The Access Fund just released news about the current state of affairs of the Unlock Jailhouse Fund-raising campaign. Not only has $49,000 been raised for Jailhouse, but Touchstone has worked with Craig McClenahan and Fixe hardware to replace all the old bolts, draws, and anchors for the crag. Check out the press release from the […]
Wendy Georges runs. A lot. The 53-year-old Berkeley resident took up running 24 years ago and began racing when she was 42. Since then she’s competed in dozens of road races including many marathons and ultra marathons. “My favorite is 50 miles. It takes 8 hours. It feels like a solid day’s work- long enough that […]
LIABILITY WAIVER Touchstone Climbing is dedicated to creating a safe environment for all participants at our facilities. Climbing is inherently dangerous. Safe practice requires the active involvement of both the climber and the belayer, which dictates the need for personal responsibility, and our requirement that all participants sign a liability release. Our rules and tests […]
Touchstone Climbing has been throwing citizen comps for longer than anyone can remember! These events are open to climbers of all levels and bring brand new routes, pizza, beer, t-shirts and prizes to the gyms. Check out this highlight video from our 2010 rope competition at Great Western Power Company in Oakland! To find out […]
Work on Metal Mark, Touchstone Climbing’s newest gym in Fresno, California, has been moving along smoothly. The steel beams and supports for the building have been erected. The roof is up and insulated already and they finished with the lower roof where the locker rooms, fitness rooms, and office are. Last week, they started on […]
At 5’8” 145 pounds with brown hair and brown eyes, the 29 year old John Schmid appears like a mild mannered rock climber. After receiving a biology degree from Colorado College, where he began rock climbing ten years ago, Schmid moved to the bay area to take up a job that would support his climbing […]
Josef “V10 Joe” Maier, an 18 year old senior at El Camino, is a Pipeworks staple. If you’ve stepped foot in the gym in the last four years, you have probably seen Joe bouldering somewhere in the gym. The Sacramento high school student began climbing at Pipeworks when he was 13. An older friend brought […]
The Gold Rush of 1940 brought unearthed lots of gold in the Sierra Foothills. The hydraulic mining also uncovered a mother lode of bouldering near Columbia College in Sonora. The rock in Columbia is a highly compacted marble requiring body tension and an ability to hang open handed on many of the holds. “It’s like […]
