Friday, October 24, 2008
Getting bored of climbing indoors?
Now here is some videos and pics of some outdoor related climbs.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Rock Climbign legend and Idol.. DAN OSMAN.
Unfortunatley Dan Osman died on Novemeber 23, 1998 at the age of 35 when he preformed a 1000 foot controlled free fall jump at Yosemite National park and his rope snapped.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Bouldering Vs.Top Roping (two ways to climb Indoor)
Lets start out with the easiest way to start climbing, and that is Bouldering. Bouldering is climbing on short, low routes without the use of the safety rope that is typical of most other styles. Protection, if used at all, typically consists of a cushioned Bouldering Pad below the route and/or a spotter, a person that watches from below and directs the fall of the climber away from hazardous areas. If you do not have a spotter your gym would typically have a soft cushioned area at which to fall into ( i.e. Shredded up car tires, a rubber floor, or a crash pad). Bouldering is the easiest way to start climbing becuase you dont need anyone to belay you on a rope and you can only climb two times your height, which makes you feel very comfortable and safe. Also with bouldering anyone can just hope on the wall and climb its easy and theres no equipment involved. Here i am going to post a video of someone bouldering and post a picture of a typical bouldering pad.
Top Roping is climbing with the protection of a rope that's already suspended through an anchor at the top of a route( or wall). A belayer controls the rope, keeping it taut, and prevents long falls. For people who are more daring and not as afraid of height, top roping is for you. In rock gyms they have various differnt angles and heights to top rope on. To be able to top rope though you are going to need to wear a harness, becuase a harness is what is keeping you attached to the rope and keeping you safe. Now i will share a picture of a typical wall set up for top roping.
Just started climbing?
The last and final peice of equipment that you will need to invest in to improve your skills in rock climbing is a CHALK BAG. A chalk bag is exactly what it sounds like; it a bag with chalk inside of it. When Climbing you would attatch this bag to your pants. When your hands start to sweat or become a little slippery you just dip your hands in the chalk bag and it dry the sweat right up and makes ur hand grip much better. A good chalk bag to start out with is Prana. And a chalk bags cost is about 10-20$. Here is what the chalk bag with the chalk ball may look like.
And that is all you need to know to get started with rock climbing. Just remember to take your time, dont giveup, and if your feet start to hurt let them get a little breathing time becuase i know how it feels after a hard climb in your shoes.