Hangar 18 Indoor Climbing Gym - Arcadia — Attraction in Arcadia

Came here while visiting the city and had a pretty poor first impression.

First the staff person helping us was pretty unprofessional and began helping a different group that interrupted us while we were in the middle of finishing paying for a day pass and we wound up standing there being ignored for several minutes while the staff helped the group that cut in on us.

We were then informed we had to pass a bouldering safety check which I felt was very superfluous. When testing me they asked me to show how I fell off from halfway up a climb (the safe way being to land and roll on your back). They then asked me to climb all the way to the top of the route and back down but they did not ask my partner to do this, why was it necessary for me but not them? Also no one in the gym seemed to really follow the safe falling guidelines, primarily landing on their feet from the top of the walls.

We also had a few other friends come to climb but they were informed that their children could not climb even under supervision unless they first take their intro to bouldering class which was not available at the time. This is not listed clearly anywhere on their website for first time visitors that this is necessary.

Amenities were also lacking as there wasn't much in the way of locker rooms or changing rooms and only two bathrooms for the entire place.

Overall a lot of headaches before even getting to climb. And the facilities were pretty underwhelming on top of all that. While there are some autobelays, they are very short, no taller than the bouldering walls in height which makes me question the point of them. The bouldering walls themselves are pretty old and could use some new paint or patching as there are several places where the wood is fully exposed and looking a bit splintery.

The setting felt uneven to me, V1-V4 felt softer and there was a sharp uptick in difficulty transitioning to V5 with V5-7 feeling all about the same difficulty as well. This may just be me not use to the style or the routes I chose.

The last thing that I want to critique is the COVID mask rules, while most people kept their masks on there were clearly a few people who had it pulled down under their chin the entire time I was there and I think the gym should do a better job of enforcing their mask requirement, else why even have one.

TLDR: Drop in climber felt the staff were unprofessional and affordable in this case does not...

I finally made my way back here (I live 30+ miles away now) and was treated so badly that I'm actually considering filing a complaint with the Better Business Bureau (I'm kind of contemplating about suing ARC too, but I think I have better things to do than to waste any more of my time on this place).

I was the first person in on a Sunday. As I handed my 10-visit punch card to the front desk, I was informed that the card was not valid any more. Ok, there were five visits left on the card, worth $55 total (I paid $110 for a 10-visit pass), and there was NO EXPIRATION DATE written anywhere on the card. The front desk person was feeling charitable and decided to "let me in just this once." Well, that will be last $55 ARC ever sees from me.

I sat down at the sofa to put on my climbing shoes and a projectile smacked me squarely in the back, right on my spine (I have a bruise from it). A guy, who appeared to be setting routes, decided to start throwing things before looking to see if there were people around. After mumbling a half-hearted apology, he exclaimed, "it's just a roll of tape!" Right, I don't think that bruise on my back cares that it was a roll of tape (it still stings when I move).

I was so upset at that point (knowing that I'm out $55 for a gym I don't even like that much to start with and my back hurting), that I only managed to try couple routes before taking off.

If my review is not enough to turn you away from this place, keep the following in mind when you visit: 1) do NOT give ARC any money upfront, for any reason, you may never see it again; 2) watch for projectiles coming your way, a roll of tape may seem harmless (although my spine would disagree), but I'd hate to see a hex wrench stab you in the eye during your visit; 3) practice holding your breath, the place stinks to high heaven; 4) be prepared for a heat-stroke, there is no air conditioning...

I've climbed at Gyms all over Los Angeles County and Orange County. My wife and I also climb outside, weather permitting. It's important to find a convenient home gym in order to keep in shape and push your self to the next level. We moved from Long Beach to the San Gabriel Valley, and there wasn't anything out here until now. We had tried Stronghold, LA Boulders, and Hangar Upland. The first two are incredibly overpriced. It's like they think they have Sender One level gyms, and they simply don't. Hangar Upland was fine, but the drive didn't make sense for us.

This gym just opened, so they're still getting things in line. They took over the old "Arc Climbing gym", and made it their own. It's right across the street from REI, so if you forget something, then you won't have to walk far ;)

I'm sure they plan to make improvements along the way. It is mostly a bouldering gym. The walls don't seem to be used to their full potential. I would suggest adding more boulder routes. There are some top ropes at the entry to the gym, but the walls are only about 15-16' tall. There are 3 auto belay devices (it allows you to climb on rope without a partner). There is no lead climbing, and they don't plan to add it in the immediate future.

All the holds are brand new, and the routes have a pretty good range (v0 - v7). For those in the LA area who are new to Hangar Gyms, they tend to be smaller than the "big name" gyms, but the level of climbing is usually great and so is the community. They have seasonal specials (and currently a grand opening special), but the regular monthly rate is only $36 a month and there is no initiation fee.

We had fun, and will be back soon. I will update my review as...