Chair Bouldering
“Hey, have you ever chair bouldered?” I asked my athletes the other day while we were practicing campus and pullup techniques in our virtual session.
“Ummm what?” They responded, giggling and looking perplexed.
You know, Chair bouldering…
I’ll never forget my first years of climbing, back in the mid-2000’s as a quirky teenager, I would go into RIRG (now Rockspot Lincoln) and see the front desk staff doing some chair bouldering in the lobby area. I was in awe, watching these 20-somethings flip their limber bodies around the chair.
I remember my first (few) tries at chair bouldering…I would lean back and immediately fall over! Sometimes I would get stuck underneath, my arms trapped and my legs flailing helplessly until I fell over, laughing. Our whole climbing team would get into it too- anyone who was showing up early to practice was suddenly orchestrated into chair bouldering speed competitions. I think the best time was 10 seconds!
I was never any good at going fast with my chair bouldering, but after years of training I have perfected the tricks and techniques. I may not be the best chair boulderer around, but I think I’m rather good at teaching it!
Check out my Chair Bouldering - How To…
If you’ve never tried chair bouldering, what better time that the anniversary of COVID-19 pandemic! Just be sure to warmup and be in a space with a soft landing (like a carpet, mat, or grass). Cement is for the pros. Be sure to capture your sends (and fails) for your friends and family :)