Reminder: registration for ACA boulder provincials closes March 30th

The provincial bouldering championship is being hosted at CCC Chinook next weekend, and registration closes on Saturday March 30th. There will be no late registrations accepted, and no exceptions will be made. Head over to the member portal to register. Keep an eye on the event page as we finalize the schedule, start lists, and volunteer sign up link.

No late registrations for Boulder Provincials

We wanted to update everyone regarding late registrations for Boulder Provincials on April 6-7. For this event we WILL NOT be accepting any late registrants! If you would like your athlete to compete it is imperative that you register by the deadline, March 30 at 11:59 pm MT. Once this deadline is over there will be no exceptions for late registration.

Please contact us communications@albertaclimbing.org with questions or concerns before the registration deadline.

ACA Youth Nationals Coach

The ACA is hiring a Youth Nationals Coach to support athletes at the upcoming national Championships in Montreal, May 16-21. Please send a resume and cover letter to Paige Boklaschuk before April 8th to apply.

Responsibilities

- With support from Paige Boklaschuk (ACA Performance chair), identify and connect with ACA athletes who are travelling to nationals without a coach from their gym

- Support these ACA athletes as an ACA coach; including but not limited to warm-up, sequencing, mental support, appeals and result management

- Be present at the competition venue for all days of the event, as long as there is an Albertan athlete competing

- At rounds where ACA athletes without a coach aren't competing, offer support to other ACA teams and/or team manager

- Support the communications manager by taking videos and photos where possible

Ideal candidates

- Have experience coaching and/or competing at a national or international level

- Feel confident building rapport with young athletes quickly

- Have all CEC coach requirements (https://climbingcanada.ca/coaches-volunteers-requirements/)

- Are not currently affiliated with any ACA gym or youth team

Compensation

- $200 day rate

- $50 per diem for each day in Montreal plus $25 for travel days

- Flight, accomodation, and travel expenses covered

Registration Reminder: ACA Provincial Bouldering

Don’t miss out on your registration for the ACA provincial bouldering competition at Calgary Climbing Centre Chinook. Registration closes on March 30th 2024.

Check out the event page for updates as we finalize the plans.

Updates to ACA Youth Nationals Training Camp

We’re getting more information about the ACA hosted youth nationals training camp. Head over to the event page to see details about the invitation, timelines, schedule, and much more.

Thank you for a great comp at Trailhead

We capped off the regular ACA season with a wonderful youth local bouldering comp at Trailhead Climbing in Red Deer yesterday. Like every competition, we couldn’t have done it without a LOT of help. Thanks to Brian Olstad for volunteering as the Head Judge. Brian is very active in the climbing community, and it was amazing to have his help.

Thank you to Kurtis and the staff at Trailhead for hosting an amazing competition.

Thank you to Juan and the route setting crew.

Thank you to dozens of people who volunteered to help. We had a lot of first time volunteers, including some of our youth athletes starting to get into judging, which is simply amazing.

Thank you and congratulations to ALL of our athletes. You crushed it, did your best, and put on a good show yesterday. You and your coaches are putting in HARD WORK all season and we couldn’t be more proud of your progress. Keep it up and bring that intensity to provincials!

And on a more personal note, I want to sincerely thank Mark Kozak, our ACA president, for mentoring and supporting me as the Jury President at this comp.

- Jeremy Fidelack

Youth provincial bouldering registration is open

Head over to our member portal to register for the ACA provincial bouldering competition.

We’ll be updating the event page with more details, so watch for news there.

Jr,A,B age categories include a semi-finals round, while the C & D categories will not have a semi-finals round.

ACA Youth Nationals Training Camp

The ACA will be hosting a training camp for Youth Nationals!

This camp is designed to prepare youth ACA athletes for provincials and build a culture of excellence within the ACA climbing community. The clinic will include a mock competition, clinics and tech stations with support from setters and coaches, and team building. Expert setter Simon Parton is leading the development of boulders that will prepare athletes for youth nationals and beyond. Schedule to be released closer to the date. 

All ACA athletes who qualify for regionals or nationals will receive an email on April 8th inviting them to this camp. On April 11th, we will also invite athletes from British Columbia and senior ACA athletes. 

Check out the event page for more details as it becomes available.

April 25-27: ACA competition setting clinic with Simon Parton @ Factory Climbing (Edmonton)

Guided by expert setter Simon Parton, this setting clinic will aim to develop new competition setters through mentorship. Hired experienced setters will each be paired with mentee setters. 8-12 competition boulders for the ACA youth training camp will be set over 2 days, with ample time for mentors to break down the process of setting boulders for a competition. After the event, setters are invited to observe the ACA youth nationals training camp and provide insight to athletes on the boulders. 

Setting position applications (due March 25)

Details on the event page.

Thanks for another great comp at Blocs

Another local comp in the books! We couldn’t have done it without support from our community!

Congratulations to ALL of our Jr, A, and B athletes for putting an amazing effort into your training this season. You crushed it at the local competitions and we clan’t wait to see you all at both Provincial competitions. Thanks to you and your coaches for providing us an amazing show.

Thanks to everyone at Blocs for hosting an amazing competition.

Thanks to our route setting team. Our athletes were treated to creative problems that truly challenge and showcase their skills.

Thank you to our volunteers. We literally can’t run a competition without dozens of volunteers.

Finals volunteers needed! Blocs Jr,A,B youth bouldering

Volunteers, we need your help to make sure finals at the Blocs bouldering local is successful. Please consider signing up here.

Reminder: Registration closing soon - 2024-MAR-02 C&D Local @ Trailhead Red Deer

The last youth local competition of the season is coming up for our C & D athletes, so don’t miss out on the registration, which closes tomorrow. Check out the event page for updates as the event nears. We also have 80% of our volunteer slots that need to be filled; consider signing up to volunteer if you’re able. We can’t run a competition without judges and other volunteers. Rest assured that you will be fully supported by experienced competition officials.

Reach out to communications@albertaclimbing.org with any questions

We need volunteers for the last 2 local comps of the season

The last two local competitions before provincials are upcoming, and we need volunteer help to provide the best possible experience for our athletes.

The B,A,Jr bouldering local at Blocs in Edmonton this weekend has over 40 volunteer slots available. Please sign up here if you are able to help.

The D,C boulder local at Trailhead in Red Deer the following weekend has over 30 volunteer slots available. Please sign up here if you are able to help.

If you are new or inexperienced, rest assured that you will be fully supported by a team of experienced officials.

For questions or comments, please reach out to communications@albertaclimbing.org

Volunteers needed: 2 upcoming comps

We have two back to back competitions coming up, and need your help to ensure our athletes have the best experience possible. On 2024-FEB-24 we have a local bouldering competition at BLOCS in Edmonton for B,A, and Junior athletes. Sign up here.

On 2024-MAR-02 we have a local bouldering competition at Trailhead in Red Deer for D and C athletes. Sign up here.

Volunteers needed for Speed Nationals @ CCC

The CEC speed nationals are being hosted by Alberta this weekend, and we need you to come out and help and cheer on our team Alberta athletes! sign up for a shift if you’re interested in helping. We’ll provide all the necessary training and support. We have several shifts that do not have any volunteers, which makes it difficult to provide a great experience for the athletes. Volunteers get the best seat in the house to see the nation’s most talented speedsters.

Cheering on Team Alberta at CEC Speed Nationals

The CEC speed national championships are hosted at CCC Rocky Mountain in Calgary this weekend, and we’re all cheering for our team Alberta athletes.

Volunteers needed: 2024-MAR-02 Trailhead Climbing Red Deer

Volunteers! We need your help to fill spots for the 2024-MAR-02 youth C&D bouldering local competition at Trailhead Climbing in Red Deer. We need judges, check-in volunteers, isolation coordinators, scorekeepers, and more.

Sign up here to help our athletes get the best possible competition experience. If you are new or inexperienced, rest assured that you will be fully supported by experienced competition officials. Volunteering is a great way to learn the sport and meet new people.

Keep an eye on the event page for more details. Feel free to reach out to communications@albertaclimbing.org

Attention route setters: positions for Lead provincials available

The ACA is seeking applications for all route setting positions (Head setter, Assistant setter, Route setters) for the 2024-MAY-04 / 2024-MAY-05 provincial lead championships at UofA Wilson Centre in Edmonton. If interested, please inquire with Shayne Trottier by email: shaynetrottier@albertaclimbing.org

Attention Sr Athletes: pilot to attend youth comp

The ACA is launching a pilot program to provide additional competition experience for senior competitors intending to attend NACS. We will open 3 senior male, and 3 senior female spots at the Blocs competition with no senior points awarded to those competitors. You'll climb with the junior category and must qualify for finals, with a maximum of two seniors competing in finals per category. If you're interested in competing, please send an email to paigeboklaschuk@albertaclimbing.org outlining your intentions to compete at NACS competitions, and your current commitment to training and competing by Wednesday, February 14th. Paige will inform you whether you've been selected on Thursday, February 15th.

Thanks for another great comp at CCC Hanger!

Another youth competition in the books. Thank you to EVERYONE who helped us, and we always have a LOT of help.

Thank you to Calgary Climbing Centre - Hanger for hosting. The staff stepped up big time to make sure hundreds of athletes, family, coaches, and our ACA officials had everything we needed.

Thanks to our route setting team. Your hard work really paid off for our athletes this week.

Thank you to the belaying team. Competition belaying is ALL about athlete safety and providing the best experience on the wall.

We had over 80 volunteer slots and we can’t THANK YOU enough! Coordinators, Check-in, Judges, and a whole bunch of people that keep offering to help over and over again is simply amazing.

And finally, thank you to our athletes and their coaches. Every competition is a big showcase, but our athletes are training hard every week behind the scenes leading up to it. You ALL put your best effort out there and it showed. We couldn’t be more proud of you, and are excited about how much you are working towards your personal goals this season. Keep it up, and see you all at the next one.