|
sprog
May 3, 2006, 11:42 PM
Post #1 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Apr 20, 2006
Posts: 17
|
I was wondering....how did some of you guys make the transition from top rope to leading, sport to trad, etc? Did you take lessons in a gym? Find a partner with experience? Read a book? What works well?
|
|
|
|
|
mcfoley
May 3, 2006, 11:54 PM
Post #2 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: May 15, 2002
Posts: 644
|
i bought a rack and started building anchors, initially under close supervision by expd friends, then on my own.
Then started mock trad leading (placing gear) on TR (self taught)... Then proceeded to lead lap after lap on a few routes I had dialed. Then went out to new territory...
I started sport climbing outside with friends who had experience and were willing to patiently teach...None of these friends were really into leading trad so I had to venture off on my own to get that knowledge. When I thought I was ready to get into multipitch, I enlisted a new friend to "teach me the ropes" :o
|
|
|
|
|
fobnicat
May 3, 2006, 11:55 PM
Post #3 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Mar 8, 2006
Posts: 66
|
friend that runs the wall at my college taught me how inside first.. we go bouldering occassionally, but still waiting to get a new rope before I head outdoors.. yeah so im not a sport climber yet, but i have been taught the basics... thats my 2 cents
|
|
|
|
|
majid_sabet
May 4, 2006, 12:09 AM
Post #4 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Dec 13, 2002
Posts: 8390
|
This is easy
You start with 2 then 3 then 6 pack of cold beer
|
|
|
|
|
ledavis23
May 4, 2006, 12:13 AM
Post #5 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Sep 9, 2005
Posts: 108
|
Learn to set TR anchors from a good friend/partner. That's how I learned. Then read as much as you can get your hands on. Freedom of the Hills has some good stuff about basic climbing technique, anchor building, traditional gear placement, etc. There's also an anchor book by falcon. Don't know the author, but it's really good. It's called Anchors or Climbing Anchors or something like that.
Personally what I think is really important is that you learn how to place a wide variety of traditional gear from nuts to hexes to tri-cams. And if you need the color coding on the Metolius SLCDs then you shouldn't be leading! It's very important that you learn the general principles of placing gear, then you will be able to evaluate what type of peice would be best for the particular situation.
A good way to get going is to have an experienced partner evaluate peices placed from the ground. When you can place all types of gear confidently, then you should start at 5.6 or 5.7 and just get in as many leads as possible!
If you're just going to sport climb then all you need to know is a few fundamental rules- the rest is just head games.
Have fun!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
styndall
May 4, 2006, 12:46 AM
Post #7 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: May 29, 2002
Posts: 2741
|
Read a lot, pay attention to people who know what they're talking about, and realize that nothing about climbing is rocket science.
These three steps will get you there in no time.
|
|
|
|
|
organic
May 4, 2006, 1:19 AM
Post #8 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jul 16, 2003
Posts: 2215
|
My first sport lead was at the RRG about 4 months after I started climbing with climbers a tiny bit more experienced then me. My first dozen trad leads were with someone who probably had 5 leads under his belt basically free-solos. I still don't know how to setup anchors and I have been climbing 3 years? I am a sport climber silly. I have whipped on plenty of cams since! finding an experienced mentor can be hard so, climb easy stuff first or sack it up. Some gyms have classes if you are into that type of thing haha. :lol:
|
|
|
|
|
kricir
May 4, 2006, 1:33 AM
Post #9 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Oct 15, 2005
Posts: 434
|
I read allot and practiced in trees. It is possible to safely teach your self to climb, you just have to think a little more about what you are doing. Pratice your system over and over on the ground before heading to the crags.
|
|
|
|
|
omegaprime
May 4, 2006, 2:12 AM
Post #10 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Aug 2, 2004
Posts: 308
|
I observed, listened and asked a lot of question first from my mentor. Then I just tried leading outdoors myself after training indoors for 6 months to gain enough strength and technique to not fall of a 5c route (I'm a weakling).
Got screwed a lot for the first 3 months by my mentor due to n00b mistakes in leading, but that's a part of the learning process. :wink:
That's for sport, no experience with trad yet. Still looking for a trad daddy to take me under (read: leech gear off them).
|
|
|
|
|
bdplayer
May 4, 2006, 2:30 AM
Post #11 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jun 26, 2003
Posts: 195
|
The simplest yet most overlooked experience builder:
Climb.
|
|
|
|
|
up_for_a_good_time
May 4, 2006, 3:47 AM
Post #12 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Aug 1, 2005
Posts: 111
|
I first climbed my freshman year in college (3 years ago) on toprope. After I became increasingly curious, I rented a guide to lead me up multi-pitch at Seneca Rocks, WV. Then I bought a rope and a little gear and made some toprope anchors.
After that, I practiced leading indoor a couple of times and two sport routes outdoor. Soon enough, I grabbed the girlfriend and taught her to lead belay at Seneca Rocks while I mimicked the gear-placing of the guide I had a year before.
Definitely not the safest "route" to learning, but it definitely worked. I never really had a mentor or anyone more experienced than me (except the one-time guide) to teach me when I started out. Since then, I've done my best to safely instruct others getting into trad.
Seconding is probably the very best way to learn trad. Yeah, definitely the safest and most beneficial.
|
|
|
|
|
thetroutscout
May 4, 2006, 5:31 AM
Post #13 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jun 23, 2004
Posts: 388
|
Its all mental. I just thought I could lead and then suddenly I could.
You gain experience by experiencing things. Climb more.
^^ike
|
|
|
|
|
ltj16hb
May 4, 2006, 6:18 AM
Post #14 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jan 25, 2006
Posts: 48
|
trad fairy leaves a c4 under your pillow... then your ready...
id just suggest once you know what your doing... then once you are comfortable using what you know.... possibly learn from other trad/sport leaders... be a seconder for a while?
|
|
|
|
|
so
May 4, 2006, 7:37 AM
Post #15 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Feb 27, 2006
Posts: 18
|
Everybody's so quick to say get out and climb stuff. You do have to know people and have a lot of free time for that.
IMO, there's no shame in taking a class at a local gym. It's as sterile an environment as you can get, you're almost guaranteed to get adequate instruction, and it's something you don't have to dedicate an entire weekend to. Once you get most of the basics down, yeah, take it outside (though really, still try to find someone to go with who knows what they're doing).
|
|
|
|
|
notforclimbing
May 4, 2006, 8:11 AM
Post #16 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Nov 15, 2005
Posts: 7
|
this is not an a-b-c thing..stop finding any formula for experience and climb more and more..
|
|
|
|
|
patto
May 4, 2006, 8:14 AM
Post #17 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Nov 15, 2005
Posts: 1453
|
I find that the best, easiest and safest way to learn is by having an experience climber take you under his/her wing and teach you.
Of course you should never stop learning so books and websites are a great way to learn more. Because ultimately your decisions should be based on what you judge to be safe, not because XXX said that it was safe.
|
|
|
|
|
thetroutscout
May 4, 2006, 8:24 AM
Post #18 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jun 23, 2004
Posts: 388
|
Books and such are great but nothing beats having someone actually show you everything. Watch everything they do and ask questions. I improved my technique a lot just by watching my teacher and mimicking. Classes are great and you really will learn useful things. Climb with people that are better than you and tell them you want to learn. Most climbers are more than willing to impart thier wisdom on a n00b.
^^ike
|
|
|
|
|
cactusedd
May 4, 2006, 10:29 AM
Post #19 of 19
(2122 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Apr 19, 2006
Posts: 45
|
I learned to climb while I was in college in New York at the South Hudson Institute of Technology (S-H-I-T; aka West Point). The "Mountaineering Club" was headed up by a crusty old dude who had been climbing in the Gunks when the Vulgarians were still around and Lynn Hill wasn't a household name. Basically everything followed a progression; the older, more experienced climbers taught the 'newbies' how to climb following a logical progression.
First the fundamentals; Knots, belaying, moving over rock, a lot of indoor climbing just to get familiar with the rock. From there it progressed to toproping; how set up anchors in a variety of different situations. Then sport climbing and sport leading. Mock leads at initially until you were comfortable then very easy bolt up leads. From there we entered the trad zone. Spent a lot of days just playing around with gear at the base of cliffs and masonry walls playing with gear and seeing what worked and what didn't. Not just placements but trad anchors and equalization systems, too. From there more mock leads and eventually real leads. Those of us who were more motivated (or obssesive, I suppose) took reading everything we could find, too. How to Rock Climb, Climbing Anchors, More Climbing Anchors, and Mountaineering, the Freedom of the Hills are indispensable reads for anyone serious about climbing.
Bottom line for me is that practical experience on the rock is invaluable, but make sure that you're not just taking in everything someone tells you blindly. Balance it with some research of your own. Oh, and a few epics now and then never hurt, either :lol:
Regards,
Edd
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
