Morayah Cupp
Rock Climbing
Rock Climbing
Rock Climbing has been around since the first man met the rock. Rock
climbing has been a necessity for people traversing mountainous regions
throughout history. Ancient civilizations have lived and built their homes on or
in cliffs and rock ledges as a form of protection. There is pictorial evidence of
men climbing rocks in Chinese watercolors from 400 B.C. Rock climbing
techniques have been employed by several conquering armies throughout
history to not only transverse mountainous regions to invade areas, but also to
attack castles and other fortresses and breach the walls and defenses of these
structures.
Rock climbing has been a sport since the late 1800’s. The Victorian era is
well known as a period in time when nature and the study and exploration of the
natural world was extremely popular. This popular sport lead to rock climbing
as a sport. Before the 1880’s, rock climbing was known as being a component of
mountaineering and not a standalone sport. It was not until the 1950’s that the
general public began to perceive rock climbing as being a sport of its own. Up
until the 1950’s, rock climbing was perceived as having two functions. It was
seen as a component of mountain climbing and as a necessary part of traversing
some mountains, a means of obtaining the summit. Rock climbing was also seen
as a training activity as a way for mountain climbers to achieve fitness and
master their skills for the real challenge of mountain climbing.
Three of the earliest places for rock climbing world wide were Elbe
Sandstone Mountains in Germany, Lake District in England, and Dolomites in
Italy. Some of the most popular climbing sites in the United States are Cathedral
Peak in Tuolumne Meadows, California, Half Dome in Yosemite, California, and
Devils Tower, Wyoming. Some of the most popular places to climb in the world
are Red River Gorge in Stanton, Kentucky, Otter Cliff in Acadia National Park,
Maine, The Frankenjura in Bavaria, Germany, and Kalymnos Island in the
Dodecanese Islands, Greece.
There are many types and formats of climbing competitions. Each type of
competition can be done effectively on an indoor rock climbing wall or
outdoors. Some of these competitions include bouldering, speed climbing, red
point, on sight, flash, sanctioned vs. non-sanctioned, local, regional, national,
UIAA, the World Cup, and the World Championship. A bouldering competition
is known by short routes and high strength moves. This is type of climbing is
faster and more interesting for the audience and is preferred by many climbers.
Speed climbing is the most fun to watch and probably the most advertised.
Climbers compete against time to see who can reach the top of the route first.
Red Point climbing is a type of climbing that provides many different climbing
routes that consist of different levels of difficulty. On sight combing is used by
National and World Cup difficulty climbing events. Competitors are allowed
one preview and one attempt on a route before competing. Flash climbing is a
competition format where competitors can watch each other climb, but each
climber only gets one try. A sanctioned climbing competition will give you
points toward your national ranking or world ranking. A non-sanctioned
climbing competition does not provide points toward a ranking and is usually
just for fun. Local competitions are not sanctioned at the international level, and
often are not sanctioned by the country’s national body, often awarded with
local supplies for climbing. Regional competitions are usually sanctioned by the
country’s sanctioning body. Prizes vary and may be a combination of cash or
gear. National competitions are sanctioned by the county’s sanctioning body.
The prize is typically cash. Most of the time the purpose of the National is to
choose a national team that will then be the country’s representatives at world
competitions. The International Union of Alpinist Associations is the
international sanctioning body for international climbing competitions. The
UIAA is composed of representatives from each of the 60+ member countries,
and is recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as the official
body representing competition climbing. The World Cup is a series of climbing
competitions of the best climbers in each country. Each country has its own
rules and policies for selecting its national team members, which are both male
and female. The World Championship is held every two years on Olympic off
years. There is one winner from each the male and female categories. The
winners become the world champions and hold the title for two years.
Indoor rock climbing gives you the opportunity to practice safely in a dry
and more secure environment. While working indoors, you can work in unison
with a trainer during group or private sessions. A trainer can educate you about
climbing safety, techniques, and maneuvers.You will also get an opportunity to
try out different climbing routes while working in an indoor environment. For
instance, you can try lead routes, top-rope climbs, and bouldering, which
involves a route with pre-established foot and handholds affixed to a large,
artificial rock wall.Outdoor rock climbing includes everything from Ice to trad
to Competitive Climbs. Weather conditions define what you wear. Indoor attire
is appropriate outside in warmer climates, but, in colder weather, lightweight,
warm clothing will help you escape potential illness or dangerous hypothermic
conditions.
There is a lot of climbing equipment that is good for climbing and safety.
You need to wear clothing that is not restrictive and won’t get in the way of you
or the rope. Your clothing should breathe, sweat resistant and dry fast so that
you can stay warm and comfortable while climbing. Climbing shoes protect
your feet while providing the friction you need to grip footholds. Most styles are
quite versatile, but your climbing ability and where you climb are both factors in
choosing the correct shoe. When climbing outdoors, you should always wear a
helmet made specifically for climbing. Climbing helmets are designed to
cushion your head from falling rock and debris, and some (though not all) are
designed to provide protection in the case of a fall. They are generally not worn
in a climbing gym since it's a controlled environment. You will need to wear a
climbing harness. They consist of two basic parts, the waistband, sits over the
hips and must fit snugly, and the leg loops, one loop goes around each leg. Many
harnesses conveniently offer adjustable or removable leg loops. Just like
gymnasts, climbers use chalk to improve their grip. Chalk absorbs perspiration
on your hands. Carabiners are strong, light metal rings with spring-loaded gates
connect the climbing rope to pieces of climbing protection such as bolts, nuts
and camming devices. They are also used to make quickdraws and to attach
your gear to the gear loops on your harness. A belay device is used to help the
belayer control the rope. Used correctly, a belay device increases friction that
helps the belayer catch a fall, lower a climber, pay the rope out gradually as the
climber advances, or reel in slack smoothly. The two most common
belay-device styles are tubular and assisted-braking. This is no piece of gear is
more important to a climber than the rope, though again, when you're just
starting out, the rope will likely be provided for you. As you progress, where and
what you are climbing will determine which rope is best for you. The two basic
categories of ropes are dynamic and static. Dynamic is a type of rock climbing
rope because it has elasticity worked into it. It’s designed to absorb the energy of
a fall even though the force of a fall can be very large.Static is a relatively stiff
rope that, unlike dynamic rope, does not have much elasticity. It is used for
rappelling and rescues.All climbing ropes must pass the UIAA tests that
regulate the number of falls a rope can hold, the impact force and the dynamic
elongation. A must for bouldering, crash pads are dense foam pads that are
placed under the climber to cushion a fall or jump.
Rock climbing is a very fun and challenging sport. There are many
different types and format of rock climbing. You can either climb for fun or you
can climb competitively. Rock climbing has been a sport since the late 1800’s,
but climbing on rocks has been around ever since the man discovered the rock.
Rock climbing can be a bruitle sport or just a stress reliever.
