Top CBJ Stories of 2024

A year can seem to fly by in a flash, especially in a growing business like the climbing industry, where it’s not often a slow news week. 2024 was another full one, with both peaks and valleys: excitement on the Olympic stage; success and challenges for gyms big and small serving communities around the globe; tensions and growing pains as the industry evolves; tragic loss of beloved community members; new examples of teamwork and collaboration bringing people and organizations together; and fresh beginnings filled with hope. Here are two handfuls of stories—from our industry and CBJ—that stood out last year.

FROM OUR INDUSTRY

Anne-Worley Moelter Named New CEO of Movement Anne-Worley Moelter—a longtime leader in the industry and an original founder of the Movement gyms—was named Movement’s new CEO. Read the article here.
Central Rock Gym Makes First Acquisition Central Rock Gym continued to expand its climbing gym footprint in the Eastern U.S., this time by acquiring the four Stone Summit gyms in Georgia. Read the article here.
Gyms Unify in Protest of USA Climbing’s Plan for a New National Training Center USA Climbing’s National Training Center development project received intense pushback from a number of prominent climbing gyms. Read the article here.
Beloved Routesetter Lee Hansche Dies in Tragic Climbing Gym Accident Lee Hansche, 46, of Allenstown, New Hampshire, died on May 21, 2024, following an accident at Vertical Dreams in Manchester, New Hampshire. Read the article here.
Lease Controversy Unfolds in Austin In October it was announced that Bouldering Project had signed a lease to take over the space of the current Crux Climbing South Austin location. Read the article here.
Colorado Gyms Announce Historic Membership Collaboration The new Climb Pass grants access to several independent climbing gyms along the Front Range of Colorado. Read the article here.

FROM CBJ

Paris Olympics A-to-Z for Climbing Industry Insiders 68 of the world’s best climbing athletes competed for gold in Paris. Here’s everything you need to know about Sport Climbing’s second Olympic Games. Read the article here.
Routesetting Trends of 2023 Laches, spins on slabs, circuit-style grading…routesetting in climbing gyms evolves every year, and these trends and more were observed by setters in 2023. Read the article here.
Gyms and Trends 2023 The bouldering boom reached record levels, climbing gym giants grew even bigger, and more unions got underway in the industry in 2023. Read the article here.
CBJ Releases First-Of-Its-Kind Climbing Gym Market Analysis Toolset CBJ released its Climbing Gym Market Report and Dashboard, a comprehensive and interactive U.S. climbing gym market analysis toolset. Read the article here.