Meet the Team: Ben Preston, Route Setter

Young Ben (we have three Bens here at Volume 1!) is a little more elusive around the centre than some of the rest of the team, as he is usually lurking in a cordoned off area! This is because Ben’s main role in the team is route setting: to help strip off and wash the holds, and then set new routes on the walls.

Climbing since age seven, Ben now climbs the hard stuff, and if you do spot him it will probably be on something nasty-looking on the comp wall. His passion for and dedication to climbing led him to investigate the world of route setting, where he could unleash creativity and recreate moves he has enjoyed and that have challenged him. At just nineteen years old, Ben sets thoughtful, outside-the-box, original boulder problems. He told us a bit about this process of route setting, as it often goes on behind the scenes yet is fundamental to your experience at the wall!

How long have you been route setting and how did you get into it?
I’ve been route setting since I was around sixteen. I knew that I wanted to work within climbing, and route setting was always interesting to me. I kept asking to help out with sets at my local wall at the time. Eventually I convinced them, and was put on to sets with more experienced setters. I did a lot of watching and listening!


How do you go about a new set of problems: do you plan routes in advance or do they come organically in the moment?
When setting new blocs its normally the holds or angle of wall that motivate me. As a setter at Volume 1 I have access to a great range of holds, and really cool walls. From long and steep overhangs, to the perfect angled slab. I like using big and colourful holds as they look great on the wall and people want to get on them. Occasionally I'll have a specific move in mind – either from a video or a boulder I’ve climbed somewhere – and I’ll try to recreate it, but with my own personal touch.


Do you think you need to climb to a high standard before you can route set, and why?
Setting routes is about creativity. For sure having climbed a lot will help, but you definitely don’t need to climb to a really high standard to be a good setter. Just pay attention when you are climbing, at whatever grade, to take in what works and feels good and what isn’t so good about routes and then apply it to your own setting.


What is your own climbing routine like, and how has it had to adapt during lockdown?
A normal week of training for me is spread over five days, often multiple sessions each day, either in the gym or at the climbing wall. Over lockdown I’ve had to get creative with what I have available at home. Luckily I’ve got access to a pretty good board and some weights. The hardest thing has been keeping motivation whilst having no variation of places to train!


How do you go about ensuring that the easier/lower grade problems are still interesting when you climb quite hard yourself?
The lower grade boulders can actually be the hardest to set, and often we spend more time perfecting them than the harder ones. For example at Volume 1 the comp wall is quite steep, and here we have to use good holds to make lower grade routes. It’s important that these lowers grade boulders have fun moves in them, just like the harder blocs. When we are done setting we will climb each others’ boulders. This is a really good way to make sure that they are not too simple and have something interesting about them.


What are your climbing and route setting goals for the next few years?
I haven’t been setting for long, just a few years. I’m keen to learn as much as I can from other, more experienced setters. As far as my climbing goes, I have some goals that I’m chasing down, but we will have to wait and see…!