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max2extreme
Mar 28, 2008, 12:49 PM
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So, I've climbed indoors some, but I would not call myself a climber. My friend and I are taking a trip next weekend to YangShuo in Guilin, China for a little climbing weekend. My first outdoor climb. Im not afraid of heights but it's kind of hard to climb without "looking down"... That ever freaked anyone out when you got up a little ways and looked down and thought "wtf am I doing!?" Any first climb memories/stories that may help those of us first timers get through a climb (lessons) or funny stories that while we are on the wall can be like "Oh this must of been about the height <insert name> P'ed his pants".. lol.
Nice to meet ya!
Max
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colatownkid
Mar 28, 2008, 1:11 PM
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max2extreme wrote: ...That ever freaked anyone out when you got up a little ways and looked down and thought "wtf am I doing!?"...
Nope. To me that's half the fun. Exposure is awesome. There's nothing like hanging off a moderate climb and turning around to look out behind you and realizing you're hundreds of feet above the tree line. It's sweet.
As for my first climb, it was a 5.9 at Mount Yonah, Georgia. I was fresh out of the gym and had just top-roped some 5.6 a few yards away. So I decided to break out the quick draws and hop on a 5.9 lead. Turns out everything is a little bit scarier on lead and outside. Luckily for me, no falls, no worries. I knew I could do the moves, I just had to remember that and actually do them. That's usually half the battle.
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bizarrodrinker
Mar 28, 2008, 1:28 PM
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Used to think that all the time when I got on a rope. Over time though you just get used to it.
Then comes the time that whenever you are climbing you are in the zone to the extent that nothing else in the world matters but the 4 foot bubble around you.
Its intense.
Course for that to happen you have to be able to trust your belayer with no exception.
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max2extreme
Mar 28, 2008, 1:47 PM
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Thats how I felt when I first started surfing/bodyboarding... THought about sharks all the time! Then you get to the point like you dont even think at all.. its just rush out to the break to catch another... it does still get to me some though when im like the only one out there or im kind of away from the others... :)
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bizarrodrinker
Mar 28, 2008, 2:02 PM
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same goes for sno boadin.
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kyleshea
Mar 28, 2008, 2:20 PM
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bizarrodrinker wrote: same goes for sno boadin.
dude, i thought i was the only one on constant lookout for sharks when i snobored.
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lena_chita
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Mar 28, 2008, 2:29 PM
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When I climb, I do look down to see where my feet are going, but I literally don't see anything outside the 6-ft diameter zone. I do not see the exposure at all. The only exception is an arette climb, When I am on arrette I do feel very exposed.
It is usually when I am hanging at the anchors and cleaning that the exposure gets to me. Every time I untie the rope I look at those two slings and remind myself that really, it is O.K., they can hold me, I double-checked everything, I'm fine... but there is still that cold feeling in my stomach when I untie the figure eight.
The first climb outside-- that was some 5.7 at Devil's lake, WI, toprope. Don't remember much about it, other than the "helpful" advice of my belayer when I got stuck.
Me: where do I go from here?
Belayer: Look to your right-- no, higher-- higher-- above your shoulder-- higher-- reach up--yes, that's it! You have to put your foot there.
Me: WHAT?!!!
Belayer: well, I didn't say you need to do it in one step... I meant eventually.
First outdoor lead-- 5.9 at Summersville lake, Chunko goes bowling. I had no idea how hard 5.9 was relative to anything I have climbed before because I just haven't climbed outside much. We walked there, thinking that i would get on a 5.7, but all the 5.7s were taken. So I looked up at this climb and thought-- it doesn't look all that bad. I was with a girl who has been climbing for several years, yet for some reason she wasn't eager to go up on it. She said she needed a warm-up first. So I said what the heck, I'll go. And it really wasn't all that bad... I came down and led another 5.9 right next to it.
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rangerrob
Mar 28, 2008, 7:43 PM
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I've been climbing for 13 years and I still get that feeling all the time. Once I am more than a pitch or two off the ground I have to fight that little voice in my head that says..."what the hell are you doing? Go home sit on the couch you dumbass!" Don't worry it will get parituclarly bad when you lead something at your absolute limit and you are 15 or 20 feet above your last piece and it is getting harder and harder. Almost makes you want to vomit. God I love that feeling!
RR
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