Argument First Draft
December 2nd 2019
The sport of rock climbing has been around for centuries. In the past rock climbing was a sport dependent on mentorship and location, as well as a sport that came with a large amount of risk. And though with the increased popularity of the sport has brought with it advancements in technology that has made climbing safer there is still serious risk involved. In the 1980s we also began to see the start of a new form of rock climbing, indoor rock climbing (Wilkinson). Over the recent decades the amount of indoor rock climbing gyms has increased drastically. And over time indoor rock climbing has evolved to become an integral part of rock climbing as a whole. It is important to beginners and helps serve as training and year round access that outdoor climbing cannot offer to experienced climbers. In addition as a growing number of people are introduced to the sport, indoor climbing could be a solution to proportionally reducing the numbers of people at outdoor climbing destinations and therefore helping to preserve those destinations.
For beginners first being introduced to the sport of rock climbing, indoor gyms are a great way to try climbing for the first time. In Indoor Weekly’s article they note that “Rock climbing gyms … let you start climbing in a safe, controlled, and monitored environment. Climbing gyms are set up and run so that climbers are safe." (Gripped) Indoor climbing gyms serve beginners as a jumping off point, a place where they can assess their skill level and decide whether they would like to continue with the sport in a relatively safe environment. Gyms offer instruction to new members that train them on how to climb safely with the proper equipment and the correct way of using that equipment. Prior to gyms many rock climbers learned technique and safety practices from a mentor, which depending on the mentor could have been a good or bad experience. Andrew Bisharat described his first experience with a mentor saying he “nearly died because he sent me up an X-rated offwidth with nothing more than a few nuts and a couple of slings for the anchor. As I desperately inched my way up this fearsome maw, Jon consistently reminded me (in a rather unhelpful way) that if I fell, I would “absolutely die!”” (Bisharat) If done right mentorship can be a great tool to learn rock climbing, however horror stories like that of Bisharat is another reason why introduction to rock climbing through indoor gyms is a lower risk for beginners.
Indoor gyms are also more accessible geographically. Before the creation of rock climbing gyms climbing was something very dependent on where you lived. Ashima Shiraishi, a champion rock climber for her age group, lives in New York City. Without indoor gyms, she would have not been capable of reaching the climbing level she is at right now, since she does not live near any outdoor rock climbing and would not have gotten the opportunity to be exposed to the sport (Stokes). In addition to geography, weather and seasonal changes are also big factors for climbers. One used to only be able to climb on good weather days, during certain times of the year. Now indoor gyms give beginners and experienced climbers alike the ability to hone skills and maintain physical form throughout the seasons where outdoor climbing is not available.
In Chris Noble’s article on the gap between indoor and outdoor climbing, he points out that “we can continue to build more gyms and introduce ever-more people to a sport and lifestyle we all love, we cannot create more outdoor climbing destinations than already exist in nature.” (Noble) While it is true that the increase in climbing gyms has led to an increased number of people interested in the sport, it is also creating new outlets to experience the sport which could help reduce the amount of people using outdoor climbing areas in the future. 99 Boulder’s article on the growth of rock climbing also points out that “Given time, outdoor infrastructure may catch up to the needs of new crowds.” (Kuelthau)
Rock climbing has become an internationally recognized sport, further solidified by its addition in the 2020 Olympic Games this coming year. With more and more people being exposed to the sport it is more important than ever to include indoor rock climbing gyms as part of the whole. A safer more formal system of introduction to rock climbing will help reduce the risk to new climbers hoping to learn a new skill, and with the increased competitiveness of national and international climbing competitions experienced climbers will need indoor gyms has a tool to remain competitive. Though there are differences between indoor and outdoor climbing we need to work towards bridging the gap between the two.