The CAWA 12 Hours of Madness is back — and this year, it falls on Halloween.

On Saturday 31 October, we’re taking the Madness back to Mountain Quarry for 12 hours of climbing, challenges, costumes and questionable decisions about whether just one more route is really a good idea.

The format stays the same: grab your climbing partner and spend the day collecting as many points as you can. Climb hard for the full 12 hours, take strategic snack breaks, chase bonus points, or simply settle in for a huge day of climbing with the WA climbing community.

At its heart, Madness is a social climbing competition. There’ll be plenty happening throughout the day, with side competitions, prizes, food, music and opportunities to score points beyond simply climbing the hardest routes.

And because this year’s Madness lands on Halloween, there’ll be an extra challenge: bring your spooky side.

Costumes are strongly encouraged — coordinate with your teammate, keep it simple or go completely ridiculous. We’ll have prizes for those who embrace the theme, but remember that anything you wear while climbing or belaying must still allow you to do so safely.

Whether you’re chasing the podium, trying to beat last year’s score or just coming along for 12 hours of climbing and good company, there’s a place for you in the Madness.

Come for the climbing. Stay for the chaos. Embrace the Madness.

• When: Saturday 31 October 2026, 6:00 am–6:00 pm, with presentations afterwards

• Where: Mountain Quarry, Greenmount National Park

• Format: Teams of two; log climbs for points throughout the day, with side competitions along the way

• Categories: Recreational, Intermediate, Advanced and Masters

• Capacity: 27 teams

• Registration: Per team of two

• Early Bird: $50 per team — until 24 October 2026

• Standard Entry: $60 per team — from 25 October 2026

• Dinner: Paella included with registration

Spectators and supporters are very welcome to come along and join the Madness – for spectating and support, not for climbing.

⚠️ Important: This is not a guided climbing event. Participants are responsible for their own safety, equipment and climbing decisions. CAWA does not provide climbing instruction or supervision.

Competition, Safety Rules & Categories

The Competition

Climbers compete in teams of two, accumulating points between 6:00 am and 6:00 pm.

The aim is simple: climb, collect points and see how much Madness you and your teammate can fit into 12 hours.

You don’t need to climb continuously. Take breaks, grab some food, join the side competitions and enjoy the day — how you tackle the 12 hours is entirely up to your team.

Prizes will be awarded to the teams accumulating the most points within each category.

And because Madness has never been only about winning, there’ll be plenty of other prizes up for grabs.

Bonus Awards

Expect prizes for:

• Best Halloween costume

• Team spirit — voted by the CAWA crew

• Most boulders ticked

• Spirit of the Day — voted by participants

• Hardest route ticked

• Hardest boulder ticked

• Most individual points in each category

• Plus more surprises throughout the day

This year is Spooky Madness, so we’re expecting Halloween costumes to reach a new level.

Coordinate with your teammate, go subtle, go ridiculous or arrive looking like you’ve just crawled out from behind the Main Wall.

Just remember: costumes must not compromise climbing or belaying safety.

Categories

Individual climbers are classified according to their hardest outdoor redpoint:

• Recreational – Hardest redpoint up to Grade 19

• Intermediate – Usually climbing Grades 20–23

• Advanced – Climbing Grade 24+

• Masters – A team qualifies for Masters when at least one team member is 50+, or both team members are 45+.

Your team competes according to the category of the stronger climber:

• Recreational: both team members are Recreational climbers

• Intermediate: one or both members are Intermediate, with neither Advanced

• Advanced: one or both members are Advanced

• Masters: meets the Masters age criteria above

Scoring

1. Base Points

Base points are awarded according to the grade of the climb and apply to eligible sport, trad and boulder problems.

The final 2026 points table and eligible route list will be published before the competition.

2. Trad Bonus

Trad lines earn a 50% bonus on their base points to recognise the additional time, equipment and skills involved.

For example, if a climb is worth 12 base points: 12 × 1.5 = 18 points

3. Repeats

Repeating routes is allowed, but the points decrease:

• 1st ascent: 100% of points

• 2nd ascent: 75%

• 3rd ascent: 25%

• 4th and subsequent ascents: no points

4. Team Score

Your team’s final score is the combined points of both climbers.

Competition Rules

• Climbers compete in teams of two.

• Team members must belay each other. External belayers are not permitted.

• Eligible Routes – Only climbs included on the official 2026 Madness score sheet are eligible for competition points.

• What Counts as a Successful Lead? A successful lead starts from the bottom of the route with no top-rope in place. The climber must clip protection along the way and reach the anchor:

  • without falling

  • without hanging on the rope

  • without pulling on gear.

• Trad and mixed climbs must be redpointed. Pinkpointing is permitted on sport routes only.

• Seconding Trad Routes – A successful second may count as an ascent only on specifically nominated top-out trad routes.

• One Party Per Route – Only one climbing party may be on a route at a time. This applies to both single and multi-pitch routes included in the competition.

• Stick Clips – Only the first bolt may be stick-clipped.

• Attempts

  • Climbers may have a maximum of two back-to-back attempts on a climb, whether successful or unsuccessful.

  • After two attempts, you must move to another climb before returning.

  • If you fall on your first attempt, you may lower and try again.

  • Where it is safe to do so, you may leave the rope clipped to your high point, yoyo back to that point and continue the route on your second attempt.

  • If you fall again, you must move on to another climb before returning.

• Score Sheets

  • Electronic and hard-copy score sheets will be available.

  • All scores must be submitted before the competition finishes at 6:00 pm.

  • Don’t let 12 hours of climbing disappear into the darkness because someone forgot to press Submit.

Safety Rules

Only experienced and self-sufficient outdoor lead climbers are eligible to compete.

By registering, participants agree to follow the Competition Rules and CAWA Terms & Conditions.

Helmets are mandatory while climbing, belaying and around the cliff.

Anyone observed putting themselves or other people at unnecessary risk may be disqualified.

This includes:

• skipping bolts

• reckless climbing or belaying

• unsafe behaviour

• ignoring instructions from event officials.

A Halloween costume is not an exemption from common sense.

Route Cleaning

Climbers must clean routes after they have finished climbing them.

As with previous Madness competitions, CAWA intends to provide locking carabiners for designated anchors where appropriate.

The first climber on those routes will install the provided locking carabiners at the anchor. For the remainder of the competition, climbers can clip and lower from these carabiners when cleaning the route.

Final route-specific arrangements will be confirmed in the competition briefing.

Spooky Madness

Halloween gives us an excuse to add a little more Madness to the Madness. Fancy dress is strongly encouraged, and we’ll be looking for individuals and teams who properly embrace the Halloween theme.

Costumes still need to be suitable for climbing. Nothing should interfere with:

• your harness

• your belay device

• your helmet

• visibility

• communication

• safe movement

• access to climbing equipment.

The Head Judge may require a costume or part of a costume to be removed if it isn’t considered safe for climbing or belaying.

Save the really impractical bits for the ground.

Food, Side Comps & Festival Vibes

Madness isn’t just 12 hours staring at a score sheet.

We’re planning another full community day around the competition, with music, food, photos, side competitions and plenty happening between climbs.

Last year’s Madness included challenges such as the slackline showdown, knot-off and pull-up competition, alongside climbing awards and plenty of opportunities to score bragging rights without being the strongest climber at the quarry.

Paella dinner is included with your team registration.

Additional vendors, food options, side competitions and the final program will be confirmed closer to the event.

About Mountain Quarry

For 2026, Madness returns to Mountain Quarry in Greenmount National Park.

Mountain Quarry is one of Perth’s best-established outdoor climbing venues, offering an extensive mix of sport and trad climbing across a broad range of grades, together with bouldering around the quarry. CAWA will prepare a dedicated competition route list rather than making every climb at Mountain Quarry eligible. This allows routes to be selected for suitability, safety and competition flow.

Rock climbing and abseiling at Mountain Quarry require advance booking with Parks and Wildlife Service. CAWA will coordinate the venue booking for the event.

Please respect the area, other park users and the environment throughout the day.

Camping is not permitted at Mountain Quarry. Dogs and other pets are not permitted in Greenmount National Park.

What Happens on the Day?

The competition runs from 6:00 am sharp until 6:00 pm.

We’ll follow the same overall event format as previous Madness competitions, with climbing throughout the day, side competitions and food along the way, followed by presentations after climbing finishes.

The detailed event run-sheet, competition route list, scoring table, vendor information and final participant briefing will be provided closer to the event.

Make sure you’re ready to climb when the Madness begins.

Final Reminder

Climbing is an inherently dangerous activity.

Every participant is responsible for assessing the routes they climb, the equipment they use and the conditions they encounter.

CAWA provides the competition framework and event coordination — not climbing instruction or supervision.

Climb within your abilities, look after your teammate, look after the people around you and help us make Spooky Madness a safe and memorable day.

12 hours. Two climbers. One score sheet. A questionable number of costumes.