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PRADA SLUT
Mar 14, 2006

Inexperienced,
heartless,
but even so
Sharma is going to be at Portland Rock Gym August 8th

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Bushiz
Sep 21, 2004

The #1 Threat to Ba Sing Se

Grimey Drawer
I got one move from the top of a 5.11a for the first time the other day and I'm super proud of myself for it.

Covert Ops Wizard
Dec 27, 2006

QwertyAsher posted:

I got one move from the top of a 5.11a for the first time the other day and I'm super proud of myself for it.

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.

Year of the Monkey
Jun 16, 2013

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.

Kylaer
Aug 4, 2007
I'm SURE walking around in a respirator at all times in an (even more) OPEN BIDENing society is definitely not a recipe for disaster and anyone that's not cool with getting harassed by CHUDs are cave dwellers. I've got good brain!
I've been climbing for several years now, off and on. More off than on, though recently I've been keeping a good schedule of getting to the rock gym once or twice a week, and I've finally broken through the 5.10 mark and have succeeded on a couple of these routes. Still nothing approaching consistency at that level, of course, but it's great fun.

What I'm curious about is the integration of climbing with weightlifting, specifically about how to space my lifting/climbing days for best results. Would three days of weights, two days of climbing, and two days of rest per week (with a little cardio like short-distance bike rides being an every-day thing, as well) be a good split? I'm guessing that this topic has already been written about, but I don't know where I would find it.

modig
Aug 20, 2002

Kylaer posted:

I've been climbing for several years now, off and on. More off than on, though recently I've been keeping a good schedule of getting to the rock gym once or twice a week, and I've finally broken through the 5.10 mark and have succeeded on a couple of these routes. Still nothing approaching consistency at that level, of course, but it's great fun.

What I'm curious about is the integration of climbing with weightlifting, specifically about how to space my lifting/climbing days for best results. Would three days of weights, two days of climbing, and two days of rest per week (with a little cardio like short-distance bike rides being an every-day thing, as well) be a good split? I'm guessing that this topic has already been written about, but I don't know where I would find it.

At the 5.10 level, just climbing is going to be the best training for climbing. I don't mean that you shouldn't weight lift. If you like weight lifting do it. But I wouldn't focus on it as a path to improve climbing. If you are cycling your weight lifting by body area, you might try putting the upper body lifting right before a rest day, and in general try to avoid upper body followed by climbing or the other way around. I'm guessing those would be the most likely to interact.

idiotsavant
Jun 4, 2000

QwertyAsher posted:

I got one move from the top of a 5.11a for the first time the other day and I'm super proud of myself for it.

Haha, I sent the hell out of a stemmy 11a gym route a few weeks ago; first 11a I've climbed without a fall or hang, and it felt weird. The start had a pretty hard sequence, but the meat of the route felt like pretty mellow 10c-10d stuff, just taking my time to make sure all my moves were really mellow and easy. I've just started climbing outdoors, too, and 11a outdoors is unfathomable. Hell, 10c outdoors is pretty vicious. If anything it helped me realize how arbitrary some grading can be, especially in climbing gyms. I dunno, it's still good to feel accomplished after jumping up a notch, but I guess now I'm a little more focused on being happy about completing climbs that are difficult for me rather than their overall difficulty grade...

Kefit
May 16, 2006
layl
I've been interested in climbing poo poo for a decade but never went out and did anything about it because I'm not very interested in working with ropes and harnesses and what not. Then this week I finally learned that bouldering is in fact a thing that exists. Earlier today I registered for an introductory belaying class at Stone Gardens Bellevue. The real draw is the extensive bouldering area of the gym, but I figure that this belaying session will be a great guided start to climbing in general.

Finally gonna give climbing a proper shot tomorrow afternoon! I'm pretty sure I'll love it.

Unoriginal Name
Aug 1, 2006

by sebmojo

Kefit posted:

I've been interested in climbing poo poo for a decade but never went out and did anything about it because I'm not very interested in working with ropes and harnesses and what not. Then this week I finally learned that bouldering is in fact a thing that exists. Earlier today I registered for an introductory belaying class at Stone Gardens Bellevue. The real draw is the extensive bouldering area of the gym, but I figure that this belaying session will be a great guided start to climbing in general.

Finally gonna give climbing a proper shot tomorrow afternoon! I'm pretty sure I'll love it.

Sup Bellevue bro :respek:. I'll warn you now, your hands and forearms will hurt the first few times. The bouldering area is fantastic though.

Kefit
May 16, 2006
layl
That was loving awesome.

Started on a 5.6. Easy. Moved to a 5.7, kind of tough. The staff belayer challenged me to do a 5.8 with a bit of an overhang. It took a couple of attempts, several holds, and almost all of my energy, but I got to the top of that loving wall. We then moved to bouldering where I proceeded to easily do VBs and get my rear end kicked by all the V0s. I finally got one V0 after several tries! I think I might have had better luck with them if I wasn't so drained from the 5.8 climb, I guess I'll find out next time I go.

I wasn't really feeling the burn during the climbing, but as soon as I stopped and sat down for a while I realized I could barely move my forearms. This made signing the registration form for the month long beginning bouldering class really hard. Also the palms of my hands burn, especially at the base of my fingers. Will moisturizer or anything help with this, or do I just have to deal with it?

Kefit fucked around with this message at 02:10 on Jul 28, 2013

M. Night Skymall
Mar 22, 2012

Kefit posted:

Also the palms of my hands burn, especially at the base of my fingers. Will moisturizer or anything help with this, or do I just have to deal with it?

You can get burt's bee's wax or Climb On! or something like that and it helps a bit, mostly your hands just need to get used to it over time though.

PRADA SLUT
Mar 14, 2006

Inexperienced,
heartless,
but even so
I have some of the Metoulius balm and I think it's fine as a moisturizer, but I doubt there's any serious medical benefits. It feels nice on my hands at the end of the day.

Covert Ops Wizard
Dec 27, 2006

Year of the Monkey posted:

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.

Most of my climbing is done indoors so I had a pretty good feel for it to start out, but yeah, it's pretty much exactly what you said. You have to have a really good grasp on climbing technique and what works where, and also an understanding of what different level climbers are capable of. Marrying technique with appropriate holds is important.

What i do is I watch what the more experienced guys do and try to figure out their styles and the individual moves they set, and learn from that. I typically climb in a very static, footwork heavy sort of way, so my sets will reflect that if I don't really think about what others do. One of the kids I worked with on this comp is all about swinging to holds and cutting feet, and since he set a bunch of stuff I didn't want to bite his style too much but his stuff is a good inspiration to maybe widen my own style out a little. Also, there's some guidance from the head setter, but not a ton. Usually he just tells me he needs a bunch of problems of various difficulty in certain spots on the wall, and I'll just grab a bunch of holds that I think would be suitable and fun for that difficulty (also depends on what my concept is, slopers, slopers and pinches, do I want somebody to have too heel hook a lot, all sorts of options) and pile them on the floor. Then I pretty much make it up as I go along from the ground up, and though it's important to be really conscious of footwork for your climbs, I usually just mark off feet with tape for later as I go, I usually pick those out last. After setting feet for people my size I typically put some on for the shorties as well. Unless it's a really hard climb or slab, in which case gently caress all of you, short people gonna be stretching and tall people gonna be putting knees in faces depending on how mean I feel. Sometimes I start off with a move I really want to set midway through the climb with a really cool hold I found, but that's rare. After I set it the head setter checks it and gives suggestions, though I think he'll be doing that less now that I'm on a schedule for setting as well as instructing.

It's important to set the moves specifically for a grade and be fairly consistant with it, as people get pissed if the problem is a v5 with a v8 crux, or say there's a v7 that's got hard holds but is basically a ladder, people get bored. So typically I set vB-2 as ladders with harder holds higher through the range, v3 is where I start getting fancier with moves but not too fancy, and possibilities really open up pretty good from there.

I have to admit though I'm still a novice with a lot to learn. The guys who have been doing it for years that I've been working with have way more interesting concepts and more knowledge of how to make people move a certain way than I do. I really enjoy it though. It's a great feeling watching people work a climb you set, and somehow even better watching someone do something you set that you can't even do.

Covert Ops Wizard fucked around with this message at 05:53 on Jul 28, 2013

YourCreation
Jan 4, 2004

A little creative surgery helps turn a few sick pets into a new and improved friend!
Well the physio has given me the go ahead to start climbing (slowly) on my wrist. Super excited to see all of the new changes at The Castle in London!

Year of the Monkey
Jun 16, 2013


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?

Covert Ops Wizard
Dec 27, 2006

Year of the Monkey posted:

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?

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.

gamera009
Apr 7, 2005

I have been climbing for about five+ years now. I'm a solid V4/5.10- climber.

I set at the campus gym and I try to set what I think is interesting, along with stuff I know I need to work on. It seems to work well, between my relative inability to climb well and my utter lack of strength. I end up setting fairly easy problems that have one technical crux.

gamera009 fucked around with this message at 03:17 on Jul 29, 2013

idiotsavant
Jun 4, 2000
Awesome day in Tahoe today; the weather was gorgeous, the group was great, and the climbing was fantastic. Lead for the second & third time on two easier routes, plus I took my first whipper - not huge, but at least 15 feet. I was right at the bolt and didn't take the time to pick out a good handhold to clip off of; no harm, so I'll take it as a lucky lesson about making clips at the right spot, not just when you can reach a bolt. It's kind of wild how sport leading simultaneously makes me nervous as heck and yet increases my confidence, at least on the easy routes I can lead. Also cardio. God drat, do I have to start doing way more freaking cardio.

Nifty
Aug 31, 2004

idiotsavant posted:

Also cardio. God drat, do I have to start doing way more freaking cardio.

Would you mind explaining why?

Covert Ops Wizard
Dec 27, 2006

Nifty posted:

Would you mind explaining why?

I'm assuming he's trying to get leaner for a better power to weight ratio, because that's the only way cardio will help.

If you're crapping out midway through your climbs idiotsavant it just means you need to climb taller stuff more often, or do laps on short stuff.

dr.gigolo
May 9, 2006
I started bouldering recently, I just did my first V2. When should I start looking to boulder outside? I would be going with my GF and we'd both need to learn how to spot. Besides that and crash pads, what else do I need to do?

PRADA SLUT
Mar 14, 2006

Inexperienced,
heartless,
but even so
Know how to spot and realize you typically lose 1-2 grades outside.

JustAnother Fat Guy
Dec 22, 2009

Go to hell, and take your cheap suit with you!
Also clean your shoes, don't be that guy who puts dirty shoes on the rock and polishes it to glass. I did an 8a in france where I could see my face in the holds.

Covert Ops Wizard
Dec 27, 2006

JustAnother Fat Guy posted:

Also clean your shoes, don't be that guy who puts dirty shoes on the rock and polishes it to glass. I did an 8a in france where I could see my face in the holds.

I think that's just inevitable with time. It's why secret areas stay just that, the spots are gonna see abuse depending on traffic no matter what.

JustAnother Fat Guy
Dec 22, 2009

Go to hell, and take your cheap suit with you!
That's why I like going to the far north of scotland. Place is so dead you can walk for days without seeing anyone. So many boulder fields which have never been documented. Unfortunately the weather is terrible, and it is remote, so rescue is a bit of an issue if poo poo goes awry.

One of my friends did a font 7b highball by himself there. He plopped a mat down, put 999 predialled into the phone, and placed it next to the mat in case he fell. Luckily he managed it and showed us the film of it.

modig
Aug 20, 2002

JustAnother Fat Guy posted:

Also clean your shoes, don't be that guy who puts dirty shoes on the rock and polishes it to glass. I did an 8a in france where I could see my face in the holds.

Seriously? How is an 8a getting so much action that it wears out? I've climbed plenty of polished 5.9s, but I feel like a 13b just isn't going to get the traffic to be polished, since there are not that many people who can even climb it.

Still B.A.E
Mar 24, 2012

JustAnother Fat Guy posted:

That's why I like going to the far north of scotland. Place is so dead you can walk for days without seeing anyone. So many boulder fields which have never been documented. Unfortunately the weather is terrible, and it is remote, so rescue is a bit of an issue if poo poo goes awry.

One of my friends did a font 7b highball by himself there. He plopped a mat down, put 999 predialled into the phone, and placed it next to the mat in case he fell. Luckily he managed it and showed us the film of it.

It takes a very dedicated soul to develop boulder problems in the highlands whilst battling the weather and the Scottish loving Midge simultaneously. I just cannot handle biting insects, they give me absolute hell.

modig posted:

Seriously? How is an 8a getting so much action that it wears out? I've climbed plenty of polished 5.9s, but I feel like a 13b just isn't going to get the traffic to be polished, since there are not that many people who can even climb it.

Lots of people sport climb at a pretty high level in continental Europe, and limestone polishes very easily. Lots of classic routes end up becoming polished and a bit grim, unfortunately.

Still B.A.E fucked around with this message at 00:44 on Jul 30, 2013

Speleothing
May 6, 2008

Spare batteries are pretty key.

modig posted:

Seriously? How is an 8a getting so much action that it wears out? I've climbed plenty of polished 5.9s, but I feel like a 13b just isn't going to get the traffic to be polished, since there are not that many people who can even climb it.

Because Euros are better than us lazy, bad-smelling American climbers with no technique and no style.

Thom Yorke raps
Nov 2, 2004


PRADA SLUT posted:

Know how to spot and realize you typically lose 1-2 grades outside.

So true. Was at Haycock in PA this weekend and could barely do a couple of VBs/V0- climbs, at the gym I'm V1/V2. Climbing is so much more fun outside though!

Climbing in style

dr.gigolo
May 9, 2006

PRADA SLUT posted:

Know how to spot and realize you typically lose 1-2 grades outside.

I've only climbed outside once, and it was the same case then. We're going to Tahoe next month and I don't think either of us are ready to boulder outside. I ask because it seems a lot cheaper to boulder than climb outside, we don't have the equipment for climbing outside. When we went to Smith Rock, there were probably 2 dozen people in the group, plenty of quickdraws, ropes and lots of other stuff we don't have. I guess I'll stick to the gym for now, hopefully I can do some more climbing outside while the weather is still nice.

Year of the Monkey
Jun 16, 2013

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.

I set at the campus gym and I try to set what I think is interesting, along with stuff I know I need to work on. It seems to work well, between my relative inability to climb well and my utter lack of strength. I end up setting fairly easy problems that have one technical crux.

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

Still B.A.E
Mar 24, 2012

dr.gigolo posted:

I've only climbed outside once, and it was the same case then. We're going to Tahoe next month and I don't think either of us are ready to boulder outside. I ask because it seems a lot cheaper to boulder than climb outside, we don't have the equipment for climbing outside. When we went to Smith Rock, there were probably 2 dozen people in the group, plenty of quickdraws, ropes and lots of other stuff we don't have. I guess I'll stick to the gym for now, hopefully I can do some more climbing outside while the weather is still nice.

I dunno, I would say that if you have a pad and shoes and are not completely dumb you are probably 'ready' to boulder outside. It's not as if you have to pick out some highball at your limit above a gnarly talus landing, just go climb easy stuff with nice landings, have fun and get used to moving on rock.

E; I write this not knowing anything about the area you're going to, so if the bouldering around Tahoe is known for highballs and horrendous landings or something then yeah, maybe pick somewhere a bit more beginner friendly for your first time.

Still B.A.E fucked around with this message at 11:46 on Jul 30, 2013

JustAnother Fat Guy
Dec 22, 2009

Go to hell, and take your cheap suit with you!
I've noticed in gyms you really need a widespread of setters in terms of ability. One small little gym, which is just two rooms of bouldering is set by a world class boulderer who has set for the world cup. His top end problems are HARD, but his easy problems tend to be either super easy for the grade or hilariously difficult. Luckily he's letting a few of us comparitive peons in climbing ability set and it's starting to even up a bit.

guppy
Sep 21, 2004

sting like a byob
I started climbing a few months ago -- a little bit of experience in high school but nothing for a long time since -- and I've been enjoying it. I'm not a big guy and I'm still working on my technique so 5.7 is my "challenge myself" level right now but it's coming along.

I tend to want to go more than my friends, so I took an intro bouldering clinic at my gym. I'm glad I took it because I was worried about not knowing stuff like etiquette, but it wasn't much of a class. We went over etiquette, a few techniquesj, and a little safety but not some of the stuff you'd think they would, and then we went down and started trying out the easier problems for the rest of the time. Most of the class was just climbing and asking for help if we had problems.

The grading of some of this stuff seems really arbitrary. What my gym calls V Intro seems to be what you guys call VB, and they don't have anything marked V0 so I guess they've just categorized problems of that difficulty as either V Intro or V1. The first couple V Intros I climbed were easy, then I climbed a V1 that was fine and V2 that wasn't too bad, and then I started finding V Intros I couldn't climb and a V2 that people with prior experience struggled with. Maybe we were just getting tired but it seemed like there were several marked Intro that were harder than the V2 I climbed. Different setters maybe.

I was told that once you move yourself up a grade in top-roped clmbing you should expect to be there for a couple months climbing 1-2x a week. What should I be expecting from bouldering?

And yeah, I destroyed my hands, much more than roped.

spwrozek
Sep 4, 2006

Sail when it's windy

Don't worry about gym grades. They are all arbitrary. Although I don't like rock n jam I do like that they grade bouldering easy (V0 - V2), medium (V2 - V5), hard (V5 - V8), expert (V8 - V??). Because really who cares, problems change once a month in the gym.

Just go try them and have fun.

Thom Yorke raps
Nov 2, 2004


Year of the Monkey posted:

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.

Those are spandex shorts from SA's very own Queen Elizatits and her Etsy shop, Sexism Is Over. The boulder is "The Fun Boulder", and it is!

modig
Aug 20, 2002

guppy posted:

I was told that once you move yourself up a grade in top-roped clmbing you should expect to be there for a couple months climbing 1-2x a week. What should I be expecting from bouldering?

Similarly slow progress. You'll probably make some relatively quick progress over the first few months, then it will slow down a lot.

Bushiz
Sep 21, 2004

The #1 Threat to Ba Sing Se

Grimey Drawer

spwrozek posted:

Don't worry about gym grades. They are all arbitrary. Although I don't like rock n jam I do like that they grade bouldering easy (V0 - V2), medium (V2 - V5), hard (V5 - V8), expert (V8 - V??). Because really who cares, problems change once a month in the gym.

Just go try them and have fun.

Bouldering grades are especially bizarre to me. I can on-sight a 5.10c if I'm warmed up, and am working on 5.11a's right now, but anything in the bouldering area of our gym that isn't a v0 is just a nightmare that I can't even make the first move on.

guppy
Sep 21, 2004

sting like a byob

QwertyAsher posted:

Bouldering grades are especially bizarre to me. I can on-sight a 5.10c if I'm warmed up, and am working on 5.11a's right now, but anything in the bouldering area of our gym that isn't a v0 is just a nightmare that I can't even make the first move on.

I don't know how true it is but I was told by the teacher of that class that bouldering takes the tricky moves you might run into on a roped climb and concentrates them in one place, removing the easier stuff.

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Frown Town
Sep 10, 2009

does not even lift
SWAG SWAG SWAG YOLO

Ranma posted:

Those are spandex shorts from SA's very own Queen Elizatits and her Etsy shop, Sexism Is Over. The boulder is "The Fun Boulder", and it is!

Oh sweet, I was wondering what that pair ended up looking like! (love her stuff and am trying to figure out what print I want for my own climbing shorts)

guppy posted:

I started climbing a few months ago -- a little bit of experience in high school but nothing for a long time since -- and I've been enjoying it. I'm not a big guy and I'm still working on my technique so 5.7 is my "challenge myself" level right now but it's coming along.

The grading of some of this stuff seems really arbitrary. What my gym calls V Intro seems to be what you guys call VB, and they don't have anything marked V0 so I guess they've just categorized problems of that difficulty as either V Intro or V1. The first couple V Intros I climbed were easy, then I climbed a V1 that was fine and V2 that wasn't too bad, and then I started finding V Intros I couldn't climb and a V2 that people with prior experience struggled with. Maybe we were just getting tired but it seemed like there were several marked Intro that were harder than the V2 I climbed. Different setters maybe.

I was told that once you move yourself up a grade in top-roped clmbing you should expect to be there for a couple months climbing 1-2x a week. What should I be expecting from bouldering?

And yeah, I destroyed my hands, much more than roped.

The difficulty curve is exponential in bouldering (I don't do any roped climbing so I can't comment there); in that the jump from V2-V3 seems fairly sizeable, and the gap between V3 and V4 seems even more substantial. V4 to V5 is something I've been working on for years. After about a month of bouldering 2-3x/week, I could do most V0s/V1s and maybe a handful of V2s. It took me probably two months to get my first V3, and then what seemed like six+ months to get my first V4 (which was more softly graded). I've never sent anything marked harder than a V4 but came close to finishing a soft V5 after being at it for 1.5 yrs; it seems like stuff just gets exponentially tougher as you go up because there are certain techniques like crimps and heel hooks that don't show up very frequently at a V3 level -- at least when you're climbing indoors.

I can't climb anything outside, though I suspect I'm climbing somewhere between a V3 and V4 level at the moment. I don't have a good way to benchmark anymore since I moved to Boulder and the gyms are graded on arbitrary scales (novice, intermediate, expert, and some dot system that goes up to 5 max). When I was climbing at Earthtreks in Timonium, MD I was finishing a handful of V4s and seemed to do ok on the start of 5.10b (maybe c) climbs that I'd mess with when the bouldering cave was too busy. I'm actually pretty curious to go back to that gym when I visit Baltimore and see what I'm climbing there these days. There's the additional complication that different gyms have different grading tendencies; softness/toughness seems region and gym specific, as my feeling is my gym in Baltimore would call stuff a V4 that would probably be called a V3 in Boulder.

I also have a build that doesn't do me much service, so your own progression might be a lot faster. 5'4 (former) heavyweight female with unfortunately short arms. At my heaviest I was climbing at 185 lbs, and that was terrible; climbing around 158 now is so much easier; while it doesn't solve the issue of the tragically short wingspan, I'm using a lot less energy to stay on the wall. I guess it was like training with a 30 lb weight vest that had a slow leak.

e:

spwrozek posted:

Don't worry about gym grades. They are all arbitrary. Although I don't like rock n jam I do like that they grade bouldering easy (V0 - V2), medium (V2 - V5), hard (V5 - V8), expert (V8 - V??). Because really who cares, problems change once a month in the gym.

Just go try them and have fun.

Missed this, but I agree 100%. Grades are kind of an ok benchmark to start on, but I'm kind of glad the rating system within the bouldering gyms I go to don't have very direct translations into the V scale. That means I can just focus on the individual problems and with having fun, rather than worrying about if I'm making progress on paper. Even if I'm climbing a similar grade at the three year mark as I was at the 1.5 year mark, I can tell you that I'm climbing better and getting significantly better at moves that previously destroyed me (lock outs, rocking over on a toe, etc). People who haven't seen me climb in a while will tell me how much stronger I've gotten as a climber, and that's good enough.

Frown Town fucked around with this message at 21:01 on Jul 30, 2013

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