Black Rock Bouldering – Phoenix, AZ

Been behind on these reviews – right now I have a backlog of 5! Thankfully only this one and Focus are months behind, the others were my most recent trip to Texas.

At any rate, onto the gym! I was in Phoenix during the Fall and had the opportunity to visit a couple gyms. Black Rock was high on my list because it was new and from the pictures the hold selection looked great.

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Looking toward the front from the back corner. One of the two ‘peabody’ boulders is in full view.

I have to say I walked away somewhat disappointed. There was ample wall space, but the angle changes were numerous, and the density was low. The setting itself was OK — nothing stood out as great, but nothing was outright bad. Very middle of the road. The grades didn’t go above v8, but from what I was climbing it was all over the place. Two different V8s of a similar style were vastly different in difficulty. It felt like feet were missing, or body positioning was just super goofy.

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Back wall with numerous angle changes. Not a fan of these features.

I heard the gym opened recently so I imagine a lot of this is due to growing pains and inexperienced setters.

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Part of their slab on the left with the second ‘peabody’ boulder in the middle. Interesting idea with the two boulders, but I think due to their size and variety of angles the execution left a lot to be desired.

Aside from the more subjective side, the gym itself was very clean. The workout area was extensive, and the training area was pretty good.

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Good training area! System board is great for limit bouldering one move.

The walls were textured which as we all know is one of my biggest pet peeves!

Black Rock Bouldering
Wall Space(0-10)7
Wall Shape(0-10)6
Setting Quality(0-10)6
Route Density(0-10)4
Grade Spread(0-10)7
Wall Material(0,2.5,5)2.5
Screw-Ons(0,2.5,5)2.5
Climbing Training Equipment(0-5)3
General Training Equipment(0-3)2
Total Score(68)40