How It Started
Founded on the Wall
Basecamp Climbing Co. started the way most good things do -- on a road trip. In 2018, co-founders Alex Chen and Maya Rodriguez were living out of a van, climbing their way through Red River Gorge, Hueco Tanks, and Bishop. Somewhere between a V8 send and a flat tire in the desert, they realized something: the climbing communities they loved most were not just about the rock. They were about the people who showed up, shared beta, and spotted each other through the crux.
Back home, the nearest gym was an hour away. The local options were outdated, poorly maintained, or treated climbing as an afterthought next to a weight room. Alex and Maya knew they could do better. They spent a year planning, fundraising, and studying the best climbing gyms in the country. In 2020, Basecamp opened its doors.
Today, Basecamp is a 15,000 square foot facility with bouldering, top rope, lead climbing, a training zone, yoga room, and a gear shop. But the numbers do not tell the real story. What matters is the crew that gathers here every morning before work, the kids who discovered climbing through our youth program, and the complete beginners who walked in nervous and left already planning their next visit.