Ever since I saw fingerboards in web videos and in person I have wanted to get one but at first didn’t know where to get one and then didn’t find one at an acceptable price. When I saw it at one of the climbing gyms where I go the price was unreasonable so I lost interest. The one at Décathlon is at a better price so I was tempted. For the fingerboard I need to buy a drill, some screws, and place it. This is easy to do but the costs mount up.
I want to strengthen my finger strength with the rubber band. They have several levels of resistance and I chose the one with 35kg of resistance. They have higher resistance ones but I didn’t like the higher prices. The next step is to find videos showing how versatile these are for strength training.
The Rubber Egg as I call it is great because you can strengthen fingers individually or all at once. You can easily carry it with you and strengthen your fingers at any time of the day. I have played with it for two or three days now and I can feel the different muscle groups that are being recruited.
The alternative to the fingerboard, the training band and the egg is to go bouldering two to three times a week for an hour or two at a time. The drawback is that these gyms cost from 21 CHF per training session to 600+ francs per year. With the Rubber Egg and training band I will train on a daily basis, and see gains when climbing with the group on a weekly basis. Ideally both of these toys will allow me to climb beyond 6a and enjoy the overhanging routes.
Getting up Getu is short documentary climbing video about Alex Honnold and Felipe Camargo climbing a beautiful roof climb. The most spectacular aspect of this video is the size of the arch that they are climbing. In two or three shots you see the size of the rock formations compared to the climbers. The people look tiny.
The rock formations that droop down from the ceiling look interesting. The climbing at this location ranges from 5a to 9c according to one source I skimmed through. There are 250 routes to choose from so this is ideal for a great number of climbers. This was the 2011 location for the Pezl Roctrip.
Getu looks like a beautiful area in china with interesting rock formations, arches and much more. The video below provides you with a glimpse of what else there is to see in this region. It is in the Guizhou province of china and the nearby city is Anshun.
It’s kind of like one big double-edged Jian. On the one hand, the country is somewhat of a political and economic threat to the United States and our international prosperity. But on the other, it has the Getu Valley, a dramatic stomping ground of limestone cliffs and arch formations that promise to enrapture even the most seasoned spidermen and monkey boys.
According to a CNN article climbers have been enjoying this location for generations. As I explored this topic further, to find video or more detailed information I came across this:
Dangling from slippery cave walls 100 meters up from the floor below, Luo Dengping maneuvers across the steep rocks and crags in a dramatic high-wire climbing act to the amazement of spectators below.
Luo, known locally as “Spiderwoman”, is the only female member of a troupe of climbers who entertain visitors to the Getu River Scenic area in Guizhou, with their death-defying acts of high-altitude bravery on a daily basis. Source
If I find some videos of traditional climbing from this site I will share them at a later date.
Live distribution of sports such as Rugby, Football, Tennis, Skiing and other sports is easy to justify because of the audience size. Rock climbing and live distribution of this sport however is harder to justify because it is a niche sport. Sponsors exist and interest in the sport is growing. We see that there are a number of climbing events, via ferrata groups are popular, the number of local climbing gyms is increasing but for a mass audience to watch these events is still unlikely.
I noticed recently that recorded as live climbing events are available on youtube and that we can watch two to three hour broadcasts of these events. If you are learning to climb and if you want to perfect your climbing technique then these broadcasts are excellent because you can watch exactly what the climbers are doing. You can see where they put their feet, which hand they use for a certain hold, how they balance their body on the wall and how they clip in the rope. In effect these videos are climbing lessons for the youtube generation. You can imitate climbers with the same physique as you. You can really watch the climber try hand holds and foot holds. “Does it feel comfortable? No, then I try this, ah yes, this is comfortable.” Watching this process teaches the average climber to be methodical about finding foot and hand holds. In climbing you need to look up and down. You also need to look for small movement opportunities. Moving a foot up five to ten centimetres can make a hand hold easy to access.
People have been rock climbing for generations but it is making its way in to the mainstream. Recently Rock climbing was accepted as an Olympic discipline and we will see this sport at the 2020 olympic games. As this is a sport that requires strength, agility, stamina and intelligence it is a natural, although modern, olympic sport.
The Apple watch and other devices have integrated barometers that allow them to track changes in altitude. Iredpoint by Frogg GMBH is one app that takes advantage of this. It allows you to tell the app what type of climbing you are doing as well as the difficulty.
Types of Climbing
This app allows you to choose the type of climbing that you are doing. You can choose between bouldering, top rope climbing, sport climbing, trad climbing, multirope climbing, free solo, aid climbing and last, and most awesome of all, Via Ferrata. I’m pleasantly surprised by that last one. In summer this is one of my favourite pass times.
Climbing Grade
Right before you start ascending a route you can tell the app of the gradient that you are about to climb and this includes American, European and other gradients. For Via ferrata for example you can choose between the French PD, AD, ED and other ratings of the German number system
When I tried this app at Vitam Park I made sure to state the gradient and then started to climb. You see that the height information is correct. For the second climb I did the same. For consequent climbs I did not select a difficulty gradient or took breaks on the route and you can see that the graph does not include the full climb. For future versions of this app I would like it to take the starting altitude as a base and combine climbs until the correct height is reached.
I started by climbing one top rope but subsequent climbs were bottom roped and I would like the ability, while tracking to switch between the two, as well as when I have finished climbing for the day.
This is an app with great potential and I see myself using it from now on. What I love about this app is that it tracks data while you are climbing rather than just the climb and the grade. I like that it offers such a diversity of climbing options. I will use it when I do via ferrata. I look forward to Spring and Summer when I can use it outdoors.
I have been thinking of climbing gyms, in other words of fitness centres and the Corona Virus. A few years ago I went to a gym where we wiped down every machine after use. We would get a paper towel, spray it with liquid and clean all the surfaces we touched. This includes exercise bikes, weight lifting equipment, elliptical machines and rowing machines. We also placed a towel so that our body was never in contact with surfaces directly.
When we go to climbing gyms we always end up with hands smelling of the objects we have touched. After a session at a climbing gym, I enjoy washing my hands because the water turns dark with the dirt that my hands collected.
Climbing.com wrote an article about whether climbing gyms pose a threat. There is not enough data to provide a reliable answer yet. From a logical standpoint, the answer is clear. If we should avoid shaking hands, or having any physical contact if we should stay at least one meter from other people, then climbing is an activity to avoid. We touch the same handholds, we share ropes and we share belay devices.
During the health crisis, I believe that climbing outdoors would make more sense because UV light kills bacteria and viruses. At outdoor climbing locations, there are fewer people so exposure to virus carriers is smaller.
Health Magazine and The New York Times both explore the topic of fitness centres and the risk of transmission. “In addition to avoiding frequently handled machines and equipment, it’s recommended, as always, that you wash your hands often and don’t touch your face.” This is from the New York times article. Health wrote “Any place where large numbers of people congregate at any one time over a period of time, allows them to shed their microorganisms or germs on various places,”
I currently have neither a normal gym, nor climbing gym membership. I would favour normal gyms over climbing gyms. I can clean the machines before and after I use them minimising the risk of exposure. This is already a normal part of my gym routine so there would be no change. According to the Irish Times swimming pools are also safe due to Chlorine in the water.
Disclaimer: For further information refer to the articles I have linked to. I am not a health professional.
Climbing in Saint George is interesting for those living or working between Nyon and Morges. It provides routes from 4c to 7a and above and should cover most skill levels. Access time is a few seconds. You park your car near the lumber yard and a few seconds later you’re at the climbing wall. The image below is to show how short the walk is. It is also there to facilitate your finding the place should you want to climb here. I mention this because Sunday someone said that she liked to go to various climbing walls but that she often found it a challenge to spot the correct location.
The site that you see in this image varies from 4c to 6a+. The gradient is slightly positive so you are more likely to slip than slide. Most of the routes start easily but getting to the end is the challenge. Some of the finger holds are tiny and it’s better to use new shoes. I’m using old worn out climbing shoes so my traction is not optimal so I climb using my heels when possible.
To the right of the image above you have a small path that leads to a nice rock surface that is overhanging. Under this overhanging rock you find traces of barbecues, mattresses and a few quick draws. The climbing here is technical. It starts from 7a onwards so is more interesting for those climbers with the finger strength and endurance to attempt sustained overhanging climbs.
[caption id="attachment_3311" align="aligncenter" width="576"] Saint George Overhang climbing[/caption]
This is a nice location and if you walk further along, to behind the location from which I took this picture there is a cavern. This site looks interesting and yesterday there was an interesting sound. In a nearby valley or clearing Swiss military were practicing with .50 calibre guns. I called it artillery but a former British Marine classified the type of gun.
Documenting climbing feats is an interesting challenge because you deal with issues of accessibility, projects that can last for months or even years and in some cases you’re dealing with the prospect of the climber understanding the problem, and then achieving his goal. For two or three years I really explored ideas for a climbing documentary before losing steam. My interest in the topic was still there but I couldn’t think of whom to put in front of the camera.
In my free time I have watched a lot of documentary films about climbing. Some are short, filmed over just a few hours and others are about longer duration projects that can last for a week or two. When I heard that Alex Honnold was free soloing El Cap I didn’t realise all of the preparation that he had been through. It’s only after watching his TED talk that I understood and my respect for his process grew.
I like his TED talk because he really goes into detail about his preparation. You see that it is a process that takes years. Moves are practiced over and over until they are perfect. This is repeated for every pitch. Nothing is left to chance.
Aside from the mental preparation of the climber there is also the process that the cinéma verité crew must go through. In the documentary that I have included below you learn about the questions of ethics that are posed. Questions such as “how do we film this without distractions, how do we film this without endangering his life, how do we make this as safe as possible. The answer is using professional climbers and friends as camera crew. People that know the sport know when to be quiet and what move to expect next.
It’s interesting that in this feature they discuss the use of remote cameras for one or two sections, so that Alex feels alone and focused on the task at hand. Remote cameras on a cliff hundreds of metres off of the ground.
If a documentary is well made, like The Dawn Wall was, then you watch a documentary on a niche topic without growing bored or distracted. If it well filmed then it is as complete as a book. A well made documentary is as complete as a book.
The beauty over documentary films, as opposed to news coverage is that documentaries can be relevant to a small niche of people rather than cater to the lowest common denominator. This is especially true in an age where documentaries can be seen at film festivals, specialist events, offered as videos on demand and more. Keep in mind that in 2020 climbing will be an Olympic sport and that in this context documentaries that are made about climbers are going to attract an ever-growing audience. What is niche today will appeal to a wider audience tomorrow.
Two years ago I volunteered at the Festival Du Film Alpin and I was really happy to watch a genre, that until then I had seen mainly on youtube appear on a big screen with a large audience. Recently I was at the Magnetic Film premiere and this was an interesting experience and last night I was at Pathé Balexert, a mainstream cinema watching a documentary about climbing. The next step would be for one of these documentaries to be screened on an IMAX screen.
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