Staff

Ed Hardy (Owner)

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Ed Hardy is the "business guy" at Central Rock. He was introduced to the sport of climbing in Red Rock Canyon in NV and has loved the sport since. When he is not working at Central Rock, he can be found climbing, reading Inc. Magazine, snow boarding, cooking and traveling. Ed loves visiting different destinations around the country to climb and can't wait to get to the Dolomites in Italy. Ed has an ape index of +3 and loves skipping holds on climbs in his gyms to get the route setters riled-up!
Joe Hardy (Owner)

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Joe Hardy started rock climbing in 2000 while in undergrad. During many internships in California, he got more and more interested in climbing gyms and outdoor climbing. After graduating and working as an engineer for a few years, Joe teamed up with his younger brother, Ed, to start Central Rock Gym in Worcester. He loves sharing his passion for the sport with new and veteran climbers alike. You can find him most days at one of the Central Rock locations. He loves nutella, driving his tiny car, and spending rainy days watching the history channel.
Kevin Pickren

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Kevin has been an avid rock climber for the past 14 years. Originally from North Carolina, Kevin has climbed all over the US including Boone NC, HP40, Red Rocks NV, New River Gorge WV, and the hidden gems of New England. He has an MBA from the University of Massachusetts and now dedicates his time to making CRG Worcester the best climbing experience possible for our customers. When not climbing or working, you can find Kevin out on his mountain bike, sitting back watching a movie, or reading a good book.
Elena Kangas

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I have been climbing for 4 years, with most of that time being spent on the west coast and British Columbia. My favorite style of climbing is Trad and Multi-pitch, because I love the adventure, solitude, and uncertainty of what lies ahead. I love introducing people to a sportthat at one point in their life seemed crazy and out of reach but is now possible and exciting. When I am not climbing I am down for a great powder day in the mountains, watching squirrels with my dog, or eating delicious Mexican food.
Shane Messer

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Born in Honolulu Hawaii, I grew up as a military brat spending a lot of my childhood moving from state to state. I started climbing when I was 19 and its taken me all over the world. I started route setting shortly after I started climbing and realized very quickly that I had a passion for all aspects of the sport. After 6 years spent in North Carolina I moved to New England to become the head route setter for both the Worcester and Hadley rock climbing facilities. Now...quit reading this and go rock climbing!
Melissa Godowski

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Hey I'm Melissa! I have been climbing since 2005 and am the coach of CRG's Team Ascension! I climb competitively and have competed in National climbing competitions since 2007. I recently placed 12th in the 2010 ABS National Championships and 13th in the SCS National Championships. Along with my recent national scores, I have been sponsored by the clothing company Rock On! As I continue to progress in my climbing career, much of my efforts go to coaching Team Ascension. There is nothing more gratifying than seeing someone else succeed whom you have helped, and I strive to have everyone on the team reach their goals. This team is much more than training for climbing. This team is about unity, friendship, and reaching goals to gain more confidence and independence. As time goes on, I hope to get my degree in Athletic training/Health education in order to continue growing in my coaching career.
Katharine Adams

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Katharine is a physical education teacher by day and enjoys moonlighting at Central Rock. She loves it when people come in for their first climb, and even more when they get hooked. She is passionate about dessert, sunny days, flea markets, and barbeques with friends and family.
Alex Filiere

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My name is Alex and I’ve been climbing for just over two years. I was born in Massachusetts, but moved to California when I was 3. when I was about 10 I moved back to Central Mass.Now that I'm back in central MA I've found a renewed love of climbing and I have met and formed strong friendships with many people here at CRG. As time goes on, I hope to get my degree in Athletic training/Health education in order to continue growing in my knowledge on my way to becoming a personal trainer. Every time I go to the gym it's a different experience. If it's not new routes that I'm setting or climbing, it's the different faces I run into each time. I love climbing at the great local crags, teaching at an amazing gym, hanging out with other climbers and I love sharing my passion for the sport with new and veteran climbers alike. When I am not climbing I am down for a great powder day in the mountains.Before I die I hope to one day fly my own private plane and travel the world.
Joey Bianchi

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Joey studied Economics at Worcester State University, and has since moved to Worcester, MA. He grew up on the Cape slaving his summers away cooking fried fish and shellfish for tourists. He has since enjoyed cooking (and especially eating) many types of food both at home and on the side. After high school he developed a passion for the great outdoors, more recently rock climbing. This lead to working for Central Rock and climbing in his spare time. He enjoys hiking and camping all year round, and doesn't let the weather get in the way. In his downtime he enjoys video games, fantasy books and movies with a compelling plot, well developed cast of characters, and fleshed out world that you can really immerse yourself in. He hopes to spend some time enjoying all these things while working before returning to school for futher studies.
Dana Gowing

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I'm Dana, and I love to get wild in the wild! Whether it's climbing, snowboarding, longboarding, or extreme razor-scootering, you can always find me in the great outdoors. I think sharing my passion for climbing with others by working at Central Rock is pretty radical. I also enjoy nice fuzzy hats and cats.
John Grody

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Started climbing in 1988 when I took the AMC rock climbing class. I am a retired mechanical engineer. I have climbed in New England , NY, WV, KY, nine western states, Europe and Thailand. The best route that I have ever climbed is "The Prince of Darkness" at Red Rocks in Nevada. I am the climbing chair for the Worcester chapter of the AMC and have been working at Central Rock Gym since the beginning.

Staff

Ed Hardy (Owner)

Joe Hardy (Owner)

Kevin Pickren

Elena Kangas

Shane Messer

Melissa Godowski

Katharine Adams

Alex Filiere

Joey Bianchi

Dana Gowing

John Grody