How To Get Started: Rock Climbing, Part 2

Hello AkshunKat fans,

In my previous blog post, I talked about the four main categories of rock climbing: Bouldering, Top Roping, Sport Climbing and Lead (Traditional or "trad") Climbing.

My suggestions in Part 1 included going to a local climbing gym to get your first taste of climbing, instruction and gear, and to start off with some Bouldering.  

Today, in Part 2, let's kick it up a notch to the next level: Top Roping.  

Top Roping is so named because it uses a rope that is already anchored at the top.  For example, when you walk into that local, indoor climbing gym, you'll almost certainly see walls with ropes hanging in front of them.  If you look up, you'll see that there is a sturdy anchor point at the top of the wall, and the rope is running through that point so that both ends are down on the ground.  If the wall is, say, 40 feet high, then there will probably be a rope that is about 90 feet long, with the extra length allowing for the tying of the required knot.

This enables two people on the ground to climb up the wall using the rope for protection.  One person will be the Climber, and the other person will be the Belayer.  While Bouldering is something that you can do alone (although it's handy and certainly safer to have a friend on the ground "spotting" you, like I described in Part 1), Top Roping (like Sport Climbing and Trad Climbing) will require a team of 2.  

Also, while Bouldering only requires you to buy a pair of shoes, a chalkbag and maybe a "crash pad," for these more advanced levels of climbing you'll need to buy - at a minimum - a harness, a belay device, and a big, strong, lockable carabiner to attach your belay device to your harness.

If you're climbing inside a gym, then you can probably rent those three things there, so you can at least get a taste of this kind of climbing before you commit to buying your own gear; but if you plan to do this more often, you'll definitely save money in the long run if you just bite the bullet and get your own stuff.

If you want to go Top Roping outside, then you'll need your own rope, of course, and you'll also need enough gear to set up your own "top-rope" - that is, to set up your own sturdy anchor at the top of whatever cliff you're planning to climb.  You'll also want to take some real, hands-on instruction from an experience climber before you try it, because if you screw up your top rope anchor, you will probably die.

Like I said, for indoor gym climbing, you'll only need a harness, a belay device and a carabiner (as well as the shoes and chalk-bag that you bought for Bouldering).  Let's look at each of those components in turn:

Harness:  The harness is the heart of your climbing system.  It consists of a snug waist-belt that is connected to loops that go around your thighs (called "leg loops").  All three of these loops (one around your waist and one around each leg) will be joined by your "belay loop" in the front.  That is your "tie-in" point - if you are the Climber, and it is also your belay point - if you are the Belayer.

Some harnesses are heavy with thick, comfy padding, while others are super-thin and light for people pushing the limits and wanting to keep their weight as light as possible.  Like most things, the best options are usually somewhere in the middle.  Pick one that is reasonably comfortable for you and it'll be hard to go wrong.  Harnesses also will have "gear loops," but we can talk about those in Part 3 when we get into Sport Climbing.

The "belay device" is another essential piece of gear (ok, pretty much everything is essential when it comes to climbing!).  It is basically a device that the Belayer uses to add a certain amount of friction to the rope, or it just locks off and "grabs" the rope, so that the Belayer can control the rope when the Climber that he or she is belaying falls or wants to be "lowered."  I'll explain the process of belaying in a bit.

The carabiner is a metal loop with an opening (a "gate") that we use to attach the belay device to our belay loop.  For belaying, I suggest you get a fairly large, strong one with a lockable gate.  This thing is going to take a lot of abuse, and it is absolutely critical that it not open up accidentally, which is why it's important for it to have a lockable gate.

So, there you are, with your harness securely and snugly attached to your body, and you have your belay device attached to your harness's belay loop with your super-sturdy belay carabiner.  Now you're ready to belay your partner, the Climber.

The Climber will also have his harness on, but he will not need his belay device or carabiner.  All the Climber needs to do is tie one end of that dangling rope into their harness's belay loop.  Typically, climbers use what is called a "follow through figure eight knot" in order to do that.  There are other knots that can be used but that's the most common. 

Here is where that hands-on instruction comes in handy, because it's pretty hard to explain to you how to tie that knot in this blog.  Usually, the climbing gym will require you to take their "introduction" course, which includes how to tie that knot, before they will allow you to belay anybody in their gym.  They'll make you practice it over and over, until you're pretty competent.  This is also where your partnership with your climbing buddy is very important.  You should both always be double-checking each other.  If your partner, The Climber, ties into the rope, you, The Belayer, should inspect it and make sure that it's correct.  This could literally save your partner's life!

Ok, your partner has tied in to one end of the rope (and you've made sure that the knot is right).  Now, it's time for you to "put the Climber on belay."  This is another skill that you need to learn through proper instruction, but it basically entails running your end of the rope through your belay device and taking up all of the slack.  At that point, the rope is running directly from your belay device, up to the top of the wall, through that sturdy anchor point, and down to the belay loop (tie in point) on your Climber's harness.  It dead-ends at your Climber, and all of the slack is on the floor behind you.  Your Climber is now "on belay."

After your Climber has checked to make sure that you have put him on belay correctly, and that your carabiner is locked properly, he can now start to actually climb.  We're finally at the point where somebody gets to climb!  I know that there's a lot of preparation involved, but remember, even in a gym people can get hurt, so it's very important to take this stuff seriously and take your time.  Gravity is always there, waiting for you to make a mistake!

As always, you want to communicate clearly with your partner, so that you both always know what is going on.  With this in mind, you will tell your partner (The Climber) that he or she is "on belay."  Then, The Climber should tell you that they are "climbing," and The Belayer's reply should be "climb on."

Of course, you don't need to stick to these exact words, as long as you both are clearly aware of what's going on.  If you are The Climber, you certainly don't want to start climbing before your Belayer is ready.  Remember, your Belayer is the one who is going to literally save your life if you fall.

So, as the Climber leaves the ground and starts climbing, the Belayer must "take in the slack," or pull down on the rope and pass that slack through the belay device to reduce the amount of rope between the Belayer and the Climber.  

For example, if the Climber is 10 feet off the ground, and the wall is 40 feet high, then there will now be 70 feet of rope going up from the climber, through the anchor point, and back down to the Belayer's belay device.  At that point, if the Climber falls, it's the Belayer's job to instantly "engage" the belay device (and how will depend on the belay device) to stop the Climber from going anywhere.  Of course, the Belayer MUST be paying close attention and ALWAYS have at least one hand on the rope in order to catch the Climber's fall.  If you are the Belayer, remember that your Climber is counting on you.  You two are partners, and you must always be looking out for each other.

Most climbing rope has a certain amount of stretch, so once the Belayer locks off the rope with the belay device, the Climber will still drop a little bit; but if the Belayer does his job properly, then the Climber will only drop gently as the rope stretches.  This is why Top Roping is really the safest way to climb - it can even be safer than Bouldering.

Once the Climber is ready to proceed, he re-establishes his feet and hands onto the wall and continues to climb.  As the Climber moves up the wall, the Belayer continuously pulls the slack through the belay device so that, if the Climber should fall at any point, they will immediately be caught by the rope and not really fall at all - just the little bit that the rope stretches.  Once at the top, the Climber will call out "I'm ready to lower."  At that point, the Belayer should take up all slack and let the Climber know "I've got you."

As the Climber sits back into his harness and lets the Belayer take his weight, the Belayer will once again use the belay device to very slowly and in a very controlled manner feed the rope backwards (the opposite direction) through the belay device to slowly lower the Climber back to the ground.

If you've both done everything right, neither of you will be dead!  That's the whole point, right?  Each of you can now switch positions - the Climber can untie from the rope, the Belayer can disconnect the rope from the belay device and then tie in to the "climbing end."  If you two are going to climb together often, then you really only need one belay device and one carabiner - you just hand it back and forth.

I hope that this gives you a little overview of the world of climbing with ropes.  If you're going to take that first trip to a climbing gym, or even take that first class from an instructor, it's always nice to show up with at least a basic idea of what you'll be doing.  

And if the instructor asks you how you became such a "know-it-all," just tell them that you're good buddies with AkshunKat!

Stay tuned for Part 3, where we'll get into some more serious - and more dangerous - climbing:  Sport Climbing.

Cheers!