Students can learn how to boulder in a safe and fun environment not far from Dixie State University.
The Spot Bouldering Gym, located at 955 N. 1300 West Suite 4, is a place where students can climb with or without any experience and still be safe. The Spot opened its doors in 2011.
Tyler Eddington, a freshman general education major from Las Vegas, brought a couple of his friends with him to the gym and started with a fairly easy route. All three of them finished it with ease. They decided to put some chalk on their hands before moving into the second room that has harder routes.
“I’m just getting into bouldering,” Eddington said. “I like it. I just started doing this in Vegas a few months ago. I was hoping there would be a sweet spot like this, and so far, so good.”
Manager Bryan Teaters said The Spot is a safe place to climb because of the amount of pads underneath each wall. If any mishaps occur, the climbers are safe.
“(Climbing and bouldering) is just flat out fun,” Teaters said. “I do it to stay fit, to continue learning and to meet new people. All of these things that are around this one center point make climbing so much fun. I just can’t hold myself back.”
Inside the gym, there are two different rooms and countless climbing routes, which are called “problems” in bouldering.
According to its Facebook page, The Spot offers climate controlled bouldering on 12-foot high walls with angles from 0-45 degrees.
“As simple as (bouldering) is, it’s a big challenge,” Eddington said. “You could look at a climb that is only around 10 holds or less, and you can spend over an hour on it.”
The problems at The Spot can range from a beginner’s level to a V7 level. Teaters said the higher the number, the harder the problem.
In the beginner’s problems, climbers can use any foothold. As it gets harder, climbers are only supposed to use their feet on the holds with designated colors.
Lex Skeen, a sophomore marketing major from Ogden, recently visited The Spot for his first time. He said he hasn’t climbed very much before, but he liked The Spot.
“There’s something for all levels,” Skeen said. “For beginners like me, it’s pretty good.”
The Spot is open Wednesday to Saturday from 5-10 p.m. A one-day pass costs $10 with a $1 shoe rental.
For more information, visit the Facebook page at www.facebook.com/TheSpotBouldering.
“I just love watching people come in and leave with a smile on their face,” Teaters said.