SCBC: Cliffhanger’s February Flash puts New Venue on Display

By | March 3, 2015

The first pure difficulty comp of the 2014-15 SCBC season was held at a venue new to the SCBC roster – Cliffhanger, on Industrial Ave, Vancouver. The gym set-up worked well with ample spectator space and a great atmosphere – the sun was shining and the roller doors were raised for a great comp.

Cliffhanger Vancouver in all its glory. Photo courtesy of Ken Chow ©

With four routes running simultaneously throughout the competition there was always something to watch, with the usual suspects moving through to the final round. Varied routesetting in qualifiers meant that competitors were being constantly challenged, regardless of individual strengths and weaknesses.

Adam Diamond was wearing the Chief Routesetter mantle in this competition, giving a rest to Simon Parton, who is Chief Routesetter for eight out of nine SCBC comps this season. Special kudos also go to Paul Hughes – our VOLUNTEER Head Judge – who is responsible for all things competitor-related in five out of eight competitions this season. Andrew McVey was Chief Belayer.

Heading into the final round there were some notable absences in the Open field, due to injury or travel, and the Youth A and Junior competitors led the charge.

All youth categories were highly contested, with a spun draw being the only technical glitch in an otherwise smooth finals. All fields were separated nicely and Ian Lammers, also part of the routesetting team, was on the MC mic.

The Open men’s final was a tough nut to crack, with several crowd favourites popping off early in the route, around the downwards campus move on heinous sloper pinches. The final podium went to Jesse Taplin in first, Kyle Murdoch (YA) in second and Scott Williams in third.

The women’s final also seemed tough with no competitor able to top the route. Mika Hosoi (YA) won convincingly, with Caitlin Wu (J) and Julia Massullo (YA) rounding out the top three.

All in all, a successful first competition for Cliffhanger, and a fun day with some awesome routes to kick start the remainder of the Difficulty season.

For full results, click here.

Tiffany Melius is an Open competitor and an SCBC board member.

Photo courtesy of Ken Chow ©