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grandmastergoat
Oct 12, 2006, 7:03 AM
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I don't aid but I've always been intrigued by it. The ominous blank walls of rock, the gear, the logistics of a big wall, the gear, the persistence required, the gear... :shock:
Big walls aside, there seems to be a larger commitment and an intimidating learning curve involved when one decides to begin aiding as opposed to other styles of climbing. While I imagine most began aiding under a mentor of sorts, I wonder what other backgrounds you may have had, stories of just-beginning or advice to someone who is contemplating crossing over.
Thanks.
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teth
Oct 12, 2006, 3:11 PM
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This falls into the “stories of just beginning” category. The first post is also posted here somewhere, but this thread also includes my more recent excursions as I have accumulated better gear and got a better idea of what I am doing.
http://www.bigwalls.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=114
Teth
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caughtinside
Oct 12, 2006, 3:59 PM
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I had a hand injury and could not free climb.
But I already had a rack, a grigri, one daisy and one aider. I knotted slings to make another daisy and aider (sucks), read a little FOTH, and went out and started aid soloing some local crack climbs.
I tried to identify the parts of my primitive system that sucked, and I asked questions of experienced aid climbers.
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teth
Oct 12, 2006, 4:06 PM
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The biggest problem I have encountered with learning to aid climb is that there are no other active aid climbers here in Nova Scotia. As a result I mostly aid solo, but being a n00b I do not want to be out there all alone incase I screw something up and need assistance. That is why I am always doing my aid climbing at bouldering festivals and route cleaning events and such. I need to convince someone else that aid climbing is cool, so that I will have someone to climb with.
Teth
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chossmonkey
Oct 12, 2006, 5:17 PM
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Aid solo clean aiding free routes.
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grandmastergoat
Oct 12, 2006, 5:45 PM
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chossmonkey wrote:
In reply to: Aid solo clean aiding free routes.
Why solo? Seems like hour-for-hour, you'd get more experience partnered. Just wondering.
Thanks everyone.
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fenderfour
Oct 12, 2006, 6:10 PM
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My first aid climb was City Park At Index, Wa. It's about 100' of C1 nutting with a 20' bolt ladder start.
I had two sets of nuts and a set of cams. Following was done on Texas Prusiks.
It took 3+ hours to get to the anchor in the cold November Rain.
It was books and balls that got me aid climbing.
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chossmonkey
Oct 12, 2006, 7:13 PM
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In reply to: Why solo? Seems like hour-for-hour, you'd get more experience partnered. Just wondering.
Obviously you still haven't done any aid yet, or more importantly belayed aid.:wink:
Belaying an aid climber is right up there with watching the paint dry. A new aid climber is going to move even slower.
Mostly though I did it because it was something I could do even if I didn't have a partner. Rope-solo is probably better learned on easy aid rather than while free climbing.
If you have an experienced partner you probably would learn more because they could teach you, but if your partner isn't teaching you then your time might be better spent climbing and cleaning rather than belaying.
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stymingersfink
Oct 15, 2006, 11:40 PM
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My first experience with aid was spent cleaning and hauling on a big wall. A guy had come into the shop where I was working and we had begun discussing aiding systems, gear, whatnot. Turned out that he was planning a solo climb of Lunar Eclipse in a couple of months, and if I wanted to clean and haul the thing he would show me what I needed to know.
I was already solid with trad gear and roped-soling free climbs, however i was intrigued by jugging and hauling systems. He trained me to jug at the base, I learned lower-outs on the wall and hauling...well, that's just more jugging. That first night on a portaledge was a little unnerving, but I "got" to sleep on the side against the rock so I felt a little better about it.
The first two days I was a little skeptical that I would ever do such a thing again on my own, but by the third day I knew I was hooked. Since then, I've topped out on the Captain twice, though more would be better. In the mean time, there's a few aid lines in LCC to keep from getting rusty or bring someone else into the fold.
Really though... big walls is where its at. Even more fun than ice climbing!
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chossmonkey
Oct 16, 2006, 12:21 AM
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In reply to: Even more fun than ice climbing!
Okay, that's stretching it a little bit don't ya think? :?
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holdplease2
Oct 16, 2006, 1:07 AM
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I wanted to aid climb after seeing a slide show at EMS in Boulder when I was first learning to climb. The guys were on portaledges in a storm and it was the coolest thing I'd ever seen.
So I looked online and found PTPP's stuff on RC.com, read the Bigwalls book and some of Freedom of the Hills and started aid soloing in the Grotto near Sonora, CA.
After 40-50 pitches of practice (I had no free partners, it was the only climbing I could do) I soloed a route in Zion and then just kept climbing and its been really sweet. Its definately way more fun for me than free climbing. Your arms don't pump out. And if they do, just get an adjustable daisy or fifi. Problem solved!
-Kate.
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euroford
Oct 16, 2006, 2:32 AM
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i started aiding only a few weeks after i did my first free climbs. my partner introduced me, and loaned me the gear so i could use it on the weekends when he couldn't go. aid soloing is great when your first starting out, it kept me from feeling like a jerk while my partner belayed for hours while i learned how to do stuff. reading was also a major part of it.
i'm an engineering minded kind of person, and i've always had an aptitude for teaching myself things, so teaching myself aid climbing was no big deal.
i'll probobly never have the physical ability to climb hard trad, but i do have the mental ability to climb hard aid, so i dig it.
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yetanotherdave
Oct 16, 2006, 1:19 PM
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I started solo-aiding when I was getting back into climbing after a long break (school/work got in the way) as a way to get my gear & ropework back up to speed. Led maybe a dozen pitches before trying my first grade V solo, and jugged maybe 2. Practicing jugging/cleaning steep pitches before trying university wall might have been a good idea :)
Did my first multi-day route with portaledge bivi a few weekends ago, and with the rains settling in there'll be lots more aiding in the next few months (too wet for long free routes).
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teth
Oct 16, 2006, 5:11 PM
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Chossmonkey, I did not know you aid climbed. Probably because technically I do not know you. Anyway, next time you are out my way visiting Rebecca’s folks or something, we should head out together. I would love the opportunity to climb with another aid climber. Maybe we could aid solo adjacent routes and swop tips and tricks while on the wall. I totally agree on the similarity between belaying aid and watching paint dry. I had my wife belay me on a very short (5m) route yesterday and it probably took 45 minutes. I will probably start picking up speed with another couple of climbs (speed being a very relative term for a new aid climber). I would have hooked up with you when you were here for Thanksgiving, even without knowing you aid climb, except our schedules did not line up.
In reply to: “i'll probobly never have the physical ability to climb hard trad, but i do have the mental ability to climb hard aid, so i dig it.”
Teth Cleveland
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chossmonkey
Oct 16, 2006, 7:42 PM
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In reply to: Chossmonkey, I did not know you aid climbed.
It's not one of my more pursued climbing disciplines.
I do it mostly for putting up new routes. I might do it more if there were any decent places to do it where I am.
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guanoboy
Oct 17, 2006, 5:35 AM
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so funny you should ask 'where did you cut your teeth?'. During my first aid lead I weighted a blind placement, blew it and chipped my front tooth. Despite the inauspicious start, i'm still aiding.
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guanoboy
Oct 17, 2006, 5:41 AM
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hmmm? seattly, ontario, nova scotia... judging by the responses it looks like it is only a passtime of those from the cold rainy northcountry.
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yetanotherdave
Oct 17, 2006, 1:33 PM
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In reply to: hmmm? seattly, ontario, nova scotia... judging by the responses it looks like it is only a passtime of those from the cold rainy northcountry.
;)
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krusher4
Oct 17, 2006, 4:34 PM
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I got a book and a brave friend and tried to not die in LLC, UT.
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epic_ed
Oct 17, 2006, 8:57 PM
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Me and the guys and I was climbing with at the time decided we wanted to go to Zion and do some routes at some point in our lives. Aid is a big part of the game for mere mortals up there, so we knew we needed to get some practice in and get our systems dialed. We started by picking some lines at Paradise Forks that don't see much traffic -- hard free climbing trad lines are usually good candidates for practicing clean aid. Emphasis on "clean".
Ends up we did one route in Zion as a group and they pretty much lost the desire to aid. I fell in love with it and went on to learn soloing. A belayer is entirely optional for aid and soloing can be much more rewarding. It has it's drawbacks, but IMO the rewards outweigh the negatives.
Ed
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holdplease2
Oct 18, 2006, 1:39 AM
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Ed: The discussion at the bridge was pretty centered on you the other day. Many folks were talking about how they missed seeing you this year but how proud it is that you are doing the right thing for the Fam.
However, now that Tom Evans has a new van, we will be kidnapping you in the van with all...strike that...one third of your gear and dragging you to the valley.
You are sorely missed!
-Kate.
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epic_ed
Oct 18, 2006, 3:30 PM
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That absolutely warms my heart, Kate. I miss you terribly and miss the climbing. The good news is I finally got my fat ass back in the gym a couple of weeks ago and plan to be back in shape for next season. I'm not sure I'll have had enough rope time in between now and then to solo anything, but I'm definitely planning to be there.
Give a monkey call to the boys and girls on the wall for me. I'll be back.
Ed
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grandmastergoat
Oct 20, 2006, 7:44 AM
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Thanks for all your replies. Sounds like a lot of solosists out there. So, what's your preference for those who solo aid? Clove hitch? Silent partner? Soloist? From my meager understanding, the Silent Partner is the way to go if you have the duckets. Also, should one focus on clean over nailing routes when first beginning (providing they are already comfortable with placing gear)? My goal is to suffer up a big wall in the valley (solo or not).
Take care,
Brent
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guanoboy
Oct 20, 2006, 4:07 PM
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I feel like i'm probably the only one still doing it, but i've clove hitched my way up the captain. I still clove hitch. I've fallen on cloves in summer and winter and they've always held. I worry about falling upside down on some devices. As for nailing - just get out on a route that calls you and nail if absolutely necessary.
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teth
Oct 20, 2006, 5:27 PM
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I like the clove hitch method. I have switched to using a grigri mainly because I thought having a grigri would make it easer to clean while ascending, and since I have one I thought I might as well belay with it. I still use a cloth hitch as a backup to the grigri, and high on a route I might be inclined to go back to two clove hitches. I would suggest starting with the clove hitch method so you are comfortable with it (incase you drop you belay device later), and because there are other more pressing things to spend your money on if you are just getting into aid climbing, like adjustable daisies and a big wall rack etc.
I have been climbing mostly existing trad routes, so nailing would get me lynched. However, I just discovered an A3 route in the local guide book which calls for nailing so I might get some pitons and try that. In Nova Scotia, if I want to nail without repercussions, I need to either be on an existing nailing route (have only found the one) or I need to do it on an FA. Luckily, there is still lots of FA potential in Nova Scotia. I do not expect to start nailing in the immediate future, as I am having too much fun with my new RP nuts. I do not think I would nail unless nothing else would work. I will likely buy more cam hooks before I get a piton.
Teth
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