On Wednesday, March 13, nearly 30 students and faculty members went to the Gravity Well rock wall on the Northern Vermont University – Lyndon campus for the Mile High Club Climbing party. The goal of the night was for everyone to work together to collectively climb the equivalent of one mile. Climbers would then record their names on a chart for every time they touched the ceiling after scaling the wall.
They started their journey at 4:20PM and everyone got busy scaling the walls. Students belayed and climbed for hours on end, sometimes stopping for a quick snack. As they got closer and closer to their goal, more people started to climb. Some of the final runs, recorded separately, were made by Abby Salvadore, Trevor Utton, Katy Ebner, CJ Gaunce, and Brian Lamoureux. Then, at 7:30PM, Elliott Brunnette, Gage Gibbons, and Utton all raced for the final climb towards the mile goal. Everyone who participated was also given a free t-shirt designed by Salvatore.
Gibbons was also recognized for climbing the most, putting his name on the chart over 60 times. He told The Critic that he had no plans of climbing that day, as he had spent the entire day skiing. “Once I saw everyone else getting stoked, I got stoked,” he said with a smile on his face. He looks forward to more events in the rock wall and challenges other students to beat his record.
Utton admitted that Gibbons’ high energy motivated him to climb more as well, putting Utton in second place with 46 climbs. Gaunce and Brunnette tied for third, both climbing the walls 23 times within the three hours.
Several students also became belay certified at this event. Patrick Wickstrom was one of them, and he told The Critic, “[I] knocked two birds out with one stone.” Wickstrom made 13 climbs throughout the night and admitted that he felt good afterwards.
The Gravity Well is normally open Sunday through Friday, from 5:00PM to 8:00PM. Students and faculty can climb for free and become belay certified while members of the community are asked to pay a $7 fee.
Photography by Alexandra Huff unless noted.
Feature Image Caption: Students and faculty busy in the Gravity Well. (Left to Right: Gage Gibbons, Katy Ebner, Zach Falkenburg, Abby Salvadore, Trevor Utton, and Taylor Gravlin)