A How-To Guide for Surviving in Scramble Bouldering Competitions

So, you're heading off to a local bouldering scramble comp!

Having come straight off a local seasonal competition close to where I live, a few key things really stood out to me after my round. I'll help you figure out the best plan for climbing hard in those hectic two hours, plus explaining a couple more handy tips.

Setting up for a difficult dyno on Problem #28 /30 (YC) on the Hangout in Duncan's first SCBC comp. This Tier 2 scramble event was held on October 25, 2025.

Scramble competitions can get crowded, crazy, and disorganized in almost every way possible. So, here's your guide to still sending and doing the best you can while competing in a bouldering scramble - also shoving a few people out of the way in the process, too.

My Top 5 Tips for Scramble Comps:

1. Know Your Boulders

2. Scramble Comp Scoring

3. Make a Strategy

4. Rest Up

5. Treat It Like a World Cup

1. KNOW YOUR BOULDERS

When the gym's filled with people and the time's ticking off, it can be hard to know where to go on a wall filled with boulders. Athletes used to competing on a higher level - say, Provincials or even Nationals - will be used to a much more structured, organized way of competing.

My big tip is, it will be hard to locate all 30+ climbs in the gym at once (and when climbing, dabbing on another hold colour is often what you'll be called off for).

You certainly won't have enough time to send all of them, so you will need to make a plan on which "section"of the numbers you will focus on. Scramble comp scoring almost always goes in order from hardest to easiest - so, #1 could be V2 and #30 could be around V9. That way, what I do is I split my scorecard into tenths: #5-15 will be what I choose from to warm up, #20 - 30 will be my project grade.

Spend some time before your climbing to go around the wall looking out for key climbs - where good warm-ups are, or where you think most people will line up first. Therefore, when the time starts going and the crowds pile up, you'll know approximately where you're heading next. Just don't lose sight of your next climb from all the people around you! :)

My scoresheet after 2.5 hours of climbing at the Hangout in Duncan's SCBC Tier 2 scramble. A good example to what scramble scorecards will look like at most other events.

2. SCRAMBLE COMP SCORING

Unlike higher-level formats like 5-on 5-off, Flash, and 4-minute WC; scrambles have a very different way of doing things. First of all, there is of course no isolation - you're free to go steal beta as much as you want! ;)

The biggest differences come in with how the climbs are set. Unlike having between 10 to 4 problems on the wall with nothing else around them, setters will put up anywhere between 25 and even 60 problems. It's up to you whether you want to climb all of them, or not - but remember one key thing:

• In scramble comps, it isn't about the total number of tops/zones you get - it's about your hardest tops within a determined number.

• Example: The Hangout's 2025 SCBC scramble had 30 boulders, but the hardest 5 problems you got were the ones that counted for your score.

• Example: If the highest I sent was #22 - 27, and my friend sent #25 - 30; my friend will place higher than me because they got harder boulders that are worth more points.

Know that each boulder is worth a certain value of points. Typically, #1 could be worth 10 and #30 could be worth 300.

However!!! The more attempts you take on a boulder, the less points it is worth!

Usually, the point value decreases by 1 point per attempt. For example: #25 is worth 250 points on my first attempt. On my second attempt, it will be worth 249 - and so on, until you reach 10+ attempts - where the boulder will only be worth 241.

But, it is still a single point higher than #24, which at first attempt is worth 240 points.

Setters do this to encourage athletes to work towards flashing the boulders, but still keep you engaged even if you end up projecting it. In my example, spending over 20 attempts on Problem #25 is still worth the effort if I end up topping it, because I will still get more points than flashing #24.

(You can look at the photo of my scorecard above to see what point value per boulder/attempt looks like in reality.)

Cruising through the beginning of P#21 (YC) for warm-up. Interesting slab beta. (and as you can see, dabbing on this wall is a big hazard!)

3. MAKE A STRATEGY

Strategizing can be harder when there's a lot of things going on in the gym at once. Still, it's important to make a plan on APPROXIMATELY what climbs you're going to focus on.

Maybe even consider bringing a separate sheet of paper to map out a rough outline of the gym, and label where all of the climbs are. That will certainly make navigation easier when the gym gets crowded.

Try to ask yourself questions like:

• What are my goals for this comp?

• Who else is in my category (has good beta; is a better climber)?

• How early can I get there to spend time warming up?

• Will there be a designated spraywall/area where I can do on-wall warm-up?

  (If there is, absolutely use it! Do some easy circuits, dead hangs on jugs/good crimps, and shoulder shrugs).

• How much time will I have to climb?

• How many boulders are there going to be?

• How long do I want to climb for before taking a break and eating something?

  
  

• WILL THERE BE JUDGES???

  • Yes = Modified Scramble

  • No = Classic Scramble (also twice as chaotic!)

  
  

• Where (what boulder) will I start climbing on?

  (Pro Tip: hang around that area even before you're allowed on the wall, to maximize your chances of being first to climb = saves a lot of time!!)

  
  

• What climbs will be good warm-ups?

• What climbs will most people be going to first? (Try to avoid those and pick something else to minimize your time waiting in line).

• What climbs will I be able to flash?

• Which ones will be the hardest for me/take the most attempts?

• Which ones will most other people be projecting?

  
  

• Who can I ask if I need beta, support, or clarification on something?

  (Unless you're keen on figuring it out yourself, competing without a present coach can be hard sometimes. Make a mental list of the people you can go to who know you, like coaches of other teams or the comp volunteers).

• How many attempts do I want to give a boulder before moving on?

  (My suggestion is always at least 3).

• Am I going to focus on myself and move at my own pace, or stick to a group of friends?

  (Both have their upsides, just remember that while friends can give you good beta, they may not try the boulders that you want to).

A difficult overhang boulder, #25 YC, on the Hangout's new 70° roof section.

4. REST UP

When there's little structure to how and when you can be on the wall, it's important to set yourself limits to how much you want to climb.

If your comp has judges/volunteers in front of each section of the wall, waiting in scoresheet line-ups will give you at least 5 minutes of rest before each boulder. Just never feel obligated to hand your sheet in to a judge with an empty clipboard if you don't want to!

If it's a full-on scramble, make sure not to rapid-fire at a problem - you'll just wipe yourself out too fast, and waste a lot of attempts. One thing to always make sure of during these go-at-your-own-pace comps is, don't be afraid to yell at somebody to get out of your way if you were already on the wall first. Believe me, the number of injuries that happens at these events is crazy.

I like to follow a structure similar to something like this:

1. 1ST HOUR - By then I need to be fully warmed up and have tried all the hard boulders I think I have a chance at topping.

2. 10-MINUTE FOOD BREAK!

3. 2ND HOUR - Now I slow the pace down and focus on sending boulders that are worth the most points (eg. #25 - 30). Almost in projecting mode now.

   (Note that the line-ups in front of popular and difficult climbs will get really long at this point, so plan your next attempt strategically.)

4. 10-MINUTE FOOD BREAK!

5. LAST 30 MINUTES - You'll notice everybody begin to panic due to the time crunch and rush towards the boulders highest in point value, so that's why I like to get those out of the way first. If I'm done with climbing, I'll just cheer on my friends, or focus on getting extra medium-level climbs for "just-in-case" points.

6. BEFORE AWARDS - In these 20 to 30 minutes before the podium, I always go for either lunch or dinner because you'll need to refuel your energy quick. And there's almost always a friend inviting the whole category over to an after-comp hang-out.

Slab climbing! #19 for the YC category.

5. TREAT IT LIKE A WORLD CUP

Yes, it is just a local comp.

Yes, it's not Nationals and there's no reporter live-streaming your success.

Yes, there's no Finals where you can do even better (or worse, lol) than you did this round.

But hey - still try your best! Still treat this comp as if it were the Olympics.

You probably didn't put a lot of effort into getting here and training for this comp.

You may not even want to spend your time climbing at this local event, for what I know from some of my friends.

But there are people who put a lot of effort into giving you this opportunity, and for someone else, it may be their first-ever competition! Look at it as a learning experience to aid you in bigger, more important competitions in your future.

But that doesn't mean stressing yourself out before the round starts, or acting overly competitively towards the other athletes in your category. Just have fun with it!

Just climb, and even if you don't place well in this competition, it may just mean that the craziness of scramble comps isn't the type for you. :)

Another shot from #25 near the end of the round. Really intensive micro beta was what helped me send it in the end.

Have fun at your scramble comp!

-- Sophia