FORCE CLIMBING, a Vancouver-based climbing-hold-manufacturing company, is ditching traditional hand-sculpting of holds in favor of 3-D printing. With advanced laser scanning and 3-D printing technology, Force is creating a bank of innovative holds featuring a range of unique textures. Many of the designs are scanned directly from classic outdoor climbs, allowing for replication of rock on plastic. This digital innovation led Force to partner with the International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC) in the holds category, earning the company a spot on the world stage of competition climbing. Force Climbing, conceived in 2012, will play a role in planning the Olympics through close work with the IFSC’s route setters and event organizers. The company hopes to provide all of the holds for the 2020 games. Terry Ziolkowski, president of Force and a route setter of 15 years, spoke about hold design, partnerships, and the future of indoor climbing.
Can you give me a background on the origins of Force Climbing?
The idea was conceived about four and a half years ago. My colleagues and I saw a gap where the growth of climbing had progressed but where the service providers had been missing the mark. We’ve started with climbing holds because of how much influence they carry throughout the sport, how many people interact with them. The process of making climbing holds has stayed relatively the same since 1983 when they were first developed. With the advances in technology that we have nowadays, it seemed like the right time and move to update the process and add a modern approach.
What is the process for printing holds?
Denne historien er fra Issue 154-utgaven av Climbing.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra Issue 154-utgaven av Climbing.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
"Cliff Camping": The Latest Bucket-List Tick
WHILE WE CLIMBERS only camp hanging on a wall when we have to, for many in the non-climbing public, portaledge camping ticks a box on their bucket list.
The Freerider
What it took to free solo El Capitan
Welcome To Sendhaus TM: America's Hippest New Climbing Gym
HELLO AND THANK YOU SO MUCH for visiting our newest Sendhaus™ Fitness, Lifestyle, and Climbing Center.
Climbing For Mental Health
WE OFTEN TALK ABOUT the mental side of climbing, like how to overcome fear, visualize success, and be a better overall climber.
Kodak Courage
Are climbers taking more chances for the camera?
It's Not A Free Solo, It's A Highball, DAD!
OH. MY. GOD. Stop worrying! You and mom are such babies. I’m not going to “kill myself climbing without a rope” because that doesn’t even make sense. I’m a boulderer. You can’t boulder with a rope because then it wouldn’t be bouldering. Roped climbing is for losers: Do I look like I’d hangdog for an hour wearing orange pants and doing jazz hands so I can climb five more feet to the next bolt and then do it again? I know you saw Alex Honnold on 60 Minutes and suddenly you think you know everything about climbing. But, uh, actually? You don’t know anything. What I do is called HIGHBALL BOULDERING, not FREE SOLOING, and it’s completely different.
Next-Gen Visualization
IMAGINE ADAM ONDRA lying on his back, eyes squeezed shut in concentration, while a physiotherapist holds his heel in space, helping him visualize and strengthen his body specifically for a move.
Pink Rain
Pink Rain
Southern Super Nova
Thirty-plus Years Ago, Driven First Ascensionist Rob Robinson Discovered the Tennessee Wall. In His Career, He’s Authored Hundreds of New Routes and Dramatically Expanded Chattanooga Climbing.
Green Ice
The Comprehensive Ice and Mixed Climbing of Vermont.
