Go Vertical 950 N. Penn Street Mon-Fri 10 a.m.-10 p.m., Sat-Sun 10 a.m.-8 p.m. (215) 928-1800 http://www.govertical.com/philly/
School got you down? Partying just not feeling like it used to? Been spending too much time horizontally? Here's a place that'll lift your spirits ----- using ropes and a harness. Go Vertical, the largest indoor rock climbing gym on the eastern seaboard, offers the ultimate climbing experience. Tucked in a small street off of Delaware Avenue, -- just across from The Cave, so you can get all your geology-related activities in at once -- it offers 13,500 square feet of climbing space, over 230 routes and walls up to 50-feet high. But as owner Howard Kanner will tell you, it gives you much more than just a workout -- he sees climbing as a social alternative to a bar. What better way to get to know your date than to look deep into her eyes as you dangle 50-feet off the ground and she literally holds your life in her hands with some rope -- that'll teach him to call.
So grab that special someone you've been eyeing and invite them to rock your world with rock climbing. But guys, be prepared to be rocked -- and not in the way you were hoping. Kanner says girls tend to be much better climbers than guys. That's right ladies, guys try to use too much upper body strength, but really it's all in the legs, so women have a leg up on men.
Kanner, who also helped construct our very own Pottruck climbing wall, can tell you lots of interesting facts you probably didn't know, like the fact that you're not supposed to use your arms when rock climbing. And that a little girl could belay a 300-pound man. And that Kanner himself is also a pilot.
If you already know how to rock climb, you'll have to pass a test to prove your skills. If you haven't been climbing before, they offer a two hour lesson that'll teach you everything you need to know, so you'll be able to climb in no time -- belay without delay.
And that's the Kanner guarantee.
