Ever wondered whether route‑setters should be throwing monos into competition climbs? Kyra and Allison had noticed an increase in the use of monos in competitions recently and so they dig into the great mono debate. Is it a legitimate test of skill or just an injury waiting to happen? Allison pulls from her own mono‑training journey, sharing what worked, what back‑fired, and whether she thinks training monos improved her normal crimping strength.

From there, they compare their personal hang‑boarding routine tweaks: Allison has been adding lock-off hangs to her program while Kyra had to do more straight‑arm hangs because of an injury recently. They chat about whether switching up your program is a good idea to keep workouts fresh and muscles "confused" or if its better to only work on the things you're good or bad at.

Next they dive into the various safety concerns that arose at recent competitions. Pad stiffness, sketchy moves, and why comp floors sometimes feel like hitting concrete. Kyra pitches her idea of a World Cup circuit that tests different skills at different stops, similar to how F1 or the Tennis circuit tests on different courses/court types. They then debate where “new‑school” setting crosses the line into just plain weird and what the actual job of competition routesetters is.

Stick around till the end to hear about:

Our new Tier on Patreon: Check out our latest member-only episode about doping in outdoor climbing at patreon.com/circleup

Get excited for our upcoming special mini series "The Mentorship Sessions" with guest host Freddie Kolwey from Buddy Check Podcast! First episode featuring Kyra and Freddie will come out August 5th to introduce the series.