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Beginner Competition
The Competition at a Glance
30 Minutes
Participants have 30 Minutes to remove a hood dent.
The Task
Precision and attention to detail are key when removing the dents
Judging Criteria
Work will be judged by technique, speed, professionalism and quality of work.
Victory
Only the best will take home the coveted Dent Trials trophy, as well as prizes from our exhibitors.
Will it be you?
Who
Competitors must have under 2 years’ experience in the PDR industry.
Sign-ups
Coming
Next Year-
Ready to take the challenge?
Competition sign-ups coming in 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
When you arrive at PDR Expo, come check in at the Dent Competition area. We will confirm your arrival & let you know when to come back based on your competition time.
If you are late, you lose that amount of time. If you are more than 10 minutes late, you forfeit & will not receive a refund.
Contestants are scheduled every 45 minutes for the Beginners Competition.
You can bring your tools if you like, but you can also borrow tools from vendors at the show. Make plans with vendors before your competition time. We do provide lights & stands, window guards, window wedges, glue guns, glue, various tabs, slide hammers, mini lifters, and polish & towels for you to use. Anything else you need, you provide.
For Beginners competition, you will receive 30 minutes to complete in removing a dent from a hood.
Yes: no sanding, no heat, and no coaching. If you are caught doing any of these, you will be immediately disqualified, and no refund will be given.
No, you will have 10 minutes to set up and 5 minutes to break down that does not come out of your competition time.
Contestants will receive a 10-minute warning as their time is expiring. Contestants may stop & call their dent complete at any time if they finish before time has expired. Judging will begin when the dent is complete and/or time is up. Dents will receive preliminary judging by the competition moderators immediately upon completion of the dent. A final judging will be done at the finish of the competition by a separate panel of judges.
We ask that you arrive at least 10 minutes before your start time. If you are more than 10 minutes late for your competition time, you forfeit the time missed and you will not be refunded.
Awards & prizes will be announced at the end of the show on Saturday.
The top three winners will receive a trophy and prizes from our vendors. The first-place winner of the Beginners Competition will receive hotel and entry into the Dent Trails at the 2026 PDR Expo in Las Vegas.