rock climbing

[andrerox80]

who does it? bet a lot of people here do. i went for the first time yesterday and it was fuuuun, despite the fact that i sucked and could only get all the way up the second easiest course/climb. how do i improve? just keep trying? wasn't strength or muscular endurance. i just sucked, lol. i also realized there's no way in hell i will ever do an outdoors climb. tell me your experiences b/c i'm definitely going again soon.

[nicolemc]

Just keep going! That's what I did. Most people aren't overly great the first time they go, congrats for making it to the top of a course

The more you go the more your ability to chart out your moves as you climb will increase. Tougher courses are often a matter of being able to strategically plot your course so that you don't run out of hand-holds. Also, if you do get stuck, there's no reason why you can't go down a few holds and plot a new course mid-way up a wall. Take your time and enjoy it

[discdoggie]

i also realized there's no way in hell i will ever do an outdoors climb.

I have been climbing for 25 years and I have only been to a rock wall twice. I only climb outdoors. I dislike rock walls. Give me granite, please. Outdoor climbing is a big financial investment for most, though. So unless your goal is to indentify yourself as "a climber" or have access to another climber's pro and gear---an indoor rock wall where you can rent stuff is fine.

[joyce261]

I'm a climber. Outdoors and indoors are completely different. Indoors is more about brute strength. Outdoors is about technique and mental toughness. Both are great in their own way. I'm an outdoor climber but the gym is good training.

[Linds33]

I am into "mountaineering". At the moment most of the mountains I take on aren't technical climbs, just walk ups. However BF and I are looking for a good challenge and hope to take on some large mountains that may require technical knowledge at some point so we have taken up wall climbign for the moment. Only reason why we are doing wall climbing is because in the DFW area, there are no mountains, boulders, or major hills to do any climbing. Thus to get some regular practice we are going to use a climbing gym that we can go to after work or on the weekends. I have done wall climbing before and had fun doing it. I am looking forward to going to a dedicated climbing gym that also has boulders! Will have to let you know what it is like there.


There are some places that are 3+ hours drive from where we live to do some actual cimbing and we may head out there soon. Plus in about a year we are most likley going to be living somewhere with mountains that are very close by!

Now if you are really crazy you would try free soloing. That is one thing I don't think i would EVER be able to do.

[andrerox80]

linds, i was hoping you'd stop by.

outdoor climbing. not a chance. think i'd pee in my pants. would scare the crap out of me.

as for indoor, i'm def going again, but i don't foresee myself being able to tackle that third wall. hate sucking, but at least that doesn't take the joy out of it.

[rockg8r]

I've been climbing for the past couple of years and agree that indoor and outdoor are completely different. Would much rather climb outdoors but that usually involves a lot of travel, expense and not a lot of places around me to top rope. There are some cool places to lead climb but that's a whole other animal. It's a great physical and mental workout though!

[Linds33]

linds, i was hoping you'd stop by.

outdoor climbing. not a chance. think i'd pee in my pants. would scare the crap out of me.

as for indoor, i'm def going again, but i don't foresee myself being able to tackle that third wall. hate sucking, but at least that doesn't take the joy out of it.

I am so glad you posted this thread!

We did our first weekend of wall climbing (indoor) this weekend and had a blast! I had been on some indoor walls before but nothing like this. I had never learned to belay until this weekend as most walls i have been on were at a regular gym so they had the automatic belayers. The walls were pretty challenging and I have to admit, it kicked my butt. We went two days in a row and after the second day my hands were sore from trying to grip these little rocks in the wall. It is a great strength workout actually and I could see myself foregoing the free weights a few times a week for upper body and doing some climbing instead. They had some cracks that we attempted to climb at the gym too but that was nearly impossible .

I do know that outside climbing is a totally different animal. We spoke to a guy who said that he had to relearn all his techniques when he started outdoor climbing.

I know that I sucked but i figure this was my first go at it and practice makes perfect. Oddly enough I was a little apprehensive at first because I was thinking "can this rope really hold me up?" even though I knew it would. Once i let myself fall a few times and let the rope grab me and let me hand i got more confortable and didn't feel like i was going to plummet to the ground.

[Ashlei]

I love climbing! Just stick with it and you'll improve grip strength and get used to smaller holds. Never been climbing outdoors....yet!

[andrerox80]

it wasn;t the strength that was an issue but stretching out my body and holding on (hands and/or feet) to such shallow holds. will definitely try again and wanna try bouldering. am thinking of going next thurs.