Bower Climbing Coalition

April 2, 2018April 18, 2018News

Rock The Earth: Earth Day Crag Cleanup and After Party: April 22nd, 2018

8:00AM – CLEANUP – Meet at any of the following crags: Minnehaha, Cliff Drive, Mirabeau, Dishman or Deep Creek. Bring gloves, work clothes, water, smiles and your climbing gear if you want to climb after!

5:00PM – AFTER PARTY – Doors Open at the Washington Cracker Co. Building (304 W. Pacific Ave, Spokane, WA)

6:000PM – Climbing Presentation by BCC President Scott Coldiron

7:00PM – Live Music Begins! Marshal Mclean hits the stage!

Tickets online: NEW LOWER PRICE, THANK YOU BIG SKY BREWING! $10 / Tickets at the door: $15

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/rock-the-earth-after-party-tickets-44564348165

February 22, 2018News

BCC and EWU Present No Man’s Land Film Fest on March 2

No Man’s Land Film Festival (NMLFF) is the premier all-female adventure film festival based out of the Rocky Mountains of Colorado and on tour nationally. NMLFF celebrates the full scope of female athletes and adventurers, looking to redefine what it means to be female in the outdoor industry. A collaboration of men and women, No Man’s Land strives to implement and inspire change in the outdoor industry, while cultivating a deep interest in exploring the vastness of our planet from a female point of view.

November 16, 2017February 19, 2018News

BCC Presents Reel Rock 12: Wednesday, Dec 6th

Bower Climbing Coalition presents Reel Rock 12:

Silent Auction / raffle / Local Beer

+ food provided by Perry Street Brewing & Crate Street Food

Wednesday, December 6th, 2017. Doors open at 6:00pm. Show starts at 7:00pm. At the Washington Cracker Co. Building (304 W. Pacific Ave / Spokane, WA) Tickets online: $20 / Tickets at the door: $25.

April 18, 2017February 19, 2018News

Route Update

BCC RouteUPDATE:
Replaced unsafe rusty bolts on Touch of Gray (5.11c) at Dishman this last weekend.

We want to give a special shout out to BCC board member Erik Lawson who spent 1.5 hours chopping and patching 5 rusted bolts that could not be removed. Then spent 6.5 additional hours removing and replacing 7 protection bolts from this route. The hard work has really payed off, the route looks beautiful and is safe again! Thank you.

April 5, 2017February 19, 2018Uncategorized

Rock The Earth: Earth Day Crag Cleanup: April 22nd, 2017

This event is taking place on Earth Day, April 22nd. From 8am-noon we are cleaning our local crags and getting them ready for the climbing season. Then from noon-6pm we relax and climb. To end the day, we will meet back at Wild Walls downtown for an after party.

The after party will feature a technical ropework exposition. Also, tons of pizza and local beer as nourishment and of course a gear raffle!

Click the poster below for more info. And stay tuned for exact locations and more!

December 2, 2016February 19, 2018Uncategorized

The Spokesman Review wrote a really nice article on the BCC.

We were featured in Spokane, WA’s largest newspaper, the Spokesman Review:

http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2016/nov/17/climbing-nonprofit-dedicated-to-safety-memory-of-l/

November 30, 2016February 19, 2018Uncategorized

How To Get Involved

Help! We have had a lot of questions about how to help and we are psyched that you psyched on lending a hand! Here are a few ways you can help us right now…

– Come to our fundraiser! Dec. 3rd at Wild Walls
– Donations of products, services, or just plain cash…
– If you know a business that may be interested in supporting us, let us know!

For all donations you can either drop them off to Todd at Wild Walls, or you can contact us for info.

November 30, 2016February 19, 2018News

Why we desperately need new climbing anchors….

Eric Lawson was replacing bolts on The Force (10a/huge sandbag). On the 3rd bolt, in the middle of a cruxy traverse with horrible feet, Eric applied 10 lbs of pressure with a 6 in wrench and the bolt sheared off! There is no way that bolt would have held body weight, let alone a lead fall.
Let’s get on it Spokane! Time to replace those relics… if you want to help, message us here.

November 6, 2016February 19, 2018History

Andrew Bower

Today marks one year since Andrew’s passing. We would like to share this piece of Andrew’s story, sent to us by Elle Ossello:
Voice shaking, giddy, nervous, ecstatic, I taught my first Introduction to Climbing class years ago at Wild Walls Climbing Gym with Andrew standing by observing his own student watchfully, patiently. I was so proud to step into the formidable shoes of a teacher and mentor more passionate and knowledgable than a whole university of professors. Never have I known someone so dedicated to inciting the fire for his own passion in every single person that walked across his path.
Sharing the teaching podium with him cultivated within me a reverence for those who sat as students before me. It left me feeling forever deeply dutiful to anyone who ever looks to me for help understanding. I never would have understood the profound depth of duty of a teacher to his student had I not watched Andrew conduct himself with great seriousness and tenderness before everyone that signed up for that class.
And then I watched him meet Emily. There are hardly words to describe the joy of having been privileged enough to be around them as their love unfurled. All I know is that I feel a bit less temporal having felt the radiating power of their mutual adoration.
The world lost a truly powerful human. But it is a testament to the goodness of his soul that he lives on so tangibly in the hearts of the people he left behind. Rest with God, Andrew. You will be missed.
-Elle Ossello

November 5, 2016February 19, 2018News

Bower Climbing Coalition Is Born

It was a year ago that we lost a beloved member of our climbing community, Andrew Bower, in a fall at Dishman Hills climbing area. He was working alone that day, replacing rusted anchor bolts with stainless steel hardware. Hundreds of Spokane’s rock climbs are protected by badly corroded anchor bolts, many of them over 30 years old. Andrew recognized this danger and had singlehandedly replaced dozens in the months before his death. As a climbing community, it is time we carry on Andrew’s legacy and finish this project
Andrew’s life exemplified a passion for outdoor adventure and commitment to community service. In addition to working on an ambulance in Spokane as an Emergency Medical Technician, Andrew taught classes at Wild Walls climbing gym and guided disadvantaged youth on hundreds of wilderness adventures for Peak 7. He and his wife Emily could always be seen together at our local crags; both of them unfailingly cheerful and supportive of other climbers, no matter if you were a 5.13 crusher or a new climber struggling up a 5.9.

Eastern Washington has had no group dedicated to replacing unsafe hardware and clean-up of its many climbing areas. We are happy to announce the launch of the Bower Climbing Coalition, a non-profit organization dedicated to maintaining, expanding and preserving Inland Northwest climbing. We will celebrate the community and culture of climbing through local events and gatherings, and strive to bring climbers together of all ages and abilities.

Emily Bower, thank you for sharing Andrew with us. We will do our best to honor his memory!
Thanks Chris Adams, Jess Roskelley, Jeff Crawford, Arden Pete, Alan Shepherd, Adam Volwiler, Bailey Shepherd, Trevin Spencer, Todd Mires, Glenn Stewart, Joe Lind and Eric Lawson for your work and guidance in launching this project.

More will be posted soon about what we plan to do to carry on Andrew’s legacy.
Above all, we seek to be inclusive of all voices in the climbing community… Sport Climbers, Boulderers, Trad Climbers, and Alpinists! We welcome your input as we proceed!