Hey Everyone,
This week and next week are both going to be a little weird for the setting program at Base5. This week the gym is hosting a Youth Competition Camp; This camp is a 4 day development camp for the up and coming athletes in the Youth C and D divisions (the little guys). The camp is being run by Matt Johnson and Andrew Wilson and is one of the only programs of its kind, for that age group, in the country.
What this meant for us, this week, was that we had to build 4 routes, and 2 boulder circuits (7 problems) for the the Youth C categories to train on for the week!
Over the course of Saturday and Sunday Matt and I divided the work, and each set 2 routes for the Youth C camp. We wanted a varied selection of terrain and styles, and had to do this without it hindering our regular turnover… aannddd all the routes had to be climbable by kids as young as 9 and as short as… uhhh.. Really short.
Matt’s two routes were the 5.11d on the Turret, and the 5.12b on the Left Side of the Main Event. Both the routes are really sequence-y and technical, and will be really tricky if you are over 5’7″. The 11d features consistent and strategically challenging movement on good handholds with sloping feet, the steep section at the top features a hard cross between good holds and the last 2/3 moves are not so bad. The 12b is a really nice line up the left dihedral of the Main Event. The start of the route is technical and insecure, balance-y climbing leads to the first steep section of the route where good holds lead you to a crux at the lip. Pull the lip and climb the “less steep” section too a good rest, tension-y moves make for an exciting ending! The Blue/Black holds are in up top!! They are mostly blue…?
The two routes I set for the camp where the 5.11b on the ABC and the 5.12c on the right side of the Main Event. The 11b is a slabby, technical, sequence-y piece of climbing that I built to confuse the kids and force them to use their feet. the top is very delicate and requires strong legs and good balance. It won’t feel the grade until you send it… Kind of like the last blue 11b on that wall. The 12c is a very consistent, resistance climb. Open handed, sloping holds take you up the vert where position based moves on In-cut pinches and crimps leads you through the steep. The sequence is obvious, but the body positions need to be right or you will waste energy. I gave a marginal rest right at the lip before the head wall – its not a great shake but it is worth taking. The final head wall section is the crux of the route, okay pinches, and bad crimps with movement that really makes you pull with your feet lead to a heart break finish at the chains. Bring yer kleenex kids…
So that all happened… And we set two 4 problem boulder circuits for the Youth C camp as well…
Andrew (The Swedish Chef) Wilson, Matt, and I built 7 problems (group A and B are sharing the slab, for anyone doing math at home). The idea was to replicate a varied set of problems like they would encounter in a competition. The problems can be found on the Left Steep, The Cave, The Alcove, The ABC Slab, and The Pillar. I worked with Andrew and Matt and we came up with a plan that would feature problems from V2-V6 and would feature four main “styles” or “feels”… Such as,
– Complex/Lower body movement
– Intense/Footwork
– Jumping/Mantelling
– Risk/Balance
It was really cool to work with Matt and Andrew on this project and I think we built a cool set of problems and routes – Youth C and D is by far the hardest division to set for, there is a lot of variance in size, skill, power, technique and strategy, and its hard to know what they feel… Im curious to see how they do, and I am also wondering what the member will think of the routes set for little frames!
Whats even more amazing… is that somehow while all that was happening Kyle and Hayden set 6 other routes… Kyle added a 5.7,5.9,5.10b and a 5.10d in various locations throughout the gym (check the fancy new route map on the side of the gym!) Hayden also added a 5.8 and 5.10a on the short walls in the front! The 10a is a really interesting, balance-y route!
The Bouldering areas that are thinned out for the camp (left steep and cave) will remain thinned out until Monday Next week… We have the Adult Performance Team Selection camp next weekend and we will be building a whole new set of problems for them as well…
Thanks for reading!
P.S. Sometimes when we all really busy we only have time for mis-lit IPhone photos and don’t have the “Resources” to film our “Big Budget Beta Busters” – So there you go… some photos of some walls and holds… at least you got new routes š
Base5 Setting 