^{CORT:  I was born and raised here in Central Massachusetts. I moved to California when I was 17 and joined the Navy. I fell in love with the laid back Southern California lifestyle and took up surfing and got really into climbing but my soul has always been here in New England. I realized it one day when I got up and saw that it was raining and decided to ride my mountain bike to work just to feel the rain. I guess when it’s sunny and 75 degrees every single day of your life, you ache for something a little different. I love the change of seasons and there is no place in the world that has it any better than right here.}

Time to climb:

^{CORT:  Not really but I still love it when I do get the chance to get out and do it. I think I was spoiled by having some really incredible climbing early on in my climbing career. Climbing around here takes a lot more dedication. Though I can’t blame it too much on living here in New England – I really stopped climbing seriously once it became a business. I was a really good climber back in the day. Then starting my first gym took so much time and effort that I just didn’t have the time to keep in shape. I went from being one of those guys at the crag who could do all the hard problems to being the guy that used to be really good. I guess I realized that I had reached the high point in my climbing career and just moved on to something else. I still have climbing in my soul though. I know what it’s like to dream about that route that you’ve worked on for weeks or months and can do all the moves but just haven’t linked.}

When you’re not working: 

^{CORT:  I have a wife and 3 kids now and I try to spend as much time as I can with them. We’ve really gotten into motor sports since moving back to Mass. Dirt bikes, snow mobiles, 4-wheelers – you name it, if it has a motor and goes fast, chances are we are all about it.}

Days at Rockwerx: 

^{CORT:  My number one goal for Rockwerx is to build really cool climbing walls and have a great time doing it. If you spend any amount of time at our shop or around our crew you will pick up on this vibe. We work hard and play even harder. Everyone here has that thing they are passionate about whether its being in a rock band, blowing glass, or racing something with a loud motor.  Motorsports is big.  I would have to say that 90% of the people around here ride something. If it’s snowing hard, you can bet we are taking the day off to go rip sleds through the woods. We make it a priority to have a good time.}

Some points about Rockwerx as a company:

^{CORT:  We are always trying to improve our products and give our customers the most for their money.  Since moving into our new facility, we’ve made advances in productivity and invested in equipment that enables us to reduce labor costs and utilize materials more efficiently.  We are able to buy raw materials by the truck load and realize cost reductions.} 

^{Our walls are still very similar to the quality product that we introduced to the industry back in the SolidRock days.  I truly believe that it’s the perfect product for most climbing gyms – a nice balance of aesthetics and durability delivered at a competitive price.}

^{Our prefabrication process is unmatched in the industry.  Our ability to go from 3D CAD design to the production floor to shipping a job to the site is impressive.  Our road crews are seasoned professionals and put up walls faster than anyone in the business.  These guys make me proud every day of the week.}

^{New for Rockwerx in recent years:} 

^{CORT:  Our current focus for the future is in promoting our Natural Rock product.  This is a product that we innovated during the SolidRock hey-day but I had to walk away from it when I was rebuilding.  Now that we again have the facility to produce it, it will again become a major part of our mix.}  

^{Adventure Systems was a great acquisition for us. Scott Hornick is a great sales guy and he and I complement each other very well.  Having him onboard gives me the time to focus on wall design and direct the R&D of things like Natural Rock and our new line of hand holds.}

Rockwerx advantages:

^{CORT:  There are other wall builders who have great products.  I personally love the stuff that Monolithic is doing with their sculptural boulders.  I wish that I had that kind of talent. EP’s panels are great if you want a modular system that you can unbolt and take with you.  I think what we do better than anyone though is build big climbing gyms.  Our start up consulting package is second to none and really provides the business foundation for anyone looking to own a climbing gym.  Our Gym Rock product is the best value going and really makes the most sense for this kind of application.}

The Rockwerx Headquarters:

^{CORT:  We started Rockwerx in the barn at my house.  It was ridiculous.  When we could afford it, we moved into a 3,000 square foot place a few miles away.  It wasn’t really a commercial space and we had always had a hard time getting tractor trailer rigs in and out – especially in the winter.  The company was being limited by our facility so we bit the bullet and bought a great piece of land – 45 acres – and built the new shop on it.  The shop is 14,500 square feet including the offices. I didn’t want to EVER have to expand again.  The extra land gives us places to store all sorts of crazy things as well as room for our private dirt bike track.}

^{One thing that I’m really proud of is that we built this building ourselves.  I designed it and our crews built it in between other climbing wall projects.  It took us 2 years.  I can honestly say that there were times when I questioned my own sanity for undertaking a project so large but in the end I’m glad we did it.  The building came out great and now we are reaping the benefits.  We can crank out work in 1 week that used to take us a month.}