Author Archive

NEW! Facility Updates

Saturday, May 1st, 2021

Building a community where all climbers feel welcome + engaged.

With a front entry renovation in Seattle and an expansion project expected in Bellevue (stay tuned for details!), we expect that everyone will have a lot of questions. Below are a few of those answers. 

HONORING STONE GARDENS’ HISTORY: 

Undeniably, Stone Gardens is “The Climbers Gym” with 25 years experience “providing the best climbing at every experience level—from beginners to seasoned climbers—and a knowledgeable, friendly staff ready to help.” It is this long standing passion and drive that will stay with us as we carry through into the future. 

GROWTH

Also undeniable is the amount of growth that has happened in the sport of climbing since 1995, when the Seattle gym first opened. With all of this growth, comes change and with change comes opportunity. The biggest of which is the opportunity to expand the meaning of the word “climber” to be more inclusive and welcoming, and to repackage what it means to be “The Climbers Gym”.  

WHO IS A “CLIMBER”?

The days of the dirtbag climber might not be fully behind us (some of us can still dream! #vanlife), but today’s answer to the question of “who is a climber” is open to so much more potential and possibility. It is this exciting growth in diversity that has been a driving factor for our entire industry to be better, more inclusive and more modern. 

At Edgeworks, this is a challenge we have always embraced with excitement; believing that everyone should feel at home inside our gyms.

We’re working to build a space where:  

  • Seasoned climbers know they’ll still find the best, most challenging and fun boulder problems and routes. 
  • Weekend warriors can run laps on the wall to maintain their endurance and train in the off season when they can’t get outside. 
  • New climbers feel welcome and unintimidated, as they walk through our door. 
  • Kids can be introduced to a sport that builds confidence, communication skills, responsibility, teamwork and a healthy dose of calculated risk. 
  • Community happens, built upon a shared interest in climbing, fitness, and fun (and sometimes beer!)

All in all, we aim to create a space that feels active, vibrant and welcoming. Where people choose to hang out even if they aren’t climbing because they know that this is where they will find their people and it’s where they belong. 

WHY RETAIL? 

We can’t think of a better way to answer that question than with a question:
What’s the 2nd most popular thing climbers love to talk about most? GEAR. And that’s true for us too! 

In recent years, we’ve seen many of our beloved, locally owned gear shops close their doors. From Marmot Mountain Works in Bellevue and other similar shops in Seattle + Tacoma. These stores offered services that aren’t always easy to find with big retailers; leaving a gap that we can help fill. 

Our staff are experts in climbing gear and combining this knowledge with thoughtfully curated retail options for our members allows us to:

  1. Offer a complete user experience for all climbers; new and experienced. 
  2. Get you closer to the vendor with shoe demos, special orders, product questions, etc.
  3. Connect with our members and build community. 

WHAT ABOUT THE CLIMBING?

As an indoor climbing gym, our walls and our route setting program are our #1 products. In order to provide the best experience for our members and customers, it’s crucial that we keep diversity in mind as we work to update our facilities, build new walls, and develop our setting teams. 

We are committed to providing the time and resources to ensure that we’re meeting, if not exceeding, your expectations (and ours) with the following: 

  1. Route quality and density
  2. Variety of setters and routes; including complex, challenging and thoughtful moves
  3. Available, varied and accessible terrain

If at any point if feels like we’ve taken something away, trust us that we have a plan to provide something better in its place. 

EDGEWORKS CLIMBING + GUIDING

When our new outdoor signs are installed in Bellevue and Seattle, you’ll notice this new tagline on the outside of our buildings. As part of our rebrand in 2020, Edgeworks Climbing + Fitness and Edgeworks Climbing + Guiding were both adopted as 2 interchangeable taglines; the first to highlight that which our facilities offer and the second to highlight our outdoor programs. 

The decision to use “Climbing + Guiding” in both Bellevue and Seattle stem from multiple considerations: 

  1. The Seattle facility has a strong history and focus on climbing with little space dedicated to fitness. 
  2. As part of the agreement with Crossroads Shopping center in Bellevue, we’ve opted not to include “fitness” on the outside of the building but do have plans to grow our fitness offerings inside!
  3. Guiding is a huge part of who we are, what we do and why we do it. This is our chance to highlight our commitment to this program and share our favorite wild spaces with more of our community. 

We can’t wait to share these new spaces with our community!

USAC Youth Bouldering Comp

Tuesday, November 24th, 2020

2020 Virtual Climbing Competition

November 9-23, 2020

Edgeworks has always been dedicated to providing opportunities for youth climbers to advance their skills and become strong competitors on a local, regional and national level. That is why we’ve chosen to partner with USA Climbing and other gyms in our region to offer a Virtual Youth Climbing Competition, November 9-23.

In preparation, we’re also excited to announce a new combined effort of Edgeworks and Stone Gardens route setters who will be working to reset both our boulder and rope walls! 

Starting November 2, you’ll notice focused attention on our boulder walls as these teams work to reset for the competition. The benefit will be 60+ new competition problems for all to enjoy! You don’t have to be a youth climber to get your hands on these stellar new routes. 

And, while we’re working with other coaches and climbing teams to reduce any impact on our reservation system, it’s important to note that during the 2-week comp period (Nov 9-23) reservations for ZONE 4 could fill up faster than usual.

Please make sure to adjust your plans accordingly.

End of Summer Sale

Wednesday, September 30th, 2020

SAVE up to $110 on new memberships!

Offer valid: September 1-30, 2020

It’s the end of summer and this year we’re extending our annual student membership sale to EVERYONE! Offering a savings of up to $110 with ALL AVAILABLE MEMBERSHIP TYPES qualifying for the $0 Start-Up Fee.

Did you cancel your membership because of our COVID closure?
Now’s the time to rejoin!

Are you looking to start something new, active, fun, healthy + safe this Fall?
Now’s the time to join!

Here’s How It Works:
Sign up online or in the gym for an AUTOPAY Membership with only a $0 Start-Up Fee!

All AUTOPAY Memberships are included: 

✅  Individual – save $60
✅  Student – save $50
✅  Family – save $110
✅  Military – save $50

New members are strongly encouraged to review our COVID Health + Safety information before completing the membership agreement.

Offer ends September 30, 2020.

Industry Deals During COVID

Thursday, April 30th, 2020

Get deals on holds, hangboards, shoes, apparel and more!

Based on the number of requests we’re receiving, we know you’re all staying busy building home woodies and dusting off your hangboards.

Unfortunately, the used hold sale that we had “pre-COVID” wiped us out of any more climbing holds to sell BUT you’re in luck… many hold companies have stepped up to offer “Support Your Gym” discounts.

What this means is that you receive a % off your purchase and/or Edgeworks receives a % of the sale – it’s a WIN, WIN!

So iLL

We have partnered with So iLL, in order to benefit our gym community and generate revenue for the gym during the upcoming weeks while our operations are closed. Your Win Is Our Win #TAKEHOLD

Here’s how it works:
You shop the So iLL website, use your unique gym coupon code – and you’ll receive 10% OFF all available/in stock products*. What happens after that? You get your goods and So iLL provides a kickback to our gym. It’s that simple.

Remember to use code “EDGEWORK10” at checkout! In order for Edgeworks to benefit, this unique code provided must be used on your purchase for tracking purposes.

Trango, eGrips + Tenaya

We’re also partnering with the Trango, eGrips + Tenaya retail support program where you can get a deal on new gear and support Edgeworks at the same time!

How It Works
Visit www.trango.com or www.e-grips.com and place your items in the cart.

Use the discount code “EDGEWORKS-SUPPORT” when ordering Trango, or place the code in the Customer Notes Field on eGrips website. Trango will fill and ship the order directly to you and then provide us with proceeds, just like you bought directly from our gym!

Pretty Strong Screening + Discussion

Friday, April 24th, 2020

Can ‘Pretty Strong’ be the next big climbing movie?

PRETTY STRONG, the film that follows eight of the world’s strongest female climbers as they explore new climbing areas, send hard projects, and push the boundaries of the sport and themselves, is now available to stream on Vimeo!

Step 1: WATCH

Rent it this week (or anytime) for only $5!  https://vimeo.com/ondemand/prettystrong/402224933

Step 2: DISCUSS

Participate in a FILM DISCUSSION hangout session with others from the Edgeworks community on Friday, April 24 at 7pm!

Join us for the discussion here: meet.google.com/owt-ycxt-rin

Introducing Our New Logo!

Wednesday, April 15th, 2020

innovative:

in·no·va·tive /ˈinəˌvādiv/ adjective: introducing or using new ideas or methods; having new ideas about how something can be done

We’re proud to introduce our new logo and look forward to all of the additional possibilities that are yet to come! A sentiment that is more true today than ever before, in pre-COVID19 days.

Since the very beginning, the word “innovative” has been at the root of who we are as a business and for 15+ years we’ve been working to keep innovation at the forefront of Edgeworks’ vision for the future.

Structurally, our facility has evolved from a 10,000 square foot climbing gym with gravel climbing floors to our current modern facility that features the things we only dreamed about in 2004. Strategically, we’re always striving to stay ahead of industry standards and keep up with our own aspirations for growth and advancement.

With all that we’ve accomplished over the years, it was time for the Edgeworks logo to offer a better reflection of who we are today and also move us forward into the next 15 years of innovation.

We will always continue to celebrate where we came from… 1 of the first 250 climbing gyms in the US , 1st in the South Sound, 4th in the Puget Sound, and 5th in Washington State. And, we’ll never stop working to achieve all that we know Edgeworks can be and what our community (you!) wants us to continue to be well into the future. #WeGotThisTacoma

Special thank you to designer Jinger Hendricks for our awesome new logo!

Winter Break Camps

Thursday, January 2nd, 2020

Break the Cabin Fever!

Edgeworks’ climbing camps are a fun way for young climbers of all abilities to stay active & engaged during winter break.

Campers will spend time with our youth instructors and coaches learning the basics of climbing with a mix of activities and games keeping them engaged and learning.

Each day is unique and will offer adventures and challenges that your child will never forget!

Sign Up Now

Details:

Age: 7 – 13 years
Cost: $60/members, $70/non-member
Duration: 5 hours/day
Skill Level: No experience necessary!

Dates & Times:

Sign up for 1 day or multiple days.
December 23, 2019: 9:30am – 2:30pm
December 27, 2019: 9:30am – 2:30pm
December 30, 2019: 9:30am – 2:30pm

January 2, 2020: 9:30am – 2:30pm
January 3, 2020: 9:30am – 2:30pm

Member Black Light Event

Sunday, October 27th, 2019

Sunday, October 27 | 6pm – 9pm

Member Black Light Event

Competitions not your thing but still want to experience the fun of climbing in the black lights?

Invite your friends, wear your best GLOW, and join us for an after-hours, kid-friendly, member event. As a way to say thank you to our members, we’ll turn out the lights one more time before the work begins Monday morning to return things to “normal” around here.

*Some competition routes will come down prior to the member event and the climbing area will be open to the outside side lights from the front desk and 2nd floor. To experience the full effect of the black lights, be sure to join us for the 2019 BLB Comp on Saturday, Oct 26!

Roped Climbing on the shorter walls will be closed during the event but the East Room walls will be business as usual with normal lights and access.

FREE for members! Regular day pass rates apply for guests of members.