You want to use “Peak 17”, the climbing tower at RPTU - but are wondering how it all works? Who, where, what, when and why?
Don't worry! We've answered a lot of questions for you here. If you have any further questions or anything is unclear, you can contact our team at any time. Just send us an email to unisport-peak17(at)rptu.de and we will try to help you as quickly as possible.
See you soon at UNISPORT at “Peak 17”!
Opening hours and operation
You can find the current opening hours on the dedicated website "opening hours".
We always have staff on site during the core opening hours. Towards the end of the summer, we will extend our opening hours to include parallel use times with the DAV RLP state association and the HHG, in which case there may be no staff on site to supervise.
There are no changing rooms or showers on the site, so come to the tower “ready to climb”.
Unfortunately, we do not have lockers for valuables on the premises.
As the tower is also a national training centre for sport climbing, it is regularly rebuilt due to the regional and national competitions that take place. We also aim to offer new routes every quarter for the general public. Whether climbing is possible during the re-bolting depends on the extent of the re-bolting activities. For competitions, the tower is completely (max. 24 days per year) or partially closed (also max. 22 days per year) before and after the competition for route building. In the case of small competitions and regular re-climbing activities, we endeavour to carry these out at off-peak times or to close only individual wall segments. We do our best to reduce closures to the necessary minimum.
You can only find out how many people are on the tower on site. During the core opening times, the entire tower (excluding the speed wall) is available for climbing, and with 42 anchor points there is room for many rope teams. During the parallel use time with our partners from HHG and DAV Landesverband RLP, a maximum of 20 additional people can climb on the tower. During this time, the partners' athletes have the right to choose routes.
Children/young people
Minors up to the age of 16 may only use the climbing facility under the supervision of a parent or guardian or another person of legal age to whom the duty of supervision has been transferred; the written declaration of consent of the parent or guardian (ZSGW form) must be submitted before use. It is the responsibility of the supervisors and legal guardians to ensure that the persons entrusted to them comply with these rules of use. The supervisor is strictly prohibited from using the climbing facility independently for climbing if they have been granted free access to the facility to supervise a person under their care. Securing the person under protection is permitted.
Minors over the age of 16 may use the climbing facility unaccompanied by a parent or guardian, provided they present a written declaration of consent from their parent or guardian (ZSGW form) and have the necessary safety skills. The declaration must be completed in full, signed, uploaded to the ZSGW web app user account and verified.
We do not currently offer any courses for children/young people, but these are planned. As soon as we are ready, we will inform you on our website.
Everything about equipment and safety:
There is currently no equipment hire available. We are working on offering a corresponding service during our core usage times. As soon as this is possible, we will provide information on our website.
No, the tower is fully equipped with quickdraws and anchors.
When using the climbing facility, ropes with a minimum length of 50 metres must be used. It is not permitted to traverse more than three lines of quickdraws.
The use of self-belay devices is only permitted in the presence of supervisory staff. Furthermore, use is reserved for persons who have received explicit instruction in the self-belay device to be used and who have the necessary knowledge and experience of the safety techniques and measures to be used when climbing. As a partner check in the conventional sense is not possible with self-belay devices, correct clipping in must be checked independently. Where possible, the four-eyes principle should always be applied. Users are obliged to carry out a function check before each use by triggering the belay mechanism after a fall of 2.5 metres. If this is carried out correctly, the auto belay can be used until the user is untied.
Only standard-compliant PSA (engl.: personal protective equipment) in accordance with the relevant EN may be used with the system. This must be within its service life and utilisation interval. Wear limits must not be exceeded. If dynamic belay devices are used, they must also be within their service life and useful life and free from sharp edges, burrs or other damage.
A safety certificate is not necessary. If you want to climb the tower, you must confirm that you know the ‘Climbing rules at the climbing facility of the RPTU in Kaiserslautern’ and can act in accordance with them. People who are unable to follow these rules safely must first attend a course.
I still have unanswered questions or comments...
We are happy to answer any questions. First have a look at the FAQ's, if you still have questions, please contact unisport-peak17(at)rptu.de.
Footholds, handholds and belay points may not be newly attached, modified or removed. Artificial climbing holds can become loose or break at any time. Please report any loose holds or footholds and other damage to our staff immediately.
We are always looking for supporters in the area of route construction, for the organisation of children's birthday parties and the like, if you are interested please contact unisport-peak17(at)rptu.de.
Commercial use of the climbing facility is only permitted with special authorisation from the operator. There is no entitlement to this.