More Gladiator Finals Photos!

Shawn Raboutou grabbing the Meuse Climbing art hold on O4 | Aaron Colussi

Christian on A9 | Aaron Colussi

Kyle Fridberg on Jake Novotny’s popular A10 | Aaron Colussi

Ben Hoberg high on the Enix men’s final | Katrin Bell

Men’s winner Matthew Cysner flashing the final  |  Aaron Colussi

Alex Manikowski men’s final | Katrin Bell

Isabelle Faus on the women’s final  |  Katrin Bell

Megan Mascarenas winning the women’s with a flash of the final  |  Aaron Colussi

Jousting | Aaron Colussi

Jouster Derek Dabibi | Aaron Colussi

See the whole album here: SBS9 Gladiator Finals – Feb 1st 2014

SBS 9 Gladiator Finals Open Results!!! + first photos

Alex Manikowski going big for third place on the ENIX men’s final.

The SBS 9 Final Comp, Gladiator Finals, just finished and it was a great comp! We’ll post more photos and redpoint results soon, but for now, here are a few photos and the results of the Open Final.

Men’s Open Final

The Men’s final was set with 10 holds from Enix which is an awesome newish hold company out of Arizona. The shapes we got, 5 big pinches and 5 big slopers, are really comfortable and fun to climb on.

1. Matthew Cysner came out of nowhere to FLASH the men’s final and win!

2. Remi Arata 9- 1st go

3. Alex Manikowski 9- 2nd go

4. Ben Hoberg 8

5. Garrett Gregor 8-

6. Dave Tieri 5-

7. Shawn Raboutou 4-

(We feel we should note that the reaches on the final boulder were just a bit too long for Shawn. He did some amazing moves to overcome the bottom but the problem had to be way way way harder for him on every move. Nice job Shawn and thanks for trying hard and putting on a good show!)

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Isabelle Faus looking strong on the big Teknik pinches in the middle of the women’s final.

Women’s Open Final

The Women’s Final started with a technical rock-over to a big pinch, a couple powerful moves across and up some big pinches in the roof, a big cross to an edge and a jump out of it, then a balancy and crimpy rock-over at the finish.

1. Megan Mascarenas FLASH!

2. Margo Hayes 17+/18-

3. Tiffany Hensley 17+

4. Isabelle Faus 13-

5. Isabelle Goodacre 12

6.Courtney Woods 10

7. Ashley Edens 9+

SBS 8 Gladiator Finals! – Women’s Open Final Results!

Megan doing a Megan-move to gain the T-Rex  |  Katrin Bell

The Problem

Jay Jay and I set the Gladiator Finals Women’s Open Final. Our theme was powerful moves on big holds. I’m pretty sure it was Jay Jay’s first final ever and it was the first one I set this season. We set it, we warmed up for forerunning, and with some effort I flashed it. I set it (so automatically easier for me) and I had just gotten back from a long trip to Hueco, but still, if I’m flashing the final it’s probably too easy.

Our start sequence was one of the issues, so incorporating some of the group’s ideas we took the large start hold/foot ledge off, put on some slopey-topped underclings instead, added a small crimp undercling to help the climbers get out right from the start underclings, and removed a right-handed pinch that had been useful to help the climbers bump left hand up to the first green So Ill feature (as a pinch/undercling). Now the start was harder. Next I replaced one of the big ledge-like jibs on the T-rex with a smaller slopey ball jib. Dialed up the first mini-rex so it was steeper. Tried to replace the low pink pinch for crossing to the first mini-rex, but nothing else was good enough to make the move work, so we left it. We wanted to make sure all the competitors would get up a little ways, but also that they’d have to try and that even the strongest would begin to tire themselves out climbing through it. Bottom, set.

The top took some dialing in as well, as I watched Jon Cardwell and Ian both hold the difficult body-opening swing at the top and we struggled to decide whether or not the women would be able to do the move–especially with their right hand on a pinch. I moved some holds around, ran the boys again, and finally committed to using a crimp instead for the right hand. By committed I mean I kept the crimp on the wall, kept the pinch handy in the setting closet, and panicked about whether or not I should change it until the moment finals started. Honestly, as is usual in this sort of situation, I sort of kept panicking, but after watching the results I’m glad we left the crimp on. I think with the pinch the move would have been a bit too stopper. As it was, it allowed a few through and stopped a couple more. Appropriate.

I’d also like to thank Sarah Fullerton for helping us forerun finals all season. Her help has been invaluable.

Sarah on Bierstadt at Evans

Thanks Sarah!!!

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The Finalists

Nina Williams looking all kinds of strong on the very challenging O6 | Page Kuepper

The redpoint round left us with a separated field of women, most of whom had climbed A10-O4. All the competitors (youth and adult) who wished to have a chance to compete in finals were asked to climb in the adult session to negate the possibility that extra rest between sessions would give them an edge in finals. Their qualifier scores are still split into Youth and Adult however, so if you want to see the full qualifier round scores, you’ll have to visit YOUTH and ADULT. (Note – Megan’s quali scores are improperly in the Adult category, should be fixed next week.)

Top two qualifiers Megan Mascarenas (21,560) and Nina Williams (21,500) climbed O6, O4, O3, O2, and O1. They were separated by 6 falls (Megan had 4, Nina had 10).

The next 6 qualifiers climbed O4-A10 and were also separated by falls. We usually only take 6 to finals, but because of the men’s field we needed 7, and we had a tie for 7th so we took 8 in both fields. More fun for you to watch, and more stress for the setters to separate! Here are the other qualifiers and their qualifying scores:

3. Tiffany Hensley 21,000 – 0 falls – Spot Coach

4. Margo Hayes 20,990 – 1 fall – ABC

5. Isabelle Goodacre 20,980 – 2 falls – ABC

6. Mirthe Van Liere 20,960 – 4 falls – Darkhorse

7. Tika Anderson – 20,940 – 6 falls (tie) – Spot Team Captain

7. Laurel Todd – 20,940 – 6 falls (tie) – ABC Team Captain

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Finals

Laurel Todd | Ryan Nadlonek

ABC Team Captain Laurel Todd came out first. She has been consistently squeaking into finals this season and always puts in a great effort on the final problem. She gracefully accepts the role of guinea pig as she has to figure out the problem with everyone watching her and no hint (from hearing other competitor’s attempts) of how far people are even getting on it. Laurel fought her way through the bottom, giving a faith-throw and hitting the jib on the t-rex, then matching and reaching out to the right undercling before falling. Next go she hit the t-rex wrong and fell, next go she fell moving to the t-rex. Score: 9th hold/1st go

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Tika pinching the bejesus out of the bottom moves. Dave Graham sticking the swing in the background. | Jackie Hueftle

Spot Climbing Team Captain Tika Anderson came next. She has won ABS Regionals and Divisionals so far this season and made some SBS finals as well. She and Laurel are usually neck-and-neck, and they were this comp when they tied in qualifiers. First go Tika had a bit of a rough start with the T-Rex, not hitting it quite right and falling when she tried to match. She rested, and to the roars of the crowd she rallied and hiked through the bottom of the problem, looking unstoppable as she crushed through the moves she’d previously fallen on, matched the undercling, and grabbed the high right crimp. At that point she looked good but was a little stuck and as soon as her body came out her foot slipped and she was off. Score: 11/2

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Mirthe in the low-middle of the problem | Ryan Nadlonek

Mirthe Van Liere. Mirthe is a total darkhorse to Spot Series comps, as we’ve never had her in finals before (at least as far as I can recall). She climbed well in qualifiers and considering this was her first Spot final I thought she did very well, though first go she mistakenly grabbed an off-route hold. Ian called her off and it ruined her momentum as she had to start over, but she gathered herself and gave some good goes, managing to match the T-Rex before falling, then get through the T-Rex the go after that and fall matching the undercling. Her last go she was tired and fell early. Good efforts Mirthe!  Score: 9/3

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Isabelle | Katrin Bell

Isabelle Goodacre. There isn’t much to say besides Isabelle hiked the problem in good style. It didn’t even really look hard for her. The crowd was yelling and I was sweating–I know Isabelle is a strong climber, but she made the problem look SO EASY that I was sure everyone else would flash it, especially because they heard the crowd and knew Isabelle had flashed. This can give competitors pressure but it can also give confidence–if someone lower in the rankings than you flashed something, you might think you can flash it too, right? I managed to contain myself and remember that anything can happen in competition, especially when it comes to finals. The crowd roared for Isabelle and Margo was up next. Score: Flash

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Margo trying so hard to hang on. | Ryan Nadlonek

Margo Hayes started showing up in Spot finals a couple of years ago. She is a strong competitor who can be fueled by frustration, as we saw at Psychedelia when she made a mistake and fell early on the final, then got back on and crushed it. This time she came out strong and confident and did the early moves with ease. Unfortunately for Margo, when she did the big move to the T-Rex she missed both of the jibs and hit a bad slopey spot between them. She tried to stay on, but to no avail. Her body swung out and she was off. The start of the problem, as I said, is sapping, and so the first time it doesn’t feel so bad but with each subsequent try it makes you more and more tired. Despite this, Margo fought her way back through the volume, through the undercling, to the crimp Tika fell from, then jumped for the next pinch. She caught it, her body swung open, and she tried and tried to kick her feet back on but she couldn’t quite stick them to anything and she was off. Next go she went back to the crimp and fell trying to stick the pinch. Score: 12/2

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Tiffany Hensley styling the bottom | Katrin Bell

Tiffany Hensley is a regular finals competitor and sometimes winner at SBS comps. She came into this final looking very strong and handily flashed her way to the pinch move Margo had fallen on. Like Margo, Tiff hit the pinch, stuck it, but as her body swung out she was unable to get a foot back on and eventually she fell.

Not a great picture but I’m sharing it so you can see how hard Tiff was trying to get her feet back on. Margo was much the same. The crimp and pinch just opened your body from the wall in a way that made it hard to recover if your feet came off.

Her next go was the same as Margo’s 3rd–she hit the crimp and jumped to the pinch but didn’t stick. Score: 12/1

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Nina Williams | Ryan Nadlonek

Nina Williams has been on a roll this year. She’s really stepped up her competitive game, showing up on the podium at major pro events and winning all 3 previous SBS events this year–The Gun Show, Psychedelia, and Highlines/Highballs. She came out strong and though she looked to be trying hard on on the crimp/pinch cross, she managed to get her foot back on and finish the problem with a flash. Nice job Nina! Score: Flash

Nina Williams sticking the hardest move | Katrin Bell

Nina Williams after the flash | Katrin Bell

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Megan Mascarenas holding the hard swing | Katrin Bell

Megan Mascarenas swept SBS 7 and for SBS 8 she has been just behind Nina. Our technical starts this season have been causing many competitors, Megan included, to make mistakes and fall early. This problem was a little more straightforward power, and with Megan’s lead from qualifiers if she flashed the final she’d win. If not, Nina would win. That’s a lot of pressure, but Megan handled it well, styling the bottom, holding the difficult swing on the crimp and the pinch (but it looked like she barely held it as her left hand slipped on the pinch) and finishing the problem for the flash and her first SBS 8 win.

Great job to all the competitors, especially Megan and Nina for their hard-fought battles for first place these past two seasons!

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Results

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8. Mirthe Van Liere

Mirthe moving out to the undercling | Katrin Bell

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7. Laurel Todd

Laurel working out the bottom | Ryan Nadlonek

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6. Tika Anderson

Tika Anderson | Katrin Bell

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5. Margo Hayes

Margo trying for a bicycle to cross to the pinch. | Katrin Bell

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4.Tiffany Hensley

Tiffany struggling to hold the pinch. | Katrin Bell

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3. Isabelle Goodacre

Isabelle Goodacre handily flashing the final | Ryan Nadlonek

Flashed the final but was last of the 3 flashers in qualifiers so 3rd overall.

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2. Nina Williams

Always a good attitude from Nina!  |  Ryan Nadlonek

Flashed the final but 6 falls behind Megan in qualis means Nina ended up in 2nd.

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1. Megan Mascarenas

Holding the difficult swing at the top! | Ryan Nadlonek

Megan flashed and because she was 1st in qualifiers as well she won!

Megan!  |  Ryan Nadlonek

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Thanks to all who came out to compete in or watch SBS 8 comps.

See you next season!

Quick Reset Update + More Gladiator Comp Photos

Sorry it’s taken so long to write up the women’s finals and the rest of the comp, we’ve been really busy resetting. Women’s finals will be up soon–later today or tomorrow night.

Reset Update

If you’ve been in the gym, you’ll see we’ve got new problems up on the Font, River, Dojo, and Back Hueco boulders. More on the Hueco and maybe the Beach tomorrow. Also, Danny will be gone for about a month–he’s headed to France to climb in the World’s Greatest Bouldering Area. Have fun Danny! Today was his last set til he gets back, and he and Connor apparently called each other before work this morning, so Annie took this photo:

Nice shirt, guys.

More Comp Photos

Several talented photographers were on hand and took some great photos of all rounds at The Gladiator Finals. You can see most of the ones we’ve seen on The Spot Facebook page. You can also link to albums from the photographers. Here are a few shots with links at the bottom in case you haven’t seen ’em yet.

Michael O’Rourke on the Men’s Final | Page Kuepper

Daniel on the Men’s Final | Katrin Bell

Matty Hong on the Men’s Final | Katrin Bell

This kid is the future, and you heard it here first. Colin Duffy. | Page Kuepper

Men’s Final | Page Kuepper

O6, Shawn Raboutou | Page Kuepper

Michael Bartley | Page Kuepper

Dave Graham | Page Kuepper

The Spot Facebook

Gladiator Finals album by Ryan Nadlonek

Katrin Bell Photography

Page Kuepper Photography

Stay tuned, more coming soon!!!

SBS 8 Gladiator Finals – Men’s Open Final Results!

Dave Graham on Open 4 during the redpoint round.

There is much to say about the SBS 8 Gladiator Finals! The preliminary round was a nice 3 hour session on boulder problems from 1 Spot to 5++ Spot. This time we had the youth who planned to try and make Open finals compete during the adult session to eliminate the possibility that resting longer after the redpoint session would improve their final results. Here is a rundown of the Men’s Finals Competitors and their prelim performance in order of qualification for finals.

1. Daniel Woods

Daniel came in early and flashed O5 – O10 (only top 5 climbs, so O6, O7, O8, O9, and O10, count for total score), then with a perfect high score of 24,000 he rested up for finals.

2. Matty Hong

Matty went climbing outside all day in Rocky Mountain National Park, then showed up at The Spot just in time to get his 5 climbs and make finals. Matty was the only competitor besides Daniel to log Open 8 in the prelim round. His other climbs were O6, O5, O4, and O3 with 4 total falls for a score of 22,560.

3. Matt Wilder

Matt climbed extremely well, using his mad old-guy skillz to climb O3 – O7 with only 1 fall. Great performance Wilder! We’re always happy to have you. Total prelim score: 22,490.

4. Michael O’Rourke

Young Gun Michael O’Rourke came in next, only 10 pts (1 fall) behind Matt Wilder with the same 5 Open problems and a score of 22,480.

4. Greig Seitz

Tied with O’Rourke was Miramont head setter Greig Seitz with the same problems and falls for the same overall score.

6. Ben Hoberg

One fall behind O’Rourke and Seitz, Ben Hoberg climbed O7-O3 with 3 falls for 22,470.

7. Dave Graham

Legendary climber Dave Graham came in next with the same O7-O3 and 7 falls for 22,430. Dave isn’t much of an indoor climber and rarely competes, so it was a treat to have him show up and have a good time at our event. Thanks for coming Dave!

8. Matt Lubar

Young crusher and multi-time SBS 8 Finalist Matt Lubar was next, just 1 fall behind Dave with 22,420, but he tweaked his back muscle a little in the prelim round and didn’t want to tweak it more before Youth Nationals so he opted out of finals.

Lubar out for the count.

9. Remi Arata

This meant our last men’s finalist was 9th ranked Remi Arata. Remi is another up-and-coming young crusher. He was a long-time Team BRC climber who recently switched to ABC. Remi did O6-O2 in the prelim round with 1 fall for 21,990 points.

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The Final Problem

Michael O’Rourke keeping his balance.

The Men’s final problem started on a huge sloper in the middle of the Beach. From there it was power/technique through a few underclings to a standing position on a volume with an overhead press off an e-grips Main Dish and a Teknik Sloper. The idea from this point was to turn and face out, then jump to a very positive undercling in the roof, then a move up to a left pinch, a heel-hook or jump to a right pinch, a powerful cross under to a Teknik fat lip, then a big move out right to another fat lip, then a 1-2 jump to a fat lip near the top of the wall left hand and a juggy fat lip just to the right for the right hand.

Here’s what actually happened:

Remi Arata came out first. First go he fell trying to move his body onto the volume, so 3+ points for holding the Main Dish. Next 2 goes he fell jumping for the undercling, so 5 pts, new highpoint. Next go he stuck the undercling, then did the big move up right to hold 8, then fell. Next go he fell after the undercling.

Score: Hold 8/4th attempt

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Dave Graham came out next. He’s self-professed to be bad at competitions, but in this case he put on an amazing performance, sprinting through the start of the problem, sticking the jump to the undercling, doing a mega-huge cross to hold 9 (the first fat lip, and the move he did was huge! Nobody saw it coming, and the crowd went crazy!), sticking hold 10 (the right fat lip), doing the big move to hold 11 (the high fat lip just before the final hold) and then falling trying to stick it. He struggled with the jump to the undercling on his next goes, but his spectacular performance was a real highlight for the crowd and for the setters.

Score: 10+/1

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Ben Hoberg has been a strong competitor this season, though he currently has a huge cut on his thumb and hasn’t been climbing a ton. Nevertheless, he put on a good show, falling from the jump 4 times before sticking it the 5th time and continuing to the high right pinch (hold 8) before falling.

Score: 8/5

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Greig Seitz has also been doing well at SBS comps this year, and this final was no exception. After 1 fall on the jump he stuck it 2nd go, went up left to the left pinch (hold 7), then fell trying to stick hold 8. Next go he went straight to hold 8 but fell trying to lower out and establish well enough to move towards hold 9.

Score: 8/3

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Mike O’Rourke was next and he, too, took a few goes to get through the bottom of the problem, falling from the jump twice before sticking it and getting to hold 8. He also fell trying to come out onto the hold and continue.

Score: 8/3

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Matt Wilder had a lot of trouble with the jump, standing in the corner for a while and trying all sorts of different methods to get to the undercling without having to dyno for it. He got into some pretty strange positions but unfortunately none of them worked.

Score: 5+/3

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Matty Hong, left hand on hold 7. Going for hold 8.

Matty Hong also took 2 goes to get through the jump, and on his 2nd go when he stuck it he moved up to hold 7 (in sequence) but fell going to hold 8. Next go he fell from the jump again. Next go he got to hold 7 again but fell trying to stick hold 8.

Score: 7+/2

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Finally Daniel Woods came out.

Sometimes technical sequences cause downfalls, and first go Daniel fell getting into the position on the volume and main dish. Not to be deterred, he approached the problem with a new method.

Daniel manhandling the Main Dish

Daniel is probably the most powerful climber on the planet, and he proved it again by avoiding the jump entirely, instead pressing his way with smear feet up into an undercling position on the main dish. The move he did was seriously, seriously difficult. From there he reached easily to the undercling, demonstrated some more raw power and perfect tension as he moved out right through the fat lips, and prepared for the jump to the top holds. He tried heel-hooking, toeing in, and all sorts of body positions, but he couldn’t seem to find one he was comfortable trying. Finally he went for the heel-hook, but it popped mid move and he was off. Next go he looked seriously pumped but he moved through the undercling press much more easily, then fell from the same top move.

So close!

Score: 10/2

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Many of the competitors got back on the top of the problem after the final was over to try the last moves. Daniel ended up doing the jump we intended, a 1-2 left hand-right hand to the top fat lip and the finish jug. Michael O’Rourke went right hand to the top fat lip, then crossed under to the end jug. Spectators stuck around to watch and it was really cool to see the climbers figure out the top.

Daniel sticking the last moves after the comp was over.

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Final Results

1. Dave Graham

Dave got highpoint on his first try, and it was matched by Daniel but on Daniel’s 2nd try. Dave won! He said this is the first comp he thinks he’s won since the 90’s!

The winner! And an Ian Powell mall photo bomb.

2. Daniel Woods

Mike O’Rourke on the Men’s Final

3. Michael O’Rourke (tie)

Greig Seitz on the Men’s Final

3. Greig Seitz (tie)

On the final Greig went 5+, 7+, 8; Mike went 5, 5, 8, 3. We score highpoint and attempts to highpoint for finals, then for countbacks we drop back to the previous round, which in this case was also a tie, so they tied for 3rd overall.

Remi sticking the undercling. Everything was moving but his hand.

5. Remi Arata

Ben trying to cop a rest on the undercling.

6. Ben Hoberg

Matty pressing up on the volume.

7. Matty Hong

From the way the problem was set, you could go to hold 7 or hold 8 from hold 6. Going directly to hold 8 was supposed to be a dead end, though Daniel Woods went that way and made it work. Dave skipped directly from hold 6 to hold 9 in a display that astounded the setters and the crowd.

Dave Graham wide open after doing his huge cross to the Fat Lip.

Matt Wilder getting creative.

8. Matt Wilder

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Dave had some big-time fans from Venezuela:

Ladies Love Dave

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And finally, here’s what happens when you spend the night at a father-daughter dance, then race to the gym to get scoring done:

Nice suit, Dan. Very professional.

Stay tuned for the women’s final and more comp photos coming soon!!!

Quick Reset Update + An Interesting Solution

Reset Update

So in the last week we’ve reset the River, Dojo, Hueco, and today the Beach. Tomorrow is the Font, and it’ll be open around four pm. We’ve set a ton of problems of literally all grades so come on in and finish those comp projects and try out all our new lines as well.

 

An Interesting Solution

A popular problem at the Gladiator Finals was the intermediate on the slab. This problem consisted of two big footholds low down on the wall that you could either perch on or jump off to reach the big yellow HRT volume. From there one had to smear on the wall or jump to a large yellow Ruckus cone hold and then mantle off the volume to finish on top of the slab. A few people mantled on the volume without using the cone at all. I almost set the problem that way, but I added the cone to make the boulder a mid-intermediate instead of a low advanced. In any case, this young woman found an interesting solution to the “how-to-get-to-the-cone” problem:

Ok, so she's got the volume. Now how to get to the cone?

Ok, so maybe try a heel up?

And rock. This does not look super comfortable...

Yes, it did work. Apparently she does yoga. A lot. Nice job on finding an original solution to this boulder problem!

Gladiator Finals Unofficial Results Posted – Please check them out!

Spot Team member Tika Anderson on O4

Here are the unofficial results from the Gladiator Finals comp. If you have any questions or notice any mistakes please email us at events@thespotgym.com by Wednesday, February 8th, at 5pm. Thanks!

Gladiator Finals 2012 Youth Results – unofficial

Gladiator Finals 2012 Adult Results – unofficial

A3 on The Beach

 

Gladiator Finals Open Final Results!

Ian Powell and Spencer Pitman battling it out.

Ok, so the comp just got over and man was it exciting!  Gladiator Jousting, 230 adult competitors and over 150 youth competitors. Food, beer, a huge raffle, and of course beats from rising star DJ Dirt Monkey and a rockin’ pro final! More pictures, full results, and a rundown will come soon, but for tonight here’re the top 3 from the Open Final.

Women’s Final Top 3

Megan Mascarenas eyeing the committing dyno that she stuck one handed to flash the boulder and win the comp.

1. Megan Mascarenas!  For the first time this season Megan qualified for finals in 3rd instead of 1st. Nevertheless, Megan handily flashed the final to secure her fourth win in the four-comp Spot Bouldering Series 7, making her the overall champion of the series and igniting a fire in the crowd who cheered loudly as Megan stuck a huge committing dyno and finished the boulder.

2. Nina Williams!  Nina was looking really strong and she qualified for finals in 1st place for the first time this season. She looked strong but it took her two tries to make the 2nd and final send of the final problem for 2nd place overall behind Megan. Nice job Nina!

Chauncey Cox about to static her way through the dyno.

3. Chauncenia Cox!  Chauncey hasn’t been at a Spot comp so far this season but she came on with a vengeance to qualify in 2nd and end up in 3rd overall after statically controlling the dyno stick hold with her off-hand but not being able to move from the position to match it. Thanks for coming out Chauncey!

 

Men’s Top 3

Spot Setter (but not for this comp) and Team ABC Boulder Coach Garrett Gregor came out and gave the best flash burn on the problem to control these slopers and the win.

1. Garrett Gregor!  Qualified in 5th, but came out and gave a great flash burn to control hold #8 on his first try. He and the 2nd and 3rd place finishers all made good tries to stick the blue pinch that is the last hold on the problem, but nobody could stay on it so Garrett took the win. Nice job Garrett!!!

First-place qualifier Jon Cardwell came close to sending the final and taking the win but he couldn't quite stick the blue pinch to seal the deal.

2. Jon Cardwell!  Jon qualified in 1st over Matty Hong by a few falls. Both sent O10, O9, O8, O7, and O6 and still had enough energy to perform strongly in finals.

3. Matty Hong! Like Jon and Garrett, Matty fell trying to get a hold of that last little blue pinch. They gave the crowd a good show, and hopefully one of these guys will come back and send this rig soon before Carlo gets home from Boston.

More to come tomorrow. But until then, contemplate this:

Excuse us, Miss, what, exactly, do you think you're doing?

Gladiator Finals TODAY!!!

That’s right.  Today!  So what are you doing sitting around in front of the computer? Grab your climbing shoes and get on down to the Spot for the most fun you can have on a snowy day in Boulder. If you missed Thursday’s post, here’s a bit more about the comp and the schedule – Gladiator Finals on Saturday!!! The Setting has begun!. Read on for the top 10 reasons you should come to SBS 7’s Gladiator Finals at The Spot!

10. Snow. It snowed two nights ago. It snowed yesterday. It snowed last night. It’s supposed to snow today. It’s supposed to snow Monday. The high for the next 3 days is something like 29 degrees. It is time for indoor entertainment.

Figure 1. Snow

9. 42 new boulder problems!  Jackie (that’s me), Jonny, Nic, Danny, Carlo, and Jay Jay set 10 problems for each category and two pro finals to boot! We were assisted with setting by Gabor Szekely as well as past Spot head setters (and current BRC setter) Seth Lytton and (current Movement setter) Jamie Emerson.

8. Pro forerunning! In addition to the setters and guest setters, forerunners included Daniel Woods and Paul Robinson! Paul and Daniel are both in town between jet setting around the world to take down and put up the hardest lines on the planet. Along with some friends, Daniel and Paul have recently formed a media company called “Welcome to the Hood“. In case you were wondering, Daniel foreran instead of competing because he had to fly out to Boston where he, alongside our own head setter Carlo, will be competing at the Dark Horse Comp . Paul has a pretty bad fingertip flapper so he’s not competing either. Don’t be dismayed though, when the big boys came to forerun they brought their guns along to make sure that the open problems are high quality and no walk in the park.

The Welcome to the Hood boys looking hood.

7. Free Avery Beer

It's local, it's delicious, and we've got it at the Gladiator Final!

6. Free Mix 1

Where do you think the setters get all the energy to set and forerun for two long days pre-comp? Mix 1!

5. Improved paddage. The Beach Pads got an overhaul for increased flatness. Yes, they are still uneven foam. Yes, it’s best to fall in a relaxed manner. But check out this smoothness!

The Beach landing is looking pretty smooth...

4. We got some new holds! Our buddies over at new hold company Urban Plastix hooked it up with some of their new shapes. The urethane is the same high quality that E-grips and Teknik are made of and the shapes we got are a combination of basic goodness (a variety of wide pinches) and Brooklyn style (red brick crimps and the big brick hold featured in the photo below). We’ll write more on ’em later, but if you want to check them out (and you know you do) get on Advanced 4 in the middle of the River Wall.

A preview of Advanced 4 featuring Urban Plastix

3. Did we mention the weather report?

2. Huge Raffle. For the last comp of the season we’re pulling out all the stops and giving away a TON of gear. Competitors and spectators get 1 raffle ticket for free, and additional tickets are only $2 a pop or 3 for $5. Not a bad deal when you could walk away with new climbing shoes, a new crashpad, a new wardrobe from Vertical Girl, or one of our other high value prizes.

1. IT’S A SPOT COMP! 

Need we say more?

Doors open for the adult comp at 5. Finals start around 8:30. See you there!

Gladiator Finals This Weekend!!! + LT11 In the Daily

We are happy to say that we are only a few days away from the last comp in SBS Series 7 — The Gladiator Final!

So what is the Gladiator Final?  Well, as usual it’s 40 brand new awesome Spot problems from 1 Spot to 5+ Spot, 2 pro finals, two huge raffles, food, free drinks and beer, and GLADIATOR JOUSTING!!!

Yeah, that’s right, we give you guys big foam q-tips and you get to wail on each other with them.  Fun!  Fun!

REGISTER NOW

As usual pre-comp, the Dojo and the Beach will be CLOSED on Thursday for setting. The whole gym will be closed on Friday for setting. On Saturday we will be open for the comp only. So see you at the Gladiator Final!!!

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Also, LT11 made some local news!  Check it — Louder Than 11 — and climbing – Colorado Daily