New bouldering gym in south Knoxville TN

Hey everyone! We are excited to be finalizing some designs for the new bouldering gym coming to south Knoxville (Climbing Roots). We would love to hear from the local climbers on what they would like to see in their gym.

We plan to have a dedicated room to system boards. At the moment we are thinking about adding 2 moon boards (2016 set and possibly 2024 set at 40 degree), tension 2 10x12, and kilter 12x12 adjustable. What boards would you all like to see?

- Variety of walls, including horizontal roofs (Obed, duh)

- Optimal boulder height (not too short, not too tall)

- Spray wall
- Experienced route setters
- Steady route turnover
- Budget to maintain reasonable A/C in summertime
- Treadwall
- Dedicated/separated kid zone with fun stuff
- Reasonable membership prices
- Sufficient parking

I heard you all will not be offering 24/7 access anymore.  Bummer

Thanks for these responses. We will consider all of these ideas. We are still considering and working on the idea of 24/7. That is something I want but, because of changes in the insurance carrier policies, we might not be able to. That might have to be something that we could add in the future after opening and being established for a bit. 

With such an emphasis on boards (love it) I think that a more general spray wall (adjustable angle optimal, otherwise set at 40) is so valuable. Litter this thing with a variety of holds and use one of many existing apps for "setting" problems. This really encourages creativity amongst users and the best opportunity to set replicas of outdoor projects. Imagine walking into your gym and being able to work on a replica of Genghis Khan, The Shield, etc., all without taking up too much valuable space.  

Thanks Tyler for your input! That is a great idea. 

Hi! When will this gym be opening up and at what location/area? Thanks so much! 

Hey Tori! We are hoping to get it opened by the end of the year but might be delayed into next year. We are working hard to keep things rolling. It will be located in South Knoxville at Baker Creek. 

Any GM or Head Setter/ management opportunities? I was in the industry for years in Florida but haven't pursued anything since moving to Knoxville. South Knox is gonna be a rad location can't wait to check it out!

ouch!  $165 for a 10 day punch pass to boulder.  WTF?

https://www.powr.io/checkout_screen?unique_label=fae941e4_1731019926

https://www.climbingroots.com/

Hey A drew! Yup yup. We offer more than just bouldering: including yoga classes, other fitness classes, climbing specific classes, etc. We have fitness equipment, training boards, a whole separate big kids area, etc.  It is EXTREMELY expensive to build and run a climbing gym. I would be happy to share some of those numbers with you. Many people don't realize the costs and just see the high cost of memberships. Unfortunately that is necessary to be able to keep the doors open. There is no way to charge less without us going under. I would love to be able to let people come in for free. I am definitely not doing this to get rich. I just want an awesome climbing gym for myself and the community. 

isn’t that kind of normal? BP is 180 for 10 day punch pass

Lindsay Runne wrote:

Hey A drew! Yup yup. We offer more than just bouldering: including yoga classes, other fitness classes, climbing specific classes, etc. We have fitness equipment, training boards, a whole separate big kids area, etc.  It is EXTREMELY expensive to build and run a climbing gym. I would be happy to share some of those numbers with you. Many people don't realize the costs and just see the high cost of memberships. Unfortunately that is necessary to be able to keep the doors open. There is no way to charge less without us going under. I would love to be able to let people come in for free. I am definitely not doing this to get rich. I just want an awesome climbing gym for myself and the community. 

Not looking for free anything. I understand how expensive it is to open and operate a climbing gym. Also, I should clarify that I made an error in my post as i was referring to the price for the pre-opening punch pass, which i thought would be discounted.

Thanks JC D for pointing that out! Yes, this is a pretty typical 10 punch pass price. Regular prices for 10 punch pass at some other gyms: Onsight $179, Boulder project-DC (with 25% off promo code) $236... obviously there are a lot of variables, including location and what the gym offers. Our discounted price is $165. We will be a little more expensive with our regular price than onsight even though we are bouldering only. To justify our price a little We will be offering showers, lot of climbing space (we have a 23k square foot building) with top out boulders and multiple training boards including a 12x16 kilter at 30 degrees, moon 2024 at 40 and the tension2 board at 45. We will also be offering a membership at a lower price for those who qualify and cannot afford the regular price. Hopefully this helps explain the price a little bit. Happy to help anyone understand the reasoning for our decisions at any time. We have put A LOT of thought and effort into this project and want everyone to be happy (even though I know this is an impossible feat....but we can still try).