Charlotte Chinn, 15, of Christchurch, warms up on one of the new climbing walls at Resistance Climbing before competing in this year’s National Indoor Bouldering Series on Saturday. PHOTOS: PETER MCINTOSH Climbers from around New Zealand helped to break in the facilities at a Dunedin bouldering gym for its first event at its upgraded premises. Resistance Climbing hosted round two of this year’s four-round National Indoor Bouldering Series, on Friday and Saturday, marking the first official use of its new Parry St premises. It had been based in Moray Pl since March 2021. Co-owner Angus Kirk said it was a relief to have finally moved in and to see people enjoying the new place. Ayla Radley, 14, of Tauranga, dismounts from a climb. It was on par with international bouldering gyms. ‘‘People are just amazed. I think it has blown their expectations away a little bit,’’ Mr Kirk said. ‘‘Everyone that comes in just looks a bit gobsmacked.’’ John Garvey, 9, of Dunedin, scales a wall. The building’s footprint was about three and a-half times the size of the former Moray Pl site and had about two and a-half times the amount of general climbing area. There was also a new hydraulic spray wall that was customisable and could change angles, from ‘‘dead vertical’’ to 60° overhung. The old premises had been a stepping stone to test if the climbing scene was big enough in Dunedin, Mr Kirk said. They had figured out pretty quickly that it was. ‘‘It’s moved up to that next level.’’ Jasmin Lamorie, of Dunedin, makes an ascent. Bouldering, a sub-category of rock climbing, is done at lower heights and without the use of ropes or harnesses. About 300 people in total participated in the competition, including from Nelson, Christchurch, Auckland, Wellington, Hamilton and Te Anau. It was the biggest event they had hosted to date, Mr Kirk said. ‘‘The previous events, we’ve had to cap them off just so it didn’t get too crowded in the building. ‘‘So being able to open that right up allowed a lot more people to come in.’’ There were also a handful of climbers queuing up outside when the gym opened to the general public for the first time yesterday. Tobin Priestley, 14, of Christchurch, competes. By about 10am, 50 to 60 people were using the building. Having a larger facility meant they could host a lot more local climbing competitions without having to close other parts of the gym, Mr Kirk said. He also hoped they could now host Climbing New Zealand-affiliated competitions. ‘‘It will allow a lot more people to come in and join up without feeling overly crowded.’’
