Central Rock Gym — Local services in Glastonbury

I have been going to Central Rock Gym with my three children for about 3 or 4 years. Never had any type of problems until today. While my daughter was climbing, I was approached by a staff member. As my daughter was climbing, we got into a long conversation about my belay technique. I was very confused and distracted by all the questions. Apparently, there was an issue with the style of belay technique that I use. When I use a tube belay I use the PBUS technique, when I use my mechanical brake assisted, Petzl Grigri I use PBAS. This is because my daughter can climb very fast and PBUS takes longer especially when using the grigri. I am not a pro and am very much an amateur my kids are the ones that are the athletes. I told the staff member I would be happy to only use PBUS method if that is the gym police. Safety is very important to me, that is why I use the grigri. Most accidents I know about happen when the belayer get distracted. This is why the staff member should have waited until my daughter was not climbing. I was told I was not allowed to belay without an hour to hour and half course. The staff member claimed he could not find my belaying records in their computer system. I do have to say I am old and this if the first time I have ever been booted out of any place, but they were nice about it. They had a birthday party going on that made most of the auto belays unavailable so how people are supposed to climb? I assure you I filled out all the required paperwork! I have followed all of Central Rock Gym written policies. Maybe there is some part of the interaction that I am missing. The staff member seemed new...

Central Rock Gym set a high standard for a casual climber today:

The certification process was quick. Megan instructed me to fill-out a waiver on an iPad. Five minutes later, she charged $19.19 for a day pass. Greg verified my belay credentials after I geared up in the men's locker room. Within 20 minutes of arrival I was climbing.

My first problem was a yellow V0, a surprisingly difficult one! Clearly a tall problem, but the hold placement forced unexpected maneuvering. The routes were somehow faster than normal... The reason stared me in the face! Every route is denoted by holds of matching color, making them more identifiable than tape strips. After a satisfying few hours, I was ready to leave.

Showered, changed, and clean, I left... But, re-entered to ask if a nice coffee shop was nearby. It then really dawned on me how open, well lit , comfortable, temperate, and acoustically pleasant this place is. The effort they put into keeping you comfortable is next to invisible. Abby and Glenn pointed me to a great place to coffee, snack, and use Wi-Fi. So, it is on their elevated indoor deck where I type in the pleasant ambiance of climbing,...

Great gym - lots of climbs all the way from 5.5/V0 to 5.13/V9. Has a sizable bouldering section and a monstrous lead cave right in front of the main entrance. They have pretty much any type of wall you'd want, with slab, cave sections, plenty of vert, and even two imposing arches that typically house difficult lead climbs. The bouldering section has a motorized wall that can move all the way from vert to down past 45 degrees, giving route setters a bit more freedom.

The staff is nice and knowledgeable, the hours are generous, and they have moisturizer to use as a salve on your battered and cracked hands after a climbing session.

Overall, this is a nice gym whether you are looking to try climbing for the first time, to bring your significant other on a date, or are a hardcore climber who wants the best indoor climbing...