Ty has done it all: He’s been competition belaying, judging, and coaching for over 10 years, and he started the belay programs at USA climbing and the IFSC. In this episode, we’ll learn about all things belaying, get behind the scenes insight, and hear about how the scene has changed since the Olympics came into play, leading to some toxic parents.

Guest links:

Ty’s Instagram

Reference links:

Noah Makaiwi Interview

Reel Rock Speed Mishap @10:25

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Timestamps of discussion topics

0:00 - Intro

1:20 - Mad Rock Shoutout!!

2:08 - Coaching and belaying at USA youth nationals

7:36 - Getting into volunteer judging/belaying

11:35 - Good belaying vs bad belaying

15:40 - You need to train your neck!!

18:03 - Dangerous belay practices

23:49 - The pressure of belaying at world cups

29:29 - Athletes with specific belay requests

31:54 - Athletes who are hard to belay for

34:32 - Routesetting that makes belaying hard

37:28 - Being a speed starter

43:57 - Birmingham world games 2022

47:41 - HOT TAKE: Women are better belayers than men?!

51:25 - Paraclimbing belaying

54:28 - Manual speed climbing belaying?!

57:02 - Extra considerations for para belaying

59:37 - Changes in the sport - Olympics desperation

1:04:40 - The toxic youth scene

1:09:31 - Discord Q: Do belayers get a rundown of the route from setters?

1:10:24 - DISCORD Q: Have you ever seen an athlete or coach object to a belayer?

1:11:15 - DISCORD Q: Process for removing belayers mid comp?

1:13:28 - Ice climbing belaying?!?

1:16:03 - Where to find Ty