Up North. PEOPLE | NATURE | ARTS | NOSTALGIA | BUZZ | WISDOM | CURIOSITIES
CLIMB ON! by EMILY HOPCIAN
TC's new climbing gym.
Nick Olson, left, and Kevin Vlach, right
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NORTHERN MICHIGAN'S MAGAZINE
photo by Dave Weidner
K
evin vlach and nick Olson’s paths have paralleled over the years, though it wasn’t until more recently that the two met each other and became business partners in a first-of-its-kind endeavor in Traverse City: an indoor climbing gym. ELEV8 Climbing and Fitness, coming this summer to Traverse City’s NOBO District, will offer climbing—with the tallest walls reaching 42 feet—various types of yoga, high-intensity interval training, aerial silks, slacklining and on-site child watch. Baked into the heart and soul of ELEV8 is the essence of the outdoor communities Kevin and Nick have discovered, and felt at home in, throughout the world. “ELEV8 came from a search for a word that had connotations beyond just climbing—something that communicated the goals of our facility and the commitment we wanted to make to ourselves and the community,” Kevin says. “The alphanumeric component played into the climbing knot and fits into the location on Eighth Street as well.” Kevin and Nick both grew up in Traverse City and went to the University of Michigan a few years apart. Upon graduation, they each ventured out into the world. Kevin moved to Spain, where he taught English and started skateboarding, surfing and rock climbing. From there, he moved
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