Regina Climbing Centre calling on council to build more facilities amid growing sport

The Regina Climbing Center is hoping the city council will consider adding a new facility for its sport when a proposed new water sports center is built.

Regina City Council recently voted unanimously to go ahead and request a total of $128 million in funding from Ottawa for a new water sports center and geothermal facility.

“Our membership has grown, our skills have grown, and the skills of our climbers have grown,” said Jordan Mackay, Regina Climbing Center’s chief climbing officer.

Mackay and his wife opened the gym five years ago but feel they’ve already outgrown their place. Mackay pointed out not only the steep rise climbers face, but also the limited height they have due to a lack of building options in Regina to house a climbing center.

“When we built this place, we searched for a long time for a roof that is 50 feet high. I even tried digging up this place when we bought it, but it wasn’t economically feasible. Building a building in Regina with the population we have, the numbers don’t work for my building,” Mackay explained.

“When I heard that the city was going to build [a new aquatics centre], if we could share the bathrooms, the check in desk, if you sign your kids up for swimming lessons, you could sign them up for rock climbing lessons. It really makes sense for this partnership.”

A larger climbing facility in Saskatchewan is located in Saskatoon. Mackay explained that they were able to turn a milk silo into a climbing center to reach a greater height than what is offered in Regina.

Sarah Hall and her family became members of the Regina Climbing Center in 2019. Their two children, Marcus and Victoria, both compete in sports but travel quite a bit due to the lack of space in Regina.

“Right now we travel there fairly regularly with my son Marcus who is competing from Alberta and look at what facilities they have. With the advantages they have, a few years from now he’s going to have a hard time keeping up. So a new facility here where you could be on an equal footing with them would be really important,” she said.

Marcus is the reigning bolder provincial champion in Alberta. Right now, the Halls are the only Regina family to travel for the sport. Sarah noted that they sometimes travel to Saskatoon during the weekdays because they are able to offer a larger training space.

“Saskatoon’s walls are a little higher than here, but they’re still not as tall as some of the facilities outside of Calgary that might host national events,” she said.

Athletes at the Regina Climbing Center start at the age of 10. Mackay noted the space isn’t big enough to accommodate children, but the new one could be and it would help develop the sport even further.

“If I can commit to the city building and hopefully make it a lot more economical. If you can take rock climbing and put it in pools, more people will see rock climbing, swimming, track and field, weightlifting and hopefully try it,” he said.

The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games helped increase the popularity of the sport. “Sport climbing” was added to the games and the center said this helped generate excitement around the city for people to check out.

“The Olympics were happening and everyone in the climbing community was going insane and everyone wanted to come and try climbing. It exploded. A lot more people came and there was a lot more engagement with people who are regular climbers,” said Jacob Stewart, a principal instructor at the Regina Climbing Centre.

Stewart also noted that Saskatoon draws many rock climbers there because of the larger facility they offer. To be competitive with their members and get more involved in the sport, he believes a new Olympic-sized facility would be enough.

“For climbers with bigger walls, it’s like going to a weightlifting gym when you only have 25 pounds to work out. Unlike a gym that’s packed with squat racks and 2,000-pound weights,” Stewart said.

Mackay noted that he needed 10-foot ceilings when he pitched his idea to the council, but is still waiting to hear if his ideas have caught on with the city.

“I have been working with lawyers for a long time. It’s hard when you’re a new sport and the growth in other markets is just explosive and you’re trying to bring that energy to people who may or may not understand it. I haven’t seen climbing [aquatic centre] report somewhere, so I went to the council and said, ‘Hi, we’re here and we can help with this building,'” Mackay said.

“I am a taxpayer here in Regina and I want this building to be as effective as possible and used by us as much as possible. I think it’s something that really helps the city be a great city. But I just wanted to put us a little bit more on the map, and I thought, you know, the mayor’s in here to climb up and go to the council and say, ‘We think that would be a great addition .” So here I am and I would love to be a part of it.”

You can find more information about the climbing center here.