An invitation to roast our ridiculous plans to build a paid entry Bouldering park.
All structures comply to playground regulations so we are creating an entirely new type of Bouldering centre. There will be the best realistic rock you've ever seen and regular route-setting.
There will be free climbing for anyone in crisis and the UK's top graffiti artists will have free wall space to create
Come to the site have a tour and let me show you why this place is going to be a model for expanding bouldering in the UK .
Boatyard Boulders
Thanks Ben
My 2C
1) Are realistic boulders the best choice if you want regular route setting? Features on your boulders can't be changed and this can then limit the options for routesetting, especially at harder grades
2) Will it be floodlit? If no then it greatly limits your peak hours
Realistic rock without floodlighting - great for schools, families at the weekend. No need to spend money on regular routesetting
Flat panels a la Dumbo + floodlighting + regular routesetting = potential to attract local enthusiasts
Will people be tempted to climb outdoors in the cold? I'm not sure. Oxford Brookes does have an outdoor but covered section and that is always pretty popular although when the holds feel damp I'd rather climb on the indoors bit
As per S Ramsay, I think it will be popular with kids, schools, birthday parties, youth groups etc.
I doubt that regular keen climbers will find it very useful apart from the odd session on a very warm evening in the summer for a bit of a change.
If you're in Nottingham and it's nice enough to climb outdoors you're pretty close to some great rock in the Peak District which is free to access and is in the beautiful peak. I'd only want to pay to climb on artificial rock if the weather isn't good enough to go to some real rock which would mean I wouldn't climb here as the rock would be wet or it'd be too cold or dark to be outdoors. I also agree with other posters. If it's realistic rock it's not going to be reset enough to want to go there regularly. You're much better off with artificial panels that can be properly reset.
Some great points here.
I agree it's a massive experiment.. but what is key here is the location, we have this 30'000 sq ft site accessible to everyone in the city. We intend to open from 6.30am to 10pm in the summer. It's a short walk and cycle route into Notttinghsm city centre.
Key points
Send your ideas and help us get it right, because the site is incredible and led all our plans. Better still come talk to us in person! We want to get this right.
Thanks Ben
We've just had a donation of nearly 10k worth of these exact panels from a world famous climber. I can't drop his name as I don't want to sour the already generous offer. There will be a mix of realistic rock and more traditional resin panels.
Give us some ideas, we want people to get involved. When we did our research, the wave wall at the foundry kept coming up, so we will do something inspired by this. I remember before the Climbing works opened in Sheffield virtually everyone in the industry said it would be a flop.. they dared to go for it and the rest is history. We now have an indoor bouldering centre in every major city.
Maybe have a look at this place: https://climbonline.co.uk/2020/11/02/climbing-guide-to-whickham-boulder/
Yes that's been mentioned on FB too, I'll go take a look. Had some other great suggestions to have the 3 favoured rock types, sandstone, granite and limestone. In addition try and take inspiration from specific climbing areas like Fontainebleau.
I don't think the idea would work in many places, but it's a great location. The site has a long history providing adventure sports in the city and there is existing planning in place. It's also got some essential stuff already built, like a large shower block/changing room facility. We almost have to build the climbing structures in concrete as it's right on the river and needs to be completely water proof in case of flooding.
The plan is to open long hours in spring - summer, from as early as 6.30am, so people can climb before work in the city centre (15 mins walk away). The Riverside coffee truck will be the only spot on the river Trent to provide Waterside drinks. All that working together with the Graffiti art, paddle boarding and kayaking will be popular.
We want it to be welcoming to beginners but have specific dedicated areas for the more advanced climbers.
P.s don't forget to donate ☺️
Thirty years ago there were two monstrously overhanging traverses on either side of the actual arch, we spent many happy hours there, probably contributed heavily to wrecking my elbows.
Good luck with your project.
Thanks. I think timing has been awful ! We don't want people's money if they are struggling. We started planning it over a year ago and scheduled the crowdfunder for optimum time to build over winter.
The message is save your money and we'll find a way.
Thanks Ben
Might be orth getting in touch with the folk at Cuningar Loop Boulders, https://www.climbscotland.net/where-to-go/get-outdoors/cuningar-loop-boulde...
I visited there and love what they did.. But from what everyone is saying without fixing points for holds and volumes these structures get boring very quickly.
News update ! The build is going to happen next year, so we will be looking for climbing consultants to help make sure we don't mess it up. If we have ultra realistic rock with a full grid of climbing hold fixing points it will be first for the UK.
Thanks for the support.
The UK climbing forum's members have been our biggest donators to the project.
Ben
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