The American Bouldering Series (ABS), which is under the umbrella of the USAC, kicked off its 9th season this September in Suwanee, Georgia. And for the next three and a half months gyms across the U.S. will be busy hosting comps until the ABS Nationals in Boulder, Colorado.

That means hundreds of setters across the country have started to daydream about the menagerie of problems they’ll be crafting for their upcoming local comp.

But being a setter for an ABS comp is about more than just bolting up clean holds for competitors. It’s about being a part of a grand scheme that begins with local setters and goes all the way to the Chief Setters of World Cups.

The bouldering comps that are happening every weekend, all around the country have a significance that’s not easy to see. To put it all in perspective, here’s a peak inside the unique world of the ABS.

World Celebrity, Sort of

When USA Climbing’s (USAC) Executive Director, Anne-Worely Moelter, attends IFSC meetings she is treated like an international celebrity. Why? Because in the world of international competitive climbing no one else holds the reins of an organization with as much influence over as many people.

Anne-Worely told Routesetter.com after the recent IFSC plenary assembly in Matsumoto, Japan, “We, by far, have the largest number of bouldering competitions for any single federation in the world. The international folk are usually astounded at the participation and member numbers we boast.”

In The World…

• The ABS is the biggest bouldering series ever. In 2007 it organized 140 comps.
• ABS Nationals is the largest bouldering-only comp. In 2007, it attracted 518 competitors & 1300 spectators.
• The USAC is the largest (based on members & comps) national federation in the IFSC empire.
• The USAC is the only federation to have a dedicated routesetting committee.
• The USAC & Italy are the only two federations to offer route setter certification at a national level.

Surprisingly all of this is orchestrated by two full-time and two part-time employees at USAC, with the help of a legion of unpaid volunteers at each event. Unlike many of its foreign counterparts the USAC, which is a non-profit, receives no government funding. Instead they rely entirely on member dues and support from a few corporate sponsors.

The Roots

The ABS hasn’t always been this way. When it was started in 1998 by Scott Rennak, it was a grassroots organization with only a half dozen comps on the east coast. Rennak was the sole organizer and as such went to every comp to keep score, run logistics and do the majority of the routesetting.

In 2004, after building a solid foundation of members and events across the country, Rennak sold the ABS to USAC. Since then the USAC has kept that momentum going.

This year the ABS will sanction 115 comps in the U.S. from coast to coast and border to border. Every type of facility, from small-town woodies to mega-size commercial gyms, will host an ABS event.

In fact the single largest local ABS event was held just two weeks ago at the Circuit bouldering gym in Portland, Oregon. The Circuit welcomed 183 competitors to climb over sixty fresh new problems.

It’s Not All Group Hugs

It’s hard to please all 4500 members and almost 100 gyms that take part in ABS events throughout the year. This year the number of sanctioned comps was dropped from 140 to 115 and with it came a backlash from some gym owners. Many of the smaller gyms in smaller markets felt slighted when comps previously held in their gyms were re-scheduled or moved to gyms in bigger markets.

Executive Director, Anne-Worley says that, “With feedback from gyms around the country we chose to reduce the number of competitions to hopefully increase the quality and participation.”

As we are only four weeks into this years season, we have yet to see if the “quality” has improved because of these changes. But if the Circuit comp is any indication, the “participation” is way up.

Growing Pains

The ABS and the USAC still have a long way to go before they are running a seamless organization, and the economics of running comps are still being hashed out by gym owners around the country.

But as Anne-Worley says, “At its inception, the ABS was definitively grass-roots. As all organizations change over time, we have tried our best to hang on to that even with such tremendous growth. It is a quality of which we are very proud.”

 |   Subscribe to post | Leave a comment