Ep 13: Carlie LeBreton - Paraclimbing World Champs Setting

That's Not Real Climbing

Carlie is the FIRST female chief setter at an IFSC world championship, where she led a team of 5 to set the world paraclimbing championships in Bern 2023! She has been climbing for over 20 years and setting for almost just as long, so she has a lot of experience. In this episode, we’ll learn about all the things you have to keep in mind when setting world championship routes for paraclimbers, what it’s like in the routesetting scene as a female setter, and what it’s like owning a climbing gym.

Guest links:

Carlie’s Instagram

Reference links:

Bern 2023 RP1 route

IFSC Para Routesetting Guidelines

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Timestamps of discussion topics

0:00 - Introduction

1:18 - Tummy trubble

4:10 - Starting climbing through school

9:04 - How she became a paraclimbing setter

11:09 - IFSC rules for paraclimbing setting

14:46 - How to handle asymmetrical disabilities?

16:32 - How to merge different paraclimbing classifications onto the same route

20:26 - How para routes are forerun

22:22 - Setting a route that did not work out as expected

25:25 - How setters can get into paraclimbing setting

26:42 - Breaking into routesetting as a woman 20 years ago

31:48 - Differences setting for mens vs women climbing

36:08 - Carlie's setting style

37:37 - How motherhood impacted climbing + setting

43:23 - Being a gym owner

49:09 - My dream gym

50:34 - Discord Q: Did you feel unconscious bias against you as a female setter?

52:54 - Discord Q: Do setters get "writer's block"?

54:41 - Discord Q: How often do you think gym routes/boulders should be reset?

56:43 - Discord Q: Do you have any involvement in World Cup isolation setting?

59:00 - Discord Q: Pros and cons of setting different qualifiers and finals in 1 day

1:02:25 - Where to find Carlie