple "features" in the pink room. The route is called, "The Feature Presentation," is about 80 feet tall and checks-in at about 5.11. It's received overwhelmingly positive feedback for it's challenging nature and uniquely designed features.

Summer time is getting ever closer and that means...summer camp time! It is not too early to sign up for Rocktown's Climbing Summer Camp. Give the gym a call today and reserve your space.

Stonemaster Classic Comp A Success

2011-04-18T08:19:00.000-07:00

Thanks to everyone who turned out for the Stonemaster Classic USA Climbing competition on April 16, 2011. We especially would like to thank all of the volunteers who belayed and judged and all of the Oklahoma Climbing Team parents who worked the food tables.

Overall the event was a wonderful success.

Results will be posted soon...

Oklahoma Climbing Team - Regionals 2011 Report

2011-01-17T19:58:00.000-08:00

Climbing Team - ABS Regionals 2011

The Oklahoma Climbing Team returned from Iowa where they competed in the USA Climbing, American Bouldering Series (ABS) Regionals competition.

Complete results for all team members are posted HERE.

The competition took place at the Climb Iowa climbing gym in Grimes, Iowa on Saturday, January 15. As with all Regional competitions this was an "onsight" format. Each climber waited in "isolation" until their turn and then they were faced with climbing three boulder problems in a limited amount of time for each problem. Each problem is not seen until the climber turns around and their 5 minutes of climbing time begins for the problem. They have as many attempts as they want but the number of attempts are recorded and become part of their overall score. Points are given based on how far the climber gets on the boulder problem.

Overall we had 9 out of 12 team members competing at Regionals - Elizabeth was out due to injury, Natalie did not qualify due to missing a local competition due to illness and Hannah moved to California. Of the 9 team members competing, 7 of them placed high enough in the qualifying round to advance to the finals round in their category. Those were: Emily (Female Youth A), Caitlin (Female Youth C), Bibi (Female Youth C), Chloe (Female Youth D), Judith (Female Junior), Nic (Male Youth B), and Theo (Male Youth D). Bailey (Female Youth C) and Colby (Male Youth A) did not qualify for finals but still made a great showing in the first round.

Finals were held in the afternoon and proved to be quite a showdown, with many of our team members having the added pressure of having to perform better in the Finals than in the Qualifiers in order to move up in rank. It was impressive to watch them all try SO incredibly hard. Each managed to either hold their place or move up in rank. In the end Chloe and Theo took 1st place in their categories (Youth D Female, and Youth D Male, respectively). Caitlin and Bibi took 3rd and 4th, respectively in Female Youth C. Judith took 4th place in Female Juniors. Nic took 2nd in Male Youth B and Emily took 2nd in Female Youth B.

Qualification for Nationals is based on a formula that involves how many competitors there are in each category across the nation. Therefore, there were a very limited number of invitations for Nationals. In many categories there was only a single invitation - meaning that if you didn't place first you wouldn't be going to Nationals.

We had several VERY close placements. In fact, Emily was within a hold or two from a first place finish and earning an invitation to Nationals. And Nic was only points away. That's the differences of either an attempt or hand hold. It was that close. Caitlin as well, was just one place away from earning an invitation. It's always a difficult thing to deal with being so very close and just missing it. But at the same time, there's no doubt that they gave it all they could and should be proud of their finishes.

Chloe, Judith, and Theo will all advance to Nationals which will be held in Boulder, Colorado on February 18-20.

Overall the Oklahoma Climbing Team placed 4th among all teams present - which is incredibly impressive.

The coaches, Chris, Jacquelyn and Aaron are extremely proud of their team - it's been a great bouldering season, and we are now looking forward to Nationals and the upcoming Sport Climbing Season.

Results for our team look like this:
Theo - 1st place Male Youth D
Chloe - 1st place Female Youth D
Caitlin - 3rd place Female Youth C
Bibi - 3rd place Female Youth C
Bailey - 8th place Female Youth C
Nicholas - 2nd place Male Youth B
Colby - 9th place Male Youth A
Emily - 2nd place Female Youth A
Judith - 1st place - Female Junior

Complete results for all team members are posted HERE.

Summer is Upon Us

2010-06-15T22:58:00.000-07:00

We are entering the summer months here at Rocktown and with the summer comes extended hours. We are open during the summer from noon to 10 pm during the week. Weekend hours remain the same.

We've had some more updates to the gym as of late. First, you might notice that we now have an OVERHANGING lead wall between the yellow and purple rooms. The recently added feature is approximately 20 feet long and tops out on a ledge about halfway up the silo walls. From there an additional pitch is being added to create a two-pitch climb!

The ledge will also allow for some other classes we are working on: a rappel class and a multi-pitch climbing course. We are in the process of making a via-ferrata-style ladder which will allow for alternate access to the ledge as well.

In addition to the indoor two-pitch climb we will soon be opening an OUTDOOR TWO-PITCH CLIMB for more experienced climbers. Additional training/certification will be required and we are still in the process of working out some final details before opening the route, but it shouldn't be too much longer.

Summer camps are in full-swing and the kids are having a blast - lots of new climbers at the gym!

We also kicked off our OUTDOOR GUIDING PROGRAM earlier this month. We took a group a climbers to the Wichita Mountains for their first outdoor climbing experience. We will have additional guided trips as fall approaches so pay attention to the website and flyers at the gym for those dates.

Four.Zero.Five Bouldering Finals

2010-04-12T15:05:00.000-07:00

Rocktown hosted the final event in the Four Zero Five Bouldering Series on Saturday, April 10. The top qualifying climbers in each category from the previous three competitions competed for cash prizes in this event.

Winners and event details are posted on the Four Zero Five event webpage.

http://rocktowngym.com/405bouldering.html

405 Bouldering Series Finals

OKC Plans, MAPS 3 and Rocktown - Update

2010-03-17T22:18:00.000-07:00

Not a day goes by that we don't get a question about the future of Rocktown and how the city plans and the passing of MAPS 3 might affect the gym. It is something that is at the forefront of our minds and something that we are constantly working towards in terms of securing long-term security, and viability for the Touchstone Youth Program and Rocktown as a community gym.

We were able to close the gap a bit and have a few questions answered when met with the OKC Planning Division in February. We asked them flat out if there were any plans on the table to buy-out and destroy the silos for other purposes. The answer was a resounding, "not to the best of our knowledge." They answered that they have not seen any plans to develop the area on which the silos sit and they did not anticipate that there would be a push to need our space. Furthermore, we received some reassurance that we, as a climbing gym and youth program, fit into the overall plan of making the area a recreational center.

We've always felt that rock climbing - and particularly the type of climbing that we offer given our unique height - is an exciting and worthwhile activity for Oklahomans. You simply cannot re-create what we already have.

Quickly, to define what we have: two enormous grain silos 90 feet in height with 6 inch concrete walls - that's a super-solid structure; an unparalleled location in the heart of the city; an adjoining building and surrounding lot that provides amazing potential for expansion; a customized space that has proven to be perfect for BOTH indoor and outdoor climbing; and an amazing network of climbers and volunteers that cares about the gym.

All of this said, the gym as it is today is NOWHERE CLOSE to what we have planned for the future and what we see as our culminating DREAM CLIMBING GYM.

We shared some preliminary drawings with the City to show them what we'd like to do with the facility and how we want to better establish ourselves. They were very impressed with our ideas and encouraged us to continue to work with a number of stakeholders and contacts that might be interested in helping us. We are in the process of doing that but things are still very much up in the air.

At this point, there are a number of directions we could go to get where we'd like to be - it's just a matter of time, effort, and contacts. We are working on setting up some meetings and working through some financial hurdles.

Once the drawings are finalized we will share them with you, our climbing friends and supporters and show you the direction we'd like to head. I think everyone is going to be blown away by what we've envisioned as the future of Rocktown. In fact, if we have the backing to pursue what the drawings depict we will be the most recognizable climbing venue in the country and possibly the world. Not to mention, we will secure the future of climbing as a sport in Oklahoma and provide continued opportunities for the mentorship of under-privileged kids through climbing as an experiential recreational and educational tool.

In short, through these continued efforts we intend not only to protect the gym and Touchstone - but to expand, develop, and enhance both.

We will keep you posted as events unfold. Thanks for your continued support. Keep climbing with us.

-Aaron Gibson
Rocktown Climbing Gym

Winter BE GONE!

2010-02-09T09:10:00.000-08:00

Ok, I think you know what I'm talking about. This winter has GOT to end...and soon. It's driving us crazy. We're trying to keep our wits about us the best we can but we are seriously ready for some warmer weather.

But all this cold is no reason to stop climbing. Just suck it up, dress in layers, stick a hand-warmer in your chalkbag and get moving!

Here's what we have going on at the gym:
The Everest Challenge v2.0(sponsored by BACKWOODS). This year people are racing for the top. Climbers have shot out of the gate logging THOUSANDS of feet of week in order to be the first to reach the height of Everest. We are seeping laps on 5.12s in order to maximize points and some climbers climbing 6 days a week! Keep it up guys.

And remember, it's not too late to join. Even though the leaders are well ahead at this point, you have a YEAR to climb the height of Everest. Everyone who reaches the mile mark receives a t-shirt and everyone who reaches the 29,029 ft level will be placed in a drawing for a brand new rope generously provided by our friends at Backwoods in Oklahoma City.

The other event we have going is the (Four.Zero.Five) Bouldering Series. This is a 4-event series taking place on various Saturday evenings. It is a fun local climbing competition where people climb boulder problems for points. The top three finishers in each category at the end of the series will take home CASH prizes!

You don't have to compete in the whole series, if you want to pick and choose just a couple of events that's cool. In order to qualify for the fourth and final event you have to be in the top five point scorers.

We are looking forward to Spring - we have an outdoor two-pitch climb opening up (special training required), a sport climbing competition, and some outdoor guided trips!

If you're new to climbing - give us a call - we'd love to show you what it's all about.

Rocktown - OPEN TODAY AT NOON

2010-01-30T06:30:00.000-08:00

We've been closed for the snow and ice but we are open again today at noon.

So get out of the house and come on down to do some climbing.

Dress warm - it's a bit nippy in here.

Oklahoma Climbing Team - ABS Regionals 2010

2010-01-18T19:01:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to the Oklahoma Climbing Team for a great bouldering season. The team just returned from Stone Moves Climbing Gym in Houston, TX where they competed in the USA Climbing American Bouldering Series (ABS) Regionals competition. Several of the climbers made it to the final round of competition and two of them qualified for Nationals in Virginia on February 13-14.

Ice Climbing at Rocktown

2010-01-11T09:24:00.000-08:00

Rocktown provided Oklahoma City's FIRST ever outdoor ice climb. This ice climb was a WI5 rated climb in the middle of city. The ice was created by rigging up a water hose and a special made PVC pipe with holes in it. The water flowed down the wall and a series of fixed ropes and froze over the period of 4 nights. By Sunday morning, 1/10/10, a group of climbers showed up to climb the route.

2010: The Year You CLIMB

2010-01-06T22:15:00.000-08:00

Welcome to 2010. We're looking forward to a great year. We've already had quite a few bookings for groups early in the season and we expect the number to grow. If you want to host a group or party at Rocktown give us a call and we'll get you scheduled.

The gym is cold this time of year - there's no two ways about it. With the type of facility we have; grain silos with 6" concrete walls and 90 foot ceilings, we are not the best-insulated most climate controlled facility. But hey, cryo-climbing (as we like to call it) is still great exercise. Just be prepared. Dress warm, dress in layers.

We have found that as you start climbing you warm up gradually so by the 3rd or 4th climb the cold is no longer an issue. We've added a few heaters throughout the gym so there are places you can warm up if it gets too cold. And we will continue to add more heaters as we are able.

Another cool addition to the gym: we now have an artificial ice climb on the front of the building. The route was built as a "mixed" or "drytooling" route. Some of the holds are suitable for swinging ice axes into while others must be hooked/drytooled.

There is a ice climbing technique safety class - which is specific to climbing the route at the gym. This course is $6 and generally taught on Tuesdays evenings at approximately 6:15 pm - call the gym to register. Both belayers and climbers must have the class. The ice climbing route is not suitable or intended for new climbers - it requires skills and techniques over and above beginner rock/belay skills. We have ice tools (axes) for rent at $10/hr. Or you are free to use your own if you wish. You may wear crampons (though we currently do not have them available) but the route is more suited to using climbing shoes.

Currently, the ice route is in transition. We've rigged up a water spigot at the top of the climb and are trying to farm some ice. We are expecting very cold temps over the next several days so we'll see what happens. If it works, we'll have REAL ice to climb!

Happy Holidays from Rocktown

2009-12-19T20:06:00.001-08:00

All of us at Rocktown would like to wish our fellow climbers, friends and family a Happy Holidays.

We will be closed on Christmas Eve (all day) and Christmas Day. So if you have stuff from our pro-shop you want to get make sure you get in before close on Wednesday 12/23. We also have an online store with t-shirts, gift cards, stickers, and other stuff. If you want to buy someone a pair of climbing shoes but don't know which size, it's probably best to get a gift card for a particular dollar amount and let them come in and try them on. Nothing worse than getting pair of brand new climbing shoes...that don't fit!

If you have questions about what to get a new climber or if you are brand new to climbing and want to give it a try - give us a call and we'll help you out.

We will open again the day after Christmas, Saturday, 12/26 at 10 am. We hope to see you here - bring the fam!

MAPS 3 passes - What does this mean for Rocktown/Touchstone?

2009-12-08T21:06:00.000-08:00

We learned tonight that MAPS 3 passed by a very narrow margin. This is of major concern to Rocktown and Touchstone Youth Project because our facility lies in the heart of the development.

A number of people have asked, where do we stand on MAPS 3 and how is it going to affect the gym? The honest answer is, we don't know yet. At this point we are working with some key players and hope to have some answers soon.

There are several possible scenarios at this juncture:
1. We could partner-up with one of the MAPS 3 projects, or development/beautification projects, be granted some funds or acquire investors for facility-wide improvements and continue to improve the gym and make it fit in with the new developments.

2. We could continue business as usual and not be affected by the surrounding development or outside factors.

3. Someone already has plans in place or are working on plans without our knowledge or involvement to get rid of the silos for the purposes of "re-development." This of course would be the worst-case scenario and one that we would need to full support of our community in order to prevail.

We are in the process of trying to arrange meetings with the City and potential partners and organizations to position ourselves for the impending changes. We will keep everyone posted.

We appreciate your loyalty and support and hope to see you climbing at the gym again soon!

REEL ROCK FILM TOUR - THURSDAY, OCT 1 - AT ROCKTOWN

2009-09-22T20:45:00.000-07:00

Rocktown Climbing Gym, in association with the Renegade Picture show, brings the 4th Annual Reel Rock Film Tour to the Oklahoma City Bricktown area for the very first time. REEL ROCK 09 features the world premiere of the climbing film, Progression, as well as the new First Ascent series from the innovative producers at Sender Films and Nat Geo Adventure Channel. Also in the lineup are the two winning short films from this year’s highly competitive REEL ROCK Filmmaking Competition. Tickets are $10 . For more information and to purchase tickets in advance, please visit http://www.rocktowngym.com or call 319-1400.

Go to http://rocktowngym.com/filmtour.html for more details and to purchase tickets online.

Lights Out Climbing Night Photos

2009-09-22T20:43:00.001-07:00

Pictures from the Light Out Climbing Night have been posted.

NewsOK Article

2009-07-23T07:59:00.000-07:00

There's a great story about the Touchstone Youth Project at Rocktown by NewsOK columnist Carrie Coppernoll.

Photo Gallery

Rocktown Coach takes 3rd at Extremity Games

2009-07-20T07:49:00.000-07:00

On July 16, Oklahoma Climbing Team coach Jacqueline Farris competed in the Extremity Games in Pontiac, Michigan. The Extremity Games is an extreme annual sporting event/competition for individuals living with limb loss or limb differences. The Games allows participants to demonstrate skill and passion while competing for cash and other prizes. The Games include all types of "extreme" sports ranging from skateboarding, moto-x, martial arts, wakeboarding and - rock climbing.

Jacquelyn took third place in the Top-Rope competition category and took home a check for $250. This was Jacquelyn's first major competition and first competition of this type.

She had this to say about here experience:
"For me the Extremity Games was several "firsts." My first real competition to compete in and the first time I had ever climbed with other climbers with limb difference or limb loss. This was the first time that I had ever been able to climb with other climbers that really understood what it is like to have to adapt to the sport that I love. Throughout qualifying and finals the competitors were getting huge routes and pushing the competition while encouraging everyone. Being able to climb with, compete with, and share beta with the best adaptive climbers from all across the US was truly amazing and I look forward to next year."

We congratulate Jacquelyn on her success and are proud of her representation of Oklahoma climbers and all athletes involved in adaptive sports.

A complete re-cap of the events and winners is posted here on the Extremity Games website.

Nationals Update

2009-07-10T21:42:00.001-07:00

We are having a great time here at the SCS Nationals in SLC, Utah. The best young climbers from across the country have converged here and it is truly amazing to watch them climb. I am impressed that kids that have been climbing for so little time demonstrate so much poise, confidence and performance on a stage this large.

It is quite an accomplishment for one to qualify to get to this level and even bigger to make it beyond.

Despite a fantastic effort and some great climbing, Nicholas's journey at Nationals has ended. While there is still a bit of a sting for him in not making it to the next round, we are quick to remind him that we are extremely proud of him for making it this far and giving it his best shot. This is Nic's first year competing so the knowledge he's gained from this experience will surely carry him further in his years ahead as a competitive climber.

Nicholas easily cruised the first climb. On the second qualifier he climbed about 3/4 up the route and fell on a weird pinch move. The rest of the field fell just a couple moves above him but at this level of competition that was enough to make the difference.

I am including some video from the competition including a shot from the warm-up area and Nicholas's first climb.

Rocktown Climbers Represent

2009-07-09T12:00:00.000-07:00

Two Rocktown climbers are out representing Oklahoma and our gym in competitive climbing right now. Jacquelyn Farris, an employee of Rocktown and Coach of the Oklahoma Climbing Team, is currently at the Extremity Games in Pontiac, Michigan. This is the first competition of this type for Jacquelyn and we wish her the best.

Also on the road is Nicholas Strong who is completing at the USA Climbing Sport Climbing Series Nationals. Nicholas is in the Youth C category for boys. The competition takes place at Momentum Climbing Gym in Sandy, UT over the course of three days; Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Nicholas will be there with his dad and Aaron Gibson, Head Coach of the Oklahoma Climbing Team.

Will keep you posted with details and results as we can.

In the mean time - wish them luck!!

Oklahoma Climbing Team Report - From Divisionals to NATIONALS!

2009-06-16T13:44:00.000-07:00

The Oklahoma Climbing Team just returned from Adventure Rock Climbing Gym in Pewaukee, Wisconsin where four members of the team competed in the USA Climbing Sport Climbing Series (SCS) Divisional competition. The Division (Division 3) included climbers from three Regions in the US, representing 15 states. Some of the best young climbers in the country were at this competition.

And while this was the first time that ANY Oklahoma climber has competed in a USA Climbing Sport Climbing Divisional competition, and the first time for the Oklahoma Climbing Team, the team members demonstrated poise and confidence and represented our state and Rocktown very well.

Of the four climbers that competed in the qualifying round on Saturday, all four made it to finals on Sunday. Even, Emily, who took quite a fall on her second route in qualifiers, and might have been unable to compete the next day due to a shoulder injury, but through her own determination, entered the finals round and gave an outstanding effort.

The finals round was particularly exciting with only one route to divide the field and decide who would advance to Nationals. We were excited to have two individuals advance. We would like to congratulate Nicholas Strong and Arek Parker in qualifying for Nationals. Nationals will take place in Sandy, Utah at Momentum Climbing Gym on July 10-12.

Overall, the competition was wonderful and the kids did a fantastic job. Their determination, dedication, and excitement for the sport seems to grow with each event.

Photography Show - Saturday, June 6 - Silo Art Space at Rocktown

2009-06-01T20:55:00.000-07:00

We are excited to introduce the Silo Art Space at Rocktown. The first show is this Saturday, June 6 at 8 pm. The show features the photography of Sherwin Tibayan in his debut photo/art show. The event is free and open to the public. The photography includes portraits of climbers (not climbing) at Rocktown and beautiful interiors of the facility.

Come check it out.

Rocktown Featured on Discover Oklahoma

2009-05-18T19:38:00.000-07:00

On May 16th Rocktown was featured on the show Discover Oklahoma. The entire show was shot from Rocktown in addition to a feature story all about Rocktown.

A big thank you goes to the cast and crew of Discover Oklahoma for including us as an Oklahoma travel destination!

Discover Oklahoma Website

Rocktown Featured in Climbing Magazine

2009-04-20T19:23:00.000-07:00

Check us out in the May issue of Climbing Magazine. We're in the Off The Wall section!

Thanks to Michelle Duregger for the great article and to Sherwin for the picture of Adam Peters climbing the roof route.

Need Stuff for "Rocktown Time Capsule"

2009-04-16T21:07:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty sure that I heard the question about 20 times between yesterday and today: "So, what are you guys doing?" This question as Erik and I post-hole dug two very deep holes through several layers of dirt, brick, concrete, and stone - at one time even going so far as to bust out the hammer drill and chisel our way through to the next level. What for, the rest of you are asking? For a slackline! And now comes the final question: "What's a slackline?" Gez - just check wikipedia, I really don't have time for this. On to the REAL reason I'm writing this.....

We're going to make one of the slackline posts into a TIME CAPSULE. What we'll do is take a bunch of items; photos, letters, recordings, whatever will fit into a 5" diameter pipe and seal it up for 50 years! We'll date and label the outside of the pipe as a time capsule and the exact date to open it.

So here's what we'd like from you guys - if you would like to participate, bring us your letters, photos, trinkets, whatever you'd like to seal up for 50 years. It should be representative of today so that in 50 years we can look back on today with nostalgia. Please keep in mind that after several decades things tend to deteriorate so make sure your stuff is well protected from environmental elements.

We'll be sealing (welding) the time capsule up within the next week - so the deadline to get us your items is Tuesday, April 23. Just drop your item(s) by the gym. The sealing of the time capsule will take place soon after.

Oh - and for those wondering - the slackline should be up and running sometime next week.

Quickdraw Climbing Comp a HUGE success

2009-04-06T08:38:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, April 4, 2009, we held our annual USA Sport Climbing Competition - this one entitled the "QUICKDRAW." The staff, volunteers and even a few climbers donned western wear as part of the western theme.

We hosted over 100 climbers (102 to be exact) and this was our largest turnout for a competition in the gym's history! We had climbers from as far away as Iowa travel to test their meddle on our endurance-fest routes.

Nearly every route in the gym was overhauled for the competition. We had routes of varying difficulty from about 5.6 to as hard as 5.13+. Most routes got climbed - only a handful remain projects for another day.

The highlight of the day was the unveiling of a new roof route line that traversed the room 270 degrees before heading up 90 feet and across the ceiling. The total length of the line: 140 ft. And though the rope drag for the last clip was insane, 2 climbers; Delaney Miller in the female Youth B category and Shane Puccio in the male Youth B category battled to the end to complete the climb.

Official results are not yet posted on the USA Climbing website but will be posted HERE when they are.

We need to give a huge thanks to all the competitors and parents who traveled long distances to visit our gym and participate. We truly appreciate your support and all of the positive feedback we received about the gym. We've put SO much work into it and nothing makes it more worthwhile to us than to witness climbers having a good time and hearing how much they love the place - so thank you again.

And thank you to our dedicated volunteers - we could not have done this without you and we truly appreciate the time you contributed to belaying and judging.

Thank you so much to our hard-working staff who worked cohesively and tirelessly to make the day go as planned. With an event of this caliber it takes an amazing team of self-driven people working together to make it happen and that's what we have.

Thank you VERY much to all of our sponsors who donated raffle prizes, holds, coffee, etc. These sponsors include: Dirtbag Outfitters, Three Ball Climbing, Liberty Mountain, eGrips, Trabgo, PMI Ropes, eVolv, HippyTree, Organic Climbing, Petzl, Princeton Tec, Rock & Ice, Starbucks Coffee, prAna, Backwoods, Avid Climbing, Summit Co. in Edmond, Mountain Hardwear, AustriAlpin, Smith Optics, Black Diamond, SoILL, Climbing Magazine, and Urban Climber Magazine. All of the proceeds from the raffle go to Touchstone Youth Project - our non-profit organization that has Rocktown as its home. Also thanks to Beatnix Cafe in OKC for setting up a lunch table and making sandwiches available.

Last but not least - thank you to our incredible team of routesetters. It takes a lot of time to set creative and challenging competition routes at the gym and we appreciate your efforts. We received an array of positive feedback from climbers and parents about the routes.

I honestly don't know how we would top the competition we had this year but we have an entire year to think about it so we'll see what we come up with.

In the meantime - enjoy the new routes - they'll be up for a little while!

Thanks,
Aaron Gibson

QUICKDRAW Sport Climbing Competition - Saturday, April 4

2009-03-29T19:22:00.000-07:00

This coming Saturday (April 4) Rocktown is holding it's annual sport climbing competition. This year's theme: western. We hope to see people pulling hard in chaps, belt buckles, pearl snap shirts, cowboy hats, and maybe even some spurs.

In preparation for the upcoming event we are overhauling the gym - all new routes! That means any of you competing in the competition on Saturday are going to be somewhat limited in what you can climb this week. If it's a designated comp. route you have to stay off. Sorry, you'll get your chance on Saturday.

For everyone else - you too may be somewhat limited because we will have to close various routes and rooms during the route changing process. So please bear with us during this routesetting period. Good news is that everyone will have new routes to climb after the competition.

The gym will be closed to public climbing the day of the competition - only registered competitors will be allowed to climb. Hours will resume on Sunday.

See you all there.

Rock Warrior's Way Clinic

2009-03-13T21:15:00.000-07:00

This Sunday, March 15 and Monday, March 16, Rocktown Climbing Gym is hosting Arno Ilgner's Warrior's Way clinic. The Sunday class is already filled but there are still spots in the Monday class. If you would like to sign up you MUST register and pay at the gym prior to the class. Cost is $69 for Rocktown Members and $79 for non-members. The class on Monday is 6pm -10pm. This is the ONLY place in Oklahoma that is hosting (and to my knowledge, has ever hosted) the Warrior's Way clinic. This is limited opportunity and the only time this year to take advantage of this training.

The Warrior's Way® is a mental fitness training class that teaches how to focus attention during the climbing process, especially when one is full of doubt and under stress. By focusing this way one improves their commitment and climbs more deliberately. The class teaches people how to:

• Be more self aware
• Assess risks
• Practice falling in small increments
• Set intentions and commit deliberately
• Trust in the process
• Deal with climbing stress/chaos
• Improve problem-solving skills
• Reduce fear, and more

We're looking forward to the class and welcoming Arno to Oklahoma.

Climbing Team Story - NewsOK.com

2009-02-09T10:19:00.001-08:00

NewsOK.com video article on the Oklahoma Climbing Team.

The fun never stops...

2009-02-07T20:41:00.000-08:00

Erik and I began the enduring project of cleaning out the ladder area in the south set of silos. For those who are not aware of the scope of this project I will explain.

We have a slight "bird issue." Namely, pigeons. These foul [sic] flying rats are my nemesis. But the upper head-house - which we long ago began calling the Pigeon Palace - is a favorite hang for the birds and it's tough to get rid of them. They flock to it (yes, pun intended).

So the bird excrement issue coupled with an ever-growing amount of dirt, debris, trash, etc. has left the upper areas a complete mess. The time had come to clean it up. Why now? Well, we are in the process of building a new business office for Touchstone and Rocktown in a silo just beneath this area. The area above had to be cleaned now if it was ever going to be cleaned due to the need to use water and water would run down into the new office, you get the picture.

So we geared up, hoisted 225 ft of hose up the silos and began spraying everything down the ladder hole. The ladder access is partitioned into three levels. When we washed the crap down it hit the 3rd level. Then we'd have to wash it down to the 2nd level, then to the 1st level and finally ground level. Each level became subsequently worse. So by the time we hit the ground - where everything from above ended up - we were in a full-fledged muck-fest. Erik was dry heaving. I was laughing at Erik dry heaving. It was good fun.

In the end, we washed everything away, cleaned it all up and now it looks amazingly clean and ready for construction.

OK Climbing Team - Comp Report - Team Member going to Nationals!

2009-01-18T20:43:00.000-08:00

On Saturday, January 17 the Oklahoma Climbing Team competed in the American Bouldering Series Regional Competition - their first Regionals event ever! We, the coaches, are very proud of all the kids on the team for their outstanding determination and performance. The competition was an "Onsight Format" competition meaning that there was no previewing the boulder problems prior to climbing them. There were four problems in a row to climb with 5 minutes to climb each and a short break and/or transition period between each. This style of competition makes it considerably more difficult in terms of pressure to perform and one that is a first for all of the kids. Overall, the entire team stepped up and faced each boulder problem head on and gave everything they had with every attempt.

Considering that nearly all of the kids have been climbing for less than a year - some less than 8 months - it was impressive to see them climb at the level they were and actually be competitive within their respective fields. Our goals for the team in our first season have already been far surpassed by everything we imagined and the good news is that every team member continues to become stronger more experienced climbers with every event and practice.

One memeber of the team, Caitlin Fuller, took fifth place in her category (Female Youth D) and earned an invitation to the USA Climbing ABS Nationals competition February 13 -15! We've booked our tickets and we're headed to The Spot in Boulder, CO next month!

Please help us to congratulate the entire Oklahoma Climbing Team in their performance at Regionals and wish us luck as we enter the Sport Climbing Season beginning in February.

OK Climbing Team At Regionals Saturday

2009-01-16T21:32:00.000-08:00

It's Friday night. We are here in Dallas awaiting the ABS Bouldering Regional Competition which begins tomorrow morning at Dallas Rocks. All 10 kids on the team are entered and have a chance to be invited to Nationals - it all depends on their performance!

This is the first Regionals that the team has been to. We've been training - 2 days a week since early September and been to three competitions.

Spirits are high and we're all eager to get moving. Wish us luck. We'll let you know how it goes.

Happy New Year - From Rocktown

2009-01-01T21:06:00.001-08:00

Hope you all had a good New Year's Day. As you've probably noticed, the Rocktown website has been completely overhauled to give it a brand new look for 2009.

There's more content than before and hopefully the navigation will be a bit easier.

The only thing we lack on the site as of this moment is the content for the Rocktown staff page. We'll be gathering information about our crew; little know personal facts, likes, dislikes, fetishes, and foibles, information that has gone otherwise undetected by friends, fellow climbers and the ubiquitous web world. Sure, it's going to be a little bit embarrassing but we're all friends here right? Who's to judge?

***

I'd like to remind everyone that we still have the EVEREST CLUB challenge going on until June 1, 2009. That means you have 5 full months of climbing to reach the height of Everest at the gym. As a quick reminder, here's what it's all about...

You log your vertical footage for every route you climb at Rocktown. Your progress will be updated weekly in a spreadsheet and the top 10 will be noted in the gym on our Everest Club Board. When you reach the one-vertical-mile marker (5280' climbed) you receive an Everest Club t-shit. Everyone who reaches the summit of Everest (29,035') by the end of the challenge (6/1/09) will have a chance to win an ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP.

So how much does it cost? A mere $20.

We have one person who has already reached the summit and several others who are nearing the summit. You have plenty of time to start - so come on - what are you waiting for?

Oklahoma Climbing Team Report

2008-11-09T19:47:00.000-08:00

The Oklahoma Climbing Team - the first ever organized and professionally run climbing team in the state - competed in their first competition of the USA Climbing, American Bouldering Series season. The competition took place at the Canyons of Frisco climbing gym in Frisco, Texas.

For the majority of our climbers this was their first competition ever and in their first year of climbing! They did an awesome job and represented our gym and our state well. We received compliments from other team coaches, parents, and gym staff about the strength and determination of the team. I think everyone was very impressed with the effort put forth by our climbers.

I am extremely proud of them and feel that we are off to a great start for 2008/2009 season. Our next competition is November 22 in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Pictures (and maybe some video) of the competition will be posted soon.

Gym Renovation Wrap-Up & 24 HHH Training Night

2008-09-08T21:09:00.000-07:00

Yes, I know it took me a couple of days to finally post again about the ongoing gym renovations. We opened to great fanfare on Saturday morning and stayed open late that evening (until midnight) for a special event.

Friday was a day of constant movement, a day of construction, a day of final touches and things left undone. A day with not enough time. And a day of thousand-yard stares, the result of exhaustion.

We manged to put the pieces of the office together enough to be able to open on time. Still, there are a few things that needed to be patched up - but all that will happen in due time. For the time being we're just enjoying the bulk of the work that has been finished and reflecting on the fruits of our labor. Though not too much time to reflect as there is till another milestone to meet - namely - opening the slab room to climbing!

Before I go on I need to thank everyone that has dedicated their time to helping us. First and foremost is Erik Schultz who has demonstrated tireless efforts to seeing that the front desk was finished just in time. Also, a big thanks to Jason Beam for the electrical work - and seeing that we had new lights in time. Thanks to the staff of Rocktown that showed up (some more than others) to do the dirty work of clean-up. During this week we saw a fair share of blood and sweat - and Sherwin may have cried once - so I can say tears.

We've received wonderful feedback on the flooring and I hope the appreciative comments continue. Last November when we took over the gym our goal was to bring the gym to the next level - I think that we have done just that. And we will continue to improve the gym as long as we have the support from climbers and the community.

Pics of the front office and construction

***

On Saturday we held a special climbing event for participants of the upcoming 24 Hours of Horseshoe Hell climbing competition (coming up Sept 27, 28 in Arkansas). We were open from 8 pm to midnight and turned off all the lights. Climbers scaled the walls by headlamp. We had music playing and a climbing slideshow in one of the rooms.

It was a really fun night so I'm sure we'll do something like it again. Pics from the event are, for the most part, blurry but they have kind of a cool ghostly look to them so you should check them out.

Renovation Update (I've lost track) - Is it Thursday?

2008-09-04T20:24:00.000-07:00

Man. This was just one of those days. I guess stuff is getting done but it's really coming down to the wire. One day left to get the rest done. That's hurting my head.

We worked all day in the front office. Things look so different I hardly recognize the place. Already, I can't remember what it looked like before.

Nothing else to say. We've got one day left and we're going to hit it hard tomorrow to get the place finished and cleaned up.

I may or may not post an update on Friday - depends on how late I work - in that case, I'll see you guys on Saturday. Or maybe I'll just sleep in.

Gym Renovation Update #4 - Wednesday

2008-09-03T19:40:00.001-07:00

We are making progress in the office and if all goes as scheduled we should have an entirely new look come this Saturday. I hate to give too much away on the design but decided to share this picture just to give you an idea of where we are headed.

There's still quite a bit to do but each day we get a little closer. We spent today tearing out drywall, filling the big dumpster, and recovering the walls with new material.

For the few that are working with us and had an inside peak of the gym the response has been complete surprise bordering on disbelief that it is even the same place. The new flooring has changed completely changed the look and feel of the gym. But I'll stop going on about the floor...

Tomorrow we'll continue the work in the office - new lighting, a new desk, and new paint on the walls.

Once the floors in the new group area and slab room cure we'll be in there drilling holes to set routes. As I mentioned in yesterday's post, we are going to be delayed in opening the rooms next week because we have some more work to do and we are awaiting the holds and some other items.

Also wanted to remind people that on Saturday, Sept 6 we are holding a 24 Hours of Horseshoe Hell Training night from 8 pm to 12 am. This event is $5 and for entries in the 24HHH participants and members of Rocktown. remember to bring a headlamp because several of the rooms will be dark to mimic night climbing (not that it won't be night anyway). If you haven't climbed in the dark it is quite an experience.

We will be open to the public for our regular hours on Saturday, Sept 6 from 10 am to 8 pm.

Added some new photos from today's work.

Gym Renovation Update #3 - Tuesday

2008-09-02T18:47:00.000-07:00

So far so good. The rest of the flooring was installed today in the new group area and slab room. And we got to walk on the finished surface in the office a little. I can't wait to hear the feedback we get from those of you that have been climbing at the gym for years. Seriously, it could be dangerous while belaying because you're going to be so fascinated with the floor - just staring at it - that you might have trouble paying attention to the climber you're belaying.

Now we are moving the focus to getting the office completed. We've got only a few days to get it done.

Things are going to be a little behind on the slab room as we are waiting on a key component to making it climbable - HOLDS. Plus there is a little more work to be done on the remaining walls - need to drill a bunch of holes and set some belay anchors. So the slab room won't be open by this Saturday - we should have it open in about 2 weeks.

No new pictures today but I'll have some more tomorrow.

Gym Renovation Update #2 - Monday Report

2008-09-01T19:38:00.000-07:00

Today was another awesome day of progression. The top layer of the new floor and we got the first look at at what the "new" Rocktown Climbing Gym is going to be. We haven't had a chance to walk on the floor with the final layer installed - it takes about 48 hours for it to cure. But believe me when I say that we are itching to try it out!

You guys are going to be so impressed.

Meanwhile, we are doing some serious housecleaning. You wouldn;t believe the amount of crap that has accumulated in various locations at the gym. We've completely cleaned out both the storage silo and the top house (that structure that sits on top of the silos). We had quite an interesting time today throwing stuff off the top of the silos. It's pretty crazy to see a 70 lb, 10 foot by 12 inch piece of pipe going hurtling off the top of the 90 foot silos and stab into the ground! We sent sheets of scrap metal flying through the air like kites. Of course, when all was done we had to clean up the mess below.

Still on the agenda for the rest of the week is to continue the clean-up, finish out construction in the office, and change up the holds in the bouldering room.

New pics are posted on the photos page.

Renovation Update #1 - Sunday Report

2008-08-31T19:57:00.000-07:00

Yes - the gym is closed tomorrow (Monday) and Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and even Friday. I know everyone out there is wondering what in the world we are doing in the week we are closed. Seems pretty extreme to close for a whole week right? Well, bottom line is that is the ONLY way we could get done what we've been wanting to do for months!

Today was the second day of renovation - the first being Saturday night when some of us stayed until 1:00 am tearing out the front office. But today (Sunday) was even more exciting as we got to see the first layer of our new rubberized flooring being installed!

I can't even express how excited I am about this and how much this is going to change the look, feel and SAFETY of the gym. This is a huge step, not to mention a huge investment and we could not do it without the generous help and support of so many people - our customers and loyal climbers included.

My hope is that when people enter the gym their jaws will drop in disbelief. In fact, that is the impact it had on me when I saw the first layer of material in place. It was so wonderful to see the potential of the gym being realized.

Tomorrow the top layer of material will be installed. I'm told this is a longer more involved process so I'll be surprised if they get it completely finished in a day. And if the top layer looks as good or better than the base layer then I will be very happy.

More Slab Pics

2008-08-25T19:05:00.001-07:00

Construction in the new silos is moving quickly. The staff of Rocktown spent another Sunday painting, this time in the new set of silos. We are growing ever closer to having a new climbing area and a place for our Touchstone groups and a place to rent out for private parties.

We are down to the nitty-gritty of drilling hundreds of holds in the slab. Yes, the texture phase is done! Check out the most recent pics. It looks great. After the holes are drilled we get to (I say that in jest) screw in a few thousand screws to attach t-nuts to the back of the wall. This is how we attach the handholds to the wall. We should have the wall completely finished by the end of the week. Of course, it won't be open just yet as we still have to put the handholds on.

We are concurrently working on a number of other projects in preparation for our closed week (Sept 1 -5) when our new safety floor will be installed. High on the agenda is a complete tear-out and re-build of the front office. If always goes well, when we re-open on Sept 6 it should look like a new place.

Some of you are wondering when the routes are going to change. Well, once we get some of these big jobs out of the way we are going to be changing routes again.

Oklahoma Climbing Team - Try Outs Today

2008-08-24T17:32:00.000-07:00

Thanks to all the parents and kids who showed up for try-outs for the first ever Oklahoma Climbing Team. We had a great group today and saw a ton of effort and some very motivated kids. It is amazing the potential we have in this state that has gone relatively untapped and unrecognized. We hope, through the development of this climbing team, to further the sport of climbing in Oklahoma, build confidence in the kids, and make these kids into great climbers. I know we can do it.

We will be announcing the team members of the 2008-2009 climbing team soon.

More changes, more colors, more progress

2008-08-18T19:05:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday the staff of Rocktown spent the entire day improving the gym. What was the gray silo is now purple. Areas where we've done construction - such as when we recently raised the height of the interior doors (did anyone notice?) - were touched up. And the center benches in the main silos were painted black and silver.

Of course, were not done yet. We have a few more things to paint before we can call it good. All of this is in preparation for our huge week of renovation coming up the week of Sept 1 -5 - when we will be closed.

The rooms in the new set of silos are coming along. The first coat of texture is on the slab and tomorrow we will begin the finish coat. Then comes t-nuts and paint...then holds!

So please, if you like what you see - let us know.

Thanks for climbing with us.

New Construction - Update

2008-08-14T19:24:00.000-07:00

The new slab wall is coming along nicely. I've posted some more pics of the progress on the photo page.

At this point the wall is fully framed, sheeted with plywood, and encased in wire lathe. The texturing will begin tomorrow. Our anticipated finish date for construction is Friday, Aug 22. Then will come the task of adding holds and setting routes.

We are also working in the front office - some of you may have noticed that it is a little more spacious with the brick pillar gone. We are in the process of renovating the front office with a new floor and new desk. We hope to have it done by the second week in Sept.

Speaking of which - just as a reminder - we will be CLOSED THE WEEK OF SPET 1 - 5 for construction.

Some of you may have noticed that it is a little bit cooler in the tops of the silos. This is because our exhaust fan unit is up and running and sucking the hot air out of the tops of the silos and pulling cool fresh air in! We hope you feel the difference in the air temperature and quality. Let us know if you do - makes us feel like we made the right decision that way.

We'll have more updates including pictures as the construction continues. Thanks again for climbing with us!

On-going Development at Rocktown - Updates

2008-07-28T20:48:00.000-07:00

I've been getting a lot of faces peaking in the new rooms lately wondering what's going on. So in an effort to circumvent the possibility of a piece of angle iron crashing down on your head while you're trying to sneak a peak, I'll give you an update.

The new rooms, 3 total in this first phase, have ceilings in them and there is a new walkway connecting the current gym to the new side. We are in the process of building a slab wall in the room with a 35 ft ceiling. This wall will go from 75 degrees to vertical (90) then back to 75 for the top section. The wall is wider at the base and takes the curvature of the silo as it goes up to it's height of 30 feet. We hope to get about 4 ropes on this wall. We are in the welding phase right now and hope to have it done the end of this week or possibly early next week - it's going really well. Next phase will be affixing the plywood then texturing.

Once the slab is done we have some other features to add to the opposite wall and lots of holes to drill for more routes. When the dust settles we'll be doing finishing work like painting and getting the furniture in. Our target for having the new side open is early September, right after the flooring is installed (more on that in a moment).

In the current silos we are installing ventilation. About time, right? The fan and duct-work are in place and we hope to have it powered (pending a visit by OG&E) the end of this week. This won't necessarily cool the silos - it's not air conditioning - but it should pull the hot air up and out and bring fresh air in. We are expecting to get about 6 air changes in each tube per hour with this system. But we won't really know until we turn it on!

Though it hasn't been announced publicly yet, we will be closed for renovation the week of Sept. 1 (Mon) - 5 (Fri). The reason for this is that we are installing a rubberized pour-in-place solid surfacing throughout the gym. You may have seen something similar at playgrounds. This is not chipped rubber (like was in the old bouldering room), this flooring is very cool. It has been rated for up to an 8 foot fall so it should provide some added protection for those rope-stretching falls that occur occasionally and a better landing surface for boulder problem starts. Also, the gym will have a totally NEW look and feel. I think everyone will be really impressed when they see it. I can't wait.

The issue is that the pour-in-place flooring requires about a 3 day cure time. At that time no one can walk on it. That's why we need to close.

In addition, we are going to be renovating the front office during the closure. Again - changes that need to happen as we continue to grow and should give the place a very new look and feel.

When we reopen on Saturday, Sept 6, it will be a new chapter in Rocktown history. Thanks for climbing with us.

Rocktown on News 9

2008-07-26T12:32:00.000-07:00

Rocktown was recently featured on News 9's Summer in the City things to do.

The complete story and videos are all here.

And here's the link to the videos:

Full Story

Inside Rocktown

Climbing Gear

Rocktown Article in The Oklahoman

2008-07-10T10:13:00.000-07:00

More press for the gym!! The Oklahoman recently did a story on Rocktown and Lisa Gibson was interviewed about the gym.

To read the complete story go here.

Rocktown on SportsNIGHT Oklahoma Cox Channel 7

2008-06-28T10:14:00.001-07:00

Rocktown Climbing Gym was featured on Cox Channel 7 earlier this month. The show may repeat if you want to try to catch it. If not, you can check out the video here.

2008 World Cup Bouldering PICTURES

2008-06-19T11:38:00.000-07:00

Finally got the pictures from the World Cup Bouldering Competition uploaded - sorry, there are not captions yet.

Special Event - Christmas On Mars Movie Premiere - June 13, 14

2008-06-12T14:32:00.000-07:00

This Friday night, June 13th Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips in association with the deadCENTER Film Festival and hosted by Rocktown Climbing Gym presents the movie premiere of CHRISTMAS ON MARS.

There will be three showings: midnight, 2:00 am, and 4:00 am. Tickets are FREE and will be handed out on a first-come-first-served basis, one ticket per person, beginning at 10 pm for the midnight show. Tickets for the 2 am show will be handed out at midnight and tickets for the 4 am show will go out at 2 am. There are 200 tickets for each show. This is not an all-ages show. You must be 18 to enter.

The gym will not be open to the public during the show. The movie is being held in a large circus tent behind the silos in the same location as the Renegade Picture Show. For more details about the movie you can visit the CoM wikipedia site.

WORLD CUP ACTION!!!

2008-06-08T11:32:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was an awesome display of climbing strength at the Bouldering World Cup in Vail, CO. In the end, two Americans secured placement in the top three of their divisions. Alex Johnson of Team USA placed first in the Women's division and Paul Robinson placed third in the Men's. In second place for Women's was Katharina Saurwein of Austria and in third was Anna Stohr also of Austria. In first place for the Men's division was the incredibly strong Kilian Fischhuber of Austria and in second was Gabriele Moroni of Italy.

The routes were a good mix of technical, steep, dynamic, slopey, crimpy, and entertaining. In particular was the women's semi-finals route number 3 where the ladies had to perform a either a double-hand dyno or a long reach to a hidden jug around a corner. This sent many flying around the corner with feet swinging wildly towards the audience. Lisa Rands was one of several women who showed great strength on this tricky move. Unfortunately, the move off the jug was to a horrendous sloper and no one was able to pull through to complete the problem. Equally impressive was men's final route number 4. This route saw only two ascents (by Gabriele of Italy and Kilian of Austria) but a number of competitors, including the two Americans Daniel Woods and Paul Robinson gave impressive effort at powering through the no-foot pocket moves at the beginning and powering through to the red, white, and blue volume hold towards the top of the wall.

The audience for the semi-finals was impressive but the audience for the finals later that evening swelled to fill the entire hillside - probably a few thousand people. In the end, it was Alex Johnson of Team USA who stood atop the podium holding a check for over three thousand dollars and the coveted title of world's strongest boulderer.
So of course you are wondering - what about Sharma? Well, Sharma was there, he qualified, and was in the semi-finals but unfortunately was thwarted on problem 3 and 4 in the semis and did not make the cut for the finals. But it was really fun to see him climb.

Complete results can be found on the IFSC website.

Bouldering World Cup - Vail, CO

2008-06-06T18:40:00.000-07:00

(by Aaron Gibson)

I will be at the Bouldering World Cup in Vail, CO on Saturday so I will give everyone an update on what the competition is like. In reading the recent reports about the routesetting for the comp and Qualifiers today it sounds like it's been a tough go. It rained constantly during the routesetting - which, as you can imagine, makes it very difficult to work. And reports of the Qualifiers lead me to believe that some of the routes were just too hard for the competitors as there were few sends and lots of ties. I guess we'll see how it goes tomorrow for the finals. I'm looking forward to seeing what an international climbing competition looks like, how it is run, and what kind of performances the routes bring out. Look for a report here either Saturday or Sunday.

Later,
Aaron

Summer Camps and Everest Club

2008-06-01T21:46:00.000-07:00

June is upon us and things are heating up at Rocktown - in every sense of the word. But we are not slowing down. In fact, we have two things we just have to tell you about.

First is our SUMMER KIDS CAMP. We are having two sessions this year: June 23 - 27 and July 14 - 18. The camp is for kids ages 5 -13. Camps meet from 1 - 3 pm and include expert climbing instruction, basic climbing skills, and a variety of climbing games and activities. Kids will receive a daily snack and a Rocktown t-shirt. Camps cost $75 for the week.

Our second announcement is for those of you who really want a challenge. Starting today we are launching our Everest Club! What is it, you ask? We want to see if you can climb the height of Everest at Rocktown. Here's how it works: We will help you log your vertical footage for each day you climb at Rocktown. Your progress will be updated weekly in a spreadsheet and the top 10 will be noted in the gym on our Everest Club Board. There are three checkpoints: the one vertical mile marker (5280' climbed). Everyone who reaches this level will receive a Everest Club t-shit. Next stop is Base Camp (17,600'), the first person here receives a FREE PAIR of CLIMBING SHOES. Finally, is the Summit of Everest (29,029') and for everyone reaching this point by the end of the program (6/1/09) we will have a drawing for a FREE ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP.

So how much does it cost? A mere $20.

Who can participate? Anyone! Of course, with as much climbing as you'll need to do it pays to have a membership.

Remember, endurance and pacing wins this game. Sign up today!

Flashpoint Climbing Competition a Success!

2008-05-06T13:13:00.000-07:00

The Flashpoint Sport Climbing Competition was held on Saturday, May 3 at Rocktown Climbing Gym. This was the first climbing competition for Rocktown Climbing Gym and it was, by all accounts, a very successful one. We had a total of 79 competitors ranging in age from 7 to 60-something. There were climbers from across the region including Texas, Arkansas, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado and, of course, Oklahoma. A number of climbing teams arrived with strong climbers ready to pull down. We appreciate all the climbers, all the parents, grandparents, coaches, and volunteers that made the long journey to OKC and showed support for the climbers.

As you might imagine, it is quite a feat to pull off an event of this magnitude and we could not have done it without the generous help from the volunteers, routesetters and Rocktown staff. A special thanks goes to them. We received praise from the climbers and coaches for the routes and the organization of the competition and we appreciate it.

Dale Walters, Regional Coordinator of USA Climbing for the Heartland Region handed out ribbons to all who placed in each of the climbing categories. Those results are posted on the USA Climbing website. The only scores not listed are the adult advanced field. In the adult advanced division Joshua Vaught secured first place, second went to Chris Yates, third place went to Daniel Schuerch , and fourth went to Robbie Haggard.

We would like to thank the sponsors of the Flashpoint competition, without whom we would have not had the wonderful prizes to give to our competitors. The sponsors were Trango, eGrips, Flashed Climbing, SoIll, Liberty Mountain, Rock & Ice Magazine, Backwoods, Evolv, and Mad Rock. We'd also like to thank the Quiznos store in downtown OKC. They showed up on short notice and sold box lunches to the competitors and spectators. If not for them we might have all had to eat pizza (again).

Finally, we raised about $100 in donations that went to the Access Fund - and while we would have liked to raise even more - hopefully we raised awareness enough for some more climbers to become members in the organization.

There are some pictures of the competition posted on our photo page. If you have photos of the morning session please send them to us so that we can include them in the gallery.

Rocktown on NewsOK.com

2008-04-16T07:52:00.000-07:00

Rocktown's own Lisa Gibson was featured on NewsOK.com's the Ladies Room. You can find the video article here.

In the video Lisa highlights the mission of the gym as a social enterprise and goes through the basics of climbing and what you can expect when you go climbing your first time at Rocktown.

Thanks to the ladies of the Ladies Room and NewsOK.com for featuring us.

Spring at Rocktown

2008-03-29T07:54:00.000-07:00

Spring is here and Rocktown is ready! Thanks to all the climbers who braved the winter season with us. We had (and still have) good intentions to add heat to our facility but we were not able to speed things along on the natural gas side to get service here in time to be able to install heaters for this winter season - but that doesn't mean we are not still working on it. The good news is that we'll now have plenty of time until next winter to get this place retro-fitted with heaters. But let's move on to what is in store for the Spring and Summer season....

We are preparing for our upcoming USA CLIMBING sport climbing competition on SATURDAY, MAY 3. Pre-registration should be up and running by early next week. You will be able to pre-register by internet, mail and phone. Make sure to pre-register and get the discounted rate so you are not paying more when the pre-registration period passes. Details and deadlines will be provided when the pre-registration is launched.

Rocktown is just one competition in a string of USA Climbing sanctioned competitions. If you are already a member of USA Climbing, you know the deal - you have to earn a certain number of points from Regional Competitions to qualify for Divisionals later this year. If this will be your FIRST competition and don't know what to expect - don't worry, a full explanation of the format is forthcoming.

Please be aware that Rocktown will be closed to public climbing on the day of the competition - MAY 3. You must be a registered competitor to climb that day.

In other news - we are well on our way to building our Touchstone Youth Group area in the second set of silos. We expect to have work well underway in the next two weeks. That means more climbing, a place for groups, expansion, expansion, expansion!

Also - we are having the roof repaired - that work will be beginning within a week. That means less tropical conditions inside during those rainy Spring days.

You may notice that things are looking brighter inside the silos - that is because we are installing additional lighting. When before you could not see the tops of those routes now it should be no problem. Now you'll know exactly where the crux is on your project.

AND FINALLY - in the mags this month you will find Oklahoma climbing featured in a number of ways. Local hard-man climber Russell Hooper is the cover man on the recent Rock & Ice Gear Guide - pick up a copy and check it out. Also, Rocktown member and local climber/photographer Andy Chasteen had a photo published in the Visuals section of Urban Cimber Magazine featuring - of all people and places - Aaron Gibson climbing a route at Rocktown. Sweet. Thanks to Andy and UC Mag (wink to Andrew T.) for putting us on the map.

Photo Gallery

2008-02-13T11:39:00.000-08:00

We've added a photo gallery to the website and will soon be updating the rest of the site with some new features and expanded information.

If you have photos or video clips of climbing at the gym that you would like to share please send them to us. We will review them and post them on the album and our forthcoming video page.

New Bouldering Room is OPEN

2008-02-08T09:21:00.000-08:00

Yes - that's right. The new bouldering room is officially open! After weeks of work, beginning in Dec 2007, we now have an awesome room with two huge walls. Pads are in and a staging room is open just before the bouldering room; a place to take off your shoes and stash your stuff.

Just a few important things to note: no street shoes are allowed in the bouldering room. No food or drink is allowed. Only Rocktown staff and approved climbers are allowed to mark problems. This means no use of chalk tic marks, markers, stickers, etc. on the walls - only route tape will be used to mark problems. Kids 14 and under MUST be accompanied and supervised by an adult while in the bouldering room. No topping out on the walls (that means do not climb over the tops of the walls). These rules are in place to keep the prolong the life and quality of the bouldering room and for your safety.

We have a TON of new holds - with more going up. So don't expect all the holds to be up and a ton of problems to be set on your first visit to the new room - we just wanted to start by getting it open for all to use.

Please wipe your feet/shoes before stepping on the pads - did I mention that we are a little protective of the pads? They just look SO sweet we want to keep them in good shape.

Please be considerate of others in the bouldering room. If it is too crowded - wait a while before trying to cram in. Please boulder safely - you are climbing at your own risk.

The bouldering pass rate is $7 - or just get a membership.

Rocktown Pictures (and updates)

2008-01-28T19:33:00.000-08:00

Here is a link to some great pictures of the gym that I intended to post about two weeks ago. The pictures are primarily of me climbing Xodus, a route I established on the SW side of the silos. It is a mostly drilled pocket route and is approximately 120 feet in length. The route is bolted for lead and anyone certified to climb at Rocktown can lead it OR you can find a draw-monkey to lead it for you and you can top-rope it. It is rated 5.10 so it's not too burly - but the crux is in the last 15 feet. The position of the climb, the exposure, and the view of downtown OKC make it a worthwhile climb.

Click the link below to check out the rest of the pics. All photos courtesy of Andy Chasteen...

http://s174.photobucket.com/albums/w99/andychasteen/Rocktown%20Gym/?start=0

***
Bouldering room update:
The bouldering room construction is about 98.57% complete. That is an exact number. Things left to do include setting new lights, re-wiring (is there an electrician in the house?), and a little bondo work (don't ask). Though we are close to being ready we are still waiting on the flooring. We think it will be delivered in early February.

New Construction Update:
We hired a contractor to professionally cut four new doors in the south set of silos AND three new doors in the current (north) set. This will allow us to develop the south set of silos for a group room for things like birthday parties, scout groups, corporate groups, church groups, and just about any other group you can imagine. We anticipate this will grow a significant portion of our business. The bonus is that we will also be opening two new rooms in the current set of silos. Where are these rooms? you ask. Well, there are two other rooms inside the current set of silos that are identical in dimensions to the middle pink room. One is located adjacent to the bouldering room and one is in the red hangboard room adjacent to the belay/training room. At this point we don't know exactly how we are going to develop these - we are in the idea phase.

A project we are going to be working on very soon will be to tie the north set of silos to the south set of silo via an interior hallway. If there is anyone out there with new construction and carpentry skills - especially if you have experience in building new additions - and you would like to help (or work for hire), please get in touch with me (Aaron) at the gym. I'm needing someone pretty quickly as the concrete work should be done this week and we'll be ready to start the building phase.

Bouldering Room Update

2008-01-17T20:38:00.000-08:00

The number one question I've been getting lately: "When is the bouldering room going to be finished?"

Well...

Pretty soon.

We are about 90-95% complete on the construction side of the house. That means that the walls are fully constructed. We are in the "finishing" stage. We have a few touch-ups, some sanding, some seams to fill, and some aesthetic tweaks to make but then the walls will be done. Then there is a bit of touch-up paint and some holes to drill in the concrete for drop-ins and holds. Finally, we have to set the lights - which requires some electrical work, and wire the speakers.

Work this week has focused on finishing up some edge pieces, bracing, and adding the tarp drop-ceiling which also functions as the plumbing to catch and redirect leaks from the actual ceiling 90 feet above. The tarp is purposefully set at an angle for water to run down to a funnel installed at a low point. PVC pipe runs from the funnel through the silo floor and into the basement where the water is collected.

We added a PVC "hang-pipe" covered in grip tape along the top of each wall, this will make for a great finishing hold.

I received word a couple of days ago that they are in the sewing stage on the pads. As I noted before, we will have a custom-designed 8-inch thick foam padded floor. There will be a total of 8 pads and the seams will be patched together with velcro strips. Because this is a custom job it takes some time for them to make the pads and ship them to us. By the time the pads arrive we should have the room completely finished, have all the holds up and even have some boulder problems set.

Looking at the schedule - our tentative open date for the bouldering room is Monday, February 4. But it all depends on the pads.

Rocktown at Momentum

2008-01-13T19:29:00.000-08:00

As mentioned in the last blog entry, Rocktown built a climbing wall for Pseudodance Theatre for a performance at this year's Momentum art show. The two day event presented by Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition (OVAC) took place in a large furniture showroom/warehouse space. It was a great show and we were really excited to be involved in such a professional event and work with artists that were so passionate about dancing and climbing. It was an experimental project and this was a first run but it was a successful one and I look forward to doing similar projects in the future.

Our newest member of the Rocktown staff, Sherwin, participated in the show on Friday night. He entertained the crowd with some wild dynos and some other sweet dance moves. He even went as far as to wear a tutu and ballet shoes! Way to represent, Sherwin.

On Saturday night, Lisa, my wife and a co-owner of Rocktown, participated by belaying some of the dancers as they performed on the wall.

It was a unique experience for me to watch the crowd study the movements of the dancers as they scaled the wall. In this venue rock climbing truly became art.

Rocktown at Art Show

2008-01-10T13:58:00.000-08:00

We took a short break from the bouldering room construction for a unique opportunity to be involved in an art project.

Rocktown has a presence at this year's Momentum art event put on by the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition (OVAC). We are sponsoring Pseudodance Theatre in an experimental dance/climb performance. I can't say much more than that because I really don't know exactly what is going to be involved. I simply know that there are going to be dancers trying to climb the walls in point shoes and tutus.

The event is Friday night (1/11/08) from 8 pm - midnight and Saturday (1/12/08) from 8 pm - midnight. If you get a chance to check it out you should. For more details on the event including directions go to this link.

My brother Adam and I (Aaron) put a bit of effort into building the walls for this event. There are 3 separate walls each running parallel and reaching 16 feet high. We were able to attach the plywood directly to the existing walls rather than build another frame because they are remodeling the space following the event. We anchored the rop-ropes to girder beams in the ceiling and setup Gri-Gri devices just like in the gym.

The color scheme (red, black, white) is based on the logo colors for the gym. The big red stars were already on the plywood - the dancers like them and decided to keep them.

For us this is a rare opportunity to display climbing as an art form - both in the wall design design and in the movement of climbing itself. For me this opens up a number of other possibilities and ideas on how to integrate climbing into areas not-so-commonly associated with "traditional" rock/gym climbing.

New Bouldering Room Taking Shape

2008-01-05T19:58:00.001-08:00

Since the last post we have been working nearly non-stop on constructing the new bouldering room. We completed all of the framing of both the left triple-angle wall and the right wall which has taken the shape of the hull of a ship. We have also cut and attached all of the plywood paneling - a task which required some careful measurements and creative woodworking skills, especially on the right wall. We quickly ran out of t-nuts and more are on order. Once we get those we will need to pull each piece of plywood sheeting to attach the t-nuts and then reattach the plywood. Sounds time consuming - that's because it is - but the hard part is over.

We painted the room a sort of seafoam green/blue - kind of reminds me of the same color of some in-ground pools you see. We've even joked about hanging a life preserver on the wall and maybe one of those extendable poles with a skimmer on the end - you know, just for kicks. But seriously, the color of the room matched with the light-colored birch plywood (yes, I said birch) makes for a very sharp looking and clean room. I've had some questions about if we will be painting or texturing the walls and the answer is - no way! There are two schools of thought on bouldering walls (maybe more actually, but I'm distilling them down to two for simplicity's sake) - one school says texture the crap out of the wall, make it look "natural." The other school says, keep it smooth, keep it simple. I'm with the keep it smooth school (for this project). My reasons are that it makes for less scraped knuckles, it opens up a few more options for routesetting, like being able to easily attach screw-on holds without having to worry about scuffing the texture, makes it easy to add and remove tape for marking boulder problems, and it provides a very unique look to the wall. In fact, I think this is one of the prettiest looking bouldering walls that I have ever seen - and certainly ever constructed. Only time will tell how the surface will wear once it is climbed on for a while but I think it's going to hold up great.

Some other additions: there's going to be a drop ceiling which will consist of a white stretched tarp just over the walls and some lighting which will reflect off the ceiling. The tarp will serve the utilitarian purpose of keeping any water drips off the walls (as we are still dealing with roof leaks), provide some sound dampening and sense of enclosure, and it should look pretty cool too. We will be installing a new sound system in the bouldering room too and rewiring the lights.

So the big question is: when is the bouldering room going to be done? Well, there are some key things that must be in place before we can open. I've already mentioned a few things but the biggest thing is that we are awaiting a custom designed padded floor that will fit the shape of the round room. This floor is being manufactured by Asana and will provide 8 inches of foam padded floor - plenty for the 14 foot height of the walls. The date they told us was about three weeks. SO - at this point the padded floor is the limiting factor on when the room will open. Believe me, we are as anxious to open the room as you guys are to have it open - I'm ready to climb on that thing! But we have to wait until it is safe to climb. So please, be patient.

Oh, one more thing, we ordered a bunch of sick new holds that we'll be setting routes with - stuff that will blow your mind.

Renovating Bouldering Room

2007-12-23T10:02:00.000-08:00

One of the things that we really (and I mean REALLY) wanted to do when we took over was tear out the current bouldering room and completely redo it. That's what we are doing now. Work began a few days ago on tearing down the old walls, scooping out the nasty chipped rubber flooring, and cleaning out all the dust and debris lurking behind (and inside) the old walls. It was quite a bit of work but we were able to get the room cleaned out and now we are in the process of constructing the framework for the new walls. On the left side is a massive three-angeled wall 14 feet high and 12 feet wide. The first 6 feet are vertical then there's a short (about 3 foot) section of 45 degree wall then it kicks in to about 15 degrees slightly overhanging. This should be a great wall for sweet boulder problems and future bouldering competitions. The wall is now completely framed and ready for plywood to be attached.

On the right side we are constructing another massive wall - 14 feet high - about 12 feet wide - but very different in design. It is basically going to be an enormous inverted triangle that is just slightly overhanging. The right side angles up from left to right and creates a unique steeply overhanging feature on the under-right side of the triangle.
The outside edge of the traingle should be perfect for arete problems. This wall is in the early stages of construction so we don't have pictures to post yet.

***
An update on some other projects and where they stand:
(1) The leaking roof: this one is at the top of the list for us. Some stomach-turning news: we recently received a quote for the complete repair of the entire roof (both silos) and it was over $90,000! As bad as we want to fix the roof we cannot afford to pay that high of a cost - AND on a facility that we don't even own (we currently lease the silos - but are working on purchasing). We are not giving up, we are going to continue to look for other options to repair the roof.
(2) Heating of the silos: still awaiting word from ONG about the status of the gas line and where it runs and IF they are willing to run it to the building. If they can do this we are almost certain to move forward on heating the silos with radiant heaters.
(3) The group area: we are moving slowly on cutting the doorways but once we get those cut things should speed up a little more during build-out.

New Construction and More

2007-12-16T20:03:00.001-08:00

I guess this is as good a way as any for starting this blog for Rocktown.

We are in the process of expanding the gym into the other set of silos. For those of you who didn't notice, we have an entire set of silos - the same size as the current gym - that has gone completely undeveloped. We are in the process of cutting doors - a massive undertaking. The doors we are creating are 5 feet wide and 7 feet tall and require us to cut through about 6 inches of concrete and rebar. It is a time consuming and labor intensive venture. These newly developed rooms will eventually be tied into the current gym via an interior hallway. On the new side we will have an area specifically designed for groups - birthday parties, scout groups, church groups, corporate groups - anyone that wants to rent the room. We are also going to be developing plenty of new routes, bouldering and other climbing structures in the new set of silos.
These pictures should give you some idea of the amount of work that goes into cutting a doorway. What you might not notice is that much of this work took place following the recent ice storm. That meant freezing temperatures and ice. Lots of ice.

A special thanks goes to Kyle Cooper for all his help in cutting these doors.

So what else is on the agenda in terms of improvements? Well, as we have been saying since we started in November - we are working on getting heat in the silos. We are currently in discussions with Oklahoma Natural Gas (ONG) and are awaiting a decision on the feasibility of running a gas line to the property. It is essential that we have this as it would not work to run the heaters we need to run using electricity - we must use gas.

The best-case scenario is that we have a gas line within a block or two and ONG is willing to run it to our property either for free or for a nominal fee. Hopefully this would take no more than a week and then we can get our plumbers in to run line and we can get the heaters installed within about 3 weeks. That's the best case scenario. The worst-case scenario is that there is not a gas line within the vicinity and it would cost a fortune to install a new line. In that case, the whole project gets scrapped and we have to look at alternative options. The in-between case is that there is a line nearby that we can tap into BUT it will take a while to get the gas line to us and get the heaters fully operational - in that case - we may have heat eventually - but not this season.

But let's not dwell on that. Did I mention that we are building a new bouldering room?!

We'll be working on it over the next few weeks - so keep that in mind if you are coming to the gym just to boulder - the room may be closed for construction. We should have the new bouldering room complete in early January.

We have SO many projects for 2008 I can't discuss them all in a single post. So stay tuned.

One other note - we have gift cards available for any amount from day pass to annual membership. Give us a call.

Happy holidays from Rocktown.

~Aaron