May Gym Round Up
May saw the industry back in full swing, plus it was great to see a strong showing of brands at the inaugural Asian Climbing Summit in Kuala Lumpur. This month was, however, unfortunately marked by the closure of walls in the UK, Germany and France - we wish those affected staff all the best in finding new work.
We have launched our Beta Bounty💰 - Every month we’re giving away 3x £25/€25 BananaFingers and EpicTV Gift Cards at random for news submissions with a source link.
As always, if you have announcements to share with the industry, be sure to tag/email/DM us.
Be sure to check out our new podcast The ECN Podcast, if you have a project to share in podcast format please do get in touch!
Denmark
Boulders goes Big
On May 22nd Danish gym chain Boulders opened its 9th, and Denmark’s largest, bouldering gym. The bright, Walltopia-built facility is centred around a large hanging feature, and offers extensive wall space including dedicated kids zone, full gym, 2024 MoonBoard, adjustable KilterBoard and cafe/social space.
Finland
Get a GRIP!
A new, ground-up build for a combined Skate Park, FUN Gym and Climbing Wall is in development in Tampere, approx 160km north of Helsinki. The climbing section is a large component of the facility, hosting 700sqm bouldering wall, 1600sqm roped climbing up to 15m and across 100 lines. The floorspace is 2300sqm making it the second largest climbing gym in the country. Also included are a Family area with slides and bridges, training wall, warmup mezzanine with hangboards, and LED lead wall which is rarely seen anywhere (let us know if this exists somewhere!). Wall design and project management are with Easy Access Oy, and wall production by Walltech. The opening ceremony is December 27th, and we hope to be there!
Tampreen Kiipeilykeskus
France
Vertical’Art Falls in Lyon…
The Lyon branch of gym chain Vertical’Art permanently closed its doors on 30th April, with only 24 hours notice given to staff and customers. In an extensive piece by Vertige Media it noted that a competitor chain, Climb Up, made an offer in 2024 which was rebuffed. Thankfully for climbers, Lyon is in no shortage of climbing gyms - including the large, third Bloc Session site coming to the city soon.
…But Rises in Toulon
A second VA site in Toulon is coming this summer, the large facility will include: 1500sqm of wall space accommodating approx 120 blocs, kids zone, full-equipped training area, a large sauna - a popular choice for news gyms, a restaurant/bar space and a large mezzanine to relax on.
BS#25 Opens
The twenty fifth Bloc Session opened to the public in Besançon, in the east of the country, on May 25th. The build of the 600sqm gym was taken care of by EP Climbing.
A Renewed Roof!
The Rennes branch of the Roof gym chain is currently undergoing extensive renovations. We reached out to their Director, Olivier, for information on what customers can look forward to when complete:
The new build offers a larger choice of climbing walls, with real slabby walls and real overhanging walls, what we really missed before. It also has a larger area for the kids, with two specific walls for them, to ensure more security and adaptability.
We first designed the wall with Christophe Cazin, a french wall designer, and we made some little adjustments with the Citywall team. All the design has been really adapted to the specificity of the building, as our climbing walls are located in an old hospital with complex spaces.
We will have about 1000sqm, that is more than twice the previous gym!
A large part of the staff has benefits from partial unemployment, that means they keep their job during the build even if they don't have any work, with a little salary decrease. A little part of them is still at work for administrative and communication tasks, some of them were also able to move to other Roof sites, to give some help to our receptionists and routesetters.
The gym will now offer several climbing areas, in several rooms, including a larger training area with two spray walls and a specific area for hangboards which will be more efficient to organize competitions, to welcome groups and for courses.
We are still associated with the restaurant and brewery, Origines, which provides us very good food, craft beers and soft drinks, absolutely 100% handmade from super local products.
Financial Troubles for Contre Pointe
A local news website has highlighted a crowdfunding campaign for the Contre Pointe bouldering gym in Bourges, central France. Gym owners everywhere will know the struggles of crowdfunding, even moreso when the survival of your gym is on the line. Owners Marc Cousin and Brice Picault were recently refused a bank loan which has effectively put the gym on notice unless immediate assistance can be found.
Court-Ordered Closure for Roc Bihan
Roc Bihan, only open for one year, was ordered by a court to permanently close on May 23rd. Although reasons weren’t given for the closure, the location of the wall on the outskirts of the western city of Vannes suggests that it couldn’t attract the required footfall to continue operating, especially with another competitor having also opened in 2024 less than 200m away.
Germany
Memmingen Expansion
The local DAV branch has announced intentions to expand its existing facility with an additional outdoor wall. The upgrade will add ~600sqm of climbing surface, taking the total wall area to 1650sqm, the new walls will be 15m tall across 25 new lines, including some impressive steep sections if the renders are anything to go by, giving a total of 75.
Bloc 48 Closes
The independent gym Bloc 48 in Eberswalde has closed effective Sunday 1st June, the exact reason for the closure wasn’t specified but their Instagram post cites ‘personal reasons’. Whilst they are still currently looking for buyers, the gym wasn’t able to remain open during the search.
Ravensburg to get new DAV Site
The DAV shared their visions for the new site in Ravensburg, the extensive multisport site has a budget of €8 million and, when completed in 2027, will welcome both climbers and triathletes. The approximately 17-meter-high climbing and the low-rise bouldering halls, each with approximately 1,200 square meters of climbing space, are connected by a two-story wing with a flat roof, which will house the office, the bistro, youth rooms, seminar and practice rooms, as well as changing rooms and showers.
Einstein is Go for Launch!
The latest, 7th site for Einstein Boulderhalle has been approved for opening by the local authority and will be opening their doors to the people of Cologne on 21st June. The setting team were fortunate to have Paris 2024 setter Tomasz Olesky join them for the opening set. The large Benky-built, and matted, wall offers a huge array of angles including a unique diamond-wave wall.
Break-In at EnergieWande
As reported on a local news site, the EnergieWande climbing gym was broken into in mid-May, the thieves had time to look through cupboards around the gym and escaped with the day’s cash takings and a tablet computer.
Netherlands
The previously announced Dutch National Training Centre has begun construction, along with the surrounding residential and commercial buildings. The Mountain Network chain will be managing the site, and sharing monthly updates on their Instagram page.
Norway
On May 19th, a new full-service climbing gym in Lørenskog was announced. Although stats aren’t yet available for the site, it will be a large, bright facility within a commercial centre, featuring ten 10m autobelay lines, extensive bouldering space, adjustable KilterBoard, MoonBoard and Spraywall. There will also be a cafe space for climbers to relax and enjoy the action around them.
Poland
No Problems Here!
Problem Bouldering in Gdansk has announced a substantial expansion to their current site - not only for wall space but customer comfort and experience; featuring new locker rooms, larger training and warm up spaces, more wall surface, new grips, a change of cafe layout and better ventilation!
New Gym in Łódź
A new roped gym is under construction in the central city of Łódź. Manufaktura Wspinania has a property in a scenic, part of the city centre and will feature walls up to 15m including an overhang section to offer tougher challenges, speed walls, and a family zone. Keep an eye on their Instagram for a imminent opening date.
Slovenia
New Bouldering in Central Slovenia
The new gym Bouleraj has been revealed in the town of Celje. Speaking with owner Anamarija and her husband Matjaž; the gym will have 500sqm of wall space, designed and installed by Anatomic Walls and matted by Flipp, it will also feature a Kilterboard Original 12x12, a spraywall, a training area with campus board and a separate kids climbing area. They will also have a small shop and cafe and associated lounge space. They aim to open Summer 2025.
Spain
NYCE!
The NYC Bouldering Gym in Elche opened its doors on May 31st, 20km from tourist hotspot Alicante. Joe, the owner, has been chronicling the gym’s progress since inception, the compact gym offers a variety of wall angles and a 2024 MoonBoard.
UK
Foundry Makeover Continues
Legendary Sheffield wall The Foundry is continuing their streak of upgrades with the demolition and rebuild of the Moon Wall. The project is being led by Climbing Works owner, and IFSC Olympic Chief Percy Bishton, and Rob Napier of Enigma Climbing. Customers can also look forward to the DMM and Slab walls being repainted and retextured.
A Rising Tide
Cornwall-based Tide Climbing has shown off the build of their second site, in the picturesque town of Helston. Sophie from the team gave us a breakdown of what to expect from the new facility; The floorspace is just over 4000 sqft (370sqm) plus around 4000 sqft for an additional live music venue, approx 2000 sqft (190sqm) of wall surface including two kilter boards, the wall is being installed by local professional carpenters, with Core Climbing installing the matting. The gym will employ 5 new staff members, and also feature cafe/retail and work spaces. Climbers can also look forward to a full-height glass facade offering panoramic views over Helston - sounds ideal!
Boulders Culver House Closes
This one is a little behind in sharing but still worth including to update wider perceptions on the health of the industry. On Sunday 30th March, the Culver House site of the Boulders chain closed its doors, the reasons have not been made public.
Flashpoint Upgrades
The Swansea site of the British chain is undergoing substantial upgrades, their Social Media contact Mark has shared their vision and progress on the build so far, it will provide an even greater experience for customers regardless of experience and age. Upgrades include a fixed TensionBoard2, rebuilt wall section to include more slab (downstairs), and kids zone.
Bloc10 #2
Scottish bouldering business Bloc10 have opened their second site, this time in the industrial port city of Aberdeen. The spacious, Walltopia-built gym opened on 31st May, existing members at their Dundee site will naturally now have access to both sites - as long as they’re willing to make the 1hr20 drive!
Boardroom Wimbledon to Close
On 27th May, the owners of The Boardroom - Lee and Dave - announced the closure of their Wimbledon site, the last day of trading will be Sunday 8th June. They cite persistent building maintenance issues, increased rent, lower-than-expected footfall, and the effects of increased business tax rates - individually these could perhaps be solved, but the cumulative effects have proven too much for the 2-year old site. This marks a turning point in the burgeoning London climbing scene where new gyms have regularly been opening since the pandemic. The well-established, original Boardroom location in Queensferry is not affected by this closure and will continue to operate, they will at least benefit from receiving everything from the Wimbledon site as it is broken down.
Bath Uni Backs Out of Gym Build
On 23rd May it was announced that University of Bath would not be committing to building a climbing gym in the derelict Sulis Club on the edge of the city. Local businessman Jon Phelps has been working with the university for a number of years in order to get a climbing facility built, however now the university is said to be facing a ‘very challenging financial position’, and is unable to commit to the build.
