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Sender One Westwood: 1929 to Now

Sender One Westwood: 1929 to Now

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Written by Hailey McFelia & Khristina Rhead

Updated 1/29/2024

We're excited to be opening our doors in February 2024!

As we prepare for the opening of our newest Sender One gym, we wanted to take the time to tell you about the historic building that Sender One Westwood will call home.

 

The building was originally designed by Russell Collins as a Ralph's grocery store in 1929. After more than 40 years of serving the community as their staple food venue, in 1970, it was transformed into a theater. The United Artist Theater sat 595 total, 494 downstairs, and 101 in the balcony. 

One of the events the theater was known for was the initial L.A. engagement of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show." The show ran from September 26 through December 11, 1975. On the 12th of December it moved to the nearby UA Cinema Center and was replaced at United Artist Theater by Gene Wilder's 'The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes' Smarter Brother."

Though it stayed a theater throughout the years, the building went through several ownership and name changes. Eventually, the building retired as a theater in 2009, later to become a new source of entertainment, a bouldering gym. Sender One is working with the city  to preserve some of the features that make this historic building so unique. Sometimes those preservation can lead to a few setbacks, but don’t you worry, your new bouldering gym is coming soon to an old theater near you.

 

We look forward to opening our doors and making our own history in this building with you. To keep up with the latest updates give us a follow on our Instagram: @senderone.westwood.

Or, join our mailing list here!​

Goodbye Summer, Hello Send-Off: A Guide to Summer Send-Off ’23

Goodbye Summer, Hello Send-Off: A Guide to Summer Send-Off ’23

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Written by Kadisha Aburub & Edited by Alexandra Erdman

 

Just yesterday, it feels like January was here. And now … summer is slowly coming to its end. *sadness* 

Join us in saying farewell to summer with the ultimate competition! 

Our annual Summer Send-Off Competition combines traditional red-point bouldering plus camp activities (like the King Swing, Crate Stacking, Slackline, etc). This year, we’re stoked to announce we are having an OPEN ONSIGHT FINALS. *YEWWWWW*

 

If you’ve never been to an Onsight finals before, now is your chance. Watch climbers climb under pressure with a crowd. The energy is contagious, to say the least, and you will get PSYCHED.  

If you're not interested in competing but still would like to attend, please come down! There's plenty of room for spectators AND we are still looking for volunteers! (Hint: Volunteers will get a couple extra perks like free passes and snacks). You can sign up to volunteer here! If you're only looking to spectate, you can RSVP here! The cost is free for members and only $5 for non-members : )

If you’re interested in competing but you’ve never competed in a competition before, don’t sweat! We have three different competing categories: Recreational (generally V0 - V4), Advanced (generally V4 - V7), and Open (generally V7+).

 

“I’VE NEVER BEEN TO A COMPETITION BEFORE!!! What should I expect??” 

Not to worry! We’re going to break down what to expect and how to navigate being in a competition if it's your first time! 

First things first, sign up for the competition here! You’ll want to make sure you are hydrated and well rested the day before. On the day of competition, have snacks and plenty of water with you. Arrive 15 minutes before your category competing time so that you can attend the competitor meeting. Warm up! There won’t be any grades associated with any of the climbs. So, basically, just climb whatever seems interesting to you! Anytime you complete a climb you’ll have to make sure to record it on your scorecard and a witness will sign off on it. After you're done climbing or the competition is over, you must turn in your scorecard!! 

Don’t forget, this isn’t a regular competition. There are activities and pop-up challenges (like the King Swing or limbo) that, by participating, earns you points; which will get you closer to standing on the podium and winning some rad prizes 😉 

Check out these competitor guides (Red Point & OnSight) for more details!

 

Now, if that doesn’t already get you stoked, well we have some SWEET prizes coming at you. Here is a run down of the prizes for the each of the categories:

RECREATIONAL & ADVANCED (Men's & Women's Each)

1st Place: Crash Pad + First Place Trophy

2nd Place: MadRock Shoe Certificate + Silver Medal

3rd Place:  Cotopaxi Hielo Bag + Bronze Medal

 

OPEN (Men's & Women's Each)

1st Place: $1000 + First Place Trophy

2nd Place: $600 + Silver Medal

3rd Place: $400 + Bronze Medal

We’re so excited for this competition and for the energy y’all will bring. Whether it’s your first-time or you’re a well-oiled competitor, we know you’ll have a blast!! The fun happens August 26th! Sign up today 😀

Staff Appreciation Month

Staff Appreciation Month

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Written by Hailey McFelia & Eric Ho | Cover Photo by Vex Media

Here at Sender One we love creating memorable experiences and that wouldn’t be possible without our staff.

There are so many pieces to this puzzle we call Sender One. Most of our members get to know our front desk staff pretty easily. They are always there to help guide you, not just around the gym but they also lend a helping hand on instructing you how to get on the walls. Speaking of instruction, we have passionate coaches, yoga instructors, and private instructors who love taking the time to get you strong and up the walls. 

The walls that wouldn’t be as colorful without our Route Setting Team. They put in such incredibly hard work and creativity to construct the problems that we get to climb every day.

Every so often, you may get to see some of the marketing team at events, putting up new displays at the gym, or snapping photos/videos for new content. Our employee experience team is constantly interviewing for new team members now that we are expanding to Westwood, Lakewood, and Aliso Viejo (click here to apply!). Our training team is providing development for our team members new and old that want to expand into various departments and locations. Our facilities team is putting up new structures and updating existing ones. Now, that’s just what you see! Click the link to see more on the team behind the scenes.   

 

August is Staff Appreciation Month at Sender One. We are doing a few things to celebrate our staff, but we would like your help! Each Sender One location has a thank you box where you can share how much you appreciate our employees. Whether it’s one person or the team as a whole, please take the time to thank a staff member today.

Sender One Youth Climbing Team: National Champions

Sender One Youth Climbing Team: National Champions

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Written by Kadisha Aburub

A week ago, our Youth Programs' Competition Team made Sender One history by sending 24 athletes to compete and showcase their skills on the National stage.
24 athletes is the most that Sender One has ever sent to Nationals. To add to that, it's the first time we’ve placed as a team at Nationals… earning our Third Place National Champions team title in speed.

So what exactly does it take to compete on the National stage?

Here’s a quick rundown of competitive climbing for those who are unfamiliar. (It can be a tricky/confusing space to navigate). 

There are three disciplines of competitive climbing: 

  • Bouldering
  • Lead (14+ years old)/Top Rope (13 years old and under)
  • Speed

Each discipline has different seasons: 

  • Bouldering: October - December
    • Regional championships are held in January 
    • Divisional championships are held in February
  • Lead/Top Rope: January - March 
    • Regional championships are held in April 
    • Divisional championships are held in May
  • Speed: October - May
    • No regional/divisional championships. Athletes can compete at any qualifying event to achieve a qualifying time that makes them eligible to compete at the National Championships

A competitors rank is determined by their two best Qualifying Event performances. To qualify for Regional championships in either Bouldering or Lead/Top Rope a competitor must finish in the top 26 of their respective category.

From the 26 competitors per category at Regionals, the top 13 finishers advance to Divisional Championships. 

From the 13 competitors per category at Divisionals, the top 6 finishers earn an invitation to compete in that discipline at the Youth National championships. 

Long story short: a ton of hard work, dedication, and showing up to a lot of competitions. It is no easy feat. So we are incredibly proud of our athletes and coaches who have demonstrated an immense amount of commitment and grit to show up and rise to this occasion. 

Here are a few highlights: 

 

    • Michael Hom is the 2023 MYA Speed National Champion, with an invitation to the Youth World Championships and a spot on the USA Youth National Team
    • Logan Schlecht defended his National Champion title, with a spot on the USA National Team and an invitation to the Youth World Championships
    • Maddi Haferling finished 5th in the nation with a new PB of 9.609 seconds and a spot on the USA Youth National Development Team
    • Taede Mai finished 4th in the nation with a new PB of 7.319 seconds and a spot on the USA Youth National Development Team (first alternate for Youth World Championships)
    • Silas Chang is the 2023 MJR speed bronze medalist, with a spot on the USA Youth National Development Team (first alternate for Youth World Championships)
    • Silas Chang finished 18th in the nation in MRJ lead
    • Silas Chang finished 20th in the nation in MJR bouldering
    • Logan Schlecht finished 9th in the nation in MYB bouldering
    • Samantha Lai finished 11th in the nation in FJR speed
    • Yoji Bunnell finished 16th in the nation in MJR speed
    • Marcus Yoo finished 19th in the nation in MYA speed
    • Team Sender One SNA finished 3rd out of 61 teams in the team speed competition, and is the only team to be leaving the speed national championships with two gold medalists
    • Logan Schlecht finished 25th in the nation in MYB lead

A special shoutout to coaches Christian Mercene, Laurel Melton, and Stella Pena who supported athletes at Nationals, to all the coaches who show up and give their all to practice, to all the parents who make an insane amount of sacrifices, and to our Sender One athletes who show up day in and day out.

Photo ID: Sender One stands as 3rd place National team Champions for Youth Series Speed 

Photo Credit: Jason Chang (@theshortbeta)

Care for the Crag: Pirate’s Cove

Care for the Crag: Pirate’s Cove

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Written by Hailey McFelia

Care for the Crag: Pirate's Cove Cleanup & Picnic!

Sunday’s Crag Cleanup was originally scheduled during a heatwave, with 120 people RSVP’d. We lucked out with a lovely overcast morning and a turnout that wasn’t going to overwhelm the beach. Don’t get us wrong, we love that our Sender One community wants to help out and give back by helping us pick up trash. We just don’t ever want to over crowd an outdoor space. With that being said, about 70 people rolled through to help us clean the beach and collect 144 pounds of trash!

For first timers at Pirate’s Cove, our staff took volunteers around the crag while taking the time to educate them on the land and the rock we are climbing on. For example, the type of rock at this crag is called sandstone. It’s a porous rock that, when wet. it gets weaker. For climbers, that means holds can break! Typically, we NEVER want to climb on wet rock. On the beach at Pirate’s Cove where the rock is constantly getting wet because of the tide, though, that rule seems to go out the window. Just proceed with caution. It’s a choss pile, but it’s our choss pile. We mean that with love.

 

 

After the cleanup, we had a delightful picnic where we got to take the time to meet with our fantastic community. It was a lovely moment where we all got to admire the work we put in to clean the beach. We want to thank our volunteers and our Sender One community for showing up and helping us clean this beautiful outdoor space!

Sender One Turns 10!

Sender One Turns 10!

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For the past decade, Sender One has created unforgettable experiences for many climbers, new and seasoned. With three gyms up and running and more on the way (4 to be exact!), it is incredible to share such inclusive spaces for friends and family to gather while witnessing the growth and expansion of Sender One. We are so fortunate for the opportunities to discover and connect with a diverse community, allowing us to foster an environment where we can continue to share our passion for climbing. 

We'd like to take some time to reflect on the past 10 years with Alice Kao, Sender One's CEO.

I dropped off my 10-year-old daughter Sydney at sleep-away camp this weekend. As she waved goodbye without shedding a tear (while I fought back my own), it hit me: this is what motherhood is all about. It's watching your child grow, gain independence, and experiencing a mix of sadness and happiness.


But Sydney isn't my first child. That honor goes to Sender One, my brainchild born on 2/14/2012. Back then, my partners and I would gather around the dining table every night writing our business plan. We threw in our life savings and poured everything we had into this crazy idea.

Finally, on 6/15/2013, we opened the doors to Sender One SNA, our very first gym. Those early years are a blur to me, partly because I was so sleep deprived. I was also juggling a small child and a second job on top of running the business. What I do remember is having a crib in the back office, and sometimes Sydney sleeping in her car seat under the front desk.

Fast forward, and Sender One grew from one gym to three, with our team expanding from 20 to over 175 employees. There's a moment etched in my memory from about five years ago when I walked into the gym and couldn't recall the name of the CX staff member. That's when it struck me: Sender One had grown up, standing tall and thriving independently. It had become a living, breathing entity that no longer relied on me.


It's a rollercoaster of emotions. On one hand, I feel a bit sad because my child needs me less, but on the other hand, it's incredible to see them venture into the world, full of confidence and independence.

We look forward to seeing what the next ten years will bring for Sender One and its community! To climbers new, experienced, and those who are no longer with us thank you for climbing with us. We are forever grateful for your support!

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