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Except for the wind, you might have believed it was summer Friday, April 12, at the opening of the new Maine Bound Adventure Center. Strange Pleasure jammed on stage while students and administrators lined up in the sun for the free barbecue.
Peter S. Hoff, president of the University of Maine, was the first to speak at the ceremony, which welcomed the Maine Bound program to its new home.
“This is a very happy day for Maine Bound and the university,” he said, He also explained how the $350,000 needed for the new facility was made possible by the university’s Coca Cola contract.
“There will be no cost to students,” Jeff Hunt, a co-coordinator for Maine Bound, said before inviting everyone to “go inside, enjoy and climb.”
The adventure center is located in the large barn next to the Maine Center for the Arts and east of Memorial Union. There is a climbing tower and a bouldering wall, with a total climbing area of 5,834 square feet. There are routes of varying difficulty, for everyone from novices to experts.
“[The Adventure Center] is a state-of-the-art facility” Hoff said.
The center will be open from 7 to 9 a.m. and 3 to 9 p.m. seven days a week, Monday through Friday, for the rest of the semester. New hours will be posted for summer and fall.
To use the facilities students may attend “Try It Climbing Times” 3 to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday or join a two-hour wall seminar to learn the basics. People will need to pass either a belay test or attend some type of orientation.
Everyone at the celebration was happy to share that the adventure center is free for students. Robert Dana, senior associate dean of Student and Community Life said that though the university had to divert resources to make the center a reality, there will be no cost to students.
For everyone else, there are fees that vary upon your association with the university and how long patrons want their pass. For the general public, the cost will be based on age.
FirstClass postings and word of mouth seemed to be how most people knew about the Maine Bound opening.
“I came for the climbing wall, and there happened to be free food,” said Kevin Paul, a sophomore and one of the winners in the raffle to be among the first five climbers.
Others were lured in by the wafting scents of the barbecue, the sounds of music and the hope of winning a prize. Everyone seemed enthusiastic about the opening, and could see the center as a place where they might hang out. “They can do so much with this area,” said one student, who was envisioning green grass and picnic tables surrounding the center.
“It’s for every single student,” Dana said. “This is a community structure. Rock on, Maine Bound.”
Bangor Daily News