School of ROCK
Corona del Mar resident Tiffanie Bahram carefully eased a rope through her mountain-climbing gear, making sure to give Monica Demetry of Huntington Beach enough slack to safely maneuver on a vertical climbing wall.
Monica and Tiffanie, both 15-year-old high school students enrolled at Surf City’s ClimbX’s rock-climbing camp, had only known each other for a few days.
But they had to learn to trust each other very quickly.
“[It was difficult] trusting my partner at first, sometimes you feel like you’re going to fall,” Monica said. “The hardest thing really is when you’re really tired and you still have a job to do because the climber is up on the wall.”
The girls said that after the three-day camp they completely trusted the other with their weight as they ascended and descended on the wall.
School’s out for summer, and youngsters around Huntington Beach are beginning to enroll in programs to keep them busy during the summer months.
Kids looking for some extreme indoor exercise and adventure can find their footholds at the indoor rock-climbing gym where owner Bryan Leipper has held the camp almost every year since he opened in 1997.
“Climbing develops good skills, confidence, problem solving and coordination,” Leipper said. “[They can] find a nice, active lifelong activity.”
Working with kids is nothing new for Leipper, an avid rock climber. During the school months he works with the Ocean View School District as a special education physical education teacher.
During the three-hour day camp, kids learn the two fundamental rock climbing knots, as well as rock-climbing commands and how to belay another climber ? a safety practice that connects by rope a climber on the wall to one on the ground. They also learn the fundamental techniques used in the sport.
“I don’t use a rope [usually], so learning to belay and having someone trust you was fun,” Tiffanie said.
Once the fundamental skills are taught, Leipper begins challenging his campers with more difficult climbs.
“I want to challenge myself, so I’ll find a hard wall and go upside down,” Monica said.
Leipper and Jimmy Davey, an instructor, enjoy watching the kids celebrate and overcome mental and physical barriers in order to make it up the wall.
“Definitely the best part would be seeing the kids do something they didn’t think they could do,” Davey said.
Parents needn’t worry about their child’s safety. Leipper and his trained staff check the ropes each day, and the floor beneath the 7,000 square feet of climbing space is equipped with shredded rubber tires and oversized beanbag-like pillows called crash pads to cushion the climber’s fall.
“Our primary goal is to get kids exposed to climbing in a safe, indoor environment,” Leipper said.
The camp only meets three days per week so the kids’ hands have a chance to rest from grabbing the handholds during their three-hour sessions.
After camp ends, the campers receive one month of free climbing during the gym’s open hours. “One of the best parts is getting to know the people and testing yourself to the limit,” Tiffanie said.
There are three more camps this summer, which cost $90 each session. For more information, or to register, visit www.climbxhb.com or call (714) 843-9919.hbi.13-onbreak-2-BPhotoInfoDQ1SRB9O20060713j29glcnc(LA)Tiffanie Battram, 15, searches for a route to the top while taking her turn climbing the gym’s indoor rock wall during a three-day camp. hbi.13-onbreak-1-BPhotoInfoDQ1SRB7S20060713j29gl0nc
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