Immersion Experience
I start to climb, around there are echoes of other voices and activity going on around me, below me. I grasp new handholds shift my feet and rise slowly higher and higher with each move. I reach for a difficult hold, not quite within my grasp, I jump, I miss, I’m falling. The feel of free fall for those few seconds is gut-wrenching until the rope stops my dissent. My partner on the other side of the rope slowly lowers me the rest of the way down. My second attempt at getting to the top of this wall, but not the last.
On this route,
my friend got a picture of me
at the moment when I lost
my grip and fell.
Before I experienced climbing for the first time, it always seemed like the largest hurdle was my lack of physical skill. I knew with certainty that I would not be able to make it to the top of any wall for quite some time and a lot of practice. What I found was that I was completely wrong. My biggest hindrance in getting up to the top was not knowing where to put my feet next, and making it to the top was not the issue, but rather mastering more and more difficult or longer routes. What I thought would be a slow struggle of endurance became a fun puzzle of what my next move would be.
“The classic image of rock climbing is a large, heavily muscled male cranking a series of one arm pull ups to the top of the crag."
Phillip Watts an experienced rock climber and university professor with a Ph.D. in exercise physiology. In his instructional book on rock climbing, he comments that “The classic image of rock climbing is a large, heavily muscled male cranking a series of one arm pull ups to the top of the crag. Experience has taught me that this image is flawed. I have seen individuals unable to complete one pull up in the gym who can dance up the rock with little appearance of serious effort. An attuned sense of balance and using your legs to "press" your body upward, rather than strenuous pulling with your arms, are the keys to efficient rock climbing.” (Watts, 81) This is apparent when you investigate the various documentaries and articles on accomplished rock climbers, they are all trim and lean not bulky muscle builders. Rock and Ice is one of the world’s top climbing magazines with experienced climbers and PhDs on staff. In their article geared towards teaching people climbing techniques says that one of the biggest things beginners do wrong is that they ”tend to hug the rock and/or grope too high for out-of-reach holds, making it hard for them to see and use their feet. Whether you’re on an overhang or a low-angle slab, the idea is to keep your weight pressed onto your feet. An erect, athletic, in-balance posture is the ticket.” (Rock and Ice) New climbers should “Remember that [their] legs are stronger than [their] arms—take advantage of that.” They are informing new climbers that climbing is not just a matter of pulling yourself up the wall, it is a skill that requires their whole body and skilled movements. The perception that a specific kind of strength is required to climb holds new people back from trying the sport when in reality the majority of people have the ability to climb.
One of my other hurtles was dealing with the thought of falling. Climbing that high in the air means that eventually you will need to come down and that means there comes a point where you fall accidentally or another point where you choose to let go and trust that your partner will get you safely back to the ground. Some of the fear I had was eased by the training I underwent when I first started rock climbing. They trained me on how the equipment works and on the double checks that should happen before you climb to make sure all knots are tight and all gear is I working order. With the improvement in equipment over recent years climbing continues to become safer.
Climbing has been around for centuries, but it wasn’t done recreationally until the late 1900s (Wilkinson). Since then people have begun to break climbing into further and further categories as time goes on. To name a few there is sport climbing, bouldering, and traditional climbing. Sport climbing is done “With the assistance of a partner” where “the climber ascends a bolted and established rock face using a harness, ropes, and a belay system” (Lyle). Bouldering requires only a padded mat to ease landings since you do not climb far off the floor. Traditional climbing or trad climbing is similar to sport climbing but instead of existing bolts and anchors, climbers “place and then remove their own protection as they go” which requires skill and knowledge to do properly (Wilkinson). In general, the diversity of the sport means new climbers have a variety of choices so they can pick one that best suits their preferences.
The atmosphere at the indoor climbing gym was also much more positive than what I expected and more group-oriented. When climbing on a lead rope you always have a partner on the ground holding the rope in case you fall and to lower you down at the end of a climb. Even while not climbing or belaying I was involved in helping my friends by pointing out the best footholds and suggesting their next move. As I observed the gym around me, this was something that was happening all around me, friends offering encouragement and support to those climbing.
After experiencing rock climbing I understand the draw it has for many people. It's a puzzle, socially engaging and physically challenging a wrapped up in one activity. I enjoy figuring out the puzzle of the climb and the feeling of physical accomplishment having the physical strength to reach the top. And with various options on how you climb, you can keep close to the ground and try bouldering or rise far above it. I encourage anyone thinking of trying rock climbing to give it a shot, throw out your misconceptions about the typical climber because there is no such thing and find a gym near you to experience climbing for yourself.
