Epic Moments: FlailFest ‘24 Recap

Our second annual climbing competition was every bit as awesome as we hoped! FlailFest ‘24 took place Nov 9, featuring a full day of climbing, connections, and fun. We had a packed house– 159 competitors, with 300+ in attendance including spectators, volunteers, and staff. Cheering and encouragement were the order of the day, and we saw lots of fist bumping and celebrating for beginners as well as advanced climbers.

Event Overview

Climbers competed against others in categories defined by age, skill level, and gender. Those with the highest point totals advanced to the finals!

• A total of 45 problems were set, ranging from V0 to V12, offering plenty of variety for climbers of all heights, ages, and skill levels, including beginners and experts.

• Participants socialized over beer and sushi during the intermission and finals. 25 people took part in the Dyno Competition during intermission. Over 50 raffle prizes were awarded, totaling more than $1,500 in value!

• Six final problems were prepared: three for women and three for men. During the exciting final round, each of the five male and female finalists had a few minutes to review the problems before being sequestered out of sight. They competed one at a time, with each contestant given only four minutes to solve each of the three problems. The problems featured point zones that allowed competitors to earn points on their way to completing (or "sending") the problem.

• 46 awards were given out based on age group, ability, and performance in the finals, worth over $4,500!

Winners & Standout Performers

Top scorers

Delaney Adlard (highest scoring female and overall youth), Nate Batters (highest scoring), Jessica Lazore, Daniel Shaw, Mason Keough, Payton Keough, Bri Skiles, Gavin Carter, Julia Fowler, Danny Goodwin, Tayla Peterson, Brady Bailey, Grace Miller, Zander Darrington, Alyss McHenry, Smith Isakson

Dyno Comp winners

Spencer Gage and Kaytz Brenneman

Other standout performers

• Mitch Chamness, Payton Keough, Spencer Gage, Kelsey Wilder, Becca Russel, and our own Grace Miller and Conor Ward

• Special shoutout to our younger competitors: Ronnie Wright (age 7), Asher Irving (age 8), Nami Batters (age 3), Autumn and Hollyn Kramer, Coeur Climbing Team kids, and Zander Darrington (highest scoring male youth)!

• Mason Keough delivered a brilliant performance with four missing fingers.

• We were blown away to see a dozen or more climbers competing in rental shoes. Might not seem like a big deal at first– but it means we had people new to the sport who were here to go for it anyway! Shoutout to all of you– we’re impressed and inspired!

• You can see our full list of scores here.

Memorable Moments

• During the final climb of the night, female finalist 15-year-old Delaney Adlard ran out the four-minute time limit without getting past the first few moves of the final problem. On her final attempt, with the crowd on the edge of their seats, she dynoed through the first moves and barely hung on through the cruxy upper sequence to reach the top, securing the win and becoming the only female to complete the problem. The crowd exploded! Her huge smile and clenched fist as she dropped to the mats capped the entire event, capturing the excitement and hype of the whole competition. 

• Winners in both the male and female under-13 age group (Alyss McHenry and Smith Isaacson) both overcame incredible odds due to their small stature, completing high-value reachy problems with so much creativity and ingenuity that the crowd went wild with each send they put up!

• Nathan Batters (overall male winner) capped his victory with a flash (successful on his first attempt) of the final men's boulder problem, a problem that eluded the other four finalists!

• Coeur staff highlights: Julia Fowler shocked everyone with her ability to secure a spot among the 5 female finalists. Owner Daniel Shaw achieved the highest score in the masters category and completed his highest point value problem as a flash during the last five minutes of the qualifying round.

Prizes and Sponsors

Our sponsors helped make this event possible! See the full list of sponsors here. 20 different vendors donated prizes, including the following coveted items: 

• Four hangboards

• Two all-you-can-eat sushi meals 

• Three pairs of climbing shoes

• Two Tree to Tree Zipline tours

• Ninja and Gymnastics classes and sessions

• Edelrid and CAMP climbing backpacks

• $550 worth of Kroc Family Day Passes

Community Vibes

• Sushi Sensei said it was their best event EVER. They cranked out sushi from noon to 6 pm and barely had enough sushi!

• Post Falls Brewing Co provided beer for the event. Over 100 beer tickets were given out! Emry and Tarah Carr (Head Coach of the CHS Cross Country Team) served alongside owners Steve and Jamie Cervi-Skinner. All the proceeds went to the CDA 1000 Mile Club, which helps cover travel expenses for the nationally-ranked Coeur d’Alene High School cross country team.

• Owen Harro gave the rundown on his local guidebook “Tubbs Hill Bouldering.”

• The community was so supportive of all the competitors, cheering on every climber as they worked their way through the project. As each climber rose higher the volume increased, and a round of applause and cheers went out for each completed climb. It was amazing to watch. 

• Attendees praised the routesetting and the wide variety of climbs for all ages and abilities, making it truly an event for all. People also noted the positive support between competing climbers and gyms, and how impressed they were that everyone came together around the common goal of climbing.

Quotes

• “I loved how you had activities throughout the entire 2-hour intermission. It was so fun to watch the dyno comp and anticipate raffle awards while eating sushi and drinking good beer.”

• “Your setters nailed it. There was a perfect amount of challenging problems and ones that were accessible to all. I loved the complexity of movement and variety of the set. There seemed to be something for everyone, whether they were 6’7” or 3’ tall, and all abilities. Super fun problems.” 

• “The finals were so exciting. It really capped off the day in style and the lighting was really professional and added to the hype.”

• “When I started the comp, I was worried that there were too many people and I wouldn’t be able to get to enough problems, but the 5-hour time frame and smooth judging ensured that most competitors could wear themselves out attempting problems to maximize their score.” 

• “Flailfest was my favorite thing I did all year!”

Special Thanks

• There is no way we could have pulled this off without everyone’s support, from our gracious sponsors donating incredible prizes, our staff working on the promotion of the event, cleaning and preparing the facility, managing the signup and scoring process to our judges who donated their time and energy the entire day, plus our volunteers who helped judge, run registration, and set routes.

• A HUGE shoutout to the entire setting crew: Most people have no idea how much work it takes the setting team to prepare and execute an event of this size. Angus and his entire team, plus the contractor setters who traveled from other cities to assist, spent countless hours planning, stripping old climbs, cleaning all the holds, re-setting all the contest climbs, and fore-running to ensure that the grades and point values were solid. This ultimately is the secret sauce to running a successful bouldering event: a setting team that is on point, and committed to making it the best it can be.

What’s Next?

Stay tuned for more events with the Coeur community, including a New Year’s challenge we’ll be announcing soon! 

Ready to take your climbing to the next level? Join us and enjoy all the perks of membership, including free yoga classes, free guest passes, discounts on retail & birthday parties, and unlimited climbing! Check out our membership offers and find the plan that fits you best. Join today and be a part of the excitement year-round!