2014 Texas Tree Climbing Championship 

Come to New Braunfels and see if you have what it takes to be the next Texas Tree Climbing Champion!

The winner of our Texas competition qualifies to represent our chapter in the International Tree Climbing Championships (ITCC) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The competition is made up of 5 preliminary events:

• Thowline -- tests a climber’s ability to install a climbing line high in the tree.
• Belayed speed climb -- hand over hand climbing to the top of a 50 foot tree. This is a pure power house event.
• Footlock -- like climbing the rope in gym class, only the rope is 1/2 thick and there are no knots to grab. This is a balance of skill, calmness, agility and pure strength. See a video here.
• Aerial rescue -- a 150 pound sand-filled dummy is set in a tree in a simulated injury -- rescue scenario. The climber must assess the situation and safely bring the injured climber to the ground. See a video here.
• Work climb-- We set four stations in the tree, climber’s time starts when they are already in the top of the tree and finish when they are on the ground and unclip from their gear. See a video here.
  • hand bell station -- climbers simply ring a bell with a hand saw carried on their harness.
  • pole saw station -- climbers use a pole saw (already hanging in the tree) to ring a bell.
  • limb toss -- using a short piece of pvc pipe that simulates a branch, climbers, toss the limb into a target painted on the ground (as if to avoid dropping a branch on a customers prized rose bush!).
  • limb walk -- a plum-bob is hung from the end of a long low branch. Climbers must climb out to the end of the limb and ring a bell without putting too much weight on the limb. You have to put all your weight in the saddle vs. standing on the limb. If you put too much weight on the limb, the plum-bob will drop and set off a buzzer!

The top 5 finishers from the preliminary events quality to compete in the Master's Challenge where the winner earns the right to compete in the international event in Milwaukee later this summer. The Master's Challenge combines all the skills from the preliminary rounds into one big climb.

This years' TTCC will be held in 2 different parks. All preliminary events will be held at Cypress Bend Park on Friday, May 16th. You are to arrive for the preliminaries at 8:00 a.m. sharp. If you are experiencing difficulty arriving to roll call on time, please call Kevin Bassett at 972-877-0358. If you are not present for roll call, you will be disqualified and your entry fee forfeited. If you are not present with your rotation group when your name is called at any individual event, you will be disqualified from that event. All preliminary events are to conclude by end of day on Friday.

The final event will be held in Landa Park on Saturday, May 17th. On this day, we will also host a recreational climb, the Stihl Stocksaw Competition, and the Texas Tree Fair. These events will be open to the public, so please feel free to bring family and friends!