Welcome to Climbing

I started this blog to write about everything I could think of about climbing. Specifically I want people who are just learning to climb or want to know how. Maybe you heard about it from a friend or just saw someone climbing so now you want to try it out. I hope that this blog will help by telling you what you need to start climbing and where to try out your skills. I’m only a freshman in high school but I have been climbing for a few years and in many different places all over California.

Still I am a beginner compared to most. But this means that I know exactly what new climbers are looking for. I started climbing without any climber to help me so I couldn’t ask any questions. I had to slowly figure it out; were could I go for help? What materials did I need and were certain brands better then others? What were good climbing places both indoor and out? I am starting to answer these questions but it took a while. Hopefully this blog will make it easier for you to start climbing without groping around in the dark without a clue of what to do. Since I still don’t know that much about climbing I’m going to learn as I post, putting everything on that I learn.

Obviously I’m not a professional and I’m not going to be able to answer every question so this blog is more about telling you how to get the information you need if I don’t have the answer. I will however explain the basics as I go along. If you have questions my email is on my profile.

Another blog to check out

I would like to recommend another blog that a friend of mine posted. It doesn’t really have anything to do with climbing but it’s a good blog. Also climbing doesn’t have to be your only hobby after all. This blog is about PS 3 games and what he thinks of them. I got his permission to paste the welcome paragraph onto this post.

“I created this blog for all those frustrating times when you are about to buy a new video game for your PS3, but dont know if its really a good game. Sure, you could trust the opnions of those big-wigs across the globe, advertising their impressions, but wouldn’t you want an unbiased review from the people? I know I would.

So throughout the upcoming posts of the best and worst video games to grace the PS3, you will know who the real winners are. I will review the painstakingly terrible and beutifully crafted games alike. Soon you will have the confidence to walk into gamestop and pick out your new favorite game with ease.”

This guys writing is really good and some of his posts are really funny. Before you buy a game I recommend that you check his posts out.

Click here to get to site:

If that doesn’t work just copy and past the link:

http://ps3gamereview.wordpress.com/

Climbing grading scale

When you get to a climb that you don’t know about or if you’re climbing a face with multiple pitches or just multiple climbs the different climbs are graded by difficulty. Different countries use different systems but most use one of the systems listed below. The farther down you go on the list the more difficult the climb.

Australian	US YDS	UK	France	UIAA
1	1			I
2	2			I
3	3	1a		II
4	4	1b		III-
5	5.0	1c		III
6	5.0	2a		III+
7	5.1	2b		IV-
8	5.1	2c		IV
9	5.2	3a		IV+
10	5.2	3a		IV+
11	5.3	3b		V-
12	5.4/5	3b		V-
13	5.6	4a		V
14	5.7	4a		V
15	5.8	4b		V+
16	5.8	4b		V+
17	5.9	4c	6a	VI-
18	5.9	5a	6a+	VI-
19	5.10a	5a	6b	VI
20	5.10b	5b	6b+	VI
21	5.10c/d	5b	6c	VI
22	5.11a	5c	6c+	VII
23	5.11b	6a	7a	VII
24	5.11c	6a	7a+	VIII-
25	5.11d	6b	7b	VIII
26	5.12b	6b	7b+	VIII+
27	5.12d	6c	7c	IX-
28	5.13a	7a	7c+	IX
29	5.13b	7b	8a	IX+
30	5.13c		8a+	X-
31	5.13d		8b	X-
32	5.14a		8b+	X
33	5.14b		8c	X+
34	5.14c		8c+

I already mentioned before the grading scale for bouldering, but if you didn’t read that post or you forgot, the scale is in V and then a number, like V2, the higher the number the harder the problem.

Climbing in New Zealand

My cousin just recently left for New Zealand with a friend of his. He planned to stay down there for about 6-8 months. He didn’t really have a plan beyond just climbing whenever he could and when he needed money he would get a short job and work for it. He kept this up for a few months until some unexpected developments forced him to come back to California. I decided to write a blog post about climbing in New Zealand to show why he went down there in the first place.

The sport in New Zealand has experienced an almost exponential growth in popularity during it’s relatively short history. The increase can in part be attributed to the availability of indoor rockclimbing walls and media coverage of New Zealand Sportclimbing competitions. Throughout the sport’s history New Zealand  Rock Climbing has earned an international reputation, mainly because the country has some of the best Places to Climb on the planet.

The history of Rock Climbing in New Zealand stems from Mountaineering where climber’s desired to climb progressively more extreme peaks and that in turn drove climbers to develop better safety equipment and new rockclimbing techniques. In preparation to for the next peak, mountaineers would climb shorter but more extreme rockclimbing routes in order to hone their skills. Initially this activity was considered as just another form of training, however by about 1925 it began to evolved into a sport in its own right. It was about that time climbers began to grade the difficulty of each climb in order to measure their rockclimbing ability and to gauge their performance against other climbers.

Because the sport spread to different countries before international standards could be developed and accepted, many countries devised their own route grading system. As a result there now a number of different grading systems used throughout the world, which can be a little confusing. New Zealand has adopted the Australian “Ewbank” numerical grading system which uses a single numerical value to indicate route difficulty.

The popularity of rockclimbing is growing, equipment continues to evolve and the grading systems used to measure route difficulty are frequently extended as climbers improve their capabilities.

New Zealand has some of the best Climbing in the world. The variety of technical climbs combined with the longer pitches means New Zealand climbing has easy access and is really fun. This is the reason that my cousin went to New Zealand and the reason that many more will go in the future.

Regional Locations	Climbs
Northland	184
Auckland	80
Waikato	64
Wharepapa	796
Bay of Plenty	51
Taupo	225
Wellington	170
Nelson & Westland	490
Canterbury	865
Otago	430

Alex Honnold Free Solo Ascent of Half Dome

On September 6, 2008 a young climber by the name of Alex Honnold became the first climber to make a free solo ascent of Half Dome in Yosemite Park, California. He had already made a name for himself in the park the year before while climbing. In May, he made a one-day free ascent of Freerider (VI 5.12d, 37 pitches). In September he free soloed both Astroman (5.11c, 300m) and the Regular North Face of the Rostrum in a day. And in October he free climbed Salathe Wall (VI 5.13b/c, ca. 3,200′). After all these climbs he went to some other amazing summits including a free solo ascent of Moonlight Buttress (V 5.12+, 9 pitches).

This climb was not as technically difficult as some of his others but it was longer and on a much more iconic face. When asked about why he thought this was a more impressive climb he said “All the hard stuff is at the very top… it’s uncertain till the very end.” This created a very difficult mental problem for him to overcome the entire time he was climbing.

Honnold hiked up to the climb at 6:30 a.m. and began climbing after 8. He took one sustained break, for four minutes on Big Sandy, the ledge below the crux pitches, allowing him to complete the route in 2 hours, 50 minutes. In general this is a pretty impressive time but soloing that time is ridiculous. I hope you join me in looking for some of his newer exploits and wishing him luck.

Donner Summit Climbing Camp

This is a week long sleep away camp in Donner, it’s near Tahoe in the Sierra Nevadas. It costs 650 for room and board. You also need to do chores such as dish washing or taking the trash out. You wake up around 7:00 every morning and make lunch for yourself. Then you have breakfast in a large room. You leave shortly after and the rest of the day is spent climbing.

You climb outdoor with a main guide and then whoever else they can get to help. The climbs are excellent but short. They are basically the outdoor equivalent of gym climbing with only one or two pitches. One of the guides usually set up gear and top rope the climb for the campers. The climbs are very fun and are way different then in gyms. You use really different techniques to climb real rock then gyms. After climbing you head back to the lodge, to eat dinner in the cafeteria with everyone else. After dinner you basically get to do whatever you want for the rest of the night as long as you don’t wake anyone up.

They have a ping pong table and during most nights they have activities ranging from a night hike to watching climbing movies. They also have a common area were everyone spends most of their time. It has chess and couches with a coffee table for board games or whatever. You can also go outside and play a number of games from volleyball to soccer. Some nights they also have a campfire.

During the actual day climbing you get in the car after making your lunch and getting your equipment. You then drive to a different area each day to try new climbs of different types like flakes and crevices. You climb every day except Wednesday when you kayak on Donner Lake. You can swim and stuff if you want and it’s pretty fun. You kayak just to rest from climbing and give your muscles a break.

The actual climbs themselves are really good. They vary a lot from day to day but each face always has a wide enough variety of climbs so that beginner climbers as well as more experienced ones can have fun and be challenged. Most of the climbs you have to hike up a bit to get to but it’s not hard terrain and it gets you away from the road and cars. The camp counselor climbs first and inserts gear in the rock so that the campers don’t have to. When I was there our counselor, Peter Mayfield, did allow us to learn to use the gear if we wanted to but we didn’t have to know how to use it if we didn’t have to.

Overall the camp is extremely fun and a really good experience especially for people who have never climbed outdoor. I’ve only been once but I plan to attend again this summer during the second week of the camp.

Berkeley Ironworks

Ironworks is one of the indoor climbing gyms in the Bay Area. It is part of the Touchstone climbing gyms chain that was started by Peter Mayfield. It is one of the larger climbing gyms in the country and has a lot of stuff you can do besides climbing.

The climbing is good here but the bouldering is the best part. It has a very large bouldering wall with a large variety of difficulties and problems. It offers routes from V0 to V12 or higher. The problems are created by climbers so they are consistently changed and new problems are added while old ones are taken away. On some days it can be crowded but the size of the wall allows for many different climbers to use it at the same time. You sometimes have to wait for a specific problem but never for long.

The main wall is also very good. It is never as crowded as the bouldering wall but is just as good. The wall has many different top rope routes. This means that the rope is already on the wall so the climber doesn’t have to do anything. It has routes that vary from 5.6, which is basically like climbing a ladder, to expert climbs that I can’t even attempt for more then a couple moves.

It also has lead climbing routes. These routes don’t have a rope so you have to set up your own as you climb. For more detail you can check my post on different types of climbs. These climbs are the more difficult ones and are usually for climbers that are basically staying in shape for their next technical outdoor climb.

To climb you have to pay which in my opinion is the main disadvantage of indoor climbing. The rates are below:

Day Pass (weekdays after 3 pm and weekends)	$16
Day Pass (weekdays before 3 pm)	$10
Day Pass (14 years old and younger)	$10
One Month Pass	$90
Ten Visit Pass	$140

Membership rates:

Monthly Membership Dues	$65
Initiation Fee	$100
Student Initiation Fee	$50

If you don’t own your own equipment you can also rent there.

Full Package	$6
Shoes	$4
Harness	$2
Belay Device	Free

If you’re a first time climber they offer a class teaching you how to tie in correctly, belay, and whatever else you need to know to climb. You’re supposed to arrive 15 minutes before the class to register and stuff.

Monday-Friday 12:30pm, 4:30pm, 6pm, 7:30pm
Saturday-Sunday 11:30am, 1pm, 3pm
Length of class will depend on number of students.

The Things You Need to Climb.

Depending on what you want to climb the needed items can be quite different. There are also supplies that you might want to help you climb better but are not required. Technically you can climb with absolutely nothing which is illustrated by the free climbers who like to climb without any ropes or safety equipment. Some of them have even taken it to the next level and climbed up mountains wearing only their skin. I wouldn’t recommend taking after them for several reasons. The main one is that the equipment is designed simply to keep you safe in the case of a fall and climbing without it can be deadly on higher climbs. The second reason is that I imagine it wouldn’t be very comfortable or warm trying to climb at high altitude with nothing on.

1. Climbing harness.

The harness of course is essential both when climbing indoor and outdoor. It is the thing that’s keeping you from falling to the ground. It’s made up of two loops that go around each of your legs and one around your waist. The harness a simple design but if you’re using it for the first time make sure you ask someone, who knows what they’re doing, to show you how to tie in and secure the harness. You can rent harnesses at gyms but they aren’t as comfortable as bought ones and for outdoor climbing you generally have to have your own.

2. Shoes.

I’m not talking about normal shoes, to climb you almost always need climbing shoes. They aren’t needed for your safety but they allow you to use your feet much more effectively. If you’re trying anything close to difficult you really do need them. They are lace up shoes that have thin rubber soles, toes, and heels. They aren’t very comfortable because they squeeze your feet to make them better for climbing but are very useful.

3. ACT/belay device with carbineer.

This is needed for when you belay someone at any time. The rope runs through it and allows you to feed rope out for the climber, bring it in, or “brake” the rope when the climber falls. You need to be instructed on the use of a belay device before you use it so that you don’t let your partner fall.

4. Chalk bag.

I personally don’t use this except for longer climbs because my palms don’t sweat very much but chalk is used to dry out your hands and give you a better grip on the rock.

5. Rope.

Obviously you need this to secure yourself to the face. Without it you would be free climbing and before you do that make sure you’re ready.

6. Gear according to surroundings.

There is a lot of such gear that you might need depending on where you climb. You might need to place your own gear in the rock or rope could already be up and ready to be climbed. If you’re ice climbing then you might need ice axes and crampons. The different scenarios are extensive and I hope you can think for yourself about what you need.

7. Anything I forgot.

I’m sure I forgot some things so if you think of something that makes sense but isn’t down here make sure you bring it. Better to have it and carry it around then get to the climb and find out that you forgot your helmet for a loose face or sunscreen in the direct sun.

Types of Climbing

There are many different options for what you can climb. Different climbers prefer different types of climbing. The different things you can do are limited only by your ingenuity but the two main types that everything falls under are outdoor and indoor. Indoor obviously has much more limited options. Outdoor there is a lot more options but is less localized and takes more effort to get to. Depending on the type of person you are you might prefer one over the other or you might enjoy both for different reasons.

Indoor has three different main types of climbing; climbing top rope, bouldering, or if you want to take a more complicated route you can lead climb. All of them have there advantages and disadvantages. Indoor climbing is done in a climbing gym, so named because it was intended to keep climbers in shape for outdoor climbs. Top rope climbing is probably what you think of when you think of climbing in a gym. It’s the simplest concept. One person stays on the ground and belays the other up the wall. The belay line that is used runs through a device at the top of the climb and then comes back down. This means that the line can support the climber all the way to the top without having to using any gear or adjusting the rope. The climber ties into the belay line and climbs the wall. Because gyms try to pack as many climbs as possible in a small space the climber has to follow certain routes up if he/she wants a challenge. This means that he/she can only use certain holds to get to the top. The holds that are allowed are marked with certain colored tape. You can see the difficulty of each route before you attempt by looking at the starting hold which has a difficulty rating on it. The higher the number the more difficult the climb and the letters symbolize the technical difficulty with “a” being the easiest and the father down the alphabet the harder it gets.

You can also lead climb which is almost the same as top roping. The only difference is the difficulty and risk. When you lead climb you have a belayer and a rope but the rope doesn’t go all the way up to top. Instead you carry the rope as you go up. In a gym there are clips placed in the wall along the climb that you have to run the rope rough as you go up. Basically you attach the rope to anchors a few yards apart as you go up. That means that you are only attached to the wall on points that are below you. If you fall you fall all the way down double the distance from you to the last anchor. If you’re almost at the next anchor then that’s a hell of a drop. What can happen is you can fall away and then when the rope catches you swing towards the wall with all the momentum of your fall. This can bruise you up pretty bad or even break bones. You lead when you have to do a climb that doesn’t have a top rope or it has a traverse that can’t be done with a single fixed rope.

My personal favorite is bouldering. Instead of having to tie in it is the only thing indoor gyms will allow you to do without a rope. You also don’t need a belay partner. This is because the walls are only about 15 feet high. You can hurt yourself if you fall badly of course but generally the height isn’t enough to hurt if you fall. Because the routes are so short they are much more difficult and more technical then the long routes. They are a different kind of climbing were instead of endurance you need strong direct moves.

This is getting pretty long so I will add outdoor climbing on my next post.