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Does anyone else have issues with their fingers blistering? I've been working a problem with (plastic) slopers lately and I'm developing blisters on the same spots pretty regularly. Taping reduces the damage but makes the moves noticeably harder. I've heard a lot of people talk about skin tearing but not so much about blistering. Is this par for the course or is it just my terrible sloper technique?
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Jun 23, 2013 02:48
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| # ¿ May 19, 2024 22:53 |
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Tarnien posted:Are you sure they're blisters and not callouses? When you hold slopers, you hit the hold then your fingers drag down slightly, causing the skin to bunch up at certain spots. If you do it enough, you'll notice that spot turn kinda white and rough (and maybe tender), which might be what you're talking about? If so, that's totally normal. Just climb until it's too painful to ignore, then move onto something else. When you come back the next time, your skin will be tougher and can handle a little more. Thanks for the response. Perhaps blister is the wrong word but they're not calluses. The best way I can describe it is that it's like two layers of skin separating without the top layer tearing off. It's a pretty distinct feeling when it happens. The result is a circular patch of connected but loose skin. If I keep climbing on it the loose skin tears off. My hands are pretty well callused already but perhaps not where this is occurring, on the skin between the top two knuckles on several fingers. Hopefully the skin will toughen up to the point where it stops being a problem.
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Jun 24, 2013 02:05
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Grisly Grotto posted:Lead my first climb today, only a 5.7 but it felt pretty intense. I'm a complete gumby clipping draws though ugh. 5.7 is pretty awesome for a first lead! Pretty sure that smooth clipping only comes with practice. Coming from a trad background I always look for a comfortable stance to give me plenty of time to muck about before I clip. I'm rubbish at leading though so there may be a better way.
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Jun 24, 2013 02:15
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TotallyUnoriginal posted:I have worn my fingers down so far that the pads bleed though. Just no big ugly flappers I did something like that a couple of years ago:  Not very conducive to climbing. Grisly Grotto posted:Are you actually slipping off the holds? I've had a couple of flappers from working a problem a lot & slipping off a ton. I think it's the sliding friction that does it. Not slipping off exactly but perhaps slipping a little whilst on the holds. Worked the slopers a bit more today and my fingers seem okay so perhaps my skin is toughening up.
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Jun 26, 2013 13:04
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YourCreation posted:A 12 year old Italian climber died today after a sling failure 8( Just read about this. Very sad news. A grim reminder on how important it is to remember to check your gear before you get on the rock. Sgt. Slaughter posted:My recommendation for starting bouldering shoes for people is pretty much always the Mad Rock Flash. The Flash 2.0 came out relatively recently and is nothing but improvement on the old model. I've always hated the Evolv Defy with a passion, I really think it's an awful shoe and Mad Rock really gives you bang-for-your-buck with the Flash, which just feels better on all fronts (for me, at least). You can probably find them cheaper than $83 on other sites. Just chiming in on this one to say that I picked up a pair of Flash 2.0 after wearing through my Defys a couple of months ago and haven't regretted the decision. I'm finding them to be a much better shoe all around although I'm not sold on the heel gel (I haven't noticed it working against me but it seems counter-intuitive to add something viscous between the foot and the rubber, even if it's just in the heel). For some reason I always found edging difficult with the Defys even though they were the tightest shoe I owned at the time. The rubber on the Defys seemed almost slick at times. It may all be a case of personal preference, though, as I've heard a lot of people comment very positively on the Defys.
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Jul 7, 2013 01:37
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The amount of extremely poor belaying at gyms is frightening. I'm actually surprised that there aren't more accidents. I think the most common mistake I see is people letting go of the brake after taking in. I always feel like an arse for mentioning it but I'd rather not see a groundfall and know that I could have prevented it.
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Jul 9, 2013 03:47
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HiggsBoson81 posted:I've never seen a gym give safety instruction for bouldering. Climb at your own risk I guess. One out of the four bouldering places around here has a mandatory induction but even that's pretty rudimentary. "Bend at the knees when you hit the pad and don't stand under someone who is climbing" is pretty much all I remember. We were also given some impromptu spotting advice by a staff member after a friend split her head open on a plywood corner whilst bouldering (eight stitches!).
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Jul 10, 2013 13:10
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Petey posted:Mine - which are 6 years old at this point - seem to be permanently dusty / chalkdusty to the point where the traction seems to be suffering. However, if this isn't a straightforward question, then there may well be something wrong with my shoes as opposed to them being dirty / dusty / etc. You have a pair of shoes that have lasted you six years?! Have they been re-soled during that time? I go through at least a sole a year! I know I'm a bumbly but I didn't think I was being that careless. How long do shoes last for everyone else? Re cleaning them: I just use soap and water where appropriate. It's pretty understandable if you're climbing outdoors a lot.
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Jul 11, 2013 05:11
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Covert Ops Wizard posted:Nice! I felt really good about getting 5.11s, though I think 5.10 was my most worked for milestone. I'm excited to start getting that feeling of breaking limits again when I'm not setting for twelve hours a day, and working a desk the rest of the time. God I'll be glad when this comp's over. That said I'm really excited to have been hired as a setter at my gym, it's really fun and cool to see everything coming together. Out of interest how did you learn to set? Just by climbing indoor and talking to other route setters a lot? There seems to be a real art to it but I haven't seen any substantial online discussion on it.
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Jul 26, 2013 09:42
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Thanks, that's a much more thorough explanation than I was expecting. How long did you climb before you began setting? What would you say is the minimum grade you should be able to climb before it would be worth giving it a shot?
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Jul 28, 2013 12:59
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Covert Ops Wizard posted:I've been climbing for a little over three years now and climb about v7/5.12. I don't really know what would be a good grade to climb at honestly. It seems more important to be creative and understand movement. Ironically a really strong climber could be a poor setter because he might not understand the difference between a v2 and a v3, it's all easy to him. If you want to get into it I would become a regular in the gym and then ask the head setter if he needs any help with the setting and be enthusiastic about learning, just expect your usual amount of bitchwork for what is essentially an apprenticeship, like stripping walls and washing and sorting holds. Thanks again! You're right about the perils of overly strong route setters; there's a guy at the local gym who under-grades everything he sets by at least two grades (at least compared to the other routes in the gym), claiming he just can't tell the difference. Of course, he's probably just sandbagging us bumblies. I'm usually pretty focused on the business end of climbing in the little time I get at the gym but I could definitely to try to get to know the staff a little better. Thanks for the tips. gamera009 posted:I have been climbing for about five+ years now. I'm a solid V4/5.10- climber. Good to hear that you don't have to be onsighting 5.12 to start setting problems. I'll start sussing out what opportunities there might be locally. Edit: Swap those shorts out for printed leggings and you've achieved the apex of climbing fashion. Well done! As a side note, that rock looks awesome. Year of the Monkey fucked around with this message at 09:08 on Jul 30, 2013 |
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Jul 30, 2013 09:04
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Kefit posted:Anyway, shoe rentals are $5+tax so I suppose I should pick up my own pair sooner rather than later. Everything I've read up on suggests I should pick up some Mad Rock Flash 2.0s, but I can't find any stores around here that carry them so I can actually try them on. At the gym I rented a pretty snug pair of 5.10 Stonelands VCS at size 10.5. Are sizings between different makes of climbing shoes similar enough that I can just order a pair of Mad Rock Flash 2.0s in size 10.5 and hope for the best? I'd recommend against buying shoes that you haven't tried on. The sizing doesn't compare well across different shoes, sometimes even within the same brand. Go to a store, try on as many different pairs as you can and buy the ones that fit you the best. That said I'd avoid anything too fancy - ask for good all around shoes.
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Aug 4, 2013 10:41
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| # ¿ May 19, 2024 22:53 |
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Chroisman posted:I want to build a free standing hangboard thing for home to use outside and stuff, and I was wondering if anyone here as cobbled together anything similar at home if I could get some opinions on the ideas I have. A while back I started out looking for ways to set up a free standing hangboard and kept on expanding on the idea until I wound up building this monstrosity:  Which can be dismantled in theory but will probably prove to be an absolute nightmare when I do move house. When I was building it I did come across descriptions of modular designs that could be fully dismantled using structural pine, plywood and bolts. An engineer friend of mine did suggest using metal tubing to reduce the weight but it looked like it was going to be a bit more complex than I felt confident with. If you're looking at attaching a board with holds to it at some stage I'd suggest considering an overhang to get the most out of it. Mine is 30 degrees overhung and I find that hard enough but I've seen others over 45. Depending on space maybe you could consider something like this:  Otherwise, I've seen videos of hangboards hanging from slings attached to carports, etc. Not perfect perhaps but better than nothing. Or if you have the right sort of doorframe you could try a blank slate:  If you're in Sydney Climbing Anchors has them listed (although they're currently out of stock due to the poor condition of the AUD).
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Aug 7, 2013 13:16
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