All About the CWA Canadian Industry Conference
From October 26 to 30, the CWA is bringing a full week of education and certification to Montreal. Two days of conference programming built specifically around Canadian gym operations, and five days of certification courses hosted at Allez Up.
This is the largest gathering of Canadian climbing wall professionals the CWA has organized yet. Here is what is on the program, who will be there, and how you can share your feedback on how the CWA can do more for our Canadian members.
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What the CWA Does for Canadian Climbing Gyms
The CWA is a worldwide association, and Canada is not an afterthought. Our certification programs run at Canadian facilities. Our standards inform how Canadian gyms build, inspect, and operate. Our members in Canada get resources, education, and access to the industry's collective knowledge.
This conference is a step further. Rather than asking Canadian operators to travel to a US event and pick out what applies, we built a program around Canadian conditions. Canadian waiver law. The Canadian insurance market. Canadian gyms talking to Canadian gyms about what is working.
We think that is the right direction. We also think we are early in it, and we would rather find out what we are missing from you than guess.
Tell Us What Else We Should Be Doing
We put together a short survey for the Canadian climbing wall community. It takes about five minutes. It asks what the CWA is getting right, what it is not, and what would actually make a difference at your facility.
Certification access in your region, standards work that speaks to provincial regulation, events, advocacy on issues specific to Canada, and insurance resources. If any of that is on your list, or something we have not thought of is, this is where you can tell us.
Respondents are entered for a chance to win free membership with the CWA.
Whether you make it to Montreal or not, we want your input. The survey is open to every Canadian climbing wall professional, member or not.
For questions about certification, membership, or other CWA programs and services, contact hello@cwapro.org.
Who You'll Meet on the Trade Show Floor
The trade show runs alongside both conference days, through lunch and the after party. Exhibitors include Asana Climbing, Bodega, Bold Climbing, Clava, Edelrid, Flashed Sports, Griptonite, Grivel, Rock Gym Pro, and Sterling Rope.
Our sponsors for the week are Walltopia on registration, Redpoint HQ on lunch, Climb Insure on the after party, and EP Climbing as session sponsor. We could not pull this event off without the generous help from our sponsors.
Attendees will be coming from all over Canada and will include gym owners, managers, routesetters, and more! You'll also get a chance to meet with CWA Staff and Board members.
Where and When
Conference sessions run at the DoubleTree by Hilton Pointe-Claire Montreal Airport West, 6700 Route Transcanadienne, Pointe-Claire, Québec. Discounted rooms are available at the DoubleTree.
Certification courses run at Allez Up in Pointe-Saint-Charles, Montreal. Running certifications in an operating gym means candidates train on real walls, real anchors, and real setting problems rather than a hotel ballroom mockup.
- Monday, October 26: Certifications begin. Climbing Wall Instructor (CWI) Provider, Work at Height (WAH) Level 1, Professional Routesetting (PRS) Level 2 Ropes.
- Tuesday, October 27: Conference day one, plus the networking lunch, trade show, and after party.
- Wednesday, October 28: Conference day two, trade show, and send-off.
- Thursday, October 29: Certifications continue. WAH Level 2, PRS Level 2 Boulder, PRS Level 2 Ropes.
- Friday, October 30: Final certification courses. WAH Provider and PRS Provider.
The Conference Program
Tuesday, October 27
- 9:00am, Industry Roundtable. A panel of industry experts opening the floor on where Canadian indoor climbing is heading.
- 11:00am, Leadership and Crucial Conversations. Maxine Hill, executive leadership coach and master trainer with Crucial Learning, on the conversations managers avoid and what it costs when they do.
- 12:00pm, Lunch, Networking, and Trade Show. Sponsored by Redpoint HQ.
- 2:00pm, Insurance. Climb Insure and Nacora Insurance Brokers on coverage in the Canadian market.
- 3:15pm, Free Climbing at Your Gym? Khaled and Kenneth from Crag X on how they handle it.
- 4:30pm, After Party and Trade Show. Sponsored by Climb Insure.
Wednesday, October 28
- 9:00am, Retail Best Practices. A panel roundtable on the pro shop as a revenue line rather than an afterthought.
- 10:30am, When Waivers Work for Canadian Gyms, and When They Don't. Jon Heshka of Thompson Rivers University. Canadian waiver law does not track the American version, and this session covers where the differences bite.
- 11:30am, Lunch, Networking, and Trade Show. Sponsored by Walltopia.
- 1:00pm, Safe Sport in the Climbing World. Alison Forsyth.
- 2:30pm, Send-off and Trade Show.
The two-day conference is $125 for members and $250 for non-members. It is free with any certification course registration.
Certification Courses
Three certification tracks are running across the week. Member rates are listed.
Climbing Wall Instructor (CWI)
- CWI Provider: $850. Qualifies you to teach and assess CWI candidates at your own facility.
- CWI Provider Renewal: $450, for current providers keeping their credential active.
Work at Height (WAH)
- WAH Level 1: $550.
- WAH Level 2: $550.
- WAH Level 1 and 2 Bundle: $1,000.
- WAH Provider: $850.
Professional Routesetting (PRS)
- PRS Level 2 Boulder Direct Entry: $200.
- PRS Level 2 Ropes: $700 member, $1,200 non-member.
- PRS Provider: $850.
Provider courses are the ones that change your staffing math. Once you have a provider on payroll, you train and certify in house instead of waiting for a course to come to your region. For Canadian gyms that has usually meant travel budgets and scheduling around courses hosted somewhere else.