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General Climbing Discussion

Topic Date User

Compare gyms in Melbourne to Europe 30-Jan-2008 At 7:05:07 PM Cliffhanger

Message

On 30/01/2008 devlin66 wrote:
>One of the big problems in Australian gyms is the lack of full time route
>setters. Mostly they are part time gym staff. There is a growing professionalism
>in the northern hemisphere that hasn't really caught on here yet. There
>are a couple of guys like Saxon Johns etc. that are at the fore front in
>Australia but even he has to work a full time job as an architect to make
>ends meet. Once the shift to full time route setters is accepted here and
>their value recognised, we will start to get some quality routes indoor.
>
>I've also found every gym I have climbed at here in Australia has some
>compromise in it's layout. Whether it be height, no/not enough bouldering
>or just badly designed walls. Given the cost of installing a gym though,
>I can understand the complexities and hurdles of installing one. These
>factors all contribute to the feel of the route setting.

From a gym owners perspective, you won't get full-time route setters until the volume of patronage in gyms, at least in Melbourne, trebles! It's just not cost effective.