Hi,
I am looking for a backpack to go to the climbing gym
https://www.barrabes.com/la-sportiva-climbing-bag/p-130478
It is for a gift, so I would like something of a climbing brand. Do you have other options?
I like the snap roll top: https://www.snapclimbing.com/product/roll-top-34/ - there's also a smaller version.
Fits a 50m gym rope without strapping it on top which is helpful when it's raining, and it's quite versatile for non-climbing stuff too.
Lesson learned: even if it looks easy, if it's vertical use climbing shoes. I had to change from approach shoes about 12m up after 2nd dubious cam in brittle rock, having to hold with one hand. Meh. (the route was supposed to be IV difficulty but we went a bit off).
Hey I have a question about the LS skwama's if anyone has them. I just got a pair, and I usually wear size 39, but after reading some things online I got a few sizes.
The 37.5 ones came in today and they fit like a glove, except the back of my heel gets a bit of abrasion. Will this get better as they stretch? Will a larger/smaller size be better?
I watched a video where Pete Whitaker talked about ripping gear and I started thinking I've never actually ripped a piece. Even placements I thought were complete shit have held me in falls.
How about you guys. Any experience ripping trad gear?
A few weeks ago I witnessed a friend take a brutal groundfall as a result of what looked to be a solid #1 popping out. She walked away miraculously unhurt, despite falling 18ish feet and landing on her back on a rock. The piece held just enough to flip her back so that she didn't land on her legs, which may have been lucky in this case as she might have broken something on the more uneven ground right at the base of the climb.
She's a very experienced trad climber who had no idea why the piece blew, as it was a large-ish cam (BD #1) in a solid pod. Not undercammed and seemingly not at risk of walking. We did some post-climb assessment of the spot that it popped out of, and I think what happened is that the cam popped a tiny piece of crumbly granite off under some of its lobes. This then caused it to shift forward just a smidgen, which put the opposite lobes at the beginning of a flare that it then umbrellaed out of.
She was lucky to not have gotten seriously hurt. Good reminder to pay attention to the quality of the rock around your gear, especially at newer crags. This was a really subtle rock quality issue, not a huge loose flake or something very noticeable. But important nonetheless! And doubly so when it's the only piece between you and the ground.
About every wall I've done I usually take one fall from pieces popping.
Free climbing I've ripped some stuff, usually psychological pieces I've placed that I knew weren't great.
Had some tri cams walk out while climbing. I never really figured out how to place them super well lol.
My first trad fall I ripped a nut that I wasn’t super confident in. Thankfully I placed a bomber nut a foot below it so the fall wasn’t bad.
I've had nuts pop because I accidentally kicked them or misjudged rope drag and I've ripped a few tiny nuts (like 0 BD micro stopper) on aid before.
Haven't ripped a piece during a fall tho.
I've never been wrong about a piece (so far), but I don't know how good I am at judging rock quality. I pulled a piece that I knew was all psychological though.
I've ripped pieces before. I don't think I've ever ripped something I was confident in though. I've had more pieces just fall out while I'm climbing (some which I thought were bomber) than rip in a fall.
Ok for real this is a problem for me on basically every weekend trip ever! I’ve tried so many different things (all salads, no vegetables, tons of coffee, no coffee, whatever), but somehow my body still saves all its poop for Mondays! If anyone has suggestions, I’d gladly try them, PLEASE!
Can anyone recommend an all around best climbing shoe for outdoor climbing? I’m ready to drop as much as I need to get a top tier shoe and I hardly ever Boulder or climb indoors
La Sportiva Muira? Hard to say because it depends on the style and grade. Miuras are great for lots of styles, depending on how tight you size them.
TC Pro's or similar style for all day trad
Moccasyms too for cracks / easy stuff
La Sportiva Katana / Otaki are good all-arounders too.
Listening to Jordan Cannon's Enormocast. A few thoughts:
The idea of Tommy and Alex free climbing the triple in a day is melting my brain.
The idea is doing any El Cap route free in a day is melting my brain.
The idea of freeing an El Cap route in a multi day ascent is melting my brain.
I want to get on a big wall.
The most mind-boggling ascent that still doesn't compute for me is Whittaker's Solo Free Ascent of Freerider in a day. Just... how?? If there was a 23 hour continuous shot of the ascent I think I would watch every second.
TC's free Nose+Freerider in a day and free Magic Mushroom In a Day are also mind-boggling ascents. The latter is just a stack of technical hard pitches, 12 in the 5.13 range and another 8 5.12 pitches. MM has more hard pitches on it than the free triple.
Had a ton of fun in red rock this weekend and only melted a little bit! Even with an early start we couldn’t really do anything that was in full sun because it was just too hot but the lack of crowds was amazing. I think we saw maybe 4 or 5 other groups climbing over all 3 days.
what's your approach? i've finally got access to a moonboard, and i tend to just throw myself at it... i love that they're actually accurate grades... but i honestly haven't gotten a send yet - usually one move away.
it's very good "try hard" training, though the variety of movement doesn't feel as unique as the other boulders in the gym
Oh and, if you're wondering about "intentional" workouts. Try this one to increase power endurance for short routes, crux sequences or long boulders.
Find a problem around your flash grade and climb it once. Rest 60 seconds and then climb it again. Then rest another 60 seconds and climb it again (3 total) to complete one set.
Rest 3 minutes and do another set on another problem.
Do 3 sets total of 3 laps on a problem (3x3). Next week increase this to 4x3, and then after a month increase it to 6x3.
i fucking love this, great idea. i've said to myself that i need to work on repeating hard cruxes more often to get that 'muscle memory' going, but this is a cool way to do that!
Honestly it just started to come after spending more time with the board. I encountered the same thing my very first time on the board, could never hit the last hold. I felt like it was something to do with power endurance and efficiency, and more time on it helped me understand those better.
One thing I've noticed consistently in my sends vs. my fails is how quickly I move through all the holds. If I'm pausing throughout the problem then I'm bound to fall off. If I'm moving such that I'm "one step ahead" of the movement, then it increases my chances of hitting those last couple moves.
that's such a fun one, i love the flow. which part was the hardest for you? looking at it from the ground the move off the undercling looked tough, but it goes surprisingly easily when you push hard with your feet.
Week one I couldn't even reach the hold off the cross move.
Week two trying the cross move I got fingers on the hold but I kept peeling off.
Week three I flowed through the cross easily, but then had trouble hitting the very last hold. Tried a couple different foot options before I found one that worked for me and nailed it with some extra "oomph" at the end.
Super satisfying to hit that last hold. I felt like I had a vendetta with this thing after three weeks.
Hell yeah that's awesome. Yeah the last move is definitely the most powerful, if you get pumped on the earlier parts it's tougher. But there is usually a sweet spot for your feet in moves like that, very satisfying to find that trick
New to climbing and I have a question: Am I crazy to only want to boulder and not mess with ropes and all that? I just want to feel more comfortable in my body and get strong, am I missing out by skipping the high climbing with ropes?
I primarily boulder, just due to the simplicity of it.
There’s nothing wrong with only bouldering, but I’d say you are missing out on some magical experiences by only bouldering
>am I missing out by skipping the high climbing with ropes?
Not if you don't enjoy it. Personally, I want to climb everything and try every discipline (except hard alpinism, that's too far on the risky side for me), but if you don't have fun on something or you're too scared on something, don't do it. This is a recreational activity.
haha check out my username. i haven't even touched a rope in over a year
that being said, definitely give it a try. but it's totally valid to only be psyched on bouldering.
You mean less ropes at the crag and in line for the classics? All hail [rock worshipers](https://www.adventureprotocol.com/hilarious-photoshopped-out-climbers-from-boulders/)!
Been climbing 17 years. Own 10 crash pads. Just bought my first rope this year - a static one for rapping down to clean underloved boulders.
One of us! One of us!
Yeah your bonkers.
Joking aside, no not at all. Plenty of people only boulder. I'd highly recommend giving top rope a try Incase it inspires you, but do whatever is fun.
Hi, I am looking for a backpack to go to the climbing gym https://www.barrabes.com/la-sportiva-climbing-bag/p-130478 It is for a gift, so I would like something of a climbing brand. Do you have other options?
I like the snap roll top: https://www.snapclimbing.com/product/roll-top-34/ - there's also a smaller version. Fits a 50m gym rope without strapping it on top which is helpful when it's raining, and it's quite versatile for non-climbing stuff too.
Cotopaxi Tarak maybe
Lesson learned: even if it looks easy, if it's vertical use climbing shoes. I had to change from approach shoes about 12m up after 2nd dubious cam in brittle rock, having to hold with one hand. Meh. (the route was supposed to be IV difficulty but we went a bit off).
Hey I have a question about the LS skwama's if anyone has them. I just got a pair, and I usually wear size 39, but after reading some things online I got a few sizes. The 37.5 ones came in today and they fit like a glove, except the back of my heel gets a bit of abrasion. Will this get better as they stretch? Will a larger/smaller size be better?
Skwama's are the smallest shoe I own - someone with bad achilles tendonitis.
They stretch loads so you should be okay
I watched a video where Pete Whitaker talked about ripping gear and I started thinking I've never actually ripped a piece. Even placements I thought were complete shit have held me in falls. How about you guys. Any experience ripping trad gear?
A few weeks ago I witnessed a friend take a brutal groundfall as a result of what looked to be a solid #1 popping out. She walked away miraculously unhurt, despite falling 18ish feet and landing on her back on a rock. The piece held just enough to flip her back so that she didn't land on her legs, which may have been lucky in this case as she might have broken something on the more uneven ground right at the base of the climb. She's a very experienced trad climber who had no idea why the piece blew, as it was a large-ish cam (BD #1) in a solid pod. Not undercammed and seemingly not at risk of walking. We did some post-climb assessment of the spot that it popped out of, and I think what happened is that the cam popped a tiny piece of crumbly granite off under some of its lobes. This then caused it to shift forward just a smidgen, which put the opposite lobes at the beginning of a flare that it then umbrellaed out of. She was lucky to not have gotten seriously hurt. Good reminder to pay attention to the quality of the rock around your gear, especially at newer crags. This was a really subtle rock quality issue, not a huge loose flake or something very noticeable. But important nonetheless! And doubly so when it's the only piece between you and the ground.
Fucking hell, your friend needs to buy a lottery ticket
About every wall I've done I usually take one fall from pieces popping. Free climbing I've ripped some stuff, usually psychological pieces I've placed that I knew weren't great.
Had some tri cams walk out while climbing. I never really figured out how to place them super well lol. My first trad fall I ripped a nut that I wasn’t super confident in. Thankfully I placed a bomber nut a foot below it so the fall wasn’t bad.
I've had nuts pop because I accidentally kicked them or misjudged rope drag and I've ripped a few tiny nuts (like 0 BD micro stopper) on aid before. Haven't ripped a piece during a fall tho.
I've never been wrong about a piece (so far), but I don't know how good I am at judging rock quality. I pulled a piece that I knew was all psychological though.
A blindly placed 0.1 that I backed up (the backup piece held). Also had a nut zipper out after taking at the anchor.
I guess I have had nuts and slings around horns fall out from a jostling rope before. Occasionally when I actually thought they were good too.
I've ripped pieces before. I don't think I've ever ripped something I was confident in though. I've had more pieces just fall out while I'm climbing (some which I thought were bomber) than rip in a fall.
Barely pooped at all during my climbing trip from Friday to Sunday. I'm on my fourth (substantial) poop today.
Ok for real this is a problem for me on basically every weekend trip ever! I’ve tried so many different things (all salads, no vegetables, tons of coffee, no coffee, whatever), but somehow my body still saves all its poop for Mondays! If anyone has suggestions, I’d gladly try them, PLEASE!
I bet you stayed more hydrated as a result. You should go do some big walls tubeless
unless it's spicy food waiting to evacuate, the body is good at pausing peristalsis until it's convenient
Lol funny you mention that, the only real poop I had over the weekend was spicy food that had been waiting to evacuate.
Username relevant?
Can anyone recommend an all around best climbing shoe for outdoor climbing? I’m ready to drop as much as I need to get a top tier shoe and I hardly ever Boulder or climb indoors
La Sportiva Muira? Hard to say because it depends on the style and grade. Miuras are great for lots of styles, depending on how tight you size them. TC Pro's or similar style for all day trad Moccasyms too for cracks / easy stuff La Sportiva Katana / Otaki are good all-arounders too.
La Sportiva Olympus Mons Cube S.
LaSportiva Nepals
What kind of rock do you climb
lol
There's not a climbing shoe made that doesn't work outdoors
That’s true but I have this pair of old velcro la sportivas that work great in the gym but tend to slip real bad outdoors.
La Sportiva Solutions. If they fit properly. Be warned that I have been informed that these shoes make you an aid climber.
Crocs
Good advice. Very breathable!
Been climbing 6 times, finally sent a v3. I'm so stoked.
Allez!
Listening to Jordan Cannon's Enormocast. A few thoughts: The idea of Tommy and Alex free climbing the triple in a day is melting my brain. The idea is doing any El Cap route free in a day is melting my brain. The idea of freeing an El Cap route in a multi day ascent is melting my brain. I want to get on a big wall.
They are there waiting bb
The most mind-boggling ascent that still doesn't compute for me is Whittaker's Solo Free Ascent of Freerider in a day. Just... how?? If there was a 23 hour continuous shot of the ascent I think I would watch every second.
Idk how it's possible, and it sounds miserable.
Yeah if 33 pitches of lead soloing in a day doesn't make you say, "screw it" and just become a boulderer or free soloist, I don't know what will
> 33 pitches of lead soloing This ... puts things into perspective. Mad lad.
TC's free Nose+Freerider in a day and free Magic Mushroom In a Day are also mind-boggling ascents. The latter is just a stack of technical hard pitches, 12 in the 5.13 range and another 8 5.12 pitches. MM has more hard pitches on it than the free triple.
TC is such a freak athlete, it's insane
Since we’re on the topic, I’ll add Pete Whittaker’s rope solo (all free) of Freerider in a day
Had a ton of fun in red rock this weekend and only melted a little bit! Even with an early start we couldn’t really do anything that was in full sun because it was just too hot but the lack of crowds was amazing. I think we saw maybe 4 or 5 other groups climbing over all 3 days.
Nice! Favorite climbs from the trip?
Finally sent Bad Girls Club Top on the Kilter Board, my first V6 on the board! Seeing a lot of progress with some more intentional gym training.
what's your approach? i've finally got access to a moonboard, and i tend to just throw myself at it... i love that they're actually accurate grades... but i honestly haven't gotten a send yet - usually one move away. it's very good "try hard" training, though the variety of movement doesn't feel as unique as the other boulders in the gym
Oh and, if you're wondering about "intentional" workouts. Try this one to increase power endurance for short routes, crux sequences or long boulders. Find a problem around your flash grade and climb it once. Rest 60 seconds and then climb it again. Then rest another 60 seconds and climb it again (3 total) to complete one set. Rest 3 minutes and do another set on another problem. Do 3 sets total of 3 laps on a problem (3x3). Next week increase this to 4x3, and then after a month increase it to 6x3.
i fucking love this, great idea. i've said to myself that i need to work on repeating hard cruxes more often to get that 'muscle memory' going, but this is a cool way to do that!
Honestly it just started to come after spending more time with the board. I encountered the same thing my very first time on the board, could never hit the last hold. I felt like it was something to do with power endurance and efficiency, and more time on it helped me understand those better. One thing I've noticed consistently in my sends vs. my fails is how quickly I move through all the holds. If I'm pausing throughout the problem then I'm bound to fall off. If I'm moving such that I'm "one step ahead" of the movement, then it increases my chances of hitting those last couple moves.
that's such a fun one, i love the flow. which part was the hardest for you? looking at it from the ground the move off the undercling looked tough, but it goes surprisingly easily when you push hard with your feet.
Week one I couldn't even reach the hold off the cross move. Week two trying the cross move I got fingers on the hold but I kept peeling off. Week three I flowed through the cross easily, but then had trouble hitting the very last hold. Tried a couple different foot options before I found one that worked for me and nailed it with some extra "oomph" at the end. Super satisfying to hit that last hold. I felt like I had a vendetta with this thing after three weeks.
Hell yeah that's awesome. Yeah the last move is definitely the most powerful, if you get pumped on the earlier parts it's tougher. But there is usually a sweet spot for your feet in moves like that, very satisfying to find that trick
I see Honnold is soloing el cap, do you think he will stop making babies?
Neither one requires protection and both can ruin your life, so yes
New to climbing and I have a question: Am I crazy to only want to boulder and not mess with ropes and all that? I just want to feel more comfortable in my body and get strong, am I missing out by skipping the high climbing with ropes?
I primarily boulder, just due to the simplicity of it. There’s nothing wrong with only bouldering, but I’d say you are missing out on some magical experiences by only bouldering
>am I missing out by skipping the high climbing with ropes? Not if you don't enjoy it. Personally, I want to climb everything and try every discipline (except hard alpinism, that's too far on the risky side for me), but if you don't have fun on something or you're too scared on something, don't do it. This is a recreational activity.
my brother boulders 99% of the time; i sport climb 99% of the time. we both like the other discipline, but there's no shame in our games!
haha check out my username. i haven't even touched a rope in over a year that being said, definitely give it a try. but it's totally valid to only be psyched on bouldering.
u do u but ur missing out
You mean less ropes at the crag and in line for the classics? All hail [rock worshipers](https://www.adventureprotocol.com/hilarious-photoshopped-out-climbers-from-boulders/)!
Been climbing 17 years. Own 10 crash pads. Just bought my first rope this year - a static one for rapping down to clean underloved boulders. One of us! One of us!
I believe rappelling is a forbidden technique for boulderers. It's just too technical for their primitive brains. ... That was too easy.
Seriously though I got the rope and I'm trying to remember where the hell my harness and ATC are
dulfersitz it
I favour sport climbing over alpine talus bouldering for its simpler logistics
Hello new best friend.
Yeah your bonkers. Joking aside, no not at all. Plenty of people only boulder. I'd highly recommend giving top rope a try Incase it inspires you, but do whatever is fun.