Boise State gym hosts annual Rocktober

The Boise State University Rec Center hosted the annual Rocktober climbing competition this month. The event transformed the facility into a competitive arena for local climbers. Participants attempted routes designed for varying skill levels.

Registration cost $25 and offered 40 spots. The fee included a T-shirt and a raffle ticket. Sponsors donated prizes with a total value close to $1,000. Companies such as Asana Climbing Gym, Outdoor Exchange, Upcycled Supply Co. and Edelrid contributed items to the prize pool. Nine students were selected as winners at the conclusion of the event.

The competition featured 10 rope routes and 12 boulder routes. Routes were categorized by skill level, with first, second and third place awards given in each group. The first-place winner in a category received a belt made from recycled climbing harnesses. Other winners received miscellaneous gear from sponsors.

Joseph Binfet, the routesetting manager, and Oliver Daly, the climbing gym manager, judged the event alongside student staff. Bouldering scores depended on the number of attempts needed to complete the climb. A first-try completion earned the highest points. Rope climbers received two attempts, with the second climb counting for 75 percent of the available points.

Staff members emphasized accessibility for new climbers. Binfet said the gym rents out free gear to remove barriers for beginners. He aims to design routes that appeal to a wide range of experience. "One thing that's really important to me is trying to diversify the climbs so no matter who you are, there's going to be a climb for you," Binfet said.

Mia Montoya, a first-place winner, had been climbing for eight months. She stated that her main challenge was overcoming performance anxiety. "For me, [the hardest part] was wanting to do it in the first place getting on the wall in front of a lot of people and being scared of falling," Montoya said. Brad Ames, another first-place winner, had climbed for nearly two years. He described the physical exhaustion of the competition as both difficult and rewarding.

Daly noted that the event fosters a sense of community within the gym. He observed that the audience often applauds beginner climbers with equal enthusiasm to those attempting the hardest routes. "Some of the best moments have been when someone in the beginner category is working so hard on a climb. They finally get it and the whole gym erupts," Daly said.