Bouldering – think rock climbing with no harness, lower to the ground and yet with every opportunity to live out your spider man/girl fantasies.
Being a sucker for trying out new things I pounced at the opportunity to try out Bouldering at the Urban Ascent center in Parson’s green. Tom and Albert did not need to be asked twice and so at 7pm on a Tuesday night we found ourselves swapping trainers for rock climbing shoes and a bag of chalk.
Following a short, informative and interesting safety/technique demonstration by Aaron we were let lose on to what could possibly be a hundred if not more bouldering “problems”.
The objective is to find your way up, across, sideways, down or upside down and along the walls using nothing but your feet and hands as gripping tools.
You start in front of a wall covered in multi coloured rocks. Each rock is essentially a grip sculpted for grasping with your hands and feet. Each colour represents a degree of difficulty, each route a new challenge.
Each course is designed to test your agility, upper/lower body strength and muscular endurance. The courses are referred to as “Problems” as they often call for an analysis of the best way to tackle the route. Some courses are more complex than others and may require more than one attempt to complete. You may find yourself slipping or tumbling onto the well padded floor. A discussion would then ensue on how best to position your hands and feet. Success would inevitably lead to a shameless frenzy of high fives.
In short an awesome way to spend a couple of hours at the end of a working day/week. Highly recommended!!
What to wear:
Comfortable clothing that does not restrict the movement is ideal. Think shorts and a T-shirt. Climbing shoes are supplied by the center.
With Healthy Wishes,
Dmitri Tkatchev