Tuesday, January 27, 2004
Outing Centre’s indoor climbing trips rock NIU, DeKalb area
Article by:
Laurel Marselle - Staff Reporter
• lmarselle@northernstar.info
Gripping a rock wall while sweating, breathing heavily and straining
every muscle in your body might seem like work for some people, but
active members of NIU’s Outing Centre do it for fun.
Rock climbing trips are open to any NIU student, as well as students
from other schools and community members, said Ben Kinney, Outing Centre
student manager.
Each trip lasts about 4.5 hours and costs $20, which includes instructions
and equipment.
It is recommended that participants wear comfortable clothes and bring
water and extra food, Kinney said.
Rock climbing provides both a physical and mental workout.
“You get a good workout through cardio and strength training because
you build muscles by hanging onto the wall, but you get a mental workout
because you have to have a plan as to how you’re going to climb,”
Kinney said.
Some students said rock climbing is a unique way to exercise.
“It’s a good way to challenge yourself, especially with people
encouraging you from the bottom,” senior marketing major Abdulrahman
Habeeb said. “It’s definitely one of the more interesting
things I’ve done this semester.”
History major Marion Hoppe recommends rock climbing to anyone.
“People can push themselves further than they can on a treadmill,
and they might even go home and say, ‘Wow, I did this and I didn’t
know I could do it,’” Hoppe said.
For more information, visit www.outingcentre.niu.edu.
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