JHH60 wrote:My extended family lives near a gym in Northern VA that has several of these installed. I like them since if I go there for Christmas (as I will be doing in a few weeks) I can take family members who aren't old or experienced enough to belay me to the gym and belay them myself, but can then tie into an autobelay rope and do some laps.
We don't have them in the local gyms in the SF Bay area but my climbing buddies and I mostly lead climb there, and autobelay devices don't support that (yet).
When you're out here, shoot me a PM if the temps are mid-40's or higher. We can go climbing at Great Falls (warning-- toproping), which will beat the hell out of the gym. I have all the TR gear already, so don't worry about anything but your shoes and a helmet. If you want to bring your family members, we pick some easy routes and introduce them to outdoor climbing.
But if the temps are under 40, the numb fingers, the really smooth rock, and the rushing river below will be sufficient incentive to stick with the gym.