UKC

As they are space limited, they've chosen a top-out boulder instead of a decent overhang.

I'm a bit disappointed - cant be many cities with the size and demographics of Oxford without a climbing wall with a decent steep bouldering section.

Top-out boulder seems more like a nice to have - none I've climbed on get close to the terror-inducing, core-destroying, hernia-causing delight that you get on a real boulder.

Designs here if you use fb: https://www.facebook.com/135030576529780/photos/a.229416800424490.70153.135...

Thoughts? I'm hoping they might be willing to change things if there's sufficient interest.

-ross

In reply to quiffhanger:

Freestanding boulders are a silly gimmick. It just needs a good board or just a section of steep panels like every other modern bouldering wall in the country! Please Brookes be sensible and look at other modern walls. Brookes may not be the only wall in Oxford for ever, so its as well to have some sort of attempt at competing with the wider marketplace.

Its a shame that constructive comments were deleted from the Brookes facebook page. The wall has improved significantly in the last 5 or so years, and that's a credit to its current management. However, the current proposals for the extension are really a missed opportunity as they stand.

In reply to quiffhanger:


Having worked, visited, climbed and manufactured a fair few climbing walls I firstly think that any climbing wall who actively looks at expanding its services to its clients is hugely welcomed.

From what I understand is that Brookes has been looking and working with professional designers for a few years on plans to increase the overall climber area and I am sure at the idea of steep training wall was talked over.

In my thoughts the boulder routes set at Brookes are some of the best in the country so any increase in bouldering would be welcome. However in my experience has always been a problem with space at Brookes something that will always come with a center within a sports complex. The lead tower was always over crowed and it is good to see that there will be an increase in leading lines (not cheap to produce) to the new extension.

Steep 45 degree boards are brilliant for training however they also take up more space then conventional walls and only work well when made of plywood which is not always the best when exposed to the elements such as outdoor temperatures. They also are often left for days on end with no use waiting for the small top end percentage of climbers to use them when it is structured into their plans. Yet they have do have a purpose and an effective one too.

Supply your core clients will always be a business main focus and these plans from what I have seen aim to make compromises for all. Possibly it could be a question of train smart not train hard.

So to summarise;

Brookes great venue, short on space
Great to see new design for more leading lines
Designs represent compromise for all climbers
Good team, good designs will be a success.

In reply to JSCB:

I would just like to comment, that a steep wall is by no means only used by the small percentage of top end climbers. Climbers, whether newbie or experienced, are driven by challenges. And there is little which tops the daunting effect of a massive overhang! Everyone wants to climb the steepest and gnarliest wall in the gym!! For one it will be jugs, and for the other it will be fingernail crimps.

Of course I don't want to judge the freestanding boulder before it is even built, but I think its fair to say that steep climbing is an aspect of climbing, debatebly a very important one, which so far is missing completely in brookes.

This is meant purely as constructive criticism and as input for this or further expansions.

In reply to quiffhanger:
The wall management have been trying to find a way to expand what is clearly an overcrowded wall for years. But they are severely restricted by circumstances. How much by the indifference and inflexibility of centre management, I can only speculate - but I don't get the impression they are very helpful. So, while it seems obvious to me that the demand is there to support a much larger Brookes wall, what we are going to get is a big compromise.

We will have to see how it pans out but I don't have particularly high hopes. It appears that the wall management have been forced into a half-arsed solution. For the extra space that is created it will lead to relatively little extra wall area. I think the main beneficiary will be leading. The bouldering - which is very popular at Brookes - will gain little. I don't have high hopes for the free standing boulder - it doesn't appear to provide what is wanted by boulderers. We will see - I could be wrong, I often am.

It seems a massive lost opportunity. Brookes is a good wall - it's just way too small. A bit of investment could benefit both the climbers who use it and the centre - who would undoubtably increase revenues.

In reply to quiffhanger:

El Greyo's post is spot on.

JSCB must have hit the crack pipe hard before writing that.

In reply to El Greyo:


Sounds like a win to me!

In reply to JSCB:

You must have your finger in a pie somewhere because that post is ridiculous.

More seriously though, couldn't the panel facing the roped wall be a 45 degree woody.

In reply to quiffhanger:

The free standing boulder sounds ace! Personally I'd vote for that over another overhang. The overhang in the back room seems to challenge enough people at the minute.

The guys were in the back room the other day discussing extending the existing overhang. I think they concluded that the fall zone would take over any seating or standing room it has.

Space wise at brookes, it all depends what time you go there. Leading in the evenings is like climbing at a cattle market but for the rest of the time you more or less have it to yourself! Any new additions outside will be great for the summer during the working week.

What's pissed me off about the new look is the colour! They promised pink and we all wanted pink! The new grippy wall hurts my limbs and chews up my brand new climbing shoes it's a disgrace!

In reply to deacondeacon:

JSCB is an interested party so we can discount his views.

http://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?n=544027&v=1#x7280428

What's the first thing you do at any climbing wall? Build two boards, one steep and one less-so. A dozen or more people can use the same 12' x 12' board simultaneously without it feeling crownded, it's by far the most efficient use of limited space. Your regular customers will keep visiting for decades just to use those.

In reply to flaneur:

Admittedly the woodies do tend be a quieter part of the wall but the guys who do use them are in it for the long haul.
One customer using it, will likely be money for the wall three times a week, potentially for decades and they only need resetting once every year or two.
I can see why walls cater for birthdays parties but you need to keep an eye on your repeat business too.

In reply to flaneur:

For someone who lives in cockermouth and works in Keswick. I will rarely if ever use the Brookes wall. However as this post was created on a Facebook forum of which I am a member of asking for opinions and thoughts I simply gave my thoughts sorry if people disagree they are just thoughts.

In reply to JSCB:

So what connections do you have with wall, as you also skirted the subject in a previous thread?
So how can you see how well set the bouldering is fromCockermouth?
Also your comment about plywood in a cold room is, at best, bo****ks.

I've climbed at the wall once when visiting a friend and never went back. If it had a woody I would have done.

In reply to quiffhanger:

Found this on fb good to have a chat about these things I climb at brookes 2/3times a week. Its pretty good for its size but there is loads of people. So expansion to mean seams like a great idea. I would love a steep wall but I can see that there just isn't the room for it. Freestanding boulder should be good it will mean the boulders will be more spread out. I think a steep wall out back would mean most people as they do will boulder in the back room thoughts???. More leading!!!! Yes ever since I climbed there in 2005 there has needed to be more leading so yes yes yes to that. So all sounds good to me.

On topic of color I like the orange personal choice and all and the walls did need a good sprucing up. Am I right in saying you need 2m fall zone from the top of the wall so I don't think that front boulder wall would do as a 45 degree??? yes/no anyway back to the point looking forward to more space to climb on from the plans i've seen around the center the boulder looked pretty steep but I guess we will have to wait and see. More space to climb must be a bonus right???

In reply to quiffhanger:

Good to hear they are planning to extend Brookes, it's a good local wall with a lot of potential if new space becomes available. Will the new room bouldering panels against the other 3 walls (that aren't the new lead wall) - surely covering those in panel would be a more efficient use of space than a free standing block in the middle. You could put a steep board at the back and then have vert or even slabs at the side to keep everyone happy... maybe i'm missing something in the scale of the pictures and there isn't space for that.