Our Mission

Central Rock Gym exists to provide our members and guests with access to world class indoor rock climbing and fitness facilities. In addition to climbing, our gyms help build strong communities through their youth programs, member events, meetups, competitions, and fundraising events. We strive to create an experience and atmosphere within our gyms that is welcoming and accessible to all climbers, regardless of experience or background.

Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion at CRG

We have been working hard to implement a comprehensive list of actions to increase diversity in our sport and support the BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) individuals within our community. We want to share the progress we have already made; however, these efforts are a small part of an ongoing and evolving process towards making Central Rock Gym a safer and more diverse community for everyone.

15 Locations

Central Rock Gym started from humble beginnings. Brothers, Joe and Ed Hardy, had an immense passion for climbing and wanted to bring the sport to their hometown of Worcester, MA. In 2007 they began laying the groundwork for creating a business that could serve their community in a profoundly meaningful way, and in 2009 Central Rock Gym Worcester was born. Since then, the brothers have continued to identify communities that could benefit from the social and physical aspects of climbing.

Central Rock Gym now has 15 locations in New England and New York!

We are so happy you’ve joined us on this incredible journey, and we’re so grateful for all your support and encouragement!

Director of Route Setting - Shane Messer

Central Rock Gym’s setting program is lead by Director of Route Setting, Shane Messer.  Under his leadership, the setting team is focused on providing a top-notch industry product that is both creative and fun.  Each week, our members experience a broad variety of new boulder problems and routes that provide challenges across the difficulty spectrum.  At each gym there is a local head-setter who interacts with the community and provides a custom route distribution specifically tailored to the needs of that specific gym.

An important part of route setting is hold-selection.  While it is possible to create great routes with older holds, we believe that the most inspirational routes are created when excellent setting is combined with the best shapes and volumes.  We like to arm our setters with the newest holds on the market, and we are always updating our inventory.

We hope you enjoy the climbs at our gyms.  We invest a huge amount of time and energy into creating a product that is worthy of our awesome communities.

CRG Competitions

The competitions Central Rock Gym hosts and organizes every year showcase the true depth and character of CRG. Competitions are one of many ways we try to provide fun and engaging events for our members and community. Each year we have many comps, but two in particular stand out for their reputation, scale, and impact on the community: The Ring of Fire and The Heist.

The Ring of Fire is one of the only professional rope climbing  competitions in the country with divisions for the pros as well as citizens. We were happy to host USAC Adult Nationals at our Watertown facility as part of this competition in 2015 and 2016. And, it’ll be back in a big way with competitions throughout New England with pros coming from across the country, tons of prizes, and a great atmosphere.

The Heist, a first of it’s kind competition run by women, set by women, and climbed by women has been a phenomenally successful competition that began back in 2015. Our goal was to create a competition where the entire focus could be on the amazing setters and climbers the ladies of our sport have to offer.

Solar

Central Rock Gym has gone green by adding solar to our facilities!

Central Rock Gym Glastonbury, Stoneham, and Watertown are all part of this amazing initiative!

As climbers we have a great deal of respect for the outdoors and want to harness the power of the sun to off set our electric consumption.

2009 - Worcester

Central Rock Gym Worcester was our first location, built from the ground up, offering bouldering and 40ft. tall rope walls. Featuring a steep lead wall and plenty of natural light, CRG Worcester set the standard for climbing gyms in our chain. 

2011 - Hadley

Central Rock Gym Hadley was born from a desire to serve our passionate Western Massachusetts climbers, who were commuting over an hour to CRG Worcester, better. Fitness and yoga classes, along with state-of-the-art fitness equipment were added to our regular offerings in Hadley, changing the standard for future gyms in our chain. Additionally, with its close proximity to Farley, Hadley has become an incredibly strong community. 

2013 - Watertown

Central Rock Gym Watertown has ranked as one of the top 10 largest climbing gyms in the country since its opening. Watertown’s development took well over two years, but it was worth the wait. Featuring a 50 ft. lead wall and separate dedicated yoga and fitness spaces has made Watertown a gym known for hosting incredible comps, including US Nationals, twice! 

2013 - Glastonbury

Central Rock Gym Glastonbury opened not long after Watertown, featuring an open and airy space for the climbing community to gather. With its dedicated party room, mezzanine fitness space, gear shop, yoga space, bouldering/training area, over 100 TR stations, and huge lead cave, Glastonbury encompasses the CRG standard and put Central Rock on the map in Connecticut.

2014 - Cambridge

2014

Central Rock Gym Cambridge opened in the heart of the growing Fresh Pond community, to provide our members and guests with a training-focused bouldering gym. Featuring Rogue Fitness equipment, a campus board, an adjustable Tension Board, Moonboard, circuit room and spray wall, and regularly scheduled clinics, Cambridge provides our community with as many tools as possible to keep crushing! #infinitegains 

2015 - Randolph

Central Rock Gym Randolph serves the MA community south of Boston and is home to a vibrant community of climbers. With over 100 stations, 3000 sq. ft. of bouldering, a dedicated kid’s area with themed walls and a big slide, and yoga and fitness spaces, there is something for everyone! 

2017 - Warwick

Central Rock Gym Warwick opened its doors to the Rhode Island community, just south of Providence, in close proximity to the wonderful outdoor climbing spot of Lincoln Woods. Warwick’s impressive bouldering area brings the community lots of inspiring features – like the soccer ball and amazing slab wall. Warwick is also home to over 100 TR/lead routes, a Tension Board, kid’s space, and fitness and yoga studio.

2017 - Syracuse

Central Rock Gym Syracuse is one of the more unique locations in our community of gyms. With 45ft. tall walls on a mezzanine, it feels as though you are climbing in the sky. This location is built within a historic building that was originally an ice cream factory. With views of downtown Syracuse and beautiful Franklin Square, this gym serves up some incredible climbing and brought Central Rock Gym to New York.

2017 - Framingham

Central Rock Gym Framingham is a bouldering gym that features over 6,000 sq. ft. of climbing, 4,000 sq. ft. of fitness and yoga space, and an awesome community of climbers west of Boston.  

2018 - Manhattan

Central Rock Gym Manhattan brought the CRG community to the heart of NYC, just three blocks from Columbus Circle. CRG Manhattan is a bouldering and training focused gym that also features over 20 top rope routes on our 40 ft. tall walls. 

2019 - Stoneham

Central Rock Gym Stoneham opened to serve the north of Boston community. Built from the ground up, our TR/lead walls, featuring a chimney and some of the coolest wall features in our chain of gyms, have top heights of 45 ft. Head upstairs to the mezzanine to check out the 100+ boulder problems or to take in some big views of the rope walls.  

2019 - Waltham

Central Rock Gym Waltham opened in partnership with Mighty Squirrel Brewery and is a bouldering gym located about five minutes from Central Rock Gym Watertown. Separated by a glass partition, climbers can get in a great workout before heading over to the brewery for a beer or a snack, while those visiting the brewery get an up-close view of the climbers. Waltham is also known for its regular community comps and events! 

2019 - Rochester

Central Rock Gym Rochester features some of the coolest views of downtown Rochester with its 45’ lead/TR walls and full glass façade. Additionally, the impressive boulder area, dedicated kid’s space, and beautiful yoga and fitness rooms, make CRG Rochester one of the most aesthetically pleasing gyms in our chain. The community of members and guests make Rochester truly rock!

2019 - Buffalo

Central Rock Gym Buffalo serves the western most part of upstate New York. While building a gym from the ground up in the middle of a WNY winter isn’t ideal, it was well worth it! Buffalo serves its community with over 22,000 sq. ft. of climbing terrain in all disciplines. Boasting impressive TR/lead routes at over 100 stations and over 100 boulder problems, fitness and yoga classes, and community events like yoga in beer garden (in collaboration with Resurgence Brewery), Buffalo has something for every climber. 

2019 - Boston

Central Rock Gym Boston opened in the heart of downtown Boston, serving the community of those who live in Boston (or work in Boston). Just one block from North Station, at the end of the Greenway, just down the block from TD Garden, CRG Boston is a bouldering gym that also offers yoga and fitness classes regularly! 

2022 - Fenway

Central Rock Gym Fenway is CRG’s second gym in Boston proper. This amazing bouldering gym is right next to Fenway Park and Kenmore Square. CRG Fenway is another gym providing easy access to the MBTA being right off the Kenmore T stop and the Lansdowne Commuter Rail stop.

2022 - Harvard Square

Central Rock Gym Harvard Square opened in the heart of Cambridge. This impressive bouldering gym is in the middle of Harvard Square, providing easy access to the Red Line on the T and the mega bus station at Harvard Square.