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The author: Alexander Nagorov, Moskow

 

Trainer’s notes disputable and indisputable

Note 1

Dear friends! I've been asked a lot to write a technique of trainings on rock-climbing.

To tell the truth, it is not absolutely easy to do that, even because that fact that any, most correct idea in the process of its statement, especially on a paper, contains some discrepancy. Therefore I state only some reasons, not wishing to impose them to anybody. Except for this thing many trainers and sportsmen certainly have their other sight at our sports.

I cannot give an advice how to become the World or even Russia champion in short term.

Moreover, I hardly shall give an advice, how to climb this or that concrete route.

I consider rock-climbing, as one of the ways of individual perfection through activity.

Warnings:

Rock-climbing is not quite an extreme kind of sports. It is much safer than the majority of traditional kinds of sports. But thus it is necessary to observe some safety rules. First - someone should teach you to use safety equipment and to rules of belaying. If you use the top or bottom belay, your partner (or somebody else) should before climbing check up correctness of clothing of safety system - harness (in particular- harness reverse motion if it is necessary - some import harnesses do not have reverse motion), and also correctness of tying of knots. This rule practically does not depend on your qualification. Even sportsmen of enough high qualification sometimes make mistakes. Do not go with the harness not clasped up to the end as before climbing you can forget to clasp it. While you have not tied a knot up to the end - do not distract.

Being on climbing gym try to see - where you can fall down, and who can fall on you. Especially dangerously to stay under the rock-climber which clips in 1st -or 2nd quickdraw and to lay on climbing pad, especially if it soft and you want to relax on it rather long. Sometimes soft pads are more dangerous, than climbing without them. Watch that there must be no clearances between pads. Be extremely attentive!!! If it is necessary, use the gymnastic belay. Remember - unsuccessful falling even from 1 meter can lead to serious traumas. Do not lock fingers in bolt ears.

Now about health. Do not forget that you have to be kneaded up before climbing. A beginner will hardly receive a trauma if he climbs without warm-up, but if you do not get used to it, you may twist any muscle and any joint (hands, legs, a neck, a back, fingers). Now about jogging. If you regularly go jogging or sky, swim, etc. there is everything normal with you. If you don't, but you climb more or less heavy routes, a sick heart and a hypertension are practically guaranteed to you.

What to start with?

If you want to climb highly at once, first of all, do not deceive yourself! You shouldn't climb with the tense of top-rope, and without the big necessity to redpoint with a lot of falls. If you are pulled, you cannot find correctly balance. If you top rope with a lot of falls (except for cases of studying of a crux) you simply waste time. Remember: you have climbed only up to that place where you have reached independently without falls. Everything else is self-deception. In this case it would be better to use a ladder. But it is better to begin not with climbing on the big altitude and climbing on difficult routes. For the beginning, it is better to try simply to stand and move on a wall, not trying to get anywhere.

The RULE: it is Better to press, instead of to pull. Try to press on any edge. The more strongly you press the better the edge holds. If you try to pull (or to be tightened) an edge as the result you will find out that the more effort you make, the worse you can hold. It is possible to press by hands (prop) and by legs (that means to stand on foots). You can press on edges, on a wall, on the surface, etc.

From here there is the RULE: Try to stand on foots. The maximum friction appears when you press perpendicularly to a prop (edge), and the minimal - at loading the pressure along a surface of edge.

The most frequently mistake - loading an edge along a wall. Usually foot starts to slide off when the rock-climber nestles a breast on a wall (or "lie" on a wall at a flat relief).

The task: Try to load edges, surface of a wall with different ways.

Note 2 >>