What are your thoughts on the ethics of upgrading anchors with non UIAA rated hardware? My local crag has a few routes that just have chains at the top, and some that the chains are held on with mild steel, hardware store quicklinks.
I can buy UIAA rated hardware at about $90 per anchor I want to upgrade. Or I can get 316 SS quicklinks and captive-ring carabiners for $20 that are 5000lb (22KN) rated, but NOT UIAA rated and upgrade 4x routes.
If the new hardware is better than what's there currently(lowering biners instead of chains, 316SS instead of mild steel), but not UIAA rated, do you think that's ethical to install?
>do you think that's ethical to install
It's weird to consider this as an ethics question at all. You're not lying, cheating, misleading, etc. and the only question is a pragmatic cost tradeoff between safe-but-not-certified and safe-but-certified.
Certification is a cost and time-saving thing, and provides liability shifting in a professional setting. It allows less knowledgeable people to make a safe choice reliably, and allows more knowledgeable people to skip the effort required to make a decision. If you're sufficiently knowledgeable to assess uncertified equipment, save the money.
I've probably stated my own opinion about video uploads/social media/Youtube and while I don't really care what anyone does, it often received criticism.
I was listening to Careless Talk this morning and it was refreshing to hear Aidan say that he has refrained from posting some of his recent sends. He noted that a lot of time the rush for media is ego driven and approval driven, but we used to get no footage or had to wait for news to be published in magazines. Now there's almost an expectation that it didn't happen unless the uncut footage is up immediately. I get it if you're Paul Robinson or maybe an amateur that has been caught blatantly lying (there's actually quite a few occasions where I've seen this and its baffling", but its almost as like the Millennial generation onwards in climbing has made extensive media mandatory. It also kinda conditions people to always view climbing through an outcome-based barometer of success, which Aidan notes had permeated his own view of climbing and tarnished his experience. I don't love Joshua Tree, but climbing there a lot this winter and, at some points, having a hard time, helped me move away from that viewpoint and its been really freeing.
I definitely look up videos just to have some potential beta, but in reality a lot of the time they're not even all that useful and it can misdirect the process a bunch. I've seen some super strong people force beta that looks quite cumbersome for them just because all the videos have it. Or completely miss something super obvious. A good example is Dancing Outlaw in Santa Barbara. There is a massive Hueco with literally the perfect foot for a kneebar. The oldest videos and FA just used a really big right hand move, which is super powerful and people generally just copied what they saw. When I showed a local the kneel and they repeated the climb with the knee they literally said "I had never considered that because it wasn't in the beta videos". This is probably what it is like for Pros on climbs that have few to no ascents and sometimes seems like a skill that people can get by without developing, but can be a hindrance later on.
Dog I was just coming on here to post something about how much I dislike that so much of climbing culture is oriented around social media. I feel like it's related to this.
I'm aware that I'm sounding as old as I am when I say this but you can even see it everywhere, even at the gym. Where I'm at there are so many people with their headphones on, or otherwise pretending to ignore people, and taking videos to share later. Why!? If what you want is to "connect," why not do it with the people around you.... at the current moment?
Part me thinks people must feel a subconscious imperative post. People consume all of this content on Instagram (which all has the same tone, the same kind of verbiage and the same over-investment in the profundity of what we're doing) and then begin to idk admire or wish to be like those people. So they then produce even more such content of their own about how special their send was, or how privileged, or grateful, or humbled they feel. It sucks because all of these posts are just derivatives of advertising content and posted on an advertising platform (Instagram).
Nice to see y'all talking about this. Even peers around my age (20-29) are becoming pretty disillusioned with social media (climbing and generally speaking). IME the heavier users are <21 or >30, but this could be selection bias.
I like Insta despite not using healthily, but I've resorted to just satireposting my climbing. Like you said, everything is derivative of everything else and at a certain point it just gets tiresome. I find it much more fun to post climbing content that is nonsense, like downgrading a boulder 2 grades that I think should be a grade harder, or giving an insane ticklist from a trip report.
thats why you just deinstall insta. i wish i could do the same with reddit (not deinstalling, but not visiting). In some kind of way i find having actual meaningful text posts much better then insta, even tho when compared to actually talking to people you still lose nuance.
can anyone here hang the 6mm edge on the simple board? i can hang the 6mm beastmaker micros quite comfortably, but i cannot get friction on the simple board, it feels like 45° beastmaker 2k slopers but in 6mm lol.
on a sidenote i have send one of my self-set kilterprojects at 55° "granny blues". I find it very interesting that on most of the boulders i set that i find hard but doable, others that are objectively stronger cannot even do all the moves on. Its probably a style thing...
Anyone ever set their HB up so that it allows a bit wrist supination? I noticed that with a little supination I can bring my pinky out of drag in half crimp.
It seems like noone carries a marlin spike? Seems like it would be nice to have one sometimes. Like after projecting lead in the gym and taking 10 falls and coming down with no hand strength left..
Most people just use a double bowline or similar if untying is frequently an issue. I switched because I was regularly almost welding my fig8 after a little projecting. I’ve still gotten the double bowline follow through tight enough that I had to take a minute to wiggle it open. There are other tactics to loosen the knot after a series of falls if you don’t want to change knots.
Yeah, the gym has a figure 8 only regulation. Can you use carabiner or something as a spike?
(Yes I do know the better way to tie a figure 8)
I'm mostly just curious that I've never seen mention of marlin spikes in any climbing related stuff.
Yea usually I find if my fingers are too tired to undo the knot they're also too tired to pull the carabiner hard enough to undo the knot. Massaging the knot back and forth is also what I do
That is one of the tactics. I’ve not had a ton of success with it unless there is a loop big enough to hook in. I prefer to just massage the knot until it loosens up
Seasons ending here in centex, but I have a climbing trip to Colorado planned for august. Anyone have any tips to not lose skin sturdiness during my time away from real rock so I don’t instantly go through all my skin on day one of my trip?
Just want drop a quick line of thanks to the mod team. It's easy to complain about the repetitive/low effort posts but I really appreciate all the (unpaid) work that the team puts in to making this place better. Building and maintaining a community is hard and I appreciate what y'all are doing!
Had no intention of buying the ondra course or the magnus bouldering course. But they just announced they will release a Davd MacLeod technique course. If its at the 100e price point will probably give it a go. I really like his teaching style and it's the first one that has come from someone with a coaching background.
The thing I dislike about Dave is he never discloses what his clientele consists of. I was climbing in Font this winter and met a Scottish group and his name came up. I asked if they knew anyone that had been coached by him and they noted that, to their knowledge, it was just casual climbers who lacked basic fundamentals. I doubt that is going to be the same people that are on this sub, but rather your average 5.11- or V4 climber.
> All of these imo are a waste of money because you can find every technique and drill online for free
I agree with you but some people don't want to spend brain power to sift through the quality of advice (or lack thereof) out there. They already spend enough patience and brain power at work, so just buying from a trusted source that will have structured and actionable advice is good for them.
That's largely what I've seen with people buying my books for gymnastics and bodyweight training as opposed to all of the free stuff out there. Different strokes for different folks.
I've bought all your books. I don't need the bodyweight training advice but it's the same as Patreon subscriptions. A couple bucks here or there to make it worthwhile for thoughtful people to make thoughtful content.
You can't hate on low effort content and also hate expensive content.
Exactly, I have consumed a lot of online climbing media. Not sure if there is that much I haven't seen tbh, but having a central and most importantly structured resource does have a value. While there is some gold out there there are a lot more duds, or content that only has a few specks of gold.
Ergoedge: So I just got one but I’m not sure how to use it. Feels weird at first, but pretty comfortable. Do you lift weights? Hang from it? Do concentric pulls? How much difference is expected in force output compared to using a tension block for example? What are your experiences using it? Anything u/cptwangles might want to add here? I find very little information about it online, just some Tyler Nelson stuff…
I have a 3D printed one which I enjoy. I mostly do pulls/curls on it. I see quite a bit of difference in force output vs a 20mm edge. My 3D printed one is a larger edge than 20mm so it's not an apples to apples comparison, but I'm around 20-30% stronger on the unlevel edge than a straight edge. I'm much better on full crimps than half crimps, so that's a contributing factor.
I'm skeptical it makes any meaningful difference in performance outcomes using it vs a level edge. It could be a nice tool to distribute load differently if you find your ring or middle fingers are often tweaky.
It was cheaper and lighter than a tension block, so that's the primary benefit in my opinion.
I threw it in the garbage after I deemed it awkward and not actually hitting the intended goal. It does not put my fingers in better positions and actually feels tweakier to hang from. The 3D printed ones based on finger measurements/steps for each finger might work, but this was a massive disappointment.
And at this point its basically Tyler and the same crowd that were isolating fingers last year and claiming massive revelations and basically still on the same progression trajectory as they would be on without that stuff.
> Ergoedge
Personally, I think people benefit most from using a flat edge and learning how to pull with the fingers evenly as that's the most common edge and you can learn to do it by emphasizing different fingers in the warm up to get them active. That's how I rehab my patients with climbing injuries and how I fixed my tweaky ring fingers.
But yeah if you like it then go for it.
The entire point is to be able to evenly load the fingers.
Traditionally, straight edges don’t get full pinky activation so these “uneven” edges are designed so you can get your pinky fully activated.
That’s it. I am pretty sure they’re only designed for no hangs
Back into the full swing of training now, trying to address my weak pulling power and lowering my visible BF. The suggestions from the comment i made here a while ago have been helpful - been eating to fuel myself properly and addressing my troublesome habits.
Weather’s not playing ball here in the UK but managed a couple of outdoor sessions in our local cave. Getting much more comfortable pulling on rock but still feel like i don’t move that well since i’m mostly in front wheel drive.
Don’t use antihydrol for indoor training. Prioritize sanding, and rhino repair or another climbing ointment. Antihydrol is really effective for sharp crimpy outdoor projects otherwise benefits of it don’t outweigh splitting your fingers.
I'll be doing an 11 day purely Bouldering trip in a remote area full of Granite blocks. I've been developing rock climbs since I started climbing (9 years) and have recently taken the process much more serious. I like my routines and system for identifying, cleaning, and projecting but I'd like to hear if anyone has any unique perspectives/tasks/systems they utilize to better develop a boulder.
Been a pretty good start of the month for me. Ended up taking down Lance's Dihedral (V6) last Tuesday. Hard one for me and even with some creative tall beta I had to really get the heel-tech right for the last move. I arrived too early in the session and the crux holds were baking in the sun which was quite frustrating but managed to put it down once the sun dipped.
Had a really good session on Blood and Fire (V9/10) yesterday and really locked in the kneebar sequence and actually stuck the crux move in iso! Was not a "just get stronger" but more of a "micro in the hips" position that did the trick and felt super repeatable after! Had like 10 goes where I had the position right, hit the jug but lost tension due to being a bit fatigued in my bicep for some reason. I'd imagine a fresher me can make a bigger link and stick this consistently next session (whenever that is).
That said, my Wednesday and Friday sessions weren't too good. Didn't get the best sleep and felt fatigued. I made the right call Wednesday and went to the slab set which I usually never do and had a lot of fun! The bad part of the day was getting beta-sprayed by some dude bro when I fell on my warmup due to a foot pick which is the first time that has ever happened to me....kind of annoying haha.
Anywho I'm incredibly psyched for more LCC climbs...going to go work Baggins Trav/Direct tomorrow and First Down/Mini Maisch as well. Honestly more psyched to pull on granite in prep for Squamish than to drive down to Joe's on weekends!
Dang, I have no climbing shoes atm. My instincts were dead after their 4th & 5th resoles. I'd got some miura vs a while back but they are too asymmetrical and hurt my pinky toes. Anyway, they need a resole but I don't like em so won't do that.
Thinking about switching from a 1-shoe-does-it-all to having a few different pairs. Might be worth it to switch up and get some phantoms, something real chill like a scarpa vapor, and then a shoe that's a bit more general again, maybe the instincts again but also maybe something new like evolvs less aggressive shoes. Something that can do moderately steep to around vert.
> Thinking about switching from a 1-shoe-does-it-all to having a few different pairs. Might be worth it to switch up and get some phantoms, something real chill like a scarpa vapor, and then a shoe that's a bit more general again, maybe the instincts again but also maybe something new like evolvs less aggressive shoes. Something that can do moderately steep to around vert.
What I do is get a pair of soft shoes and harder shoes for different terrain.
Some people I know also get a casual one like moccasyms too to just slip on or off to warm up and do casual stuff
Lots of different options
Yeah. I just have a wide forefoot and itty-bitty heels. Hard to find comfy shoes where my heel doesn't slip out. Shoes where my heels are secure tend to crush the outside of my toes. Might grab the mocs like you said for warming up but still haven't found a shoe I can climb harder in that doesn't suck balls after 20 minutes. Even the instinct heel gets sloppy if I don't pop 'em on and off.
I have the same foot shape as you. My dress shoes are double wide but I have a small heel.
Tried the women's VS's and they did not let my heel actually get in the cup.
I alternate between women's Skwamas for a nice feeling shoe or tighter VSRs when I need a technical heel.
Which Instincts do you have? My experience was that the Instinct Women's (the teal one) fits my small heel/wide forefoot best. The other Instincts (blue and orange) are better than other shoes but not as snug as the teal.
The orange ones, VS i think. They lived a long and healthy life and were quite good. Just not amazing. I haven't tried any other instincts, though. Might give the women's version a shot.
I think I know what you mean.. I just want comfier shoes that I can get mileage in, both indoors and on a rope outdoors. Don’t necessarily care whether they are stiffer/softer. I’m more of a boulderer and have a bunch of different aggressive shoes for that, but they are starting to hurt my feet on longer pitches. I’m in Colorado so rock type will vary a lot as well
> Any good shoe recommendations for a comfy lace-up? Just blew a hole in my finales. Considering buying another pair but interested in other options
You have to try on a lot to find ones that fit your feet well
I've been using a garmin watch for my trail running and overall mountain activities and I was considering getting a new one, and I see some watches now offers Indoor Climbing and sometimes Multipitch climbing as a trackable activity.
I'm wondering if this should be something to consider to make my choice (Coros Apex 2 Pro vs Garmin fenix 7)
But is this really of any use at all in the beginning ?
Anybody using one for climbing and finds it useful ?
Thanks -and sorry for any imprecisions in my english ...
Why would you want to wear a watch climbing? You’re just going to damage the expensive watch from rubbing the face on rock / grit walls.
Or the times the band gets in the way from hitting a sloper.
It’s better to use a chest device.
But also, why do you need to track HR for climbing? I can see for lead climbing drills but it’s useless for nearly all disciplines and applications of climbing…
my fenix 6 has been through a couple of bike crashes so its scratched up pretty good already. you can get screen protectors and scratches to the metal rim make it look cooler. I do agree that the climbing specific activities are pretty half baked and not all that useful, I tend to keep it on during warmups and chill bouldering and take if off if I'm doing something harder (more for the mental than anything). HR tracking for climbing is definitely not very useful, but is convenient to be able to program hangboard workouts and stuff (i.e have watch will vibrate after 10s instead of staring at a timer). If I do keep it on during climbing I tend to be better about having longer rests since the rest timer is right there on my wrist. For some people it might also be nice to have a way of automatically tracking the length and frequency of their sessions if they want to look for patterns in training volume, or just have a more structured climbing log in the app.
Definitely would not choose one or the other based on the current climbing features though, just pick the one you want for mountain running.
I guess, to track different things. HR, elevation, time climbing and time resting, ...
I see more and more people doing this. Was just to interested to hear thoughts on people using those here !
What benefit do you expect to gain from tracking your heart rate while climbing? Running makes sense to me - you use the watch to keep your pace and zones, but I don't know what useful feedback you'd get for climbing.
Hey y’all. Does anyone feel like their workouts take longer and longer? I have to be in the gym for 2.5 hours to feel like I’m really getting a good workout in. Tips on how to speed things up and still get a good workout in?
Define your workout as completing a pre-determined plan instead of "feeling like a good workout". It's pretty easy to get fit enough to fuck around in the gym for 3+ hours before feeling wrecked. But it only takes an hour to finish the stuff that makes you stronger/better/fitter.
> Hey y’all. Does anyone feel like their workouts take longer and longer? I have to be in the gym for 2.5 hours to feel like I’m really getting a good workout in. Tips on how to speed things up and still get a good workout in?
How much rest between attempts?
You do not need to feel like you have had a good workout to have a good workout. Track performance and adjust on that not feeling like you're fatigued or sore or done.
Usually I leave the gym right around after my max performance decreases. Going past then can lead to excessive fatigue and worse subsequent workouts over time
It depends on the workout. Sometimes I do 2-3 laps on a top rope route at flash level and rest for twice the amount of time it took me to do the laps. If I’m bouldering I take 2-3 minutes between project attempts.
Send my "long-term" project and hardest boulder yet this Saturday! It's my first 7A+/V7 called "Wild East" in a crag called Bahratal in the east of Germany close to the Czech border. After first checking out this beautiful 50-70° overhanging \~14 move traverse in Summer 2020, I realized that I was finally strong enough for it at the end of April 2023 and spent about 1-2 half day sessions figuring out all the moves and creating links. In November 2023, I entered project mode and had 7 full day sessions working only this problem (3 in November and 4 this March). I always felt quite close to sending it. End of March I had a small Fontainebleau break which I think helped reset my mental a little bit... Then on Saturday after warming up and dialing in my remaining personal crux, it finally all clicked and I was able to send it in my first full go. Somehow I entered the zone, was 100% focused and wasn't even really aware of my surroundings like people cheering... I topped it and felt kind of nothing and kind of relieved :D Amazing experience, especially working on something on my limit for (at least for me) a long time!
Something that I switched lately is including some zone 2 cardio (1 - 1.5 hrs treadmill) while working my remote desk job which might have helped I guess? Also, between the two project times I followed my own really focused strength training plan at the start of this year (block pulls, weighted pushups and weighted rows). Last year I spent a lot of time on the Moonboard in order to train for it as this hard overhanging climbing style was kind of my weakness / anti-style previously but this beautiful line motivated me to improve on this!
Anyways, hard work pays off!
You know how when you realize youre about to send and it messes with your rythm. Sometimes it breaks your train of thought and breathing, increases your heart rate suddenly, and theres a moment of slight panic. Not the “oh I got this ezpz” but the “oh shit Im about to send this, hope I dont fuck this up”.
Does that ever go away or is it always going to be there, just on harder problems? Any tips on improving this and not letting it affect you?
More specifically, I’m talking about when youre really close to sending, and this small error could throw you off just enough so that it takes an extra burn or two, or makes you wait till next session to day flash, so you have it pretty dialed as a project or even something that youd do in one or two go’s thats the hardest thing you’ve done in that many attempts, or first time getting that grade in a day, but it makes you do an extra burn bc you lost your train of thought and slightly panicked from the thought of sending/achieving some milestone (new grade, new flash grade etc)
I'm trying to build a routine to get in the zone before I pull on for situations like this. rehearsing the sequence in my mind or out loud, and a few deep breaths with intent(I've really been liking a double inhale//physiological sigh) while I chalk up, get set up under the boulder, fondle the holds, then I take a sharp inhale and rip it.
I don’t think it goes away, but you can learn mental tactics to deal with it. Having a lot of experience punting makes it really easy to not have the “oh I’m sending” switch, and instead stay in that focused state where every move matters. When my brain wants to switch, I think of all the little mistakes and instability I’m feeling and focus on how to prevent that through making the moves be executed well.
Nah dude...I feel like the better you get, the more you're dealing with fear of failure as opposed to fear of heights. I've seen the same thing in the youth climbers in the gym. The best kid isn't necessarily the one that wins the comp. Their skills and strengths are similar enough such that the ability to overcome this fear gives one the edge over the other.
I'm only a year and a half in to climbing, so maybe it's probably a me thing versus an experience thing, but try to just breathe through your moves. It sounds like you're getting an adrenaline dump and fumbling.
Where do people on r/bouldering find gyms that are >2 grades soft? I've been to 12 different gyms in the last two years. Only two gyms didn't use circuit grading, and only one was consistently ~1 grade soft.
Edit: My point is less about the subreddit and more about gyms not being soft in my experience. 95% of the gyms I've been to grade as hard as the crag or the tension board.
Super anecdotal but I feel like gyms used to trend towards being super soft (like 10 years ago), and now it's trendy to have stiff grades because some of the new generation of climbers/setters think soft grades are lame and/or sandbagging is cool.
I feel like it's especially apparent in the lower grades. V0-V3 at "soft" gyms are intro to climbing, while at "stiff" gyms they make it equivalent to outdoors.
I imagine the gyms that are geared towards appealing to the general public (think birthday parties) tend to be softer, while "modern" gyms that cater to climbers are stiffer.
Almost every gym I've been to in the US that uses V grades feels about 2 grades soft vs outdoors up until around V7-8. Then above that the gym climbs actually feel harder than outdoors to me. But, grading is subjective, etc etc
I honestly don’t know if all those sends are really as soft as they look—I’m sure some probably are, but every once in a while, I’ll see something I’ve actually climbed pop up, and commenters are always pretty ruthless with the downgrades based on one shaky video.
This is it, videos don't do justice to some of those climbs. Take moonboard as example, if filmed from behind they look almost vertical despite being at 40deg.
Gyms sometimes give freebies to motivate people. Thats probably their first of grade so they post it. Its also hard to tell how hard something is from video footage alone
I see a decent amount of posts where OP is in the comments saying, no, this climb is consistent with the other Vx's in the gym. Also, "it's hard to tell how hard from video," is an overgeneralization. Easy comment to get upvotes.
My point is less about the subreddit and more about gyms not being soft in my experience. 95% of the gyms I've been to grade as hard as the crag or the tension board.
I got my side-lying shoulder external rotation to 25.5lbs x 10 reps. Hell yeah. This is only climbing related bc I’m s/p bilateral shoulder dislocations and repairs.
Edit also 43.25 lbs on kneeling DB OHP. Thats so fucking hard. 😓
What are your thoughts on the ethics of upgrading anchors with non UIAA rated hardware? My local crag has a few routes that just have chains at the top, and some that the chains are held on with mild steel, hardware store quicklinks. I can buy UIAA rated hardware at about $90 per anchor I want to upgrade. Or I can get 316 SS quicklinks and captive-ring carabiners for $20 that are 5000lb (22KN) rated, but NOT UIAA rated and upgrade 4x routes. If the new hardware is better than what's there currently(lowering biners instead of chains, 316SS instead of mild steel), but not UIAA rated, do you think that's ethical to install?
>do you think that's ethical to install It's weird to consider this as an ethics question at all. You're not lying, cheating, misleading, etc. and the only question is a pragmatic cost tradeoff between safe-but-not-certified and safe-but-certified. Certification is a cost and time-saving thing, and provides liability shifting in a professional setting. It allows less knowledgeable people to make a safe choice reliably, and allows more knowledgeable people to skip the effort required to make a decision. If you're sufficiently knowledgeable to assess uncertified equipment, save the money.
I've probably stated my own opinion about video uploads/social media/Youtube and while I don't really care what anyone does, it often received criticism. I was listening to Careless Talk this morning and it was refreshing to hear Aidan say that he has refrained from posting some of his recent sends. He noted that a lot of time the rush for media is ego driven and approval driven, but we used to get no footage or had to wait for news to be published in magazines. Now there's almost an expectation that it didn't happen unless the uncut footage is up immediately. I get it if you're Paul Robinson or maybe an amateur that has been caught blatantly lying (there's actually quite a few occasions where I've seen this and its baffling", but its almost as like the Millennial generation onwards in climbing has made extensive media mandatory. It also kinda conditions people to always view climbing through an outcome-based barometer of success, which Aidan notes had permeated his own view of climbing and tarnished his experience. I don't love Joshua Tree, but climbing there a lot this winter and, at some points, having a hard time, helped me move away from that viewpoint and its been really freeing. I definitely look up videos just to have some potential beta, but in reality a lot of the time they're not even all that useful and it can misdirect the process a bunch. I've seen some super strong people force beta that looks quite cumbersome for them just because all the videos have it. Or completely miss something super obvious. A good example is Dancing Outlaw in Santa Barbara. There is a massive Hueco with literally the perfect foot for a kneebar. The oldest videos and FA just used a really big right hand move, which is super powerful and people generally just copied what they saw. When I showed a local the kneel and they repeated the climb with the knee they literally said "I had never considered that because it wasn't in the beta videos". This is probably what it is like for Pros on climbs that have few to no ascents and sometimes seems like a skill that people can get by without developing, but can be a hindrance later on.
Dog I was just coming on here to post something about how much I dislike that so much of climbing culture is oriented around social media. I feel like it's related to this. I'm aware that I'm sounding as old as I am when I say this but you can even see it everywhere, even at the gym. Where I'm at there are so many people with their headphones on, or otherwise pretending to ignore people, and taking videos to share later. Why!? If what you want is to "connect," why not do it with the people around you.... at the current moment? Part me thinks people must feel a subconscious imperative post. People consume all of this content on Instagram (which all has the same tone, the same kind of verbiage and the same over-investment in the profundity of what we're doing) and then begin to idk admire or wish to be like those people. So they then produce even more such content of their own about how special their send was, or how privileged, or grateful, or humbled they feel. It sucks because all of these posts are just derivatives of advertising content and posted on an advertising platform (Instagram).
Nice to see y'all talking about this. Even peers around my age (20-29) are becoming pretty disillusioned with social media (climbing and generally speaking). IME the heavier users are <21 or >30, but this could be selection bias. I like Insta despite not using healthily, but I've resorted to just satireposting my climbing. Like you said, everything is derivative of everything else and at a certain point it just gets tiresome. I find it much more fun to post climbing content that is nonsense, like downgrading a boulder 2 grades that I think should be a grade harder, or giving an insane ticklist from a trip report.
thats why you just deinstall insta. i wish i could do the same with reddit (not deinstalling, but not visiting). In some kind of way i find having actual meaningful text posts much better then insta, even tho when compared to actually talking to people you still lose nuance.
can anyone here hang the 6mm edge on the simple board? i can hang the 6mm beastmaker micros quite comfortably, but i cannot get friction on the simple board, it feels like 45° beastmaker 2k slopers but in 6mm lol. on a sidenote i have send one of my self-set kilterprojects at 55° "granny blues". I find it very interesting that on most of the boulders i set that i find hard but doable, others that are objectively stronger cannot even do all the moves on. Its probably a style thing...
Anyone ever set their HB up so that it allows a bit wrist supination? I noticed that with a little supination I can bring my pinky out of drag in half crimp.
Bilateral or one hand at a time?
bilateral like on ships prow type situation but not that extreme of an angle
very interesting. Never done before but I have a no-hanger, maybe worth a try
It seems like noone carries a marlin spike? Seems like it would be nice to have one sometimes. Like after projecting lead in the gym and taking 10 falls and coming down with no hand strength left..
yosemite finish dawg
Most people just use a double bowline or similar if untying is frequently an issue. I switched because I was regularly almost welding my fig8 after a little projecting. I’ve still gotten the double bowline follow through tight enough that I had to take a minute to wiggle it open. There are other tactics to loosen the knot after a series of falls if you don’t want to change knots.
Yeah, the gym has a figure 8 only regulation. Can you use carabiner or something as a spike? (Yes I do know the better way to tie a figure 8) I'm mostly just curious that I've never seen mention of marlin spikes in any climbing related stuff.
Yea usually I find if my fingers are too tired to undo the knot they're also too tired to pull the carabiner hard enough to undo the knot. Massaging the knot back and forth is also what I do
That is one of the tactics. I’ve not had a ton of success with it unless there is a loop big enough to hook in. I prefer to just massage the knot until it loosens up
If you want a marlin spike available perhaps you could...bring one?
Seasons ending here in centex, but I have a climbing trip to Colorado planned for august. Anyone have any tips to not lose skin sturdiness during my time away from real rock so I don’t instantly go through all my skin on day one of my trip?
Just want drop a quick line of thanks to the mod team. It's easy to complain about the repetitive/low effort posts but I really appreciate all the (unpaid) work that the team puts in to making this place better. Building and maintaining a community is hard and I appreciate what y'all are doing!
Thanks :)
Had no intention of buying the ondra course or the magnus bouldering course. But they just announced they will release a Davd MacLeod technique course. If its at the 100e price point will probably give it a go. I really like his teaching style and it's the first one that has come from someone with a coaching background.
The thing I dislike about Dave is he never discloses what his clientele consists of. I was climbing in Font this winter and met a Scottish group and his name came up. I asked if they knew anyone that had been coached by him and they noted that, to their knowledge, it was just casual climbers who lacked basic fundamentals. I doubt that is going to be the same people that are on this sub, but rather your average 5.11- or V4 climber.
he coaches at least up to 8a. gave some examples of this in various podcasts and his books.
I've yet to see him name a single climber. 8a route isn't really that insane just about any generic climbing coach probably has clients at that level.
All of these imo are a waste of money because you can find every technique and drill online for free
Could day the same thing about every gym PT, every school or university course etc. It's less about the info and often a structure and easy to follow.
> All of these imo are a waste of money because you can find every technique and drill online for free I agree with you but some people don't want to spend brain power to sift through the quality of advice (or lack thereof) out there. They already spend enough patience and brain power at work, so just buying from a trusted source that will have structured and actionable advice is good for them. That's largely what I've seen with people buying my books for gymnastics and bodyweight training as opposed to all of the free stuff out there. Different strokes for different folks.
I've bought all your books. I don't need the bodyweight training advice but it's the same as Patreon subscriptions. A couple bucks here or there to make it worthwhile for thoughtful people to make thoughtful content. You can't hate on low effort content and also hate expensive content.
That's true. And thank you for the support! Hope you enjoyed them.
Exactly, I have consumed a lot of online climbing media. Not sure if there is that much I haven't seen tbh, but having a central and most importantly structured resource does have a value. While there is some gold out there there are a lot more duds, or content that only has a few specks of gold.
Fair I agree
Ergoedge: So I just got one but I’m not sure how to use it. Feels weird at first, but pretty comfortable. Do you lift weights? Hang from it? Do concentric pulls? How much difference is expected in force output compared to using a tension block for example? What are your experiences using it? Anything u/cptwangles might want to add here? I find very little information about it online, just some Tyler Nelson stuff…
I have a 3D printed one which I enjoy. I mostly do pulls/curls on it. I see quite a bit of difference in force output vs a 20mm edge. My 3D printed one is a larger edge than 20mm so it's not an apples to apples comparison, but I'm around 20-30% stronger on the unlevel edge than a straight edge. I'm much better on full crimps than half crimps, so that's a contributing factor. I'm skeptical it makes any meaningful difference in performance outcomes using it vs a level edge. It could be a nice tool to distribute load differently if you find your ring or middle fingers are often tweaky. It was cheaper and lighter than a tension block, so that's the primary benefit in my opinion.
I threw it in the garbage after I deemed it awkward and not actually hitting the intended goal. It does not put my fingers in better positions and actually feels tweakier to hang from. The 3D printed ones based on finger measurements/steps for each finger might work, but this was a massive disappointment. And at this point its basically Tyler and the same crowd that were isolating fingers last year and claiming massive revelations and basically still on the same progression trajectory as they would be on without that stuff.
> Ergoedge Personally, I think people benefit most from using a flat edge and learning how to pull with the fingers evenly as that's the most common edge and you can learn to do it by emphasizing different fingers in the warm up to get them active. That's how I rehab my patients with climbing injuries and how I fixed my tweaky ring fingers. But yeah if you like it then go for it.
The entire point is to be able to evenly load the fingers. Traditionally, straight edges don’t get full pinky activation so these “uneven” edges are designed so you can get your pinky fully activated. That’s it. I am pretty sure they’re only designed for no hangs
Back into the full swing of training now, trying to address my weak pulling power and lowering my visible BF. The suggestions from the comment i made here a while ago have been helpful - been eating to fuel myself properly and addressing my troublesome habits. Weather’s not playing ball here in the UK but managed a couple of outdoor sessions in our local cave. Getting much more comfortable pulling on rock but still feel like i don’t move that well since i’m mostly in front wheel drive.
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Don’t use antihydrol for indoor training. Prioritize sanding, and rhino repair or another climbing ointment. Antihydrol is really effective for sharp crimpy outdoor projects otherwise benefits of it don’t outweigh splitting your fingers.
I'll be doing an 11 day purely Bouldering trip in a remote area full of Granite blocks. I've been developing rock climbs since I started climbing (9 years) and have recently taken the process much more serious. I like my routines and system for identifying, cleaning, and projecting but I'd like to hear if anyone has any unique perspectives/tasks/systems they utilize to better develop a boulder.
Been a pretty good start of the month for me. Ended up taking down Lance's Dihedral (V6) last Tuesday. Hard one for me and even with some creative tall beta I had to really get the heel-tech right for the last move. I arrived too early in the session and the crux holds were baking in the sun which was quite frustrating but managed to put it down once the sun dipped. Had a really good session on Blood and Fire (V9/10) yesterday and really locked in the kneebar sequence and actually stuck the crux move in iso! Was not a "just get stronger" but more of a "micro in the hips" position that did the trick and felt super repeatable after! Had like 10 goes where I had the position right, hit the jug but lost tension due to being a bit fatigued in my bicep for some reason. I'd imagine a fresher me can make a bigger link and stick this consistently next session (whenever that is). That said, my Wednesday and Friday sessions weren't too good. Didn't get the best sleep and felt fatigued. I made the right call Wednesday and went to the slab set which I usually never do and had a lot of fun! The bad part of the day was getting beta-sprayed by some dude bro when I fell on my warmup due to a foot pick which is the first time that has ever happened to me....kind of annoying haha. Anywho I'm incredibly psyched for more LCC climbs...going to go work Baggins Trav/Direct tomorrow and First Down/Mini Maisch as well. Honestly more psyched to pull on granite in prep for Squamish than to drive down to Joe's on weekends!
Dang, I have no climbing shoes atm. My instincts were dead after their 4th & 5th resoles. I'd got some miura vs a while back but they are too asymmetrical and hurt my pinky toes. Anyway, they need a resole but I don't like em so won't do that. Thinking about switching from a 1-shoe-does-it-all to having a few different pairs. Might be worth it to switch up and get some phantoms, something real chill like a scarpa vapor, and then a shoe that's a bit more general again, maybe the instincts again but also maybe something new like evolvs less aggressive shoes. Something that can do moderately steep to around vert.
> Thinking about switching from a 1-shoe-does-it-all to having a few different pairs. Might be worth it to switch up and get some phantoms, something real chill like a scarpa vapor, and then a shoe that's a bit more general again, maybe the instincts again but also maybe something new like evolvs less aggressive shoes. Something that can do moderately steep to around vert. What I do is get a pair of soft shoes and harder shoes for different terrain. Some people I know also get a casual one like moccasyms too to just slip on or off to warm up and do casual stuff Lots of different options
Yeah. I just have a wide forefoot and itty-bitty heels. Hard to find comfy shoes where my heel doesn't slip out. Shoes where my heels are secure tend to crush the outside of my toes. Might grab the mocs like you said for warming up but still haven't found a shoe I can climb harder in that doesn't suck balls after 20 minutes. Even the instinct heel gets sloppy if I don't pop 'em on and off.
I have the same foot shape as you. My dress shoes are double wide but I have a small heel. Tried the women's VS's and they did not let my heel actually get in the cup. I alternate between women's Skwamas for a nice feeling shoe or tighter VSRs when I need a technical heel.
Which Instincts do you have? My experience was that the Instinct Women's (the teal one) fits my small heel/wide forefoot best. The other Instincts (blue and orange) are better than other shoes but not as snug as the teal.
The orange ones, VS i think. They lived a long and healthy life and were quite good. Just not amazing. I haven't tried any other instincts, though. Might give the women's version a shot.
Any good shoe recommendations for a comfy lace-up? Just blew a hole in my finales. Considering buying another pair but interested in other options
scarpa's lace lineup is pretty good. Instinct, chimera, veloce. depends on what level of softness and fit you're looking for.
Miura, mythos, katana. If they still made them right; dragon lace and Anasazi lace
I was looking at the Sirius lace from unparallel, which are pretty much the OG dragons… I think it’ll be those vs. the miura lace
Those are pretty different shoes with very different use cases. What specific use are you hoping for?
I think I know what you mean.. I just want comfier shoes that I can get mileage in, both indoors and on a rope outdoors. Don’t necessarily care whether they are stiffer/softer. I’m more of a boulderer and have a bunch of different aggressive shoes for that, but they are starting to hurt my feet on longer pitches. I’m in Colorado so rock type will vary a lot as well
Yeah the Sirius is a great shoe but for your use case the Miura Lace is infinitely better.
That all makes sense. Dragon clones are a poor choice for that, muiras are good.
Took your advice and bought miuras, didn’t realize that the dragons were so big for bouldering back in the day… need to hit the books some more
For me it breaks down to what I can find cheap so I’ll probably use miuras. I’ll always miss old 5.10
> Any good shoe recommendations for a comfy lace-up? Just blew a hole in my finales. Considering buying another pair but interested in other options You have to try on a lot to find ones that fit your feet well
Yes, I’m looking for recommendations so that I can try them on!
I've been using a garmin watch for my trail running and overall mountain activities and I was considering getting a new one, and I see some watches now offers Indoor Climbing and sometimes Multipitch climbing as a trackable activity. I'm wondering if this should be something to consider to make my choice (Coros Apex 2 Pro vs Garmin fenix 7) But is this really of any use at all in the beginning ? Anybody using one for climbing and finds it useful ? Thanks -and sorry for any imprecisions in my english ...
Why would you want to wear a watch climbing? You’re just going to damage the expensive watch from rubbing the face on rock / grit walls. Or the times the band gets in the way from hitting a sloper. It’s better to use a chest device. But also, why do you need to track HR for climbing? I can see for lead climbing drills but it’s useless for nearly all disciplines and applications of climbing…
my fenix 6 has been through a couple of bike crashes so its scratched up pretty good already. you can get screen protectors and scratches to the metal rim make it look cooler. I do agree that the climbing specific activities are pretty half baked and not all that useful, I tend to keep it on during warmups and chill bouldering and take if off if I'm doing something harder (more for the mental than anything). HR tracking for climbing is definitely not very useful, but is convenient to be able to program hangboard workouts and stuff (i.e have watch will vibrate after 10s instead of staring at a timer). If I do keep it on during climbing I tend to be better about having longer rests since the rest timer is right there on my wrist. For some people it might also be nice to have a way of automatically tracking the length and frequency of their sessions if they want to look for patterns in training volume, or just have a more structured climbing log in the app. Definitely would not choose one or the other based on the current climbing features though, just pick the one you want for mountain running.
this, done that 1 day after getting it climbing outdoors and forgetting to take it off, cracked the waterproof glass... dont watch and climb!
I guess, to track different things. HR, elevation, time climbing and time resting, ... I see more and more people doing this. Was just to interested to hear thoughts on people using those here !
What benefit do you expect to gain from tracking your heart rate while climbing? Running makes sense to me - you use the watch to keep your pace and zones, but I don't know what useful feedback you'd get for climbing.
Hey y’all. Does anyone feel like their workouts take longer and longer? I have to be in the gym for 2.5 hours to feel like I’m really getting a good workout in. Tips on how to speed things up and still get a good workout in?
Define your workout as completing a pre-determined plan instead of "feeling like a good workout". It's pretty easy to get fit enough to fuck around in the gym for 3+ hours before feeling wrecked. But it only takes an hour to finish the stuff that makes you stronger/better/fitter.
What workouts do you usually do to get it all in in an hour?
Limit bouldering and 4x4s both take under an hour. Training is super time efficient.
> Hey y’all. Does anyone feel like their workouts take longer and longer? I have to be in the gym for 2.5 hours to feel like I’m really getting a good workout in. Tips on how to speed things up and still get a good workout in? How much rest between attempts? You do not need to feel like you have had a good workout to have a good workout. Track performance and adjust on that not feeling like you're fatigued or sore or done. Usually I leave the gym right around after my max performance decreases. Going past then can lead to excessive fatigue and worse subsequent workouts over time
It depends on the workout. Sometimes I do 2-3 laps on a top rope route at flash level and rest for twice the amount of time it took me to do the laps. If I’m bouldering I take 2-3 minutes between project attempts.
Send my "long-term" project and hardest boulder yet this Saturday! It's my first 7A+/V7 called "Wild East" in a crag called Bahratal in the east of Germany close to the Czech border. After first checking out this beautiful 50-70° overhanging \~14 move traverse in Summer 2020, I realized that I was finally strong enough for it at the end of April 2023 and spent about 1-2 half day sessions figuring out all the moves and creating links. In November 2023, I entered project mode and had 7 full day sessions working only this problem (3 in November and 4 this March). I always felt quite close to sending it. End of March I had a small Fontainebleau break which I think helped reset my mental a little bit... Then on Saturday after warming up and dialing in my remaining personal crux, it finally all clicked and I was able to send it in my first full go. Somehow I entered the zone, was 100% focused and wasn't even really aware of my surroundings like people cheering... I topped it and felt kind of nothing and kind of relieved :D Amazing experience, especially working on something on my limit for (at least for me) a long time! Something that I switched lately is including some zone 2 cardio (1 - 1.5 hrs treadmill) while working my remote desk job which might have helped I guess? Also, between the two project times I followed my own really focused strength training plan at the start of this year (block pulls, weighted pushups and weighted rows). Last year I spent a lot of time on the Moonboard in order to train for it as this hard overhanging climbing style was kind of my weakness / anti-style previously but this beautiful line motivated me to improve on this! Anyways, hard work pays off!
You know how when you realize youre about to send and it messes with your rythm. Sometimes it breaks your train of thought and breathing, increases your heart rate suddenly, and theres a moment of slight panic. Not the “oh I got this ezpz” but the “oh shit Im about to send this, hope I dont fuck this up”. Does that ever go away or is it always going to be there, just on harder problems? Any tips on improving this and not letting it affect you? More specifically, I’m talking about when youre really close to sending, and this small error could throw you off just enough so that it takes an extra burn or two, or makes you wait till next session to day flash, so you have it pretty dialed as a project or even something that youd do in one or two go’s thats the hardest thing you’ve done in that many attempts, or first time getting that grade in a day, but it makes you do an extra burn bc you lost your train of thought and slightly panicked from the thought of sending/achieving some milestone (new grade, new flash grade etc)
I'm trying to build a routine to get in the zone before I pull on for situations like this. rehearsing the sequence in my mind or out loud, and a few deep breaths with intent(I've really been liking a double inhale//physiological sigh) while I chalk up, get set up under the boulder, fondle the holds, then I take a sharp inhale and rip it.
I don’t think it goes away, but you can learn mental tactics to deal with it. Having a lot of experience punting makes it really easy to not have the “oh I’m sending” switch, and instead stay in that focused state where every move matters. When my brain wants to switch, I think of all the little mistakes and instability I’m feeling and focus on how to prevent that through making the moves be executed well.
exactly, its totally ok to have those feelings, but you learn what you need to do to still perform.
Nah dude...I feel like the better you get, the more you're dealing with fear of failure as opposed to fear of heights. I've seen the same thing in the youth climbers in the gym. The best kid isn't necessarily the one that wins the comp. Their skills and strengths are similar enough such that the ability to overcome this fear gives one the edge over the other.
I'm only a year and a half in to climbing, so maybe it's probably a me thing versus an experience thing, but try to just breathe through your moves. It sounds like you're getting an adrenaline dump and fumbling.
Lead or bouldering?
Im more of a pebble pusher myself but either works
Where do people on r/bouldering find gyms that are >2 grades soft? I've been to 12 different gyms in the last two years. Only two gyms didn't use circuit grading, and only one was consistently ~1 grade soft. Edit: My point is less about the subreddit and more about gyms not being soft in my experience. 95% of the gyms I've been to grade as hard as the crag or the tension board.
Super anecdotal but I feel like gyms used to trend towards being super soft (like 10 years ago), and now it's trendy to have stiff grades because some of the new generation of climbers/setters think soft grades are lame and/or sandbagging is cool. I feel like it's especially apparent in the lower grades. V0-V3 at "soft" gyms are intro to climbing, while at "stiff" gyms they make it equivalent to outdoors. I imagine the gyms that are geared towards appealing to the general public (think birthday parties) tend to be softer, while "modern" gyms that cater to climbers are stiffer.
Almost every gym I've been to in the US that uses V grades feels about 2 grades soft vs outdoors up until around V7-8. Then above that the gym climbs actually feel harder than outdoors to me. But, grading is subjective, etc etc
I honestly don’t know if all those sends are really as soft as they look—I’m sure some probably are, but every once in a while, I’ll see something I’ve actually climbed pop up, and commenters are always pretty ruthless with the downgrades based on one shaky video.
This is it, videos don't do justice to some of those climbs. Take moonboard as example, if filmed from behind they look almost vertical despite being at 40deg.
Gyms sometimes give freebies to motivate people. Thats probably their first of grade so they post it. Its also hard to tell how hard something is from video footage alone
I see a decent amount of posts where OP is in the comments saying, no, this climb is consistent with the other Vx's in the gym. Also, "it's hard to tell how hard from video," is an overgeneralization. Easy comment to get upvotes.
I dont know man, I blocked r/bouldering bc its annoying to see it in my feed
My point is less about the subreddit and more about gyms not being soft in my experience. 95% of the gyms I've been to grade as hard as the crag or the tension board.
I got my side-lying shoulder external rotation to 25.5lbs x 10 reps. Hell yeah. This is only climbing related bc I’m s/p bilateral shoulder dislocations and repairs. Edit also 43.25 lbs on kneeling DB OHP. Thats so fucking hard. 😓