Before world-class athletes visit Longmont this weekend for the Ice Climbing World Cup, one big piece of the competition needs assembly: the ice wall.
Standing nearly 50 feet tall, the wall will be the centerpiece of this weekend’s festivities. At the Climbing Collective gym in east Longmont, climbers will dig their ice axes into the frozen pillar as they race to the top, an unobstructed view of the Front Range mountains behind them.
Ice blocks on the ice climbing wall catch the sunlight as construction on the wall continues for WinterFest and the Ice Climbing World Cup at Longmont Climbing Collective on Thursday. (Matthew Jonas/Staff Photographer)
This is Longmont Climbing Collective’s second time hosting the Ice Climbing World Cup. The Longmont stop of the UIAA World Cup tour will feature roughly 100 participating athletes competing Saturday and Sunday. Members of the public can attend WinterFest, a community festival at LCC with live music and chances to watch the athletes in action this weekend.
LCC is putting the wall together by attaching individual ice blocks to the scaffolding. The blocks come from Colorado Ice Works, a Denver metro company that specializes in crafting ice for elaborate sculptures.
For the inaugural WinterFest last year, the LCC team used glycol to keep its ice wall cold. That method proved problematic when a climber’s tool broke through the wall and punctured the glycol line during the finals.
Shauna Hylenski, director of programs at Climbing Collective, said Colorado Ice Works reached out to the LCC team after the 2025 World Cup offering to build this year’s wall — no chemicals necessary.
“We’re like, ‘Yes, please,’” Hylenski recalled, “because the ice wall last year was kind of our biggest challenge. We knew we needed something different.”
Since the wall is outside, exposure to the elements is a concern. White tarps placed around the wall will help reflect the sun and protect the ice blocks. At night, the cold weather should allow the wall to freeze, Hylenski explained.
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“I think the temperatures look pretty good, especially in the evenings,” she said. Lows should be below freezing Friday through Sunday, according to AccuWeather.
This week, the ice wall is finally taking shape. Outside the gym at 155 Pinnacle St., the ice blocks have been carefully stacked on top of each other to create the massive pillar. Each block is 4 feet long, 2 feet deep and 1 foot high, Hylenski said.
Bryan Hylenski prepares an ice block for installation on the ice climbing wall at Longmont Climbing Collective on Thursday. The gym is hosting WinterFest and the UIAA Ice Climbing World Cup this weekend. (Matthew Jonas/Staff Photographer)
Hylenski said several of the athletes who came last February told her they enjoyed the opportunity to spend time in Longmont. She’s excited that Climbing Collective can continue to host the competition.
“I’m sure there will be a few surprises thrown our way but, in general, we’re feeling really good about being a lot more prepared for everything this year,” she said.
Tickets for WinterFest are available at climbingcollective.co.