In the heart of the University of Pennsylvania's campus, a towering behemoth stands as a testament to the Penn's commitment to the physical and social health of its students. It’s not the high rises, the Benjamin Franklin statue, or even the LOVE sign. It's a 40–foot rock wall that is bringing students together through problem–solving and introducing the best facets of climbing culture to Penn.
Walk into the airy lobby of the Pottruck Health and Fitness Center any weekday evening, and you’ll be met by the group of twenty–five or so people milling around at the base of the commanding climbing wall. There are veteran climbers, identifiable by their well–loved chalk bags, alongside completely new climbers, showing off their fresh callouses. Participants might tackle it by bouldering, in which they traverse challenging routes up to about ten feet and can fall onto the plush blue mats below. Others brave higher heights by top roping, in which they use a safety harness that allows someone at the base to belay them, ensuring that a misstep high above the ground won’t result in a fall. The atmosphere is upbeat and collaborative, with people at the base of the wall cheering on the climbers tackling an ascent or swapping tips and ideas for routes while recovering from a climb.
A visitor might mistake the large, close–knit group fostered at the climbing wall as a longstanding sight at Pottruck, but it’s relatively new. Previously, the rock wall might've see five climbers, as opposed to the twenty–five it sees on any given evening this semester. Until this semester, it came with a price tag—a semesterly fee of $100, or a daily pass fee. The process to expand access to the wall started over a year ago with Scott Steiner, the assistant director of recreational facilities. He explains that the price of membership often deterred students who were curious about climbing but hesitant due to the financial barrier. “If you've never participated in it before, it can be intimidating, or you're not sure really where to start, and having to pay any money to get into that typically prohibits students from attempting or trying to do it.”
During the spring semester of 2023, Steiner worked to introduce "Free Fridays" for climbing at Penn, marking a shift in accessibility. The result was clear: participation soared, and Fridays became the busiest days at the climbing wall. Scott Steiner reflects, "Using those metrics, we wanted to be able to say that if this becomes free for students to use, they will use it, and our participation will grow, and this amazing component of the facility will see more action and usage."
To accommodate increased demand and an influx of new climbers, Penn expanded its staffing and introduced a climbing wall orientation. The orientation offers an essential overview of the wall's unique features and vital safety tips. This approach ensures that even newcomers understand the safety measures involved. Staff members are belay–certified to assist those interested in top roping and provide guidance on bouldering routes. The climbing wall is no longer eye candy for visiting students or bait to prompt a comment about excessive university spending; it's a welcoming space for beginners and experienced climbers alike, used by hundreds each week.
David Feng (E '24), a climbing enthusiast and a senior in Engineering, got into climbing after realizing it complemented other outdoor activities. At Penn, he joined the climbing club and became an employee at Pottruck’s climbing wall. For Feng, climbing represents a fusion of physical problem–solving and a sense of flow with the added benefit of a supportive community. He explains that with climbing, “even if you don't know someone, you will kind of feel the urge to start cheering them on, like, ‘Come on, come on, let's go, you got this!’ Having that sense of community is something that a lot of people also really enjoy.”
After attempting a route, especially after the heavy exertion of bouldering, people will typically take a break on the mats. This naturally leads to chatting about everything from climbing to classes. “It really lends itself to community building. I think a lot of people have been able to make friends who they consistently climb with and who they’re able to see like every other day when they go to the wall,” explains Feng.
Penn's decision to offer free climbing has also coincided with climbing's breakout moment in popular culture. The Oscar–winning documentary "Free Solo" following Alex Honnold's awe–inspiring ascent of El Capitan without a harness catapulted climbing into the mainstream. Moreover, climbing's debut at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 brought the sport to a global stage, capturing the attention of viewers and inspiring a new generation of climbers. While thirty years ago you might have been out of luck when looking for a climbing gym outside of a few key cities, you can now find multiple in any major urban center. In fact, it’s not unusual to hear Penn students discussing a recent trip to The Cliffs at Callowhill or Tufas Boulder Lounge.
But not every climber is thrilled with the rising popularity of climbing. Noteworthy is the influx of new gyms, many of them venture–backed chains with little personality. The newest rock climbing gyms are colorful and pristine with amenities like yoga classes and fully retrofitted weight rooms. Critics cite their flashy, Instagrammable (yet less than translatable to the outdoors) builds. This atmosphere isn’t helped by the trend of using the colors of plastic rock holds to denote routes for different levels. When compared to the older method of marking out routes with removable tape, routes denoted by single–colored holds decreases the variety of routes and make it difficult to switch things up. This brand of cookie–cutter gym can foster an undercurrent of competition and showmanship that veterans say is new to climbing gyms, with some bemoaning an end of the crunchy, offbeat community that older gyms cultivated.
While this may be true, climbing gyms were never oases of acceptance and accessibility to begin with. In fact, the sport had issues with inclusivity, representation, and cost inaccessibility long before climbing was a buzzword.
Climbing was and still is a largely cis–male–dominated sport. Outside Magazine cited Clemson University research findings that only 1.5% of USA Climbing members and affiliates identified as African American and 4.7% as multiracial, indicating the vast disparity in the climbing community. Breaking into a sport in which few people share your identity is difficult. Outdoor travel writer Dakota Kim writes in the LA Times, “When you’re the only climber of color, you feel the weight of representing your race—and that feeling doubles when you’re queer, you’re not cis–male or when you’re disabled … The feeling of isolation can make you less likely to participate, and I’m saying that as an Asian American woman who often climbs with other women of Asian descent in her gym.”
The sport has a legacy of high barriers to entry—beyond the walls themselves. While outdoor bouldering is relatively low cost (just requiring a tank of gas to escape to the outdoors and an old mattress to substitute as a crash pad), indoor climbing or any type of top roping quickly becomes an expensive hobby. Monthly climbing gym memberships are as high as $50–100 and a daily pass up to $30. Gear purchases stack up, with a pair of climbing shoes, which most gyms require, costing around $70–120. Additional equipment for top roping adds up to around $280–620. High costs can keep out prospective climbers who are apprehensive or unable to sink hundreds of dollars into a hobby.
In a refreshing departure from contentious elements of climbing culture, Pottruck is working to open up access to the wall. Not only is the wall available to every student and gym member free of charge, but general gear rentals such as shoes, harnesses, and chalk are completely free. The community welcomes novice and advanced climbers alike. The atmosphere is warm and collaborative, not cut–throat. Climbing paths are set with tape, allowing route–setters to create nearly infinite combinations for the new routes they routinely create.
Associate Athletic Director and Director of Campus Recreation Shelbi Long explains, “I think it's an important piece that when someone comes into the recreation center, they don't feel these barriers, financially or in any other way. That's what we want in Campus Recreation across the board.” Whether you're a seasoned climber or have never touched a climbing hold, Pottruck’s climbing wall and its vibrant community offers the perfect opportunity to scale new heights.
