When entering the Ropes Room at Hoosier Heights Bloomington on Thursday, climbers saw a different scene than usual. Preparing for the Red Bull Ibiza Royale competition, they were greeted by a DJ playing music over large speakers and a Red Bull representative handing out the ice-cold energy drinks.
About 50 climbers of all skill levels were invited to participate in a blindfolded competition for a $100 gift card to Hoosier Heights Bloomington and its sister location in Indianapolis and Cincinatti. As climbers lined up to compete, they were given black eye masks to wear on the wall, and timekeepers recorded the fastest time on each of three routes, separated into easy, medium and hard.
Matthew Andres, a sophomore at Indiana University, said these kinds of competitions are popular in the climbing community at Hoosier Heights.
“In September, (Hoosier Heights had) their top rope competition, and last year they had to do it in two separate segments because there were so many people,” Andres said.
IU sophomore Noah Wood is new to the climbing community, having picked up climbing about two months ago. When observing the climbers, he noticed that even during a competition, everyone was focused on having fun.
“Some people are trying to do it as fast as possible, or some people are just trying to finish it,” Wood said. “It’s just good fun everywhere. “
Daniel Russell, an IU alumnus and Bloomington resident, entered the event after seeing it promoted on Instagram.
“Everyone is super welcoming, and they all want to help you out,” Russell said.
What drew people to the competition differed, but for Andres, his motivation was straightforward.
“I knew friends were coming, and I figured free Red Bull would be provided,” Andres said.
Kiah Royse, an IU alumna and beginner climber, said she found the blindfolded aspect to be more rewarding rather than restricting.
“I’m usually afraid of heights, so (with the) blindfold, I can’t really tell what’s going on,” Royse said. “I’m just going in blindly.”
Even though the climbers were competing against each other, Royse noticed it didn’t stop the climbers — even in first and second place — from helping each other out. In between attempts, both climbers gave each other “beta,” what rock climbers call the advice they give to each other on how to complete a route.
Andres said the climbing community’s inclination to help others is a unique aspect of the sport.
“I think everyone just wants to watch each other succeed as well as themselves,” Andres said. “It’s a really cool community of building each other up, instead of tearing each other down.”
At the end of the competition, John De Castro came in third, Russell came in second place and Andres in first.
“It was pretty awesome,” Russell said. “My first time winning a climbing thing, so that was pretty cool.”
The competitors were allowed to send the wall without a blindfold before an official time was recorded. Andres was so determined to win that he came up with a strategy to take his time down from a 54-second completion to his winning 22 seconds.
“I went without a blindfold maybe eight times and I went with a blindfold probably the same, eight or nine times,” Andres said. “It was kind of just memorizing the feel of the holds and knowing the order that they’re in.”
Red Bull competition representatives declined an interview at the event.
