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disobey_gravityThis is a post where you can ask all the questions you're always wanted to ask about climbing, whether you've already started or are just beginning to think about maybe possibly kind of giving this a try.
Or maybe you've been climbing for decades, and have always wondered about that one thing, and by now it would be OMG TOO EMBARASSING to admit you don't know.
No topics are off-limit, no questions too clueless, so let rip and get answers fromdemi-n00bs experienced climbers.
Or maybe you've been climbing for decades, and have always wondered about that one thing, and by now it would be OMG TOO EMBARASSING to admit you don't know.
No topics are off-limit, no questions too clueless, so let rip and get answers from
no subject
Date: 2010-06-04 12:34 pm (UTC)I tend to like new experiences better when I know what to expect in advance and the guy one the phone (yeah, this is how much you guys convinced me, I actually used a phone) was sort of like, "oh anyone can do this, it'll fun, just come and see." So, what should I expect?
no subject
Date: 2010-06-04 03:35 pm (UTC)\o/
I have phone-loathing, so I am duly impressed by that bit.
So, what should I expect?
Depends on whether it's a bouldering-only wall or a roped climbing wall.
If it's the latter, a chunk of the time will be spent on safety and protection issues: how to put on a harness, how to belay, etc.. (Maybe some of the folks who do roped climbing can chip in here? I only know this secondhand, owing to my stubborn refusal to do anything that involves learning to tie knots.)
If it's the former, there's very little to learn in the way of safety ("try to land with your weight on both feet and bend your knees" and "for fuck's sake don't walk under anyone who's climbing" is pretty much all of it), so more time may be spent on movement technique.
Either way, they'll tend to start you out on a climb that's very, very easy -- big holds and quite probably on a slab (less-than-vertical, so you don't have to use any muscle to hold on). This is mostly there to get you past the psychological freakout that comes from OMG I'M VERY HIGH UP NOW.
Then they'll try you on something a bit harder.
You may get to deliberately practice falling, so you start feeling confident that it's safe. You will almost certainly get to practice non-deliberate falling, which is a shock to the system at first but (IMHE) surprisingly okay -- at least, not nearly as bad as I imagined it to be, and over very quickly.
Really, all you have to do is not run out of there screaming.
If you can manage that, you're good. And remember that everyone else in the class is likely to be freaking out too, whether they show it or not.
The question is whether, amidst the freaking out, you get that glimpse of it as something you could fall in love with.
Afterwards: drink a lot of water, take a hot bath, and be prepared to wake up extremely achy the day after (and possibly worse the day after that). Climbing works a lot of muscles that get minimal work in everyday life, so initially the delayed-onset muscle soreness is a killer.
no subject
Date: 2010-06-04 03:42 pm (UTC)I'm actually sort of looking forward to the learning to fall bit. I always liked jumping off things as a kid and I just don't get to do enough of that these days.
All of this sounds like things I can do and I'm really looking forward to it.
A few more questions:
Are there a lot of loud and/or sudden, unexpected noises? And is there a lot of being touched during the learning stage? (I'm okay with both of these things as long as I know up front.)
no subject
Date: 2010-06-04 03:56 pm (UTC)In that case, you're probably well ahead of the game.
Loud noises: people calling instructions to belayers, occasionally thumps as boulderers hit the mats. I'm very noise-sensitive, and for me, it only gets problematic if there's a school party in.
There might be skin contact in passing to get a harness adjusted or demonstrate how to tie a knot. If someone freaks out completely on the bouldering wall and doesn't feel able to get down, an instructor might climb up next to them and offer them a hand. Otherwise, no, I wouldn't expect touching.
(FWIW, it sounds like we have some fairly similar sensory issues, so if I found it tolerable in those respects, you probably will.)
no subject
Date: 2010-06-04 03:57 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-06-04 04:10 pm (UTC)They'll send you up a short easy route while you're tied into the rope and belayed by the instructor, and if they're smart they'll show you how to come down while you're only five feet off the ground -- basically you sit back in the harness, letting all your weight hang on the rope, let go of the wall, and prop your feet up against the wall in front of you as though you were sitting on the ground. It sounds simple, but it's psychologically kind of scary because you have to trust the harness, the rope, and the belayer. Coming down is, for a LOT of new climbers, the scariest part of it all. Oh, and no matter what you see the other people doing, don't bounce on the way down: it's a good way to sprain an ankle. Just walk your feet down the wall. (Those Army commercials with the guys doing huge leaping bounds while rappelling have a lot to answer for.)
It really is tons of fun, and the other folks in the class should be supportive and enthusiastic.
And yeah, your forearms are likely to hurt afterwards: after my first formal climbing class I had a very hard time changing gears driving home.
Oh, and one last thing: wear light soft pants that you can move in: yoga pants or something like that. Jeans get bunched up under the harness and it's uncomfortable. Best is a pair of capri pants because really long pants get in the way of your feet.
no subject
Date: 2010-06-04 04:18 pm (UTC)