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dinosore
Sep 17, 2012, 3:49 AM
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I was told today while at the gym I have started climbing at that when climbing the first hold you use should have both hands gripping it. Is this true for proper technique? I looked all over the site and havent found the answer, and videos I have watched show some people starting in this manner ( usually on overhanging boulders...) and others who have each hand on a separate hold before starting a climb.
sorry if this question was asked before and I just missed it. And thanks for any help now or in the future.
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marc801
Sep 17, 2012, 5:10 AM
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dinosore wrote: I was told today while at the gym I have started climbing at that when climbing the first hold you use should have both hands gripping it. Is this true for proper technique? I looked all over the site and havent found the answer, and videos I have watched show some people starting in this manner ( usually on overhanging boulders...) and others who have each hand on a separate hold before starting a climb. sorry if this question was asked before and I just missed it. And thanks for any help now or in the future.
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climbingaggie03
Sep 17, 2012, 6:54 AM
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I'd say in gyms the one or two "starting holds" are usually marked, sometimes there's 2 and some times there's one. If there's one hold then I'd say that you're probably supposed to put both hands on the hold, but all of this does have little bearing on actual climbing.
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Marylandclimber
Sep 17, 2012, 11:11 AM
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It's just matching up on a hold... It's a common move and good to rest on.
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lofstromc
Sep 17, 2012, 1:02 PM
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Maybe they meant that you needed both hands on the hold for that particular route. The gym I go to now, and all others I've been to, clearly mark the starting holds and grade them based on the intended sequence.
You should ask them and not us.
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dinosore
Sep 17, 2012, 1:43 PM
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I should clarify a gym worker did not tell me this it was someone climbing next to me. And the gym does mark the routes and difficulties clearly , and some routes i see people starting with 2 hands on one hold but when i try that same route I can get one hand on each hold with out using momentum to get there...maybe i just have a longer reach but it also seems like a more efficient way to climb.
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kennoyce
Sep 17, 2012, 2:34 PM
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dinosore wrote: I should clarify a gym worker did not tell me this it was someone climbing next to me. And the gym does mark the routes and difficulties clearly , and some routes i see people starting with 2 hands on one hold but when i try that same route I can get one hand on each hold with out using momentum to get there...maybe i just have a longer reach but it also seems like a more efficient way to climb.
Again, it depends on the route or problem. In the gym there will be a specific starting hold, or specific starting holds. The routes/problems will be rated according to using this/these holds to start from. Starting holds are generally denoted by two pieces of tape in a V shape, or a box of tape around the hold/s. If a route only has 1 starting hold then you should start with both hands on that hold to get the proper rating, if it has two starting holds, then you should obviously have one hand on each.
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jt512
Sep 17, 2012, 6:12 PM
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The rules for roped routes and boulder problems differ. For boulder problems, as others have said, the starting holds should be specially marked, and you're expected to start on these holds. If there is only one starting hold, you are expected to start with both hands on it.
For roped routes there are no starting holds per se. You can use whatever holds you can reach to start the route, and if there is only one such hold, there is no requirement to start with both hands on it.
Jay
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billcoe_
Sep 17, 2012, 7:24 PM
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dinosore wrote: I was told today while at the gym I have started climbing at that when climbing the first hold you use should have both hands gripping it. Is this true for proper technique?
YES! It is tradition that on all routes at all places all climbers on all routes should have both their hands on the rock to start. Not having both on to start will lead to a disqualifying black mark from the judges, and your 8A score will just to to hell.
Glad to help out.
Nah, just kidding around. I've never heard of any such horseshit, although it appears that JT512 has bought into it.
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dinosore
Sep 17, 2012, 7:51 PM
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thanks all for the help.
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