: Alert :

: Alert :

: Alert :

: Alert :

Our Routesetting

Design District / Climbing

Our Routesetting

Design District / Climbing

routes set for you

Our routes are set for all ability levels, proportions, and style preferences. Whether one is looking to have fun with friends, climbing for exercise, training for outdoor climbing, or preparing for competition—we’ve got routes that are just right for you.

get the app

KAYA connects the people behind each climb. Discover new sets, get personalized climb recommendations, and log all your climbs – indoors and out – all in KAYA. Download now to build the stoke together.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

 

Meet the crew

Routesetters are a unique mix of an industrial athlete, craftsman, artisan, choreographer, and product designer. They are well-versed in a variety of climbing and movement styles. They constantly evolve the craft as the needs of our community change and welcome your feedback.

evan
woods

Tucker
Black

Luke
Sherlock

Fredrik
Balawis

kyle
baldwin

samantha
littletree

evan woods

Head Routesetter @ Design District + Denton

Evan has been setting for just around four years now. Before routesetting and climbing Evan competed in various track and field events. He later picked up routesetting as a form of expression through his creativity and knowledge of movement. He finds inspiration from outdoor boulders, as well as his own art work.
Outside of routesetting Evan enjoys playing volleyball, solving puzzles, riding fixed gear bikes and most of all working on FOT climbing, a local clothing brand started here in Dallas.

Tucker Black

Director of Setting – DFW

Tucker has a strong passion for climbing and loves to see the joy that the sport can bring to people. He aims to share his passion by creating experiences, challenges and a variety of movement through his setting. Taking inspiration from his own climbing background, Tucker is sure to serve you up some high quality climbs.
After finding climbing in DFW in 2007, Tucker was a part of the youth climbing scene for several years until he started working at the climbing gym and quickly found routesetting to be something he wanted to pursue professionally.
When Tucker isn’t climbing at the gym or setting you may find him climbing, climbing, or climbing.

Luke Sherlock

Luke is a lover of all things climbing since his beginnings with the sport in 2018. Though primarily a boulderer, he enjoys other disciplines from sport climbing to board climbing, crack climbing, and hopefully alpinism in the future. Growing up in Dallas, Luke recognizes the need to experience climbing movement across disciplines as part of one larger skill library, and is always looking to bring those various styles to modern gym bouldering. He believes that routesetting first and foremost serves the community, and as such should be a combination of safe, fun, challenging, inspiring, and experimental. Outside of climbing, Luke puts his engineering degree to use by playing video games, reading, and listening to all kinds of electronic music.

Fredrik Balawis

Fredrik is a route setter for the people. He believes that the first mentor relationship gym climbers build are with the routes themselves. Because of these beliefs, he understands that routes should be equitable, yet provide the challenges that climbers need to progress and stay motivated. Fredrik knows that people make mistakes, it’s all a part of growth, and you never really stop growing. Movement is the perfect climbing gym to make mistakes and learn from them, so Fredrik is stoked to continue growing along with the Dallas climbing community.⁠

kyle baldwin

Kyle has been part of the DFW climbing community since he moved to Texas, and found the sport in 2016. His routesetting is a reflection of his background in the climbing industry.

While routesetting for the past six years, Kyle has also been a coach and an avid competitor. In his routesetting, Kyle strives to share and teach all of the skills he has learned throughout his own climbing career. The knowledge and understanding of movement he gained from coaching have helped him develop skills for his setting.

The intent behind Kyle’s routesetting is to teach climbers new skills by creating different “situations” on the wall that make learning new moves the focus. He believes that by widening their skill sets, climbers are able to enjoy the sport to its fullest.

His passion to push his own limits continues to drive his own climbing career outdoors, and indoors as he annually takes part in local and national competitions. Off the wall, Kyle enjoys watching scary movies, and playing chess and video games.

samantha littletree

Samantha loves all things climbing and has worn many different hats within the industry. From connecting with the community by working the front desk to being a professional climbing guide with REI, she has finally settled on route setting to be her bread and butter. She loves to set routes and boulders that are fair, functional, and fun. Her main inspiration for climbs are ones that make you twist and turn your hips and require tension, like you’re dancing up the wall. Knowing that there are many different body types that climb, Sammy enjoys seeing everyone create their own unique beta.

Samantha is looking forward to exploring as many opportunities as possible to continue to learn and challenge herself. One of her goals is to get her Level 3 route setting certification with USAC. Sammy also believes in being an advocate for diversity within the climbing community and the route setting world. In the future, she hopes to see MORE route setters from all backgrounds and walks of life.

When Sammy is not climbing, you can find her doing some sort of outdoor activity like disc golf, walking, or working on her yard. She can also be found snuggled up with her three cats and doing puzzles.

FAQs

  • Who is on my Setting Team?

    Each of our regions has a designated setting team. Above you can see pictures of our setters. If you see any of them around the gyms please say “hi” and introduce yourself.

  • How do I know what is being set next?

    We post our route setting schedule every two weeks. The goal with the setting schedule is to communicate where our team will be setting so you know which zones will be closed and where to look for your new climbs.

  • What days can I expect the setting team to be working?

    Typically, our team sets weekdays between 8am-4:30pm.

  • How long does it take to set a climb?

    Each setter will build between 3-6 boulders or 1-2 routes in 4 hours then group into smaller forerunning teams for about 2-3 hours and calibrate the climbs to ensure all challenges are grade-appropriate and adjust for quality & accessibility for a spectrum of climber types.

     

  • How does the setting team grade climbs?

    The day will begin with our Head Setter mapping out the intended grades for each of the climbs for the day. Once the first draft is complete which we call a ‘Skeleton’ we will have the primary setter forerun the climb and adjust any movements and swap out holds to get us closer to the intended grade. Our primary goal is to ensure the climbing movement meets our quality criteria then ensure we are hitting our mark with the grade. We will have at least one other setter forerun and make adjustments to the climb. The setting team will have a conversation about the grade and place our consensus in KAYA.

  • Why does this set of new climbs feel easier/harder compared to the last set?

    It could feel easier because the holds are clean with fresh texture. It could feel harder because you have not gained the muscle memory just yet. Each climb is unique and could be presenting a unique challenge that might fit your skillset or be out of your routine climbing movement. Either way, we appreciate your input and hope that you share on KAYA so our setting team can better understand what you desire so we can make every climb a uniquely positive experience.

  • Where do I report a spinning hold?

    If you find a hold that moves or seems loose, let the front desk know and they will get the info to the setting team to fix it.

  • How do I get into routesetting?

    We have a company opportunity page where we post all new employment opportunities. As a department we are looking for passionate climbers who are curious about exploring movement and designing appropriate challenges for our gym users. Keep an eye out for a community event called ‘Setting with the Setters’ where our setting team provides a guided experience of what our team does to create new climbs.

  • What is the minimum climbing ability for a routesetter?

    We have found that climbing at least V4 or 5.11+ is essential to meet the demands of forerunning each work day and basic understanding of movement. If you are not there yet and have interest please share your interest to your local head setter. They might be able to guide you to become a contender for our apprenticeship program.

  • Does our gym have an apprenticeship program?

    We have training for newly hired seasoned setters but our apprentice program is designed to take a new setter who has limited or no experience and mentor them through a 6 month program. We encourage motivated individuals to apply because we have a system to train you to become a great setter.