Gym Injury-Who is responsible

A girl broke her leg bouldering last night at our university climbing gym. The mat was about 8 inches from a vertical wall in the easy section of the gym and her leg went between it and the wall. How much responsibility do you think the gym bears, both legally and morally?

It has since been fixed and the gap is now about 3 inches.

none

Climb at your own risk. And every climbing gym that I know of makes you sign a waiver that literally says stuff like that is not their fault.

Zero... Unless you can prove gross negligence, does not sound like it

I agree with everyone has written. Read the waiver your friend signed. Subsequent remedial measures (i.e., moving the mat back) can't be introduced as evidence of liability.

Are you kidding? Take some responsibility for your own safety, sheesh. The gym owes you nothing. What are trying to do, get the gym shutdown for everyone else?

The gap in her leg is only 3in's now? Doesn't sound like it's fixed

It will be interesting to hear if the girl sues. There will undoubtedly be some vulture-attorney that would take the case. I hope she doesn't (sue).

FrankPS wrote:There will undoubtedly be some vulture-attorney that would take the case.

Do you go to the vulture-doctor when you're sick?

BTW, even if she did sue, the case would go nowhere. This issue has been hashed out many times before, always against the injured party.

why not sue?
it's worth a shot, especially being that universities have an infinite amount of cash, and a personal injury lawyer would jump all over that. I'm sure the school would be willing to settle quickly. I'd go for no less than a year's tuition. at the very least this will shine some light on how much gym climbing sucks and shouldn't have the word "climbing" associated with that activity.

Fat Dad wrote: Do you go to the vulture-doctor when you're sick? BTW, even if she did sue, the case would go nowhere. This issue has been hashed out many times before, always against the injured party.

The "vulture-attorney" moniker only applies to the ones that would take such a case, not all.

I don't see a vulture-doctor, just a doctor! He has never said, "Who did this to you? Let's get some money out of them."

matt snyder wrote:why not sue? it's worth a shot, especially being that universities have an infinite amount of cash, and a personal injury lawyer would jump all over that. I'm sure the school would be willing to settle quickly. I'd go for no less than a year's tuition. at the very least this will shine some light on how much gym climbing sucks and shouldn't have the word "climbing" associated with that activity.

That's the entitled, looking-for-a-free-lunch attitude I'm talkin' about!

This is the second person I've heard of who got their foot caught on the edge of a mat and broke it (the other is a friend's gf, who was moving sideways as she fell, caught her foot between two pads, and broke her leg badly enough that 10 months later she is still in rehab). I agree with the above posts, the gym is not responsible.

For a related topic: I've known a climbing gym that had *NO* movable mats in the bouldering area. Instead the whole floor was covered in a layer of crashpad-thickness foam. It made walking awkward, but seems much safer to me; no chance of getting on the edge of a mat, no chance of missing a mat, no chance of getting your foot caught between a mat and the wall or between two mats. Is there a reason that this is not standard? Is it cost? Is it the bouldering tradition of having a crashpad under you? Is there a safety issue that I don't know of with a system like this?

Frank PS, I understand what you're saying. I'm just making the somewhat obvious point that, while lawyers make money by dealing with conflict, doctors make money from illness and death.

Fat Dad wrote:Frank PS, I understand what you're saying. I'm just making the somewhat obvious point that, while lawyers make money by dealing with conflict, doctors make money from illness and death.

I understand the similarities. Let's throw funeral homes in there, too! :)

This exact injury happened at the Spot (Boulder, CO) earlier this year to a friend of mine. She understood that her safety was her own personal responsibility. There was never a hint of legal recourse.

Climbing is dangerous, end of story.

Why didn't the injured party push the matt up flush with the wall? Sheesh, the OP and the injured party seem like brain-dead idiots. As for the poster who wants to sue the university...the world has too many of your parasitic types.

FrankPS wrote: . . . I don't see a vulture-doctor, just a doctor! He has never said, "Who did this to you? Let's get some money out of them."

Maybe not your doctor, but at least with my medical coverage (Kaiser), you can't tell them you have a cold without them grilling you to see who they may be able to recover from.

matt snyder wrote:why not sue? it's worth a shot, especially being that universities have an infinite amount of cash, and a personal injury lawyer would jump all over that. I'm sure the school would be willing to settle quickly. I'd go for no less than a year's tuition. at the very least this will shine some light on how much gym climbing sucks and shouldn't have the word "climbing" associated with that activity.

Not just a douche. An elitist douche.

Jon H wrote:This exact injury happened at the Spot (Boulder, CO) earlier this year to a friend of mine. She understood that her safety was her own personal responsibility. There was never a hint of legal recourse. Climbing is dangerous, end of story.

I'd stopped going to The Spot before they updated the flooring in the gym. I thought it was dangerous & borderline unfit to be open for business. If a new patron had gotten injured during that time, I'm not sure I'd have completely sided w/ the gym.

matt snyder wrote:why not sue? it's worth a shot, especially being that universities have an infinite amount of cash, and a personal injury lawyer would jump all over that. I'm sure the school would be willing to settle quickly. I'd go for no less than a year's tuition. at the very least this will shine some light on how much gym climbing sucks and shouldn't have the word "climbing" associated with that activity.

Either you haven't gone to college or mommy and daddy paid your tuition bills. They don't have an endless supply of cash. Hence the skyrocket in tuition in this country over the past decade. If this person did sue and win they'd get the money but screw over everyone else.

OP, don't you think "moral responsibility" is a little strong? We're talking about bouldering in a gym here.