MEMBER OF THE MONTH - Joel Tokheim
Tell us about your family
Joel has the honor of being our Oldest Member at 72! He’s been married for 48 years and has four children. He’s been a Physical Therapist in the Manteca/Ripon area for about out the same amount of time. His son Adam’s whole family (wife and grandchildren) are also all members at the gym. There are three generations of Tokheim’s routinely crushing it at the gym on Sunday’s after church.
tell us about your climbing background
Joel started climbing in the early 1970’s in Southern California at Big Rock. His first ever climb was The Trough. (This is the same first climb our owner did when he was 14 years old – read about it HERE. Amazing how climbing binds us together).
From there, things escalated and he spent a lot of time in Yosemite Valley. He is an example of someone who successfully balanced a family, career, and climbing! The two climbs he’s most proud of are climbing The Nose on El Capitan and The Regular Northwest Face on Half Dome.
why did you join alpine?
Alpine provides our local community a world class facility that has it all. You can work on your strength, endurance, and hone your skills. It’s great that the entire family has the ability to come and climb here together.
what advice would you give to a new climber?
Take a class and learn from others on rope management and climbing technique. Spend time with other climbers.