About Rox Fest

Memphis Rox Climbing + Community is thrilled to announce the inaugural Rox Fest, an all-are welcome celebration of community, diversity, and culture; featuring education, food, music, camping, climbing, and other activities. Join us to share time and space in the spirit of raising awareness and accessibility to the activity of climbing, the lifestyle, and the climbing adjacent work. This event is a fundraiser for Memphis Rox!

At Memphis Rox, our ethos is that climbing is the access point to relationships and community engagement. From relationships come conversation and education. In that spirit, we are proud to feature "Rox Talks" with athletes, industry leaders, and those doing climbing adjacent work. Each talk will be 15 minutes. The Rox Talk speakers are Kai Lightner, Andrew Alexander King, Drew and Sarah Hulsey, Conrad Anker, Abbey Smith,  Maureen Beck, Andrew Bisharat, Erik Leon, Phil Henderson, Kate Rutherford, Briana Mazzolini-Blanchard, L. Renee Blount, Scott Lehmann, Shayna Unger, Olivia Hsu, Nate Draughn, Manoah Ainuu, Marie-Louise Nkashama, Ben Mayforth, Paul Jung, Saadiq Anderson-Bey, DJ Ty Latte and more!

For added convenience, camping is available on-site at no additional cost and breakfast and lunch will be provided on Saturday and Sunday. Unfortunately pets are not allowed at this event :(

Check out the event schedule below!

Accessibility: Please let us know if you have any accessibility questions or concerns or may need some additional support. There will be an accessible portable restroom and we will also have an ASL translator for the Rox Talks. The path from the check-in area to the camping area is paved. However, the climbing areas do not have a pathed path. Again, please let us know how we can accommodate.

If you would like to apply for a scholarship to attend the festival, please email us at jon@memphisrox.com. 

When/Where

Rox Fest 2023 will be held from November 3rd to November 5th, 2023 at the breathtaking Stone Fort/LRC in Chattanooga, Tennessee at 9104 Brow Lake Rd., Soddy-Daisy, TN 37379. Mark your calendars and get ready to join us for an extraordinary weekend of climbing, community, and celebration!

About Memphis Rox

Opened in March 2018, Memphis Rox Climbing + Community is a pay-what-you-can climbing gym in Soulsville, South Memphis - a community in Memphis that has been historically underserved. Our mission is to empower youth and their support structures by providing a safe and inclusive space for recreation, exercise, outdoor adventures, job opportunities, job training, and essential resources.

 We offer a remarkable 32,000 square feet of indoor climbing, a 5,000 square-foot fitness area as well as fitness & yoga classes, a youth climbing team, and a juice bar serving affordable and healthy meals. Our campus also houses a low-cost sundry store, a counseling center, an educational food garden, and a free after-school program.

In addition, we proudly offer transitional housing for community members and staff. With an average of 50 employees, many from the immediate community, we prioritize local empowerment. Looking forward, our vision includes the expansion of services with a medical facility, a vocational school, and a film studio, to further increase access to enriching opportunities and resources. 

Sponsors

A big shout out to the Rox Fest Sponsors! This couldn't happen without you. Thank you North Face, Black Diamond, Yeti, Protect our Winters, REI, Flashed, Tension, Mountain Hardwear, Honnold Foundation, LaSportiva, Strati Climbing, Send, Clif Bar, and many others!

Event Schedule