new colors

i had a couple of complaints/suggestions that the previous colors were hard to read. is this set better? ....comment!

Nothing to do with treadwalls.... but BIG PIMPIN'!

The town of Groningen, The Netherlands boasts of highest free standing climbing wall (actually a tower) in the World. Located at Klimcentrum Bjoeks (Bjoeks Climbing Centre) the curved climbing tower is 37 metres tall and is known as the Excalibur. Besides the Excalibur the Bjoeks climbing centre has a indoor climbing hall and several free-standing boulders dotted around it.







well i guess if your not gonna get a treadwall and still want the worlds great endurance..... you better move to the town of Groningen and start working the Excalibur. ill be honest if i had that in my back yard i would say, "brewer's ledge who?" & "tread-what?"

another treadwall for sale!

so check out the listing http://denver.craigslist.org/spo/1800875416.html

whoever it is, is asking for only $2,500. but it also sounds like it needs some repair. i have no idea what is wrong but im sure if you bought it the guys at brewer's ledge would help you out. they seem to be pretty invested in their product even after theyve sold it. i suggest to ask the seller whats wrong then contact Conant at BL.

good luck to ya, oh if you do buy it let us know all the good details!

the Treadwall Community

we all know i spend way too much time prowling the world wide intra`neb for pictures and info on treadwalls. i especially track down pictures of peoples home setups! recently i found that a guy on the http://www.redriverclimbing.com/ forum posted some pics of his home training setup. so, public domain become filler on the Treadwall Project. here are the pics from BCombs!



this is one of the older models that has been ....from what i can tell stripped from it original frame/stand. not the first custom set up treadwalls i have seen. so if you get a chance to save some money buying a used treadwall you could always go this route so you dont have to be limited to only twelve degrees overhanging. plus if you dont have a super tall ceiling going this way will work, unless youd rather cut out a hole.... um, blah blah blah, lost my train of thought ...enjoy the pics



OH!!! i remember what i wanted to say! so if you have a treadwall or you train on one at a gym, send me a pic. share your set up and any training ideas you have for the rest of us! um, if you dont well then you are a sucky individual that is lazy and that makes baby jesus cry! and i dont know about you but i think crying baby jesus is on par with hunger striking buhda! and he might do that. not too mention allah will put a jihad on you... vishnu, no lotus... zues, no lightning... gaia, no ground!!! ...yhwh, will undo all creation! ....thanks

Huh! Why?!

so today i was working on the shed putting the finishing touches on the the roof and shingles, when who should stop by but blake stipple.... or blair kipple. doesnt matter. any way, he came by to see my progress and do some yacking about treadwalls. the topic eventually wandered around to some of the other funny machines we have heard about.

may i introduce the all too spectacular ....rope climbing machine. i dont know who would want this thing but according to their literature if you do this for a half hour you will burn 420 calories as opposed to the measly 300 calories you will burn on a treadmill. really? ....does that number sound fishy to anyone else.

regardless if you want one of these babies you can get it or a similar model (they have four.... really? four?). the sticker price for their tope model is on a little over $5,000. just check out their site: http://www.marpokinetics.com/ (make sure you take the link to the super cool promotional video!)

of course if you do get one of these please, please....please tell me why you actually need to train for climbing a rope, cause i honestly dont get the appeal. but then again i guess a treadwall aint for everyone.

oh! check out the other wacky machines i have discovered: http://treadwallproject.blogspot.com/2010/05/ten-thing-i-hate-are-not-you.html

Treadwall, Improving the patent?

ive been holding onto this for a little while now and i figure its time.... especially with all those boring shed posts. anyway ive shown you pieces of this photo before but check out the whole thing.... see if you can steal my thunder.

....i like this photo it would be a lot cooler if it wasnt indoor climbing. but when youre looking to show off the Treadwall KORE there really isnt a better picture. so did you spot the best part?

no, ....its not the ORGANIC crash pads, although i agree those are some of the best pads ever. especially bang for buck. just in case you havent been inundated with them at the boulders yet check out the web site: http://www.organicclimbing.com/

nope, its not the safety pads this guy wrapped around the legs....we already talked about that in case you missed it: http://treadwallproject.blogspot.com/2010/06/potential-problem.html

maybe you noticed the fact that this guy has some of the coolest holds ever made .....Pusher! but although that is awesome, its not the big point im getting at.... oh, by the way if you hadnt heard yet. PUSHER IS BACK! : http://www.pushergear.com/

okay kids, no more games here it is, ....see they changed the Logo! it has a black border with red text! cool right!

yeah, that was dumb i admit it. no no, this guy has beef up his treadwall mounting an old school Metolius Simulator hang board to the shroud. which if you ask me was the one to get because unfortunately they redesigned the simulator and made it lameski! see: http://www.metoliusclimbing.com/simulator.html

but before i point out how this was done and all the cool things blah blah blah, i did want to mention another hangboard that is AWESOME! (you see the "kids" tell me that when youre writing or "texting" that capitals mean youre really excited .....is that true?)

this is the "Head Board" by Etch, its one of the best hang boards ever. it got good jugs, no ridiculous amounts of pockets, a nice sloping rail, and the edges are great. i want to point out that i rarely agree with jason kehl but he made the point "if you want to train to fingers on a hang board? just take the other off" (maybe that isnt an exact quote). anyway, the best part of this hold is the amazing pinches on the bottom of either side. most hangboards dont have this feature..... they should. now normally i would tell people to check out the site but.... Etch on their site sells the board for $69.95, while our boy at Brewer's Ledge carry the board in their online store for $49.95. now i want you all to know that i am not sucking at the Treadwall teet. i really do love this board and i find it the oddest coincidence that it just happens to be the board they chose to carry. but, if they guys want to send me a free one when they ship my treadwall just cause i do pimp their shit, i wont complain. (**hint,hint** well see if they have been snooping on my blog)


Hangboard customizing~ so backing up to the whole... inspiration? ....point? ...purpose, yeah thats it. it was suggested to me by someone at Brewer's ledge the idea of adding a hangboard. to do this is easy. first, remove the shroud from the top of your wall. next, get a piece thin plywood and mark out where the screw holes line up. then drill out the holes and do the same to the middle panel on the shroud. youre gonna need a set of nuts and bolts so head the local hardware store. oh be sure theyre only as long as absolutely necessary! if you wanna do it right, you could use t-nuts, then pre-check the length of your bolts and cut them off so they dont stick out. this will insure that the holds dont scrape. so if you havent figured it out yet, put the plywood inside the shroud while mounting your hangboard on the outside. and Voila!

the Treadwall House (part 3)

Day 4: today found me working on my own, which is okay because tyler gave me such a strong start that i was able to get some serious work done. first i put up about have the siding so as to add some stability. i had planned on siding the whole building but, the rain returned. therefore i decided it was a good idea to get a roof on the place. so i spent the rest of the day getting the rafters up. after a little of trial and error i got them all up before the dark it. hopefully tomorrow i will get the roof sheets up. but who knows i do have to go back to working graveyard tomorrow night.

Update.... Day 5: ....so heres what i got done today. not a whole lot. i started late around 12:30, because apparently when i work four days in row it makes me lazy come day five. but since the sun was out i decided to throw some OSB up on the roof. hopefully tomorrow and the next couple of days i will be able to get some little things done. otherwise the shed will have to sit until thurs when i have my next day off.


.....i guess for some of you these are all very boring posts. i just figured i put up the building plans i might as well show the construction. dont worry soon, the Treadwall will get here and we will talk about much more important things!

the Treadwall House (part 2)

The construction.....

....first and foremost i would like to thank "Strong" (aka Tyler) for showing up and helping. there is no way i would have gotten as much done as i have had he not spent the last three days coming over and busting ass with me!

Day 1: the first things first that need to be done was sink in three pier blocks. we then mounted three 4x4's to and built the floor joists up. the back yard wasnt exactly level so we spent a good four hours just trying to make sure everything was square and level. when your making a building that has twelve foot walls starting out square seemed like an important thing to do.

Day 2: Strong had to work today as he did the day before so i spent the first half of the day just cutting wood and prepping everything i could think of. i tried to make all the walls into little kits that just had to be assembled. when Tyler finally got there sometime after 4pm he had a little surprise. the boss had given him use of the company nail gun. after proving how not awesome i am at nailing the day before on the joists i was pleased to say the least. the gun made everything go quick. you can see how far we got in the next couple of shots.

Day 3: it went well today. we finished up the last of the framing, and the walls reached theyre due full height. the back westerly wall as planned is slightly over 12ft tall and the forward east wall is 10ft. the height of the ceiling will allow me to have full adjustment of the treadwalls height.

the only thing... like its a small chore, but the things i have left is to panel the sides, hang the rafter, sheet the roof, and put in the window ....but it is coming along and i should have it done in time.

the Treadwall House (part 1)

So, for the last three days i have been in the process of constructing a new home for my soon to be arriving treadwall. i plan to write a little bit on the actual lessons i have learned so far in the construction.

that being said, why is there a little guy in a rain cloud here? ....because i live in washington and as Tyler said yesterday if you worried about construction getting wet nothing would ever be built in washington.

F the F-in' Rain!

i imagine ill tell you all about it when i get done. right now i only have two more days until i have to be back to work on the graveyard shift....the bane of my climbing!

side note, i put in for a new hospital job....so, do that prayer thing or stroke your... lucky rabbits foot or something...i need the job....

~inspiratus~

As we all know i like to pilfer ideas from the internet, and soon i will begin construction of my first home bouldering wall. so on that note i decide to post some of the more inspiring home walls i have found. a few of these are from actual climbing gyms but... they have the DIY quality. hopefully you find them equally worth a look. also if you like ....i dont know if it possible but you can try adding or sending me photos of your woodie if you want to show it off!

Tread ^ Treadwall

HEY! why do they get two?!

i have nothing to actually say about this picture.

i just like the shot. these are the fixed wall mounted model .....im guessing they are the M4 style. but it might just be a forced perspective thing. the only thing i can think to say is its too bad the walls are mounted at a fixed angle.

k... thats enough about nothing.

Treadwall M6 For Sale

before i get to the point of the post, would someone like to tell me why? in the name of all that is and ever shall be.... has this space cadet strapped himself back down to earth.

is he that powerful of a climber that he's worried about overshooting the top of the wall? im sorry ....i just dont get it.

well now that i made fun of him... i guess ill help a brother out.

for sale is:.... well i think its the M6, it may be a PE or earlier model.... regardless it's not the kore but it is the 6ft model.

i have actually been watching this casually on ebay for the last couple of months.... he started out asking for the full $10,000 but has been dropping his price as time went by.





i already threw down my money for the KORE model so.... no too interested in this guy. but their track record for staying in good working order is by the reports i have found really good. i guess thats why homeboy thought his was still worth ten grand. nope, you loose.

any way he has now slummed his way down to $4,800 OBO / please someone get this off my lawn before the wife divorces me.

sounds like a deal for one of you out there. the wall is actually in Piscataway, New Jersey ...where ever the hell that is. oh and i guess he doesnt want to take it apart to ship it.... so get ready to drive.

oh and it also sounds like the guy will take a down payment and work with ya on the rest...maybe not.



regardless, here is a link to his sale of the item on ebay: http://cgi.ebay.com/Treadwall-Revolving-Rock-Climbing-Wall-Brewers-Ledge-/230485379216?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35a9ffc890

and here he is again on craigs list : http://cnj.craigslist.org/spo/1691620844.html

F That F 'N' S! , the worst of the Treadwall upgrades

Okay the title is harsh..... but thats the way i feel about these upgrades..... you on the other hand may feel remarkable different. which is okay.... youre wrong, you really are, but thats okay its your money spend it how you want. obviously there are people out there who want these things or they never would have gone into production.

*if you work at Brewer's Ledge, maybe in product development, please dont read this!*

**oh!... unless your a man, in which case carry on**

Textured Panels ~ i guess there is in the climbing industry a love affair with attempting to create the most realistic or close approximation of the experience of climbing on real rock. personally, i agree with that ideal, but look kids, sometimes you just go too far from the source to keep the illusion going.

take a look at the "texture" of this wall... does it honestly look like rock? also, what is the practical use of texture? ....smearing, really youre gonna place a tenuous foot smeared on a moving surface. Not to mention the wall is overhanging as much as 35 degrees. really? you need to smear on that?

now i know this matters little when we consider form and function.... but, it's UGLY! its not aesthetically pleasing. its messing with my fung sway or whatever. how can i enjoy sipping my green tea and bending my self into my favorite salute the sun wolf gag position with these funky panels in the room. thanks ill stick by the nice unfinished wood. an uncarved block if you will.

well okay its another $495.00 i guess you just gotta help get someone through college!

Starter Hold Set~ so whatcha gonna do? you gotta have holds. unless you can climb like a gecko.

the FACTS: 38 holds, $289.00, $7.61 per hold.

as hold prices go thats not bad. on average you spend $45 bucks for a hold set of 5 to 8 holds. at the same time. i hate so-ill holds but they have a starter set that is 53 holds for $159.00.

not too mention the holds dont jump out at me as being cool fun shapes to climb on. sorry guys but im reasonably sure you arent manufacturing these holds yourselves anyway. so i dont feel that bad. odds are you have a contract with another company, mostly so that when you sell your walls to fitness gyms you can give them an all in one product. but you know the holds arent the bees knees ...so, you thought you would make it an add on for the suckers, when they get the KORE. im full ill skip this meal thanks!

The Ladder Line~ what the F%*#$! who came up with this? are you paying him? can you get that money back or did he spend it already? ....*deep breath* its okay that was a knee jerk reaction i know. also this isnt one of the "popular options" i know. but there was a you tube video that popped up and its in your promotional video so i had to address it.

WHAT?! $24.00 for one of these things? its a piece of DOWEL essentially bolted down on top of two foot chips!!!!!!!! $299.00 for the whole set? how many come in a set?!

this is like taking a superior product and blending it with old out dated inferior technology! like putting a walk-e-talkie in my cell phone! ....hey? can i get an etch-a-sketch for my drafting software!!! super! thanks!

if you dont agree with my summation, check out one of my previous posts! http://treadwallproject.blogspot.com/2010/05/ten-thing-i-hate-are-not-you.html . i still pee myself laughing every time i look at the endless ladder. but again i really hope this is just you guys marketing this to the fitness gyms cause theyre dumb and you thought "throw it their way too... maybe well get a fish?"

in closing i would like to apologise to the guys at Brewer's Ledge. i am ....a major ass. i hope i havent cost you any business. honestly, im pretty sure im not the unpopular opinion.

Counting On You.....

so, was that half dome in a day, el cap in a day, ....or the bog wall for a few laps....... how would you know?


honestly, i havent practiced counting since i had to prove i could get to twenty to pass kindergarten. but oddly enough i also remember have an argument when i was little with another duey about whos dad had counted the highest. both of i am sure was just lying our pull-ups off as we insisted "my dad comes home from work, crack a beer, and starts counting, he makes it at least a couple thousand a night.....should break into a million soon!"


oh how likely is that, counting... really kids.... only a child would brag about counting. the rest of us, well we developed the calculator, and the the computer.... and many other implements of measurement all for the sole purpose of avoiding ....counting!


so why would you buy a Treadwall and not pay the $390.00 dollars extra to get the time and distance counter. .....does this argument really need to go on?

My New Hold Models

BTW!..... i know i already posted today, ...more than once. thats not the point. but i almost forgot to drop the line on my new holds. some of you less than care, but hey there could be one person out there interested and so what if hes my father!

so i cast some new models.....molds.....holds...whatever! and here they are!

first, i thought i would point out that apparently one person believes i may be a seattle sounders fan. apparently i used their colors for my holds. um, apparently not! soccer is lame....you can get injured....then you cant rock climb....and i support nothing that has the potential to interfere with the climbing and scale of said rock!

any who, someone once asked me if making holds is worth it. to me? duh i obviously get enjoyment out of the whole process! shaping, molding, casting, climbing.......thinking of new shapes. see it's like a circle. if your a routesetter i think you get my .....whatever im on.

but is it worth it. well count em up?

58 holds right? double check if ya want...like im gonna cheat? divided by? the resin cost me about $100 dollars. so lets go with that figure. comes to $1.73 per hold. now im not one to compare my craft with the likes of say pusher.....but i definitely dont see metolius doing it that cheap. in all fairness though, i did have other costs involved, the total to make this specific batch so far is more like $5.15 per hold. but keep in mind, every time.....every time i use those molds and make another hold....that price goes DOWN! so considering that right now, those holds are metolius quality....at least, and they are at least the same price...... YES! ITS WORTH IT TO ME!

oh and i promise not to post anymore today.... ps ten more shopping months till my birthday... GO!

Potential Problem?

HEY!!!! something just hit me as i was reviewing and editing my posts.... as scrutinizing as i have already been with this photo i am gonna take it one step further

how many of you alreay noticed the piece of foam hugging the leg of the Treadwall? this picture is from a private owners collection, so i can assume this is not a company suggestion from treadwall. but does this guy know something we dont. has he repeatedly kicked or hit the leg while climbing? maybe fallen into leg while climbing or popped of the wall and cracked himself? enough so that he has now attempted to protect himself from injury? OR is he simply paranoid?

well from only a photo an argument could be made for both. i guess this is another question i will try to answer in my final review!

(...honestly, do you love how observant and obsessive i am? it may be an illness... not sure.)

Treadwall Kore: check out the legs!

i have wanted to delve into this area for a while, and i have touch on it previously.... but were gonna pretty much talk it to death this time around. what truly makes the difference between the Treadwall M6 and the KORE. we all know... at least you should by now, the "M6" is the flagship fitness gym model, the big, the bold, the beautiful. but.... its lame! my apologies to the boys at Brewers Ledge. but sticking to my poor tact approach, you knew that there was a population of climbers out there just like me that loved the idea but werent fully impressed. therefore you cant be to surprised to hear it said aloud....i mean in print. as i was saying, it only goes from +12 degrees slab to -12degrees overhanging. fun for some yes...but we say boo, you can do better. so we were given the Kore. its lighter, trim, less frilly, thinner legs and she goes down. sounds like the kinda girl you sneak into the house when dad aint lookin? kidding...

so lets talk about those legs. the kore comes standard with only three height positions. the fixed positions are -25, -30, & -35 degrees overhanging. while, these angles are remarkably more effect for a true climber and their training needs when compared to the M6 option, i am glad theres more, the angle changing frame up grade! ...yes up grade means more money. $460 will be worth it, because when you buy this you get -5 to -35degrees of climbing. which to me sounds awesome!

Wow! looking at these two scale drawings ive done just sold me on the fact that i made the right decision! you can really see the difference between the three settings of the static adjustment frame, and the extremes of the variable angle changing frame. plus, you know your body would really know the difference. im also sure youll agree the ability to vary your training even more will make the stave off the boredom that always comes with any training program.

i have an opinion that when training anything less than vertical is rarely helpful (aside from focusing on smearing technique). for someone who climbs regularly, a slab wall doesnt provide enough of a workout to promote gains. also, near vertical climbing technique and overhanging technique are very different. There is that fine line dividing when your pulling your hips in to keep as much weight as you can onto your feet and when your ass drops out below you, hanging most of the weight on your hands and all the feet are doing now is pushing you to the next hold while your core is trying desperately not to let you cut!

now, let me ask you something.... is there more near to vertical and slabby rock out there or hardcore mega roof overhangs? well... if you need a hint, gravity pulls on the rock too and the animals fight over caves for a reason! but i get it, well all love climbing the roofs i just want to encourage you to train all aspects of your climbing. plus endurance at a lower angle wont destroy your shoulders.

side story recently there was a climbing Comp at my local gym and one of the young hard core brutes was all pissed because one of his routes wasnt on the sick hard overhanging wall. he wanted the little kids to climb the slab. news flash! climbing is climbing, be versatile, if you only train one thing thats all youll be good at, and you will find boredom every time you find yourself out of your element. overhanging lends it self to big pulls on big holds. no really technique gets developed here. i find it sad thats all this kid looks for in climbing. wheres that satisfying flow when every move is a big dynamic throw to the next roof jug?...did i get on that horse AGAIN?! compnee' dismount....

.....so -5 to -35 degrees overhanging, i like it.... versatility. the static adjustment frame essentially has overhanging, while the angle changing frame has a range from near vertical to overhanging. point made!

the meat of the blog is coming now, i promise. i was talking with Garnet when i placed my order and the subject came around to the function of the angle changing frame and how it works. i had asked how easy it was to change the angle. see if you look at the picture there are hand cranks on either side...which is fine with me. a more complex design might utilize one crank but at that point the complexity can leading to more things that could go wrong. remember your climbing system and the SERENE mnemonic?

• S -- Solid -- Are all the pieces in the anchor solid?
• E -- Equalized -- Are all the pieces equalized?
• R -- Redundant -- Is there redundancy throughout the system?
• E -- Effective -- Was the anchor construction simple and quick with no fuss?
• NE -- No Extension -- Will the system be shock-loaded if a piece blows?

focus on Effective, simple because a more complex design is closer to failure that a simple effective one. ....entropy leads to chaos ...follow me. dog namit! im wordy today!!!

Garnet says to me that the angle adjusts quickly within each setting bolt position, but going from the full height to the lowest takes a little longer, around three minutes. he quickly promises me that its okay, no big deal and that one person can do it alone. ....im a little stalled, i remember looking at previous low quality photos trying to figure it all out so now im extra confused. he goes on to explain how the same fixed bolt settings that are on the standard frame are on the angle changing setup. the hand cranks adjust up and down from those positions. so you have to move things around a little to get it from -5 degrees to -35 degrees. he also sent me a picture about something else but i was able to get a good view of the cranks as well check it out!

the first picture shows the treadwall in the lowest position while the second shows us the highest position. clearly you can see the three bolt holes where the crank adjust its position. oddly enough though if you look closely you will notice in one picture the crank is on the inside and in the other its on the outside. WHY? well the first photo is from a customer the second is from the company, so my guess is the guy reversed how he assembled his wall.....oops!

but going back, that assembly error got me thinking (i like to tweak the patent), the bolt position and assembly changes the angle potential of the wall. so, could another bolting position be place the horizontal footing at the bottom. if so it would allow the wall to be made even steeper. my first problem solving thought is... would this then allow the wall to tip over? but i guess you could counter that by bolting it to the ground! well see when it gets here, either way im not likely to start customizing my wall right out of the gait.

.....anyway, i had a point when i started this post but now i lost my train of thought.... so, hope it was a good and informative read! im gonna make another volume today. so the next post should be more on that topic.