The Pad Santa Barbara

Spend the summer training in the BoardRoom so that you'll be flying up walls this winter when our main gym opens.

We’re hiring in Santa Barbara! Do you love climbing, but most importantly, do you LOVE the climbing community?

We’re on the hunt for a BoardRoom Coordinator to help run our training facility, now open in Magnolia Center. This position will play an important role in the opening of our full-scale climbing gym (coming soon across the parking lot!), and help build our climbing community in Santa Barbara.

Sound like you? Lets talk! Get full details and apply online at the link in bio! 🔗

TOMORROW! Head over to the BoardRoom for a hands on training board workshop with Woods Board co-creator Andy Raether. For all the deets, head to our bio, click the link, and read on! See you tomorrow!

Image Description: Andy in his workshop holding a climbing hold that he designed

Busy on April 16th? Now you are. Andy Raether's coming to Santa Barbara! Andy's not only the co-creator of the Woods Board, but he's a industry vet with over 28 years of climbing experience (can you imagine how many shoes he's blown through???). He'll be hosting an interactive Q&A session talking all things training boards. If you're stuck doing the same problems over and over, or don't know where to start with training boards, you won't want to miss this. Members and day passers welcome, we'll be staffed up to welcome you in!

April 16th
4pm-7pm
In the Santa Barbara BoardRoom

Image description:
Andy climbing on the Woods Board in our Henderson location

We love repping the gym from head to toe. Fresh kicks designed by , a local artist based out of Santa Barbara.

Turns out that throwback pic from yesterday was a little bit of foreshadowing because.....

Santa Barbara got permits approved yesterday and, while it could be a while before we see actual real construction (we need them in hand), it means we're on track for a NOVEMBER OPENING!

We also had the construction team, including Roof Lifters, join Jake and Yishai today and the first official hammer swing commenced!



Image description: Jake and the construction team look at blueprints in the new Santa Barbara gym.

Hey BoardRoom friends - we will be CLOSED for guests tonight, Monday 1/8. We’ll resume regular business hours of 5-8pm this Wednesday.

Already a member? Then no worries for you! Enjoy that 24/7 access. 😎

Hey BoardRoom fam - due to the storm and flash flooding, we are canceling tonight’s (Thursday) staffed hours. Stay safe and dry during the storm! Members - your 24/7 access is still good! 😎

Another step closer! We can’t wait for 2024.

Going ... going ... almost gone! There are still a few days left to grab an annual membership to The BoardRoom before it disappears for good! Get 365 more days of climbing, community, fitness, and LOVE for less, and bragging rights as one of the original members of The Pad Santa Barbara.

Pro tip: An annual membership is almost like getting two months for free.

Re-up or join online, or in-gym! https://thepad.portal.approach.app/membership-type/46

Hey ! A little heads up - we will be changing up our staffed hours effective 11/13/23, and guests can join us on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings.

Already a member? Then everything stays the same for you. Enjoy that 24/7 access. 😎

Not a member yet? Let us help you out with that! Visit us during guest hours, and be sure to check out: https://www.thepadclimbing.org/santa-barbara-ca/

IT'S OFFICIALLY SPOOKY SEASON! 👻 🎃 🕸 And we're bringing a beloved tradition to Santa Barbara!

Come get creepy with us after dark! Our Halloween-themed night climb will take over The BoardRoom on Wednesday, October 25. Join us for a fang-tastic evening of eerie ascents, where you can test your climbing skills in the moonlight!

💀 Don't ghost on this opportunity for a ghoulishly good time – grab a headlamp, your coolest costume, and climb on over for a thrilling night that will leave you 'boulder-ing' for more! 🧛‍♂️🦇

This event is FREE for members! Not a member yet - grab a day pass and join us, because the real fear is MISSING OUT!

Hey PadFam - we will be closed to non-members Tuesday evening. Sorry for the short notice. As always, 24/7 access for members!

is proud to stand behind who is leading the way with the Maui climbing community to support the Global Climbing Community Fund for Maui fire victims.

Our team has deep ties to Maui and this cause is close to our Paddie hearts. If you’re able, please consider supporting this , as it directly benefits the Hawaii Community Foundation, who is serving the critical needs of of Maui residents who need it the most. Click the link in bio to donate!

Hey , have you met Jake yet? Before joining our crew as the BoardRoom manager, started climbing with us way back in the SLO-Op days!

Jake is a true Central Coast local who grew up in SLO and has been a part of the Santa Barbara community for the last 8 years. You'll likely catch him out on the trails, or at his favorite local coffee spot, .

"I have wanted a gym similar in style to the BoardRoom for more than a few years now. At one point even looking into starting one with a friend of mine during the early days of Covid. So when I heard The Pad was coming to town, I was stoked to be a part of bringing it here."

We are still bringing the full experience of The Pad to Santa Barbara, and Jake is a big part of helping us shape that future. "Looking forward to a larger gym in the area that will attract even more UCSB students being much more accessible to them. Some nice tall ropes and a robust training facility has been a need of the community and stoked to see how it'll bring the community together."

Double tap to show Jake some love, and come by and visit , NOW OPEN in Magnolia Center!



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Image description: BoardRoom Manager Jake and his happy smile are out enjoying nature on the Central Coast.

Happy 4th! We'll be closed to non-members on Tuesday, July 4 for Independence Day so our staff can enjoy a well-deserved day off. Already a member? Then come on in anyway, we're open 24/7 for you.

Are you one of the ✨ ORIGINAL ✨ members of ? Be sure to grab your FREE limited edition sticker the next time you’re at so you can flex your OG status on your ride, water bottle, or whatever else in your life that can use some Paddie flair. We only printed a few of these for our founding members, so grab this piece of Paddie history while you can!

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Image description: A sticker of a suave, bling bling original Paddie makes even a KIA Sorento look fancy.

Got plans tonight? Now you do! We're turning the lights out at The BoardRoom tonight at 9pm. Rock a headlamp and your glow-in-the-dark gear for some fun moonlight hours!

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Image description: A Santa Barbara Paddie hangs from the boards next to the spray wall at the The BoardRoom. The lights are turned off in the gym and the fun colors of the holds are begging for you to come climb them.

Hey fam, thanks for hanging in there while we worked out the kinks! Our 24/7 access for members is now restored and we'll be resuming regularly staffed hours ASAP.

Card-carrying member? Come by anytime!

Not a member? Let's change that. Pop in during staffed hours, or click the link in bio to learn more about joining our community.



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Image Description: A very stoked Paddie hoola hoops with sheer joy now that our 24/7 access door for members is restored. The image cites our regular staffed hours of Monday thru Friday from 4pm - 7pm, and Saturday 4pm - 7pm, closed on Sundays.

Having 24/7 access for our members is our special sauce, but unfortunately, the new door hardware at The BoardRoom is being extra salty these days! So rude, right?

We've expanded staffed hours this week to accommodate while we work out the kinks, and thank you for hanging in there with us!

Hey ! Our 24/7 door is still undergoing maintenance, so we have expanded our business hours for Thursday and Friday of this week. Come see us during staffed hours! We'll update you as soon as we have an ETA on when 24/7 access is restored. Thanks for hanging in there!

Hello SB,

Due to the BoardRoom door not being fully operational we are expanding open hours for the next few days to the following:

Today 1pm-3:30pm
Monday 8am-11am and 3pm-7pm
Tuesday noon-7pm

Hello Santa Barbara! TODAY is the day! The BoardRoom, our dedicated climbing training center, opens at 4pm in Magnolia Center. Our friends from SCARPA will be dropping by and we'll have doors open for the community until 7pm! Come by and check out our new state-of-the-art indoor climbing facility designed with pure climbing joy in mind.

Today is the LAST day you can take advantage of our presale offer - get a HUGE gift card when you sign up for a monthly or annual membership! Check it out: https://www.thepadclimbing.org/santa-barbara-ca/

- WELCOME TO !

SLO OP was really pretty tiny, but its build-out shaped all the walls we have built and will continue to. It’s the vibe we’re bringing with to Santa Barbara.

We found the steeper angles, while not very conducive to weak and beginner climbers, helped people get strong and be inspired - and that the community kept everyone coming back. That is why our designs remain a lot more aggressive than is trendy and why we focus more on the community as a result. We want to change your life the way it changed ours and this is the best way we knew how.

There were two main features of the little woody that could:
- There's the prow, which remains to this day Kristin's favorite feature of all the gyms. There's something about hugging a perfect arete that she just loved.
- And there's the articulating wall - where you could set it and then change the angle - but we found that to be way too gimmicky and stopped using it. You couldn't set the holds and change the angle and make the set last longer, it just didn't work. And the change up of the wall and then resetting wasn't actually all that cool, either.

There are a few gyms that have modern version of this, but because of that experience, we never will. 😉

Gosh, we’re loving this trip down memory lane, are you? We can't wait to open and make new memories with you, SB!

- WELCOME TO !

Once SLO Op had been established, it took a few months for Kristin to show up. Having learned how to climb at the roped gym in SLO (The Crux, now closed - check out that shady autobelay system), she spent the last year in Yosemite as a climber and ranger and was back for graduate school. Having developed a following on Rockclimbing.com for her entertaining trip reports (you can find them on Amazon!) - she posted there about the lack of climbing and community.

When SLO Op was suggested, she snubbed it. Who likes gyms and plywood walls? Yishai, always the gentleman, reached out and personally invited her to check it out and she learned that day not to talk about things she didn't know about and she was delighted by him, the community, and the whole vibe and became its weakest member. Kristin's more a trad climber, overhanging slopers never became her jam.

What happens next? Come back tomorrow for history! Can’t wait to see what Santa Barbara brings to the highlight reel.

Love climbing, but more importantly, love climbers?

Join a tradition of 20 years of climbers leading the community, and help us welcome new people to our space! This is a low-stress position with a great team, good pay, and employee centered policies!

If you're available weekdays 3:30-7:30 pm or weekends 9:30-2:30, apply today! We can't wait to meet you! Learn more and apply here: https://www.thepadclimbing.org/employment/

Grab some chalk and a buddy - we officially have an OPENING DAY! Come check out Santa Barbara's newest indoor climbing experience The BoardRoom™, opening Wednesday, May 24 at 4pm!

The BoardRoom™ is our dedicated climbing training facility, inspired by the original experience when we first started The Pad Climbing SLO over 20 years ago. Remember that feeling when you first discovered climbing? Or are you ready to? Whether you’re a golden god of climbing or a total newbie– it doesn’t matter. This place is where you go to share pure psych!

There's less than a week less to get in on our awesome presale offer! Become an original SB Paddie and get a gift card! https://www.thepadclimbing.org/santa-barbara-ca/

- WELCOME TO !

Now that the SLO Op was operating, a group of very strong climbers had a place to call home. It was steep, it was tiny. It was mostly all sloper holds. Lots of shirtless climbing and wrestling around. It cost $15/month on the honor system and was not formally anything at this point. Over time it went from janky mattresses as pads (hey, we used towels and mattresses at the boulders, too) to real actual pads and putting in couches.

It was next door to a metal band and when they played music, it would fade out the lights. We had comps too, because that's how Yishai liked it.

Keep coming back for more history and learn more about the Paddie legacy we’re bringing to Santa Barbara! Have you been a part of over the years? Brand new? Tell us in the comments!

- WELCOME TO !

When Yishai moved to school, he quickly found his fellow climbers and got them excited about a space to call their own. There was cragging in town, a small wall at 's campus, and a bunch of retaining walls with chalk on them, but nowhere to get strong and build community. SLO was fortunate to have not a lot of climbers yet (this was 2002), but some very amazing contractors and engineers working on the project alongside Yishai, who has always paid attention to the aesthetics of movement.

He somehow convinced the owners of Alamo Self Storage (now right behind the HQ for ) to let him do this. And so, the SLO Op was born.

Where are our OG paddies at? Have you been a part of over the years? Once a Paddie, ALWAYS a paddie!

- WELCOME TO !

We're feeling warm and fuzzy with nostalgia as we build out our new Santa Barbara gym, and wanted to share our origin story with our new . We'll take you on a trip down memory lane and share our story of how we built this community of climbing, fitness, and LOVE together, which we're excited to now share with all of you!

None of this would exist if not for an adventurous teenager who wasn't very good at school but had lots of friends all over the world thanks to working at a summer camp (shout out to ). Barely graduating high school, he used his savings to visit his Kiwi and Aussie friends on a climbing trip.

Our intrepid adventurer, Yishai, was so bold that he bouldered without opening his crashpad.

In his travels, he heard about a co-op bouldering space there, but he never visited. But the idea was seeded, and when he returned from his trip, his friend suggested moving to San Luis Obispo and he figured why not.

Stay tuned for the rest of the story!

Have you been a part of over the years? Once a Paddie, ALWAYS a paddie! Share your stories and memories with us. Use , and maybe we'll feature you a time or two!
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