We are closing at 7pm on Wednesday, April 24th for a Private Event
We are closing at 7pm on Wednesday, April 24th for a Private Event
Our mission is to empower young athletes to come into their own as strong, self-confident, & passionate climbers and teammates. We aim to nurture values of discipline, perseverance, respect, and sportspersonship to help support the navigation of successes and failures.
As a team, we strive to foster an environment that nurtures camaraderie, trust, and teamwork. Our vision is to cultivate a thriving community of lifelong climbers and community members who not only work towards their climbing goals, but also elevate one another through shared experiences and mutual growth.
Please reach out to our Director of Youth Programs, brentley@valleyrockgym.com if you have any questions.
Practice Days/Times:
Juniors Team Ages 9-12: Tuesdays & Thursdays 4:30-6:00 pm
Club Team Ages 13+ Tuesdays & Thursdays 6:00 - 7:30pm
September - May (Seasonal commitment required)
Fall Season : September- December
Spring Season: January - May
1 mandatory parent-coach conference per season
Cost: $200 a month (membership included)
Goals:
Focus:
Prerequisite & application process:
Practice Days/Times: Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays 4pm-6:30pm
September - May (Seasonal commitment required)
Fall Season : September-December
Spring Season: January - May
2 mandatory parent-coach conferences per season
Ages 9+
Cost: $300 a month (membership included)
Plus $25 per competition (not including comps hosted at VRG)
Goals:
Focus:
Prerequisite & application process:
Attend clinic (2 sessions)
All new & returning athletes must attend TWO clinics.
A returning athlete is someone who has been on the VRG team before but has taken a season or more off of climbing.
Fill out athlete questionnaire
Fill out 3rd party questionnaire from teacher, coach, or instructor
Mission:
Our aim in holding the VRG All Team Clinic is to bring all of our athletes and coaches together to engage our team community in a collective learning opportunity! In this, we hope to gain greater insight into the interests, capacities, and goals of our developing athletes, and dispel any preconceived notions of hierarchy in our team offerings. This clinic is an opportunity for athletes to connect with their peers and the broader team community, as well as an opportunity for coaches to connect with all of our athletes to promote greater colleagueship in the support and guidance of all of our young climbers.
Environment:
For the VRG All Team Clinic, we will be requiring athletes to sign up for two sessions over four days with a cap of 12 climbers per session (the clinic will take place of the regularly scheduled team practices for that week). The purpose of this is to see athletes on different days, giving us a broader data set and mitigating for, “good vs. bad,” days. All coaches will be present, and the coach to climber ratio will be 1:3, offering us the opportunity to thoroughly observe and collectively assess our young athletes (see ‘Assessment’ for details). The clinic will follow the model of a typical practice (i.e. Warm-up, Skill Instruction, Skill Practice, Projecting, and Workout) with each coach leading a segment. Each athlete will be meeting with our Youth Program Director for a brief informal interview to distill their goals, and share their experiences to date with climbing, climbing programs, and climbing teams.
Assessment:
What we, as coaches, will be assessing in our climbers at the VRG All Team Clinic is as follows:
By assessing the climbers in these areas, and referencing them with information given in the coach athlete interview, we aim to develop a detailed picture of the athlete, and by doing so collaborate as a coaching team to best serve our athletes in reaching their goals, enjoying their successes, and developing new goals.
Competition:
At the VRG All Team Clinic, it is our goal to steer clear of competition between athletes. The whole premise of a clinic vs. tryout is to avoid the anxiety that comes with being assessed based on performance alone. We believe that the healthiest form of competition for young athletes is one that is intrinsically motivated, and founded on the desire to improve for improvements sake. This said, once a healthy foundation for internal competition is formed, external expression of one's abilities can be rewarding, balanced, and healthy. At VRG, we are more interested in cultivating a lifelong love of climbing and developing the skill, dedication, and motivation that this sport asks of its participants.
When:
Where:
What to bring:
There are two options for enrollment. You can either
REMINDER:
If you are a current VRG Team athlete planning to stay on your current team, please sign up for ONE clinic.
If you are a new athlete, a returning athlete, or a current athlete who wants to transition to a different team, please sign up for TWO clinics
Please reach out to our Director of Youth Programs, brentley@valleyrockgym.com if you cannot find an answer to your question.
The VRG Juniors and Club Teams are a home for young athletes who are looking to deepen their relationship to the movement art of climbing. As a team, our focus is on:
The VRG Juniors and Club Teams focus on the joy of movement in climbing. We aim to support a low pressure environment that balances challenging athletes to excel in their sport while honoring the individual rigor of engagement that diminishes the risk of stress and burn-out. We will achieve this by instituting regular coach climber check-ins, and parent coach conferences at the end of each seasonal session. In a team, it is vital to build the social organism in a healthy way. We will achieve this by introducing and maintaining an expectation of mutual respect, encouragement, and understanding individual differences in development and comfort with challenge.
The VRG Juniors and Club Team coaches will actively track athlete progress in the following aspects:
When climbing, we are in competition with ourselves. A healthy team is one that celebrates the success of individuals in the group and avoids overt comparison between athletes. Climbers are made aware of opportunities to compete in local events, but not pushed to participate. If climbers compete and find themselves interested in expanding their opportunities to do so, they will have the opportunity to transition to the VRG Comp. Team at Team Clinics, but only if it is what they desire and they have a coach/instructor recommendation.
Please reach out to head coach elena@valleyrockgym.com if you cannot find an answer to your question.
The VRG Comp. Team is a home for athletes who are internally driven towards competition with themselves, and aim to excel in the sport of climbing. As a team, our focus is on fostering a healthy drive to improve the skills the climber has already developed in climbing at a high level. By prioritizing climbing hard, resting with intention, sport specific training, cross training, and athlete nutrition, our coaching staff will support athletes in moving towards their potential as a climber, at competitions and for life.
The Comp. Team requires a high level of commitment that originates from the climber to push themselves during practice. Practices will be fast paced, strenuous, and ask athletes to embrace discomfort with the goal of learning how to effectively manage the stress of competition. Their commitment must extend beyond themselves, supporting their teammates and listening to their coaches observations and suggestions. Comp. Athletes must find joy in seeking their potential as a climber, and be driven to push past their comfort zone. This aims to help climbers progress in skill, fitness, and determination to succeed, whilst respecting personal boundaries and avoiding the potential for burn out.
The Comp. Team coaches will actively track athlete progress in the following aspects:
The VRG Comp. Team’s goal for competition is to foster healthy internal competitive drive and prepare athletes for external expression of this drive at local comps, and progressing to USAC comps when the climber is mentally and physically prepared for its rigors if desired. Comp. Team climbers must have the desire to compete in local comps at least in the future to join the Comp. Team.
Valley Rock Gym
401 Southwest Jefferson Avenue, Corvallis, Oregon 97333
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Learn more about our annual Community Climbing Competiton, Rally in the Valley, which will be held on Saturday, June 1st!