APEX Pilot APEX

Powerlifting meet software that's easy to run

APEX runs your meet from weigh-in to results on one laptop, and it's simple enough to learn on meet day. Referees judge from their own phones, coaches send attempts from theirs, and lifters see why they got a red light.

Everything connects over the meet's own Wi-Fi, so nothing depends on the venue's internet.

Who we are

We've run meets, coached at them, lifted in them and refereed them. Our team is made up of referees, meet directors, state chairs, coaches, and athletes who have competed at Nationals, the Arnold, and Worlds.

APEX is the meet software we wanted from each of those seats: easy for a first-time volunteer, nothing extra for the director to bring, and more for the lifter. We tailor it to your federation's rules and set it up with you.

The scoring table during squats. Kai Mendez is lifting 190 kg. Maya Chen needs a weight, with 46 seconds on her clock and Enter weight and Default 150 buttons, and Ava Brooks's 107.5 kg from her coach is waiting, with Confirm and Change.
A coach's phone during squats. A gold banner reads Submit now: Maya Chen, squat 3, with 46 seconds on the clock. Below it, Kai Mendez is lifting 190 kg.
A sample meet at one moment: the scoring table, and a coach's phone with 46 seconds left to send Maya's third squat.

How it works

  • One laptop

    Runs the meet and saves every change as it happens.

  • One travel router

    Makes the meet's own Wi-Fi. No internet needed.

  • No apps to install

    Phones, tablets and TVs open APEX in a web browser.

That's the whole kit. Referees judge from their own phones, so there's no referee equipment to buy, pack or charge. For the TV, use anything that can open a web page. The travel router is a pocket-sized Wi-Fi box; we'll help you choose one and get it all set up.

Every seat in the room

Real screens from a sample meet. Each one is built for the person using it and shows only what they need right now.

Scoring table

The table keeps the meet moving and fixes everyone's mistakes, usually against the clock. One screen shows who's lifting, who still needs a weight, what coaches have sent, and every recent change.

Close-up of the scoring table. Maya Chen needs a weight for squat 3, with 46 seconds on her clock and Enter weight and Default 150 buttons. Below it, Ava Brooks's 107.5 kg from her coach waits, with Confirm and Change.
Maya Chen needs a weight and her clock is running; Ava Brooks's coach has sent 107.5 kg.

TV

The crowd and the loaders read the TV from across the hall, so it shows the lifter, the weight and the plates for each side in big type. The lights appear only once all three referees are in, and after a red light the card shows why. The loaders get their own view with bigger plates.

TV display: Kai Mendez, 190 kg, with the plates for each side drawn in competition colours: 25, 25, 25, 5 and 2.5 plus collar. Up next: Jordan Blake 210 kg, Tyler Nash 215 kg, Owen Hale 252.5 kg. TV display after the decision: the panel turns red for Kai Mendez, 190 kg, with two red lights and one white and the words No lift. Below, a blue card: Double bounce or more than one recovery attempt.
Before the lift, then two red lights and the card that says why: no lift.

Referees

Referees judge standing up, with one hand free and their eyes on the lift, so each one gets two big buttons on their own phone, with nothing to install. At smaller events, one phone can give all three lights.

Referee phone: Kai Mendez, 190 kg, flight A, squat 2, with a large Good lift button and a large No lift button.
The left referee's phone as Kai Mendez sets up for 190 kg.

Coaches

Coaches handle several lifters at once in a crowded warm-up room. One glance shows how many attempts until each lifter is up and the weight they take next. Signing in takes a 6-digit code from the table.

A coach's phone. Jordan Blake is 1 attempt out and on deck, and his next squat of 210 kg is confirmed by the table. Ava Brooks is 4 attempts out, about 4 minutes, with 107.5 kg sent to the table and waiting.
Jordan's next squat is confirmed by the table; Ava's is still waiting.

Check-in station

Optional

Identity, equipment and weigh-in in one place, then Clear to lift. The scoring table can do the same from its own tab.

The check-in station on a tablet before the meet. Maya Chen is in progress: identity done, with membership, photo ID and waiver passed, and the equipment check started with her singlet passed. A gold banner says the equipment check closes in 29:54, with 6 lifters not cleared.
Maya Chen's identity is done and her equipment check is under way.

Walk-up kiosk

Optional

A screen at the table where lifters hand in their next weight, the way they would hand in a paper card.

The walk-up kiosk on a tablet: Maya Chen, squat 3. Last: 147.5 kg, good lift; at least 150 kg. 46 seconds left to hand in. A scroll wheel of weights in 2.5 kg steps, each with pounds beside it, stopped on 152.5 kg (336.2 lb), with −2.5 kg and +2.5 kg buttons, a Record attempt (0.5 kg steps) box, and a gold Hand in 152.5 kg · 336.2 lb button.
Maya scrolls to 152.5 kg for her third squat, with pounds beside every weight and 46 seconds to spare.

Why we built it

The things we wanted fixed, from every side of the platform.

  • Your first meet shouldn't need a training day

    Each screen shows the person using it what to do next, in plain words, with one main button. A volunteer new to the table, a referee using APEX for the first time and a coach who just walked in can each find their way without a manual.

    We set up your first meet with you.

  • Directors shouldn't have to bring referee hardware

    Referees open APEX on their own phones and sign in with a PIN from the table. There are no light boxes, cables or spare devices to buy, carry and charge. At smaller events, one phone can give all three lights.

  • Coaches shouldn't have to sprint to the table

    Coaches send the next weight from their phones before the clock runs out, and the table confirms it with one click.

    Paper still works. The table can enter any weight by hand.

  • The table shouldn't type everything twice

    Bring the roster in from a spreadsheet. Weigh-ins, openers and rack heights are typed once, and every screen uses them.

    Placings and best lifter (DOTS or IPF GL points) are worked out for you. Results come out ready for OpenPowerlifting, with weigh-in, equipment check and check-in sheets for Excel or Google Sheets.

  • Lifters should get more out of meet day

    After a red light, the referee taps the failure card on their phone. The reason shows up on the coach's phone and the TV within seconds, so the lifter knows what to fix before the next attempt.

    Results come out ready for OpenPowerlifting. Next, lifters will send their own attempts and follow the meet from their own phones.

    Ellie Brandt's entry on her coach's phone: no lift at 137.5 kg on squat 2, with two red lights and one white, and a red card for depth: hips not below the knees.
    What Ellie's coach sees after her second squat.

  • The table should always have the final say

    Every change is saved the moment it's made, and any change can be undone. If the laptop restarts, start APEX again and every screen catches up on its own.

Your federation's rules

Every federation runs things a little differently, so APEX keeps every rule in one place and sets it up for each one. USAPL's 2026 rulebook comes built in, since that's where we started, and our tests run against it. We tailor APEX to your rulebook before your meet.

Classes and equipment

  • Weight classes and age divisions
  • Bar, collar and plate weights
  • The check-in checklist

Attempts and judging

  • Attempt increments, minimum jumps and change limits
  • The clock for declaring the next attempt
  • Failure cards and their rule numbers

Pilot APEX at your meet

We're looking for a few meet directors, in any federation, to run APEX at their meets.

We run meets too. Tell us how you run yours, and we'll set APEX up around it, including your federation's rules.

For your first meet, run APEX alongside the system you use now, so nothing depends on it until you trust it.

Email us about a pilot

We'll write back to talk through your meet and how we'd set APEX up for it.