ASCEND Climbing Routesetting Assistant Setter and Forerunner - ASCEND South Side and Point Breeze Pittsburgh, PA · Pittsburgh, PA · Part time Company website

Apply for Routesetting Assistant Setter and Forerunner - ASCEND South Side and Point Breeze

OUR MISSION: ASCEND fosters an equitable, holistic, community-based, climbing, fitness, and yoga experience. We strive to provide the best climbing and fitness experience for our customers. From excellent equipment to knowledgeable staff, our gym will be a top-notch operation. The space will be one that fosters community and belonging, by being more than just a climbing gym: it’s a “third place” where customers can feel just as comfortable as they do at their workplace and their home, and where our customers want to simply be. As a group of climbers that decided to start a gym, our values reflect a down-to-earth and authentic quality. Our gym is an extension of our love of a good day of climbing with a group of our closest friends that ends with storytelling around a campfire. We are committed to an active lifestyle. We realize that all around fitness is key to climbing well, which is why we nurture activities like yoga, cross-training, and cardio, and promote smart nutrition and ample rest within our gym and community. Our business will not just be run to make a profit, but to also be a benefit to its employees, members, the immediate neighborhood, and the region. We will seek to create a sustainable business model, focused on longevity and capable of growing morally and responsibly. We see ourselves as part of a larger climbing ecosystem within the communities of Pittsburgh, Western Pennsylvania, and America. We take our roles as climbing ambassadors very seriously, and we support causes that affect our sport such as land access, environmental stewardship, local legislation, and human-rights.

This position is a no experience required entry point into the ASCEND Routesetting Department. Duties of the Assistant Setter and Forerunner will include helping to strip the wall at the start of the day, wash holds and organize the setting room as necessary, and to join the setting team in the afternoon to participate in the tweaking and editing, or forerunning, process. During forerunning the Assistant Setter and Forerunner will work directly with experienced setters to learn the mechanics of attaching holds to the climbing wall, safety considerations and protocols within the setting zone, the thought process behind setting a climb, and will climb on and help edit those climbs while learning how to offer quality opinions on the functionality of a climb and suggest appropriate edits. While this position doesn’t necessarily promote into a routesetter position, it does allow for interested staff to learn and grow within the setting department should a setting position open in the future.

Schedule and Daily Duties

Mondays - South Side - Boulders - 9am-5pm: Help set up the setting zone, strip the walls, wash holds, and forerun.

Some Tuesdays - Point Breeze - Ropes - 11am-5pm: Wash holds and forerun

Wednesdays - South Side - Boulders - 11am-5pm: Wash holds, organize setting closet and forerun.

Thursdays - Point Breeze - Boulders - 9am-5pm: Help set up the setting zone, strip the walls, wash holds, and forerun. 

Qualifications

While this is a no experience required position we are looking for candidates who are excited about the opportunity to learn and work with the setting team at Ascend.

These candidates should -

Be able to go up and down a ladder

Be willing to learn how to use the tools associated with setting including impact drivers, wrenches, pressure washers, and potentially Work at Height PPE.

Have a moderate amount of climbing experience and be climbing at our blue circuit level. If you are climbing at a lower level I’d still encourage you to apply, however we will have alternate opportunities to be involved with the setting team in the future. 

Be lead climbing certified IF interested in the Tuesday rope shift at AP.

Be available for a minimum of one full shift as described above.