What We Do

Meets with OUMC

The club runs climbing trips out of Oxford on the weekends of every term. These will be either day meets, where we head to a relatively nearby crag, or weekend meets, taking up the whole weekend and allowing us to visit the more far flung corners of the country. The plans for the coming term are laid out on the termcard. We try and visit a wide range of climbing destinations across the country every year.

Spaces on outdoor meets are limited by the number of minibus and car seats we have available. To sign up, look out for emails from the Meets Secretaries with sign-up forms and instructions. Your place on the meet is not guaranteed until you have paid! To pay, you'll need to send a bank transfer with a specific reference and then send an email to the Treasurer with the reference. This will all be in the confirmation email when you receive your place on the meet.

If you are wondering what you will need to take with you, have a look at our recommended kit list. We can't guarantee good weather on meets, so you need to be properly prepared for it to be cold and wet!

Climbing partnerships or groups will be organised on the way to the crag or when we arrive. If you're keen to climb a particular grade, want to climb with somebody more experienced or think you're being forgotten, please speak up!


How do meets work?

Day Meets

8am Start: Cars leave the Iffley Road Sports Center pick-up point at 8am sharp.

Mid-Journey Break: Cars often stop off on route at a service station for a mid-journey break.

Full Day's Climbing: Once we are at the crag, we'll stay there all day ta maximize the amount of climbing.

Head Home: When it gets dark, or when enough people to fill a car agree to leave (e.g. the rock is melting because of the rain), we get back in the cars and head for Oxford.

Evening Meal: A stop on the way back often provides a good time to grab esomething to eat.

Return late: Depending on the time of year (and the traffic!) we tend to arrive back in Oxford sometime between 10pm and midnight.

Weekend Meets

Friday 6pm: The cars leave the Iffley Road Sports Centre pick-up point from 6pm in a staggered manner.

Mid-Journey Break: Cars often stop off on route at a service station for a mid-journey break.

Arrive: It will be fairly late when we arrive at our destination. The first priority is to get our tents up(if applicable), but we will often head over to the pub for some warmth if there is time.

Saturday: Early start Saturday morning, we will head straight to the climbing: there will be no time to buy coffee!

Full Day's Climbing: Once we are at the crag, we'll stay there all day to maximize the amount of climbing.

Evening Meal: At the end of the day, we'll cook a group meal which is included in ticket price.

Sunday: Early start on Sunday morning, we'll have to pack up before heading to the crag.

Full Day's Climbing

Head Home: Return to oxford late after a good weekend of climbing!

Meet Fees

All meets are subsidised by the Club, but we must still charge a meet fee to help cover the cost of transport and accommodation.

Meet fees can be paid by bank transfer - see the email from the Meets Secs about the details of this. Your place on the meet is not guaranteed until you have paid!

Normal Day Meets: One day climbing trips cost £15 - NEW AS OF HT26!

Weekend Meets: Weekend trips cost £40

Meets Fees for Drivers: Drivers will receive both petrol costs reimbursed and a discounted meet fee by £15 (e.g. day meets will have no fee and weekend meets wil be a reduced fee)

Petrol can be either claimed at 20p per mile or by providing fuel receipts from immediately after the meet. The mileage system is preferred but we will accept petrol receipts from just after the meet provided you have refilled just before the meet.

Courses with OUMC

We organise a range of courses at subsidised prices each year. We want to cater to the needs of our club members, so if you have any ideas for topics or course content then get in touch with the courses secretary.

The number of places on each course is necessarily limited, so we do usually ask for payment in advance. Your place on a course is not guaranteed until you have paid!

Details of each course will be sent out to the mailing list when they are confirmed, or when places become available.

Advance Mountain First Aid

Suitable even for complete first aid beginners, this course will give you the basic skills to deal with emergencies in the hills and mountains. Topics include altitude sickness, hypothermia, trauma, evacuation, and more. We would recommend this course to everyone who wants to climb regularly outdoors.

Duration: 16 hours over 2 days

Advanced Ropework courses

One of our longest-running and most popular courses, this covers a range of key rope skills needed to climb safely. Major topics include building anchors, prusiking up ropes, (un)assisted hoists, manipulating ropes on belay, basic and advanced abseils, and rescue techniques. Both new and experienced climbers benefit hugely from this course.

Duration: 6 hours

climber looking at the brookes wall climbers discussing beta for a climb photo of one of the rock holds on the brookes wall climber climbing on the brookes wall climber climbing on the brookes wall ‹ ›

Competition Team

The Team

The OUMC runs a general training group as well as a competitive team. The training group is open to all regardless of level, while the competitive team is chosen by tryout at the beginning of Michaelmas Term. If you're unsure whether you're good enough, we encourage you to come try out anyway! For any questions, email our Team Captains.

Competitions

Hundreds of climbing competitions take place in the UK throughout the year. No matter what level you climb at, there will certainly be one for you! Competitions are always a brilliant experience; you'll climb harder than you thought you could, make new friends and generally have a great time. Below, we've provided more information on the main competitions the OUMC attends, however our competition plan is flexible so, by all means, contact the Team Captains if there are any other competitions which you would like OUMC to be a part of. Hundreds of climbing competitions take place in the UK throughout the year. Many are aimed at a range of abilities, so anyone can come along. Competitions are always a brilliant experience; you'll climb harder than you thought you could, make new friends and generally have a great time. Each year, the Team Captains will be organising teams to attend BUCS and Varsity competitions for bouldering. However, there are various other comps available, so we will endeavour to keep you updated on the latest competitions through email. Our competition plan is flexible so, by all means, contact the Team Captains if there are any other competitions which you would like OUMC to be a part of.

Varsity

Varsity is the annual Oxford vs Cambridge bouldering competition. Centuries of historic rivalry has culminated in the one comp all year which you don't want to miss. It is set for climbers of any level and, aside from being a great first taste of competition climbing, it's fun, social, and definitely worth the commute!

Staples in the competition calendar

LUBE

London University Bouldering Event is a student-only series of bouldering competitions, based in the London climbing walls.

NULSCC

The National Universities' Lead and Spead Climbing Competition is the most prestigious annual lead and speed climbing competition in the UK.

BUCS

British Universities and Colleges Sport hosts the annual national bouldering competition in the UK. With only 6 entrants total, this is the competition for the OUMC's strongest climbers to earn glory on the national stage.

OUMC Socials

When we're not busy climbing, OUMC members love nothing more than to be sociable (honest). Whilst much of the socialising within the club is informal, there are several fixed events in the OUMC social calendar to look out for Each year we have a number of exciting socials planned! For more information on any of the events, please see our club termcard.

What kinds of socials do we have?

Iffley

The other major (if ever so slightly less sophisticated) event of the OUMC social calendar is the somewhat infamous 'Iffley party' and the Iffley bouldering competition which precedes it. Taking place in Hilary term, the Iffley competition at the Iffley Road bouldering wall sees Oxford climbing at its best, promptly followed by the no less impressive sight of Oxford climbers at their less than best. The party itself is fancy dress, with costumes themed upon your favourite Iffley bouldering problem name - so get planning those costumes!

Black Tie Events

The major formal fixture of the OUMC calendar is the Christmas dinner(held at the end of Michaelmas term). This event provides an opportunity for usually scruffy climbers to dress up and at least pretend to be sophisticated. This is usually black tie, but with a 'climbing theme', and act as celebrations of the various climbing achievements and epics of the year.

Punting and BBQ

Every year at the end of Trinity term we run a BBQ in the ruins of Godstow abbey. It is a great source of food and a great place to exchange stories before parting ways for the summer!

Other Seasonal Festivities

There are also other various events held throughout the year that are worth looking out for such as the roped-up pub crawl, the OUMC Ceilidh and various Holloween events.

What do we have?

Borrowing Gear

You can borrow OUMC gear at any time but we prioritise having gear available for our meets. OUMC gear can be borrowed during term time and over vacations, under the following conditions:

  1. You are a current club member
  2. You have arranged with the Gear Secretaries to borrow the gear - Please email us at oumc.gear@gmail.com.
  3. If gear is not being used you return it to the Gear Secretaries.
  4. You ensure to return gear promptly as arranged with the Gear Secs.
  5. You understand that if gear is lost or damaged then the person who is borrowing it may be charged between 0% and 100% of the original purchase value. The amount will be decided by the President, Secretary, Treasurer and Gear Secretaries, taking into account the age and condition of the gear along with the circumstances of the loss.
  6. You understand you are responsible for ensuring you have the correct skills to use the gear and for using it safely and responsibly.

Gear inspections

We highly incourage members to inspect gear before usage both their own and borrowed gear - either from the club or other members. We inspect the gear ourselves at a minimum of every year but also when it is given out and returned. Our gear inspection guidelines can be found here.

The Oxford Mountaineering Library

What is it?

The Oxford Mountaineering Library, maintained by OUMC and the Bodleian Library, is one of the country's largest collections of mountaineering literature. The library contains many historic first editions, letters, and journals (including the Alpine Journal, American Alpine Journal, Himalayan Journal, Oxford Mountaineering Journal and Scottish Mountaineering Journal), as well as guidebooks and general mountaineering texts, and is open to all OUMC members and Bodleian readers. Members of the public may access the library for research purposes by prior arrangement with the OUMC Librarian.

Search the collection online at SOLO. Restrict your search to the OML by refining it to "SSL". Some books are stored off-site so make sure to request them on SOLO before visiting the library.

Where is it?

The library is currently located at the social Science Library.

How can you use it?

If you have a Bod card, you can swipe into the SSL and go and have a look for yourself.

If you do not have a Bod card, you can still access the OML and OUMC guide collection. Show the SSL librarian your OUMC card at the entrance of the SSL and ask to be admitted to visit the Oxford Mountaineering Library. The SSL librarians can point you in the right direction (if you’re not a member of the University please don't wander around).

We have a growing collection of climbing guidebooks for destinations in the UK and worldwide. You are welcome to borrow these. Most of the guidebooks now have barcodes in and can be borrowed as normal (they'll appear on your account on SOLO). A few do not; these need to be recorded in the black OML book that is kept behind the Issues desk. You may need to guide the librarians on this; they are not all used to dealing with OML borrowing!

"Books" in the OML can be borrowed by any current member of the university.

Guidebooks and journals can only be borrowed by OUMC members and OUMC Life Members. If you do not have a current Bod card, you can borrow guidebooks, books and journals from the OML by showing your OUMC membership card (please contact the OUMC Librarians if you have any difficulties doing this). They will either be signed out to you via the Black Book or via the OUMC library account (instructions for doing this are in the front of the Black Book).

If you borrow a guidebook, please make sure you return it.

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