The walls at Dogpatch Boulders in San Francisco are nearing completion. In the past week, Walltopia workers have been installing the panels, followed closely by the Touchstone setting crew. The setters have established hundreds of problems ranging from VB to V11 on the terrain of slabs, vertical walls, and steep roofs. Dogpatch manager Justin Alarcon, setters Cole Zuelke of Fresno, Jeremy Ho of Berkeley Ironworks, and Anthony Vicino of Ironworks talked about the setting happening at the new gym.
The setters spoke highly of the Walltopia terrain, the height of the walls, the flat angles and the array of different holds available to them.
Cutting edge and modern, Walltopia walls fill the large floor plan of Dogpatch Boulders with every angle imaginable. The clean walls pop with color. Broad panels, big lines, and large features allow for the setters to establish a variety of problems in each area. The setters described Walltopia walls as one of the best manufacturers of climbing walls in the world.
Touchstone Climbing and Walltopia worked together to design an amazing gym. For the climbers psyched on overhanging terrain, the barrel wall in the back of the gym and the various arches, provide a perfect opportunity for continuous steep climbing. The center arch, which features a ‘mega’ roof, excited some of the setters. But one the of most anticipated features of the wall design is the Wave Wall.
“The Wave starts at dead vertical on the far left side and over the course of a couple hundred feet, it gains in steepness before becoming very overhung,” said Anthony.
“The Wave is just plain beautiful and is an amazing canvas to set on,” said Justin. Vertical slabs climbs and horizontal roofs make this one of the most attractive parts of the gym.
One aspect of the Walltopia walls are the flat angles, which the setters appreciated. “Having rounded edges or lots of angles makes it harder to place some of the holds on the wall,” said Cole. Holds on curved walls fail to sit flat. Fewer angle changes at Dogpatch Boulders provide a perfect canvas for the setters.
Another amazing feature of Dogpatch Boulders is the height. The walls vary in height, ranging from fifteen to seventeen feet.
“The height is really exciting. It will allow for nice, long, interesting problems,” said Jeremy. The back wall, made up of green panels, and the center arch are top out boulders with designated moderate down climbs. Additionally, some problems will end below the top of the wall at heights more familiar to Touchstone members.
“There seems to be a good mix of heights at Dogpatch Boulders. If you don’t feel like going big, there’s still a ton to get on,” added Cole.
Safety remains a crucial component to these high bouldering walls. The setters will establish juggy down climbs on non-topout walls so climbers can save their knees from taking large falls back to the mat.
“We’re also being conscious about the type of movement and difficulty of moves that we set higher up the walls, “ said Anthony, ”so that there won’t be any cruxes or committing moves at the very top.”
StoneAge Climbing Holds provided approximately 6000 regular grips, 5000-foot holds, and 150 features for Dogpatch Boulders. The setters also have holds from Element Climbing, Teknik, and DRCC. They added large Rock Candy volumes to the walls. We are very excited about the Dogpatch Boulders as it stands to be one of the premier facilities in the country.
Want to come check out our progress? We will begin hosting Open Houses this week! Check out our Facebook Page for details!
