The Jonathan Belden Daniels Memorial Climbing Gym located in the basement of the Maxwell Apartments is doubling in size by expanding into the adjacent racquetball court as a result of high faculty and student interest.
The new space will be utilized this week for climbing activities, and new equipment will be added throughout the term.
Brad Molyneaux '98, former manager of the climbing gym, spearheaded the drive to expand the size of the gym. He recorded that the racquetball court was used 16 times last term while the climbing gym was used 1,100 times and circulated a petition signed by hundreds of students calling for a new climbing gym area.
In the new climbing gym, students and faculty members can lift weights and do separate exercises in an area designated for general training.
The climbing gym previously did not have enough room, and so visitors had to warm up and change in a small corridor, Kunz said.
"The gym is not as welcoming as it could be," Molyneaux said.
A library with climbing magazines and books, as well as a small changing area, will also be in the new gym. Molyneaux said a lounge area with couches and a television with training videos will also be in the new area.
The new gym will be primarily climbing-oriented although other students can use the gym as a "supplementary fitness service," Molyneaux said.
The funds for the new climbing gym will be supported by climbing wall income, Kunz said. The profit the gym makes from user fees will go into lumber and holes for the new area, climbing gym manager Daniel Becker '99 said. He said there will be a volunteer effort for climbers to help build the new gym.
Becker said use of the climbing gym has increased every term since it was created in 1995.
Outdoor Programs Assistant Director Brian Kunz said, "The gym has to be expanded because there is too much activity and not enough room for people to warm up and conduct classes."
Molyneaux said students using the climbing gym used to "spill over" into the racquetball court.
The proposal to replace the racquetball court was finally passed to Dean of the College Lee Pelton and then to Dean of Residential Life Mary Turco. The entire approval process through the administration took about six months, Kunz said.
The Office of Residential Life sought students' opinions about what to do with the racquetball court and sent out a BlitzMail survey. Students overwhelming voted in favor of the new climbing gym, Kunz said.
People have already started to move in mats and free weights, Kunz said.
"Small improvements will happen pretty quickly," Molyneaux added.
"We hope that with new space, we will be able to invite other colleges to come" just as Middlebury College came to the Dartmouth last term for a climbing competition, Kunz said.
Currently, indoor climbing classes are taught in the gym, and on rainy days, climbing classes otherwise held outdoors classes are in the gym.
Fitness Lifestyle Improvement Program classes through the physical education department will also take place in the climbing gym during Spring term. The Health Awareness Program also has a session with staff and faculty in the gym.
The climbing gym was donated in memory of Jonathan Belden Daniels '86, who helped start physical education climbing classes. Daniels died in an avalanche in Poland a few years after he graduated from Dartmouth.
