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2025

Steel Town Throw Down®

 

Event

Overview

We'll continue to add to this event post, so please check back often for the most up-to-date information.

The 10th ASCEND Steel Town Throw Down®, scheduled for Friday, December 12 - Saturday, December 13, 2025, happening at ASCEND SOUTH SIDE, is Pittsburgh's premier climbing competition, designed for anyone who likes a little friendly competition while having a great time!

The Steel Town Throw Down® doesn't just define us—it shapes the collective soul of our community. Whether you're a seasoned competitor, a casual climber, or you've never been involved, this event is for everyone. We invite you to take a look, get involved, and experience the spirit of the Throw Down for yourself this year!

WATCH 2024 HIGHLIGHT REEL

OVERVIEW

Our 10th Steel Town Throw Down is going to feature two days of competition! In order to properly accommodate USA Climbing Youth and Collegiate competitions, alongside our Community competition, we have expanded the schedule.

Important Highlights

  • USAC youth competitors are ineligible to also be a part of Steel Town Throw Down Community competition... you must choose one or the other! Registration for this event will be through USA Climbing, not ASCEND.

  • USAC collegiate competitors must compete in Friday night's session. Collegiate competitors are eligible to be a part of the Community Competition since all of the problems will be available for both competitions. Registration for this event will be through USA Climbing, not ASCEND.

  • Steel Town Throw Down Community competitors may choose to compete on either Friday night or Saturday afternoon. If you are aiming to be a part of Finals on Saturday night, it is recommended that you compete on Friday, so you can be well-rested for Finals, though this is not required. Registration for this event will occur on this very website... see more below!

    • Those who climb well enough on Friday night to be in the running for Finals will be alerted of their current standing later that night. If you receive a notice, you are required to be present on Saturday NO LATER THAN 6:30p when the Finals competitors will be finalized. Since climbers in the Saturday competition are eligible to make Finals, there is a chance that you could be knocked out of position. Isolation will open at 6:45p and will close at 7:15p. If you are not present, we will find someone else to take your position.

    • Awards for the community competition will occur after the 2nd wave on Saturday and will be inclusive of Friday night and Saturday afternoon competitors.

ITINERARY

Friday, December 12

USAC Collegiate + Community Wave 1

  • 5:00p - 5:45p: Registration + Warmup

  • 5:45p - 6:00p: Competitor Meeting

  • 6:00p - 9:00p: USAC Collegiate + Community Wave 1

Saturday, December 13

USAC Youth Competition Wave 1 (M19/20, F13, F17, M15)

  • 7:00a - 7:45a: Registration + Warmup

  • 7:45a - 8:00a: Competitor Meeting

  • 8:00a - 11:00a: USAC Youth Competition Wave 1

  • 11:15a: Youth Competition 1 Awards

USAC Youth Competition Wave 2 (F19/20, M13, F15, M17, U11)

  • 11:00a - 11:45a: Registration + Warmup

  • 11:45a - 12:00p: Competitor Meeting

  • 12:00p - 3:00p: USAC Youth Competition Wave 2

  • 3:15p: Youth Competition Wave 2 Awards

Community Competition Wave 2

  • 2:30p - 3:15p: Registration + Warmup

  • 3:15p - 3:30p: Competitor Meeting

  • 3:30 - 6:30p: Community Competition Wave 2

  • 7:00p: Community Competition Awards

Finals

  • 6:45p: Finalists announced

  • 6:45p: Isolation Opens

  • 7:15p: Isolation Closes

  • 8:00 - 10:00p: Finals | Award Ceremony

See below for Community Competition registration link and more information on all the things.

COMMUNITY COMPETITION REGISTRATION

All About The

Youth Competition

Please refer to USA Climbing's website for registration and important information. And take a look at the 12/13/25 R62 Ascend South Side Boulder QE Info Sheet.

The youth competition will be a Modified Redpoint format. Each category will have seven boulders in the circuit.

VOLUNTEERS

In order to host a great USA Climbing Youth Bouldering Qualifying Event we need A LOT OF VOLUNTEERS. Learn more and register here, PLEASE AND THANK YOU!

Volunteers will receive:

  • Complimentary Snacks + Refreshments - During volunteer shift to keep you fueled!

  • ASCEND Day Pass Coupon - Does not expire.

  • ASCEND BOGO Day Pass Coupon - Does not expire.

  • 25% Off Retail Purchases - Excludes food and beverage. Must be redeemed on Saturday, December 13, 2025.

All About The

Collegiate Competition

Please refer to USA Climbing's website for registration and important information.

The USAC Collegiate Competition will be a Classic Redpoint format. We will have around 90 boulders set throughout the gym for the Steel Town Throw Down, and all of those boulders will be available to the collegiate competitors.

Collegiate competitors are automatically registered into the Community Competition, but for their scores to count they must turn in an official Steel Town Throw Down scorecard, in addition to the USAC collegiate scoring module. Collegiate competitors are eligible for Finals.

  • Registration Opens: Friday, 11/28/2025 at 6pm MT

  • Registration Closes: Tuesday, 12/9/2025 at 12pm MT

COLLEGIATE COMPETITION REGISTRATION

Details For The

Community Competition

The Community Competition is for all ages and abilities of climbers. We aim to make this competition fun, challenging, and rewarding for casual climbers, as well as those seeking a legitimate competitive experience.

FORMAT

WAVES 1+ 2: To alleviate crowding and assist us with scoring, we're splitting everyone into two waves. You will select which wave you want to be in when you register. You will not be permitted to climb outside of the times of your wave.

CHECK-IN + COMPETITOR MEETING: Please try to arrive roughly 30-60 minutes before the start of your wave and be prepared for an important Competitor Meeting 15 minutes before the start of the wave.

  • Wave 1: Arrive between 5 - 5:30p on Friday and be ready for an important Competitor Meeting to begin promptly at 5:45p.

  • Wave 2: Arrive between 2:30 - 3:00p on Saturday and be ready for an important Competitor Meeting to begin promptly at 3:15p.

Climbers will compete in a classic redpoint competition, which means that many, many climbs of varying difficulty will be set for the competition. All of the boulder problems are available to all of the climbers at once, and the competitors may attempt the climbs as many times as they wish within the given time period. See more below.

DIVISIONS

You know yourself best, so we're asking you to select which division you'll compete in. Please be aware that once scores have been reviewed, ASCEND reserves the right to move a competitor up a division, but never down. The reason for this is to be as fair as possible, and to prevent a stronger climber from entering themselves into a lower division, either by accident, or, in a nefarious attempt to ensure a first place finish.

  • JAZZ: V1-V4 | consistently sends purple circuit (V1-V3), often sends yellow circuit (V2-V4), works on blue circuit (V3-V5)

  • ROCK 'N' ROLL: V4-V6 | consistently sends blue circuit (V3-V5), often sends orange circuit (V4-V6), works on pink circuit (V5-V7)

  • CLASSICAL: V6-V9+ | consistently sends pink circuit (V5-V7), often sends red circuit (V6-V8), works on white circuit (V7-V9)

CATEGORIES

Competitors will self-identify into the following categories:

  • WTNB [Women, Trans, Non-Binary]

  • MTNB [Men, Trans, Non-Binary]

*While ASCEND recognizes that gender is not a binary system, for this competition we are asking that competitors self-select into either the WTNB or MTNB categories. Thank you for your understanding.

ACCOLADES

Awards for Jazz, Rock 'n' Roll, and Classical divisions, along with the selection of the of our Finalists will happen shortly after 6:30p, but we'll need approximately 30 minutes to tally the results and get organized.

  • 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place finishers in the respective divisions and categories will receive ribbons and prizes from ASCEND. 4th, 5th, and 6th place finishers will also receive ribbons!

  • The top three Classical finishers will be the 7th, 8th, and 9th place finishers since the top 6 are moving to the Finals round.

In-Depth

Scoring Information

CLASSIC REDPOINT ROUND

Climbers will compete in a classic redpoint competition, which means that many climbs of varying difficulty will be set for the competition. All of the boulder problems are available to all of the climbers at once, and the competitors may attempt the climbs as many times as they wish within the given time period, however, 10 points will be deducted for subsequent attempts after one's flash attempt, for a maximum deduction of 20 points off the climb's original point value. The climbs will be ranked from easiest to hardest and will come with incremental point values.

  • BASE SCORE EXAMPLES: 1 = 700 pts. | 6 = 2,400 pts. | 11 = 8,800 pts. | 16 = 200 pts. | 18 = 10,000 pts.

  • POINT DEDUCTION EXAMPLES

    • Climb #1 was flashed (completed on the first attempt) = 700 pts.

    • Climb #6 was completed on the second attempt, after just one fall = 2,390 pts.

    • Climb #11 was completed on the third attempt, after two falls = 8,780 pts.

    • Climb #16 was completed on the fourth attempt, after three falls = 180 pts.

    • Climb #18 was completed on the tenth attempt, after nine falls = 9,980 pts.

Each climbers' top five scores count toward their total number of points. 6th, 7th, etc. scores may come into play in the event of a tie. All scores must be peer judged by one person familiar with climbing rules who saw you complete the climb and LEGIBLY noted on scorecard.

All About

Finals

COMPETITOR INFORMATION

The top six MTNB and WTNB finishers from the Classical field will move to Finals, where they will compete in front of an energetic and supportive live audience! Finals will take place on the front of the Purple Arch from the edge before the Wave Wall to the end of the Comp Wall. They will attempt to onsite four problems, having 4 minutes per boulder. All finalists will split a cash purse of $5,700!

From 6:30-7:30p, the routesetters will be getting the Finals problems up and tweaked while we're also readying the space for the main event. Close to 6:30p, we will announce who the Finalists are. Shortly thereafter, they will gather their items and head to isolation, which will be held in the fitness + training zone behind the rope wall. They must stay in ISO from that point until Finals begins at 8:00p, though, we will accommodate bathroom breaks and do our best to assist them in getting anything they need from the outside world. That being said, please try and be prepared if you think you might have a shot at Finals!

Close to 7:45p, we'll get started by introducing the Finalists to the crowd. Then, they will have a few minutes to preview each boulder as a group, before being sent back into ISO. Then, we'll bring out one MTNB and one WTNB competitor at a time to run the problems, one at a time. It's going to be great!

SPECTATOR INFORMATION

Spectators may arrive anytime to grab a spot to watch Finals from. There will be limited seating close to the Arch pads, then standing room behind near the front desk to toward the bathrooms. And don't forget about the mezzanine!

Velum Fermentation will be serving beer via a satellite bar in ASCEND's space.

To set the mood... ASCEND Member and good friend, Sam Shephard, A.K.A. HellaGentle, will be laying down some chill, yet groovy and energetic, down-tempo and, well, hella-gentle beats.

LIVESTREAM

Join us on our YouTube Page starting around 7:30p on Saturday, December 13, 2025! Competition Starts at 8:00p.

LINK COMING SOON

Event

Sponsors + Supporters

More coming soon!

Steel Town Throw Down

Pricing

These events take a lot of time and effort for us to host. Don't get us wrong, WE LOVE TO DO IT, but we're mostly striving to cover our costs. We aim to price these types of events not to make a large profit, but to provide value for you and sustainability for us.

REGISTER BY EOD 11/30

$55 | $40 for active ASCEND Members

Event shirts may not be ordered after 11/30!

REGISTER ON OR AFTER 12/1

$70 | $50 for active ASCEND Members

EVENT T-SHIRT

This year, we're going big with our event shirt! Stay tuned for a mockup, but trust us that you'll want one. You may add-on an official 10th Anniversary Steel Town Throw Down event shirt when registering for $20, but you must register before 12/1 to do so! We'll order a few extras to be sold on event day, but don't count on them being available then.

SPECTATORS

Spectators are welcome and encouraged at no cost! That would be like charging to see a sporting event like football or hockey! Wait a minute... this is a deal!

ASCEND South Side

Facility Closures

Don't forget that ASCEND Erie and Point Breeze will be open for you!

  • Saturday, December 6: No purple arch boulder (starting at 2p)

    • Also, we close this evening at 5p to host our Company Holiday Party

  • Sunday, December 7: No purple arch boulder

  • Monday, December 8: No purple arch boulder, no blue or orange boulder (starting at 12p)

  • Tuesday, December 9: No bouldering

  • Wednesday, December 10: No bouldering

  • Thursday, December 11: No bouldering

  • Friday, December 12: No bouldering, CLOSED at 12p for event preparation.

  • Saturday, December 13: CLOSED for the competitions (spectators welcome at no cost!)

  • Sunday, December 14: 100% open for redemption

Note: Most yoga, fitness, and climbing classes will run throughout the week, but check calendars to ensure availability. ASCEND South Side will be closed all day on 12-13-25 for the event (including yoga, fitness, training, and rope-wall), but spectators are strongly encouraged to attend and cheer at no cost!

Also due to the terrain closures to prepare for this competition, be aware of the following adjustments to the A-Team South Side practice schedule:

  • Saturday, December 6: No purple arch boulder (starting at 2p)-no program changes

    • Also, we close this evening at 5p to host our Company Holiday Party

  • Sunday, December 7: No purple arch boulder-no program changes

  • Monday, December 8: No purple arch boulder, no blue or orange boulder (starting at 12p)-ADV Team to APB, COMP Team to Iron City, Yoga/Fitness/Intro to TR/Run Club no change

  • Tuesday, December 9: No bouldering-REC/INT Team to APB, Yoga/Fitness no change

  • Wednesday, December 10: No bouldering-ADV Team to APB, COMP Team to Iron City, Climbing 101 to APB, Intro to TR-CANCELLED, Yoga/Fitness no change

  • Thursday, December 11: No bouldering-REC/INT to APB, Queer Scouts-CANCELLED, Yoga/Fitness no change

  • Friday, December 12: No bouldering, CLOSED at 12p for event preparation.-COMP Team Cancelled

  • Saturday, December 13: CLOSED for the competitions (spectators welcome at no cost!)-REC/INT Team Cancelled

  • Sunday, December 14: 100% open for redemption