Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Who has the sweetest New Years plans?

Time is running out to make some plans to do something super dope for New Years! Leave a comment if you think you have sweet plans. We'll take a vote on Friday on who brought in the New Year the most awesome-ly.

The winner will win something super cool. Oh boy!

Have a safe and happy New Year, everyone. See you next year.

Don't forget to register for Backcountry.com's Forearm Festival Citizens' Comp!

Backcountry.com's Forearm Festival Citizens' Comp!

If your New Years Resolution is to climb on new problems with climbers from around the world to a pumpin' soundtrack, then The Front's got ya covered. You can check that Resolution off your list on January 24, 2009 at Backcountry.com's Forearm Festival Citizens' Comp during the Winter Outdoor Retailer Show!

There will be over 70 new problems for all abilities, over $3000 in schwag from our rad sponsors, plus the chance to climb with some of the world's best climbers who will be in town for the OR Show. Give the top pros beta on their projects ("just pull harder, dude!") while rockin' out to bumpin' tunes.

Register NOW by clicking on the link to the left! The first 65 pre-registrants are guaranteed a sweet event t-shirt.

Get geared up for the comp by visiting Backcountry.com and sponsors' websites by clicking on their logos!

See you at the Forearm Festival....fa fa fa fa flex 'em! Giddy-up!

Monday, December 22, 2008

Happy Holidays!

The Front would like to wish everyone a safe and happy holiday!

We will be open
Noon - 5PM on Christmas Eve, December 24.
CLOSED December 25
OPEN 11AM-10PM on Friday, December 26.

To see the rest of our holiday hours, go HERE!

To see our Holiday Yoga schedule, go HERE!

Friday, December 19, 2008

Pole Fitness Classes for Ladies at The Front!

Hey Ladies! Pole Fitness classes are now available at The Front from Propulsion Pilates. Join Jenn for an amazing full body workout as a student of Pole 101!

Lady Front Members get one free class per calendar month, plus discounts on class punch passes. Everyone must attend an orientation before attending Pole 101. Orientations are held Sundays and Mondays at 10:45AM and Fridays at 4:15PM.

For more info go HERE!

Monday, December 15, 2008

Fresh New Hoody's

This just in new Front Hoody's. Just in time for the holiday season so if you are looking for something to get that special person or simply want to look fashionable out on the town look no further pick up a Front Hoody. Also, check out The Front Mart we have crashpads to backpacks, trucker hats and beanies something for everybody. Gift Certificates are also available just ask the friendly Front staff for help.

Don't forget about our final comp of the season Backcountry.com's Forearm Festival on January, 24 2009.

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Big Action at Festivus 2008!

Over 100 climbers were at The Front on Saturday to get jiggy on 70 new problems for all abilities. Super-dope schwag, cash (!), and for the first time ever, a remote control truck were given away to Festivus participants!

You can leave feedback, plus check out the results, problem analysis, and comp pics HERE!

We're honored to have had so many people compete indoors on such a beautiful day. The strong folks were out in force, as were the future of our sport. From the preteens to the seasoned veterans, there was something for everyone at Festivus.

Thanks to all of our sponsors who have continued to commit tremendous support to our events, no matter what the economic outlook. Be sure to support them as the holiday season approaches. Visit their websites by clicking on their logos to the left.

The next All Abilities Comp at The Front is Backcountry.com's Forearm Festival on January 24, 2009 during the Winter Outdoor Retailer Show. You will NOT want to miss our final comp of the season. Test your skills against some of the strongest climbers in the world!!

Register now by clicking the link to the left.

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Front Members featured in new Rock and Ice!

Check out the new issue of Rock and Ice with Front member, Christine Balaz on the cover! There's a great feature on climbing in the Uintas with pictures of Front members, Cerre Francis and Jules Cho. Past member Jay Keener is in there too.

Past member Ben Ditto was part of a team that snagged the first ascent of Peak 5394 in India. Way to go, Ben. We'll be here for you when you're ready to start bouldering again, a form of rock climbing that's really popular with the kids these days. We hope to see you soon!

The rad Uintas shots were taken by local camera ninja, climber, and secret area guru, Nate Smith. Check out more of his fabulous work at http://www.pullphotography.com/.

Thanks to Rock and Ice for sponsoring Citizens' Comps at The Front!

Festivus is this Saturday! We'll have $3000+ in schwag from our sponsors, plus chances to be entered into a raffle to win cash by climbing problems sponsored by Toyota Trucks. Ka-ching! Register NOW by clicking on the link to the left. Be sure to visit our sponsors' websites by clicking on their logos.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Thanksgiving and Festivus

The Front would like to wish everyone a safe and happy Thanksgiving. The Front will be closed on Thursday but will be open at 7AM on Friday. Yes! There will be yoga.

Next Saturday, December 6, is the Festivus Feats of Strength Bouldering Comp. Only the first 65 preregistered climbers are guaranteed an awesome event t-shirt. Register now by clicking on the link to the left if you haven't already.

Not only will we have $3000+ in schwag from our sponsors, there will be 3 problems sponsored by Toyota Trucks. Climbers who send those problems will automatically be entered into a raffle to win CASH! That's right- cash. As in, when we do awards at 2:30, it's "Boom. Here's a hundred dollar bill, y'all!"

For more info about the comp, plus the Schedule at The Front next week click HERE!

Be sure to visit our sponsors by clicking on their links to the left and do all of your holiday shopping with them! We couldn't have these events without them.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

The Festivus Pole and the miracle that brought it to us!

Oh joy! We put up the Festivus Pole at The Front today. Tears streamed down our cheeks as The Pole was erected in the foyer, signaling that Festivus was truly nigh. Children sang, and the sun shone that much brighter on this glorious day.

But, really, the Pole is up and looks sweet. We were trying to figure out where we going to get our Festivus pole. We were doing some cleaning and, out of nowhere, Hark! There was a shiny pole in the dirt. We had our Festivus Pole! Truly, it is a remarkable miracle to start this special holiday season.

Register now for the comp by clicking on the link to your left. Register by November 29 and save $5. Be sure to visit our awesome sponsors' websites and do all of your holiday shopping with them!

AND! Only at The Front, we'll have problems sponsored by Toyota Trucks. Everyone who climbs those problems will be entered into a raffle to win CASH!!!

Join us for the special-est holiday comp ever!

Friday, November 7, 2008

It's a Festivus Miracle!


Join friends and fellow climbers at The Front on December 6 to let them know how they've disappointed you this year. Oh yeah, and you can also climb on all new problems for all abilities and have a chance at winning some of the $3000+ in schwag from our awesome sponsors!

You won't want to miss this special holiday event. The first 65 pre-registrants are guaranteed the most rada-licious event t-shirt ever! Register now and join us to rally 'round the Festivus Pole on December 6. It's the Festivus Feats of Strength Bouldering Comp!

Click HERE for more info and to register!
***The Front Can Koozies now on sale! Just $2.50. Keep your 12 oz beverage cold while showing the world your Front pride.

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Your search for a 2009 Calendar is Over


"Handsome Nate" Young, Front member, wicked strong climber, and photographer has put together a beautiful 2009 calendar. You've seen Nate climbing at The Front. He has a crazy dog. He's also the guy walking around with a camera at all of our comps. His '09 calendar is a great gift to yourself or that special someone.
Buy yours now at The Front or online here.
Be sure to visit his website, www.cruxphoto.com, to check out his work.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Evolv shoe demo this Thursday!

Sorry for the delay...
Mike from Evolv will be at The Front from 5-9pm for an Evolv Shoe Demo. He'll have the Optimus Prime, Evo, and Elektra models for your climbing pleasure.

Learn more about Evolv at www.evolvesports.com.

Thursday, October 30 5pm-9pm
Be there (here).

Monday, October 27, 2008

Thanks for a Great Deadpoint '08!

The Front would like to thank the sponsors, climbers, volunteers, staff, and setters for making Deadpoint '08 a huge success!

Over 80 new problems were set in about 10 hours by The Front's amazing setters. 70 people gathered at The Front on a beautiful Saturday afternoon to hang out with friends, get a killer workout, and have a chance to win their share of over $3000 in schwag from our sponsors.

Congratulations to Division and Raffle winners. Thanks to everyone who dressed up to add to the fun.

The Front Staff is honored to have had so many people come out on such a gorgeous day. We try to make our all abilities comps the best in the nation. A key component to succeeding is having a gym full of psyched climbers encouraging each other to do the best they can. So, thanks again to all the climbers who made Deadpoint such a great event!

Please remember to support our sponsors. We wouldn't have all of our great events and prizes without them.

Our next comp is Crux-mas on December 6. Click on the link to the left of the page to register. Keep checking The Front Blog to learn more about the wild and zany theme for the Crux-mas All Abilities Citizens' Comp.



Monday, October 20, 2008

Training: Final Week

This week is rest week let your climbing muscles rest, repair, and regenerate. Stay active with cardio like biking, hiking, running, swimming. If you must climb- do problems that are easy for you and work more endurance (traversing, yellow dots) stay very low impact to avoid injury. Keep up with your weight training and stay focused on your push muscles and opposing muscles to stay balanced.

Make sure to get plenty of rest this week and eating a well balanced diet to help with recovery.
Get ready for Deadpoint!!

If you have any questions feel free to ask The Front desk staff.

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

The Front Climbing Team

These past few weeks our traveling team has been competing in comps across the valley from Provo to Logan- everybody has climbed well and placed high in there divisions. This weeks national rankings; Youth B Chas Rafiti is 1st and Eric Coley is 37th, Youth C male Orville Clarke III is 2nd Zach Berger is 5th and True Knowlton is 8th, in the female category Gina Rafiti is ranked 5th, and in Youth D Axel Dillman is ranked 2nd. Nice work Traveling Team.

This week our Comp Team gets to compete in their first comp of the season at Deadpoint this Saturday.

If you haven't registered time is running out. Register now at http://www.frontslc.com/

Monday, October 13, 2008

More parking!

After 5:30PM, you can park in the Skyline Event Group parking lot, just north of The Front!

Evolv Shoe Demo Postponed

Sorry for the late notice, but the Evolv shoe demo scheduled for Tuesday, October 14 has been postponed until further notice.

Due to the tremendous increase in climbing comps throughout the country, Evolv has been sending its shoe demo kits all over the place. Don't worry, we'll have a demo at The Front soon. But, it looks like the shoes won't be in Utah in time to make it to the demo tomorrow evening.

It's pretty amazing how many comps there have been just in our area alone during the past few weeks. Coaches Chris and Mike and The Front Youth Climbing Team have been travelling all over, from Provo to Logan, proudly representing The Front...and freakin' crushin' the competition. Please take a second to give 'em a high 5 or freshie Front fist bump when you see them practicing Tuesday and Thursday afternoons.

Thanks to Evolv for their continued support of Citizens' Events at The Front. Keep an eye out for the rescheduled shoe demo.

Saturday, October 11, 2008

Track new problems at The Front online!

The Front is a pretty big place, especially if you have short legs like I do. So, we've unleashed a fast and easy way to find out where the new problems are.

Click here to learn the quantity, section, setter, and rating of new problems at The Front!

Check it out, and then let us know what we can do to make it more user friendly. We need your feedback! Our goal is to develop a more effective rating system based on the abilities of those who climb the problems, rather than one person's opinion. No more V8 blue dot problems!

The bottom line is that we at The Front want members and guests to feel psyched to try every problem, no matter what color the little sticker is on the starting hold. Of course, we want everyone to have fun and achieve their goals.

We look forward to hearing your feedback and answering your questions regarding this new feature.

See you at The Front!

-sandy

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Discount Clothing at The Front!

The holidays are approaching, so what are we all on the lookout for? You betcha- cheap gifts, baby!

Check out the selection of clothes in the Club Area of The Front! While there is a limited selection, at 5 bucks per item it's a low risk investment. If it doesn't fit, wipe down your bike with it. Everything is 5 bucks, except The Front hoodies, which are only 20 bucks!

There's some classic S7 long sleeve shirts for you or your little nieces back in Jersey. There's also some classic Front logo t's, shorts and capris by Sickle, plus some spaghetti strap tops by Statik Mountain. Put together your Deadpoint costume with this stuff!

Bleach it. Dye it. Cut the sleeves off. Tie it around your head. 5 bucks! Fur shizzo buy it, and then throw it away 'cuz you're a gangsta and that's how you roll.

Check out the selection, you may find your new favorite piece of clothing. We also have Flexfit Asana logo hats that complement any climber's wardrobe. Few things say "The Front" like a Front trucker hat or beanie.

We're over half way to having our first 50 Deadpoint registrants, so register right now to guarantee that you'll score a super scary event shirt (think The Ring the first time you saw it. Yikes!).

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Has it begun?

I was in Little Cottonwood Canyon last night and I got cold on the hike out to the car.

We got to the Yukon area right after Justin Wood sent Maisch Roof (V11). Scott Hall made quick work of First Down (V8) and another V6/7 around the corner. Oh boy.

Has the season officially started? The stickiness is definitely approaching. Or, has it been here for a while and I just need to get out more?

Let us know what you've been sending and/ or proj'ing. Share the good vibes, so we can all take care of business on those problems (of the rock climbing sort) that are keeping us awake at night!

If you haven't already, be sure to join The Front Climbing Club on Facebook. Registration is also open for Deadpoint on October 25! Register before October 18 and save $5.

Click on the links on the left side of the page to register, as well as visit our rad sponsors!

Friday, October 3, 2008

Training week 3

Deadpoint is only weeks away if you haven’t registered yet you should do it soon. With being two weeks out it’s time to train some power-endurance building stamina and putting the previous weeks together. We spent the first week gaining forearm strength from endurance and last week building finger strength from power. Now the idea is to be able to make powerful moves for 1-5 min being able to hang on through those crux moves.

Power-endurance:
Make sure to get a good warm-up
Find four problems just at your level or below. Best to have varying terrain (vertical, slight over-hung, and the cave)
Do 4x4’s with 3-4 min rest between each set.
4x4 doing for problems consecutively with no rest in between; repeating 4 times
Link ups same as 4x4 but stay on the wall for all four problems rest 3-4 min.

General Strength:
Core
Systems board working lock-off and grip/ open hand strength (pinches and slopers)
Campus board
Hang board

Once again stay hydrated through out the work-out and refuel in the first 30 min. after to help with proper recovery. If you have questions feel free to ask the friendly Front staff. Get ready to pull down at Deadpoint!!!

Also, on October 22 you should check out The Alpinist Film Festival. Tickets are $12 and are available here at The Front.

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Thanks for the feedback!

Thanks to the Front members who gave me a shout to offer some feedback about life at The Front. Stay tuned to The Front Blog for more chances to win sweet stuff.

Speaking of winning sweet stuff. Deadpoint '08 is on October 25. Register now at www.frontslc.com. We'll have $3000+ in schwag from our sponsors for division and raffle winners. Bust out your spookiest costume and pull on all new problems. The first 50 registrants get a nightmare-causing event t-shirt. Register now before they're all gone!

The Front is now on Facebook! Join The Front Climbing Club club for even more info and updates on SLC's premier indoor bouldering facility.

Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Asana Gear at The Front!

The Front now has Asana crashpads in stock- just in time for bouldering season. We currently have the Hero Highball and Dynomite crashpads in stock.

Learn more about them at www.asanaclimbing.com

We also have Asana logo flexfit hats and NEW Asana chalkbags!

If there's something you see on the Asana website that you want, The Front can special order it for you.

Thanks to Asana for their continued support of The Front's All Abilities Citizens' Comps.

Friday, September 26, 2008

Training Week 2: Power

Now that you have a base under you with some endurance it's time to work some power.

Week 2:
Warm-up: Make sure to stretch and get a good warm up in by traversing climbing easier problems, doing some type of cardio for 15-20min.

Focus is building burst strength, dynamic movement and building strength in forearms, wrist, and hands:
Start working harder moves
On easier problems try skipping moves/ holds to practice that burst strength
Working Problems that are 1-2 grades harder (resting to full recovery in between tries)
Start Climbing in the cave to build overall power
Goal to get pumped, climb to fatigue

Technique:
Dynamic movement

General Strengthening: Dead point/ Contact strength
Campus
Hang-board
Systems Board

If you have questions feel free to ask The Front staff. Make sure to cool down, stay hydrated and re-fuel with in 30min. of workout to help with a quicker recovery.

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Evolv Climbing Shoe Demo at The Front!

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 14 5PM - 9PM

Come to The Front and try out the Sharma Signature Series Optimus and Optimus Prime climbing shoes. Mike from Evolv will be at The Front to answer your questions about Evolv's mission and its products.

Looking for a great all-around velcro shoe? The Front carries the Evolv Defy. Ask Front staff if we have your size. We can also special order Evolv models if you already know what you're looking for!

Visit www.evolvesports.com to check out the full Evolv line!

Thanks to Evolv for their continued support of our comp series and their contributions to our climbing community!

Friday, September 19, 2008

Week 1 of training for Deadpoint

Start training and get ready for Deadpoint!

Begin with working endurance:


Climbing sustained for 10-15min.
Intervals of 3-5min. on the wall climbing for 45 sec. and resting for 15 sec. stay on wall

Focusing on proper resting technique:
Avoiding the pump
Technique Work
Standing on feet
Hanging straight armed

General Strengthening using the Hang-board: builds forearm, wrist, and tendon strength
Start with jug holds and work into the crimps and slopers.
Hang for 10-15 sec. 3 sets each hold.
Core
Wrist curls and pronators/ supinators

Ask Coach Chris or a Front staff member if you have any questions. Have fun! Drink a Protein Shake from Front Mart within 30 minutes after your workout to insure proper recovery. If you don't recover properly, you won't get full benefits from the workout. Don't forget to stay hydrated during your session.

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Deadpoint Training Plan Coming Soon!

The Front's All Abilities Citizens' Comp season will be getting kicked off on October 25 with our infamous Deadpoint event! We'll have all new problems for all you guys and ghouls to pull down on, plus over $3000 in great schwag from our sponsors.

REGISTER NOW HERE!

The Front puts on the Citizen Comps as a way for Front members, fellow Utah climbers, and visitors from other states to get together in a positive environment to climb on new problems and maybe push themselves to climb a little harder than usual. Many climbers keep coming back to the comps to hang out with old friends and meet new ones. Winning schwag is a cool bonus to climbing in the comps too.

There are also those climbers who use comps to measure their progress since the last comp. For those who are wanting to improve performance but have hit a plateau, we'll have a training plan to offer training tips for climbing at a new level both at The Front and on your projects outside.

Stay tuned for the training plan that will make your wildest climbing dreams come true!

Be sure to visit our sponsors' websites for all your gear needs by clicking on the sponsor logos on the left side of the page. We couldn't put on these events without their support.

Monday, September 15, 2008

Maple to Joes





With the Subaru packed and coffee in hand I was ready for the weekend. Next stop Maple Canyon. The temps were good and the climbing was awesome. Spent most of the day climbing in the Maple Corridor, where Amiee was able to get her lead head on by taking advantage of the good mix of routes the Corridor has to offer. On our way out we ran into Ben, Mike and Ashley. Here's Ashley taking care of business on Raindrops of Lichen.

After a quick stop at the Maverick in Ephraim to re-fuel, we were headed to Ephraim Canyon Rd. to make our journey into Joe's Valley. Unfortunately the road was easier to navigate then hoped for. By being well marked and a well maintained dirt road. The ride was still worthwhile; we even saw some wild life.








The next morning stopped into the food ranch for coffee and headed to the local park for the morning. After warming up with some Frisbee and monkey bars we were off to Area 51 to meet up with Jamie and Jeff for an afternoon boulder session. It was a little warm but good in the shade.
Another good weekend- it's always good to get out of the city.

Enjoy the week,

-chris

Friday, September 12, 2008

Back in LCC

Due to a stormy forecast and rain clouds in the sky Matt Toone and I decide to save on gas money and not make the drive to American Fork on Wednesday instead we took advantage of the climbing up Little Cottonwood. We met up at the Gate and hiked up to the Dihedral's to do a little trad climbing.

The day started out with a light rain which detoured us for the warm-up and looked for something with more coverage. Matt on the sharp end of things put up Equipment Overhang pulling the roof onto a slippery, rainy slab (the slab was nervy on TR). After that I was up on Black and White and John and Mary. Matt on the other end of things had the opportunity to catch my first whipper on gear, that was some live sports action. After slightly soiling myself, and taking a moment to pull it all back together I eventually clipped the chains. Thanks for hanging with me Matt. Shortly there after we called it a day. The sky showed a little blue and the sun came out for the hike back to the car. The day was good. The trad climbing was fun - I like what it does for my head and it is a good mix into my climbing diet.

Well I'm off on another adventure of climbing and dirt roads.

Have a good weekend.
-chris

Thursday, September 11, 2008

HERA Climb for Life Event next weekend!

7th Annual HERA Climb4Life
Sept. 18-21

The 7th Annual HERA Ovarian Cancer Climb4Life hosted by Black Diamond and Exum Utah will take place September 18-21 in SLC. Jason Kehl, Joe Kinder, Katie Brown, Alli Rainey, Noah Bigwood, Kevin Wilkinson, Nate Gold and others will be on hand. A weekend of climbing, parties, yoga and films for a great cause. - Don't miss Parallel Universes, a multi-media presentation featuring three amazing climbers - Kehl, Kinder and Wirtz. Friday, Sept 19 at 7pm in the SLC Library. Cost is $10 at the door and there will be a raffle for great swag. Free entry for C4L participants. For more information go to: www.climb4life.org

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Deal for Front Members from Save our Canyons

Patagonia presents
The Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival
Hosted by Save Our Canyons

Thursday, October 9th
7:00pm – 10:00pm
Brewvies Cinema Pub (21+, must have ID)
677 South 200 West

Buy tickets or memberships online at www.saveourcanyons.org.
Tickets are $10 in advance, $12 at the door, or FREE if you sign up to become a MEMBER of Save Our Canyons before October 1st*!

*SPECIAL DISCOUNTED MEMBERSHIPS AVAILABLE TO MEMBERS OF THE FRONT CLIMBING GYM!
(see below for details on how to get your discounted membership)

Special musical performance by The Radio Rhythm Makers!
And a keynote by Doug Scott from the Campaign for America’s Wilderness!

Join us for Food, Drinks, Film, Live Music, Raffle and more!

Instructions for FRONT MEMBERS on how to receive a discounted membership to Save Our Canyons:

If you’re a member of The Front Climbing Club and want to sign up for a Save Our Canyons discounted membership (which comes with a FREE ticket into the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival), follow these easy steps:

1. Go to www.saveourcanyons.org and then click on the “join or donate” link in the left column of the home page.
2. Scroll down and click on the green button that says, “enter amount” – Specify an amount.
3. We are offering discounted memberships to Front members at the following rates: $10 student, $25 individual, and $40 couple. Please enter the amount that corresponds. In the comments section of the payment page, please put, “The Front”. (Note: there will be a $0.50 shipping charge applied upon checkout)
4. We will send out one free ticket for each membership (two for those that sign up as a couple). They will be mailed to the address you list in paypal around September 22nd. You MUST have this ticket to get in to the film festival. We are not able to replace lost or stolen tickets or issue refunds, so please hold on to them!

If you just want to buy a ticket into the film festival without signing up for a membership, you can click on the “purchase item” button on our home page and buy ticket for $10/ea or pay $12/ea at the door the night of the event.
TELL YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY TO ATTEND TOO!

Thanks so much – we hope to see you there!
- Save Our Canyons

Enter to win something sweet!

We're working on putting together member and setter profiles to post on the blog. If you're interested in being profiled, email Sandy at sandy (at) frontslc (dot) com. Each month we'll randomly draw a name from those submitted for a profile. Profiled members will receive a free month of membership, plus other sweet schwag.

Thanks to our members for making The Front the great community that it is. We're looking forward to an awesome fall and winter gym season.

See you soon!

-sandy

The Great Chalk Debate

The Front was bumping last night! It was great to see familiar faces, as well as some new climbers. The gym season is approaching (right after what will hopefully be a phenomenal outdoor fall bouldering season).

With more people in the gym, the amount of chalk in the air increases. Our efforts to reduce the amount of chalk in the air include using uptake fans to suck the chalk out, the installation of the new air filters last winter (the boxes hanging from the ceiling), as well as our guerrilla attack on the gym this past spring with leaf blowers and face masks to blow years of chalk out of the rafters.

On our online survey, there is a question that attempts to address the chalk issue. But, we'd like to hear from you about this issue. Loose chalk versus chalk balls. Is there a compromise? The chalky air bothers some people more than others. We certainly don't want people avoiding The Front due to respiratory concerns. Please feel free to comment on this post to let us know what you think.

In the meantime, we can limit air chalkiness by avoiding throwing or dropping chalk bags/ buckets onto the ground. Falling when wearing a chalkbag around your waist spews chalk into the air as well (so don't fall).

Thanks for your feedback. I hope to see you at The Front soon.

-sandy

Monday, September 8, 2008

Check this out!!!!

With cooler temps, and the fall season I'm getting stoked to get outside. Spent this last weekend up LCC getting my skin and hands use to the granite climbing and working the circuit up there to get in shape for the bouldering season.

If you can't make it out during the week come check out the new problems set by Jeff, Tyler and Rich on Sunday. Keep up the good work guys. And if you have anything you are wanting to send on the West slab and Vert wall do it this week because next Sunday we will being stripping and re-setting those areas.

Get ready for new problems, and get strong for those outdoor projects

-chris

Saturday, September 6, 2008

A great morning in Little Cottonwood Canyon

Coach Chris, Amiee, Ashley, and I set the alarms to get up early on a Saturday for a trip to LCC. We met at 9 at the Park and Ride (not that early, I guess) and hiked over to the Secret Garden to warm up. It was definitely a little warm, temp-wise, but there was some friction to be had. It was nice to get outside though. We met an SLC-import from Dallas, TX, whose wife works for great friend of The Front and the global climbing community, Petzl.





As we were packing up to head to the Cabbage Patch, Front members Bonnie and Grant showed up. It was great to see them.

Bonnie and Grant getting ready to warm up at the Secret Garden.

The next stop was the Cabbage Patch, a 5 minute walk up the canyon. After 5 more problems, my fingers were done. Ashley hiked the sit start to Fungus, as well as A Bit Slopey, despite the rising temps. Chris made quick work of Fungus, and Amiee got busy on one of the classic slab problems.

Today was one of the few times I actually remembered to bring a bag, so I could pick up trash at the boulders. I got a pretty good collection of used tape at the Cabbage Patch. On the walk back to the Park and Ride, though, I was quickly able to fill up the bag. Everyone else grabbed some trash too.

Above is the final trash pile. If everyone brought a bag with them every time they came up here, we could make a good dent in all the garbage that's accumulated.

-Sandy


P.S. Here's a picture of the sweet "subcutaneous flapper" I got when I overshot (but still caught) a jug on a problem at The Front. It didn't hurt. It didn't bleed. It was the best flapper I've ever had.

Friday, September 5, 2008

Benefits of Slopey Campus Rung training

A great way to increase open hand grip strength is to train on a campus board. Check out our slopey campus rungs in the east end of the gym. They're perfect for building contact strength and core strength. Using the slopey rungs on a regular basis also increases your confidence in hanging on slopers. When you can visualize yourself succeeding on bad holds, you can send the problem.

This climber could also benefit from some yoga. Check out our yoga class schedule here.

Launching The Front into the blogosphere!

Hey. Hey. Welcome to the virtual mouthpiece of the best bouldering gym in the West.

The Front Climbing Club is getting amped up for the 08-09 gym season. Get in here now to get in shape to send your projects before the snow falls!

The first comp of the season will be Deadpoint on October 25. Dig out a funky costume and pull on all new problems for all abilities! We'll have $3500 in schwag, plus a rad t-shirt for the first 50 entrants. So, sign up now.

Check us out at http://www.frontslc.com/ to learn more about our comps and see results and pictures by Nate Young of Crux Photo from past events.

Good luck to Front members Elliott and Ryan tomorrow at the Wasatch 100 Mile Trail Run! We'll be sending out the good vibes. Come get dirty with The Front every Wednesday evening at our Dirt Tour trail runs. Click here for details.

We'll be stripping and resetting the West Slab on Sunday, September 14, so that gives you a little over a week to send Men's Qualifier Problem # 1 and Women's #1 and #2 from the Mammut Bouldering Championships.

Stay tuned for updates on what Front members and staff are doing, saying,wearing, and spraying.