E Mcd

Review of Vertex Climbing Center

I m so happy there is a place to climb in Sonoma C...

I m so happy there is a place to climb in Sonoma County in the Santa Rosa area. I want to stress that I m thankful for Vertex, but by today s standards this gym has many... many shortcomings.

I have been to dozens of indoor gyms all over North America and Europe. I climbed at the gyms in SF for many years and always heard of Vertex and had never visited. I moved to Petaluma back in July and have been climbing at Vertex the past 7 months.

Pros: All the basics for training are present: lead climbing, top ropes, bouldering, campus board, a great assortment of hangboards, Olympic Rings, autobelays, even a systems board now. Also, the price is very reasonable.

Cons: I m convinced a secret sponsor of Vertex is Vaseline. If you re main focus is to send hard at Castle Rock while it s raining on mossy lines, Vertex is an excellent simulator for that. Little friction and few climbs that spark brain power. Furthermore, there are plenty of routes that have been there since July. The overall maintenance is terrible. There s little effort to cool the gym down in the summer, in the winter it s a reasonable temperature. Have I mentioned the route setting is awful?

I really don t understand this gym s following... but at least it s something!