Beast of the East Dry Tooling Comp.

September 23-24, 2023

Difficulty Comp

Date: September 23, 2023
Cost: $60/per participant
Schedule:
- Round One, Flash Format:
  - First Session Check in Opens: 7am
  - First Session (4 Climbs): 8 - 11:30am
  - Second Session Check in Opens: 11am
  - Second Session (4 Climbs): 12 - 3:30pm
- Round Two, Onsight Format:
  - Onsight (3 Climbs): 5 - 8pm
    - For those who qualify from the Flash Round
Format: Flash & Onsight
Categories: Male & Female

Speed Comp & Skills Training

Date: September 24, 2023
Cost: $40/per participant
Schedule:
- Check in Opens: 8am
- Warm up session: 2 practice runs minimum
- Climbing: 10am -1pm
- Competition: Best time of 3 runs
Categories: Male & Female

Open Climb & Skills Training

Date: September 24, 2023
Cost: $30/per participant
Time: 1-7pm

Pre-registration is available online or at the gym.

Is there any difference in the first and second session of the Flash Round?

No. Climbers may sign up for whichever session better fits their schedule. Climbers in Session 1 will have to get up early, but will have more rest between rounds. Climbers in Session 2 will climb on those same routes and have the benefit of sleeping in, however, they will have less rest time before the Onsight Round begins.

Is this comp only for those going out for the USA Ice Climbing Team?

No. USA Ice Climbing will use this comp to help choose its team for the season. However, this comp is for both citizens who are just getting started in the sport and for seasoned ice climbers. Opening round will be set for everyone to have a great time. Those who finish well will have the option to move on to the Onsight Round in the evening.

Is this Redpoint, Onsight or Flash format?

Opening round will be Flash format. You’ll get a few minutes at each station to get to your high hold. Each route will be demonstrated, either in person or on video. Round Two will be Onsight, for those who climb well in the Opening Round and qualify.

Will we be climbing on comp boots or rock shoes?

Both comp boots and rock shoes will be used. Two stations will have plywood walls for kicking in. The other stations will be in your rock shoes. If you don’t have comp boots, likely there will be a pair for you to borrow or rent.

I don’t have dry tool specific picks. Can I borrow a pair of tools?

Yes, there will be a set of tools available at each station if you’d like to use them instead of your own. However, be aware that previous climbers may have put the tool in their mouth, as is common in the sport.

How many routes will I get to climb on? How will they be scored?

Climbers will be put into groups and will move around the stations as a unit. This will allow for resting time, while still keeping the comp rolling. The Opening Flash format round will have at least 4 climbs for climbers to attempt. Climbers will be scored based on their highest hold controlled. On the lead route, the number of clips achieved will not factor into the score.

What will Sunday look like?

On Sunday morning, the Speed Climbing competition will take place. The speed climbing competition will be a single lane (not head-to-head) on plywood with an auto belay and two timers (to ensure as accurate a time as possible). Scores will be based on an athlete's single best time (i.e. run times will not be added together). We will carve out approximately an hour of warm up time and create a roster order so that everybody can have two warm-up runs. Each athlete will get 3 qualifier runs and there will be a finals round (more details will be shared about finals closer to the event, depending on registration numbers).

It is required that all speed climbing competitors wear long pants, long sleeve shirts, and gloves during the competition. Athletes will use comp boots with regular plywood crampons to kick into the plywood walls and fifis (a specialized tool/axe specific to ice climbing) to hook plywood rungs as they race to the top. If you do not own this gear, there will be extras you can borrow.

Morning session speed climbers will also have access to all the routes from Saturday’s competition to work on, receiving tips from Team USA athletes and coaches. The Speed Climbing comp ends at 1pm, when the gym opens to the public and a second session of ice climbers come in to attempt the routes.

The Sunday afternoon session will be more free form. The climbs will be available to work on, with USA Ice Climbing Team athletes and coaches to give tips. Climbers may come anytime between 1-7pm and stay for as long as they choose.

How will this event effect normal use of the gym?

This event will be contained in the Lead Cave area, so starting Monday the 18th, you’ll see stations closing down. By Thursday, the entire area between #5 and #16 will be closed, through Sunday the 24th. On Monday the 25th, we will begin getting rock climbing routes back up. The rest of the gym will be open for bouldering and top roping the entire time, though Saturday and Sunday will be quite busy. Spectators are more than welcome.

What is the nearest airport for out of town travelers?

Albany, NY has the closest airport to the gym and is about a half hour drive away, however flights are generally less expensive to Newark, NJ or Hartford, CT which are about 2 1/2 hours away. For those looking to save on airfare, flying into either of those and carpooling to the event may be a viable option. (JFK and LaGuardia are more trouble than they are worth.)