What Do Bouldering Competitions Actually Involve?

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We know the idea of a competition can seem daunting at first. However, our bouldering league is family friendly and suitable for climbers of all abilities! We thought we’d take a moment to explain how our bouldering competitions work and answer some questions you may have!

Do I Have to be an Experienced Climber to Compete?

No! Our Winter Bouldering League is suitable for climbers of all abilities. This is a fun, family friendly competition designed to test your climbing comfort zone and introduce you to bouldering problems you may not otherwise have tried.

If you’ve been climbing with us for a while and know and know how to safely use the bouldering area, why not give our competition a go??

What Equipment Will I Need?

You’ll need some climbing shoes, which you can hire or bring your own. Chalk is also something we recommend to help with your grip. You can use whichever type of chalk you prefer, though we do only stock liquid chalk in our centre shop! You’ll also need a scorecard for each round you’re competing in. They will be available to purchase from Reception throughout each round of the league.

What are the League Categories?

There are leagues for all ages, including the Mixed U11s and U16s, Male/Female Open for climbers aged 16-40 and Male/Female Vets for those aged 40+. If your birthday occurs between rounds, you’ll move up a category in the next round.

How are Competitions Judged?

Each problem is self-scored, using the scorecard you purchased from Reception. Remember to make sure you’re accurate when it comes to writing down your attempts. We hope we can trust you!

Once you’ve attempted (and obviously completed) all of the problems, simply use the key on the back of the scorecard to tot up your totals. The fewer attempts you make to send a route, the more points you receive. The league winner will be calculated after all three rounds are complete. There are 20 bouldering problems in each round, of varying difficulty. So, if you decide to enter all three rounds, you’ll be tackling 60 routes in total.

What Changes Have You Made for COVID-19?

Usually we host our competitions over a single day or weekend. Due to COVID-19 we can’t facilitate that this year. So, instead, we’ve extended the duration of each round, to ensure climbers can compete while maintaining social distancing and centre capacity at all times. Of course we also ask that participants follow our current COVID-19 Guidelines when climbing at The Tide, including using hand sanitiser regularly and wearing a face covering in all non-climbing areas of the centre.

So, if our Bouldering Competitions sound up your street, keep an eye out in the center and on our social media for upcoming dates. Then, simply book your regular climbing session during the dates of each round. When you arrive, try out all the problems at your own pace. You don’t have to complete all the problems in one session either. You can return as many times as you like during the round. Just make sure you return your scorecard to Reception before the final date of each round – otherwise it won’t be counted.  It’s as simple as that!

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