Outreach
The Brown Ascenders Featured in Outside Magazine
Outside Magazine recently ran an article about The Brown Ascenders, the BIPOC climbing superheroes you’ll see at least once a month at Dogpatch Boulders, Berkeley Ironworks, and our other Bay gyms like Great Western Power Co. They are doing incredibly important work in the climbing community and we’re thrilled to see them getting broader recognition.…
Green Light Get Outside at Sacramento Pipeworks
By Jason Bove and Jason Spencer. Header photo by Saki Cake. As climbers know, there is much more to climbing than just getting yourself to the top of a route. Whether you are pushing or pulling, or doing it right or wrong, you are still using your body to exert the energy required to do…
Brent Kobs & Adaptive Climbing at Diablo Rock Gym
We have some truly exceptional people in our Touchstone community, and one of them is Brent Kobs, Doctor of Physical Therapy, Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, and the leader of our adaptive climbing program at Diablo Rock Gym. Brent brings his wealth of knowledge and experience as a DPT and CSCS to climbers and athletes…
The Ultimate Guide to Transit-Accessible Outdoor Crags in the Bay Area
By James Dong and Last Minute Gear. Photos courtesy of James. James is passionate about increasing access to and diversity in the outdoors. He helps organize Queer Crush and The Brown Ascenders meetups at Touchstone Climbing, and also runs Last Minute Gear, where access is central to their mission. They are the only gear…
Two Schools, One Goal: Renaissance Academy & Mathson Lee at The Studio
By Renée Lemieux. One campus, two schools, and a path towards strengthening community. The Studio opened their walls to welcome in small groups of middle school students these past few months and the outcome has been life-altering. Renaissance Academy and Mathson Lee Middle School share one campus, use the same space for lunch, basketball,…
St. Peter’s Catholic School Finds Adventure Close to Home
By Ting Chin. Here at Mission Cliffs, we love it when our neighbors drop by for a visit. We were especially happy to get a recent visit from Tricia’s middle schoolers from down the street over at St. Peter’s Catholic School. Wow look at that nice form! Natalie reflected, “I was surprised that I was…
Millennium School at Dogpatch Boulders
The Bay Area is well-known for innovation, and its approach to schools is no different. Millennium School in San Francisco is a middle school focused on experiential, integrated learning. Social equity is an important part of their ethos so they partner with SMART, a San Francisco non-profit, to close the achievement gap and offer participating…
Meet Sidney from WorkAbility at Cliffs of Id
If you’ve seen a friendly new face at Cliffs of Id lately, it’s likely that you’ve met Sidney! Sidney is a part of the WorkAbility Program and will be helping us out at the gym for a few hours per week this semester. His job coach, Michelle, is here to introduce Sidney and WorkAbility’s mission.…
Donate Your Gear to Bay Area Wilderness Training at Touchstone Gyms
By Bay Area Wilderness Training. Throughout the month of September, Bay Area Wilderness Training (BAWT), a local non-profit, located just a couple miles away from Great Western Power Company in the heart of Oakland, will be partnering with Bay Area Touchstone gyms to collect donations of used outdoor gear. On Saturday October 5th, BAWT…
Climbing Towards Confidence at Sacramento Pipeworks
By Jason Bove. Recently, Sacramento Pipeworks hosted a group that joined us from Lutheran Social Services (LSS). For many years now, LSS has been instrumental in providing assistance throughout Northern California for individuals and families that have previously experienced homelessness and are now on-track to rebuild their lives. According to the LSS website, “Every year, LSS…
Overcoming Walls: Taking Climbing to the Next Level with the OLAS Sanctuary Project
By Jessica Wan. Header photo by Saki Cake. This past June, Touchstone celebrated Pride all month long and Berkeley Ironworks partnered with the OLAS Sanctuary Project, to whom we donated all of our Pride proceeds; we also hosted their group earlier in June for a fun day of climbing (not to mention their first event…
A Youthful Reminder: Optimist Youth Homes at Verdigo Boulders
By KJ de Jesus. “I think it’s important for us as a society to remember that the youth within juvenile justice systems are, most of the time, youths who simply haven’t had the right mentors and supporters around them—because of circumstances beyond their control.” –Q’orianka Kilcher We all climb for different reasons—some folks enjoy…