Moab Climbing Gym History...?

Hello fellow Moab Locals,

I recently moved from Montana to the wonderful Moab Valley this last fall for a teaching position at Grand County High. I was very excited to be in such a great community full of adventure seeking enthusiast like myself. Moab is a Climbers Paradise, and has created a culture that is only found in these special places. Once my move was over and I began to settle in and heard that there was once a local climbing gym in town. It was housed up in the now Elks Club building, the old facility used for the Poison Spider bike shop up on the hill. Can anyone help me find more information about the history of the business?

For the past few years I have been trying to find a home were I could give back to my community, as well as create a space to foster my passion for climbing while teaching others the unique skills and lessons it has taught us. This is why I am asking for your communal help. I have a few questions that maybe you can help me answer. What was the name of the gym and who owned and operated the business? What are your thoughts on why it was unsuccessful or was it? Was it due to lack of a variety of programs/events, quality of service, poor marketing, or advertisement? Do you think the type of climbing that the gym offered was insufficient for our Moab clientele?

I thank all of you for your helpful insights and responses. Your knowledge and thoughts are a vital tool for me to use for this project. I hope to see some supporters out there, Moab could use a facility like this for our growing community. A place for our families, children, and our community to come together to learn, explore and create meaningful memories.

Cheers,
Ryan Nelson :)

The old climbing gym was owned by Kevin Chase. I was also curious about why it didn't work out and probably Kevin would be the person to ask but I'd heard he was active in several different business enterprises at the time and the gym may not have been given the attention it would've needed to operate successfully. There are a myriad other reasons a climbing gym in Moab may not have been successful such as Moab having a very long climbing season and very accessible climbing. Another being the transient population; at any given time during the on-season there are many climbers in Moab but when the season turns most drift off to other scenes leaving behind a somewhat small core community. Another reason might be the dirtbag ideal that holds strong in town; a lot of climbers on principle would never pay to climb at a gym. Several people I know have toyed with the idea of opening a gym and I for one would support it but it'd have to be creative operation reaching beyond climbers into other facets of Moab at large (kid's birthday parties, local schools, people interested in climbing who need a gym to make it accessible, etc.) If and when the USU campus opens up however it'd only be a matter of time before a gym springs up.

FUCK. NO. WE won't pay!!

ben jammin wrote:FUCK. NO. WE won't pay!!

You will always pay. Such is the nature of reality.

You have a gym

It's called Potash Road.

MT head wrote:You have a gym It's called Potash Road.

Yeah but all the tape has fallen off

Ryan,
I like your ambition. However, my opinion is that you probably would not find that much support from locals with a climbing gym. The climbers that live here locally mostly prefer to climb outdoors and are typically willing to push through the winter season and continue climbing in areas that get good sun during the winter. Also, there is just alot of dirtbags here who get by on very little to live and climb here, not alot of extra $ to climb at a gym and they probably just wouldn't want to.
Every year though the gaypers do come through with their sport racks thinking they are going to find a bunch of moderate sport climbs. Which just is not the case here, except for ICP which gets so overcrowded now (sad). You could find some support with these folks.
I agree with other posts in that it would need to be more than a gym (gear shop, etc).
I am not sure about the college coming in but as it grows 10 to 1 they will have a climbing wall.
Check out Flagstaff they have a couple gyms and yet there is climbing close to town...but they do have a large university....

ben jammin wrote:FUCK. NO. WE won't pay!!

Moab "local" climber attitude in a nutshell. Kinda why I just ride a bike these days.

Good luck, Ryan, YMMV.

JFA wrote: Moab "local" climber attitude in a nutshell. Kinda why I just ride a bike these days. Good luck, Ryan, YMMV.

Oh, get off your horse Joe. It was a joke referring to Jake's comment. Plus, from a business sense, I sincerely think it's bad idea. Especially with the proposed boulder park at Lion's park.