The Setter in the Flatlands – Armen Avanessian

Today host Holly Chen meets with Armen Avanessian. Armen is the Head Routesetter and Operations Manager at Threshold Climbing in Oklahoma. Armen is a USAC Level 3 Routesetter and his setting career has spanned the state of Oklahoma, where he’s worked as a desk staff member, routesetter, and now head routesetter and routesetting consultant. Coming up for Armen is the bouldering divisionals event at his home gym as well as his first time being the chief routesetter for a regionals event. Outside of slinging plastic, Armen is a route developer with several first ascents of boulders in the Wichita Mountains National Wildlife Refuge up to V double digits. Armen began consulting for gyms earlier this year, helping routesetters and gym managers build their hold selection, design setting programs, and educate setters. Also, this year Armen has been trying to diversify his hobbies and has picked up the guitar after a long hiatus.

Holly and Armen’s chat gets pretty technical, but they start off with an explainer on why gyms and routesetters might need consulting. They also talk about how the hold selection for the opening set can determine the style of climbing in the gym, and what differentiates an old-school hold selection from a contemporary or modern one. Armen offers a lot of practical tips on making the best out of tight hold budgets. He and Holly dissect the pros and cons of various grading systems. They touch on routesetter education, communication, leadership, and the four IFSC style components, getting into a deep discussion on which moves fit into which style component.

Thank you Bold Climbing and RGP for your support! And thank you Devin Dabney for your music!