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winkwinklambonini
Dec 31, 2002, 4:12 PM
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"Hi everyone!
My name is Mike, and I've been spending time in the gym lately."
"Hi Mike!"
It's lucky there is a crack, because with all these younger kids hanging from rediculous crimps, I'd feel like a complete gumby without it.
Yes there is a question. For those of you with a crack in your gym, how often do you work it? I ask this because I've seen many people at my gym who can crank, V-hards, and flail on what I'd call a 5.6 handcrack.
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nikegirl
Dec 31, 2002, 4:19 PM
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hi mike...
I have but no choice to say:
I am a gym rat*
I live within the midst of rain and weather fairy's...
trickling down to force me to my gym.
I use the crack at my gym fairly often...
I do admit, I use it in various ways...
crack only...
to crack with hand holds...
or hand hold to crack only on feet.
simple, but, adds to it's options.
It is a fairly simple crack...but, rarely do you see peeps using it regularily. It's all relative as to it's rating...or a persons capacity.
thank you for letting me talk.
~T* gymrat until travel brings me to sunshine
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climbingpride
Dec 31, 2002, 4:39 PM
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I actualy avoid the, what i would call a semi-crack, because it holds sweat like non-other. Even when i use up like half my chalk ball it's still the slipperyest thing in the gym.
BTW i am also not the greatiest in cracks out on real rock, unless i can lean-out.
Those are just my reasons.
Pride
[ This Message was edited by: climbingpride on 2002-12-31 08:44 ]
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shortfatoldguy
Dec 31, 2002, 5:22 PM
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I go to the same gym as T. I hate that frickin' crack. And I started climbing on basalt columns, back in the day. And I've climbed a few easy cracks in the Valley. I *like* crack climbing (although I hasten to add that .9+ is the most difficult crack climbing I've done, and that on TR).
But I hate that frickin' crack:
1) It's overhung.
2) It goes from wide to thin to wide to thin to...every eight inches or so.
3) It's greasy. Every time I stick my hand in it, I feel like I want to take a shower...
Gyms ought to have a few vertical, and maybe slightly less than vertical, cracks that are consistent in width, so you can groove a few techniques.
That said, I'll be working it later in the spring in (inadequate) preparation for another trip to the Valley.
David
PS. Hi, T.
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climbjs
Dec 31, 2002, 5:23 PM
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I formerly worked at Rockreation in SLC. For me, a workout on the crack was manditory, not only to work on my (lack of) skills, but also to pump the hell out of me. However, I rarely saw people on it.
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tim
Dec 31, 2002, 5:39 PM
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I lurv doing laps on cracks. Indoors or out...
Only thing I take issue with, and this was covered by a LONG ass thread in rec.climbing (see here: The Secrets of Crack Climbing
for the whole deal) is that indoor cracks often don't have the long-ish splitter sections that sometimes constitute the crux on outdoor cracks. They'll have pinches and constrictions every few feet, and you can just jog the things.
Whereas, outside, you've got climbs like Airation or Igor Unchained or Supercrack that may have long sections of off-fingers or off-hands or off-fists. Or you have a crux where the feet bottom out, or you're pasting your toes in a crappy finger lock or pinscar.
I did see a really neat thing at Earth Treks that I'd never seen in eg. the Touchstone gyms (Mission Cliffs, Berkeley Ironworks, etc.) or other local gyms. What was that, you may ask? A SPLITTER FINGER CRACK! No constrictions, just lots of stacking. And no grout or anything on the sides, so it seems kind of unpopular. I was so psyched.
If someone could move Reppy's Crack indoors, or cart some of the lines at Old Rag or Rumbling Bald into an old warehouse, I think I'd train a lot more :-)
(edit: that link was way to long to leave 'raw' so I put it in an a href link.)
[ This Message was edited by: tim on 2002-12-31 09:40 ]
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sroehlk
Dec 31, 2002, 5:57 PM
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We have a couple good cracks at the gym I go to. I rarely see people trying the cracks out, but I always have fun on them!
[ This Message was edited by: sroehlk on 2002-12-31 12:51 ]
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xanx
Dec 31, 2002, 6:08 PM
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we have "finger cracks"; basically spaces between the plywood pannels that you can use for finger jamming if u don't mind risking slicing off a finger if ur feat cut. i like them because no one else does
mike
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voltzwgn
Dec 31, 2002, 6:26 PM
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I guess I'm lucky as one of our local gyms, Granite Arch has lots of cracks, finger, hand, fist, off witdth so lots of places to play and practice. Also has lots of "natural" features built into the walls, pockets, beautiful aretes all kinds of fun stuff. We can use the natural features to set protection and practice placing gear and setting anchors. Lot's of people use them for practice and even routes are setup using natural features.
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jhundrup
Dec 31, 2002, 6:27 PM
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I have only been to the gym in Spokane 3 times, but there is a nice crack there. I have worked it each time I have gone and never completed it. I have never seen anyone else even give it a second look.
It may be because it is so harsh that it cut me up pretty bad. Never thought that I would need tape gloves in a gym. It is a poor width and is very difficult. I think that I will work it every time I go
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rprp
Jan 2, 2003, 1:32 AM
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The gym I'm going to now has a couple of vertical cracks that they call 5.9 but seem more 5.8 to me. I do laps on those some by skipping the easy holds at first and then picking them up later if I'm wearing down.
They also have a steep crack that is about mid-11. From the middle of the wall to the top it is really cool--fingers with a flared lip that give a little better feet. But from the ground to the middle it is annoying, so I don't climb it much. The good part is only 15 feet long.
In a month I'll be back in Cal. I agree that Granite Arch has some good cracks for a gym. I'll be in there doing laps while it rains outdoors.
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rprp
Jan 2, 2003, 1:38 AM
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I've got some ideas for creating changable cracks in a gym. It would use movable and removable panels. You could give them a good scrub when they were down off the wall and get rid of that nasty "gym crack slime".
Anybody own a gym that they want to do a little remodeling on? I'd like to put this up somewhere. Particularly somewhere in the West.
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cerikpete
Jan 2, 2003, 5:31 PM
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I've started using the cracks at the gyms I go to a few months ago. I climb really easy ones now (since I'm not that good to begin with).
I find that they give a whole new dimension to climbing. Lot of different techniques. I like them... I think it's a fun workout.
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pbjosh
Jan 2, 2003, 5:58 PM
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Vertical Hold in San Diego has one crack and it's not great and only about 14' tall. Probably 5.9, most people struggle on it.
But I make the most of it - the feet pasting only climb, as many laps as possible. It pinches down to off fingers then fingers at the bottom so the lower you start it the harder it gets, or the lower you down climb it the harder it gets. Good training really, also good to work the feet in such a thin crack.
I think the sit-start will go soon, and I think it's probably 11+/12- to sit start it.
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