What was I doing spread-eagled on a wall above the ground, you ask? Why, learning indoor rock climbing, of course. The site of my erudition was Climbnasium, Inc. where David Cooper, the General Manager of the Climbnasium had graciously allowed my husband and I to try climbing so I could write this article for your edification. So, one Tuesday night last month, we bundled up our daughter and headed out for a night of adventure. (Julia didn’t do any climbing, by the way, but she did screech what I took as encouragement from the sidelines.)

I had no idea what to expect that night, which was a good thing, since I never would’ve dreamed up the fun-house-like Climbnasium. I say “fun-house” not because of the attitude of the employees, which was very safety conscious, but because of the visual impression the facility gives upon first viewing. Walls jut in all directions from which oddly-shaped, strangely-colored protuberances (climbing grips, or “jugs”) project while climbing ropes dangle everywhere like so many multi-colored spiderwebs. (Speaking of spiders, I wonder if Spiderman ever had trouble with his palms sweating. Probably not.) The lighting, which was bright in some areas, dim and shadowy in others, added to the bizarre impression. Climbers were clinging to many different surfaces including some that leaned out over the floor in a manner that looked more horizontal than vertical (and not in a good way). They were practicing climbing the equivalent of the underside of ledges on a cliff-face. Spiderman would’ve been proud.

The Climbnasium is the brainchild of Pat Brinkerhoff and Mike De Cavalcante and is a converted barn which formerly housed youth retreats. (Although, in a way, I guess it still does.) The Climbnasium opened six years ago and was only the fifty-first such climbing gym in the country at the time. Now it is one of more than five hundred as the sport of indoor climbing has grown and gained a following. David Cooper, who took over the operation of the facility for the two owners in 1995, states that the hardest thing about running the gym was building up the climbing community in a place which doesn’t really offer any good outdoor climbing. David stated that most of the good climbing in Pennsylvania is at least three hours away, so getting people interested and involved in climbing was more difficult than it would be in a geographical area that would naturally attract climbers. Slowly, the climbing community has grown, however, and now the Climbnasium has around one hundred and fifty members. Classes are offered through several of the local colleges and during the summer many outdoor courses are offered as well.

The membership consists about evenly, said David, of high school and college students; young families and those in their early thirties to forties who have a taste for something athletically different. “There are more men members than women”, said David, “which is a shame. Women are inherently better climbers than men.” (That comment made me smile sunnily at my husband, of course.) When I questioned David as to why he thought that was so, he said, “Because climbing is about flexibility and balance and not brute strength. Most men, especially on date nights,” David smirked, “try to power themselves up the walls and tire themselves out to the point they can’t continue. Climbing is about being graceful and dancing on the wall, not strength. It’s a shame that women tend to come in here and get intimidated by the fact that there’s many more men here than women. If they’d just stick around and do some observing, they’d notice they have the natural advantage.” (Although, in actuality, my husband’s height seemed to cancel out any advantage I may have had. He was able to just calmly reach up and grab holds for which I had to jump or stretch. Drat and double drat.)

All beginning climbers at the Climbnasium must attend an Introductory Course which is held Tuesdays and Thursdays at 6:30-9:00 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays at 12:30-3:00 p.m. The cost for the Intro course is $32, which includes a daily pass and rentals. David stated that almost all climbing accidents are caused by human error, so the Climbnasium strives to make sure that all climbers have had adequate instruction in basic safety. Beginners are also taught how to put on their harnesses (harder than it looks), tie their climbing ropes (which is really, really important), and how to belay or anchor a climber from below so you can stop their fall if they come off the wall (which is also really, really important). Stopping someone from falling may sound a little intimidating, but with the help of a strap that’s sunk into the floor and attaches to your climbing harness plus a handy little gadget through which the rope feeds and uses friction to slow down the rope’s momentum, it’s quite easy to catch and support someone much larger than you. I was easily able to hold Ted, the Assistant Manager, from falling when he jumped to demonstrate the technique and he outweighed me (mostly because he had muscles and I don’t).

The type of climbing learned first in the Intro course is called Top Rope Climbing, which is where the long climbing rope is fed through an anchor at the top of the climb. Top Rope Climbing is a type of Free Climbing, which means without aid. Free Climbing does not, however, mean without ropes or harnesses, that’s termed Free Solo Climbing. Free Climbing simply means you are not using artificial supports such as rope ladders. The two other types of climbing possible at the Climbnasium for the more advanced are Lead Climbing and Bouldering. Lead Climbing is where you’re clipping your rope into supports placed at intervals by you, another climber who’s already gone ahead or, as in the case with Climbnasium, pre-set supports. This type of climbing is more difficult because if you fall, you have to fall down past the support below you where you were last clipped into and could mean a twenty or thirty foot fall.

Bouldering, on the other hand, is a type of Free Solo Climbing because there are no ropes used. The walls are not nearly as tall, averaging maybe ten to fifteen feet, but the surfaces go in all directions. David stated that Bouldering has become so popular that there are many climbers who never do any Lead or Top Rope Climbing at all. Bouldering is done in the outdoors in boulder fields where the enthusiasts simply clamber all over the large boulders like so many ants traversing pebbles.

Climbing equipment can be rented or purchased at the Climbnasium and consists mainly of special climbing shoes and a harness. The only other things you need for a good time at the Climbnasium are clothes you can move around in and a sense of adventure.