With the rise of indoor climbing, what happens when the gym rats show up at the outdoor crags? Auto-belay training in a gym, while delivering the basics of rock climbing technique in a safe, secure environment, simply can’t prepare athletes for all the nuances of climbing outside.
“What has shifted is the way people are attaining the proper knowledge and how that knowledge has been passed along,” Seth Murphy, director at Earth Treks climbing gym in Golden, Colorado, tells us.
Expert Tips on Transitioning Your Climbing Gym Skills to the Rock
Read article
“Before climbing gyms, the most popular way to get involved in the sport was by having a mentor that was an experienced climber.” And while we can hope that trad climbers, who still train in gyms, will continue to transfer the DNA, some of the education is on the gym’s shoulders. Earth Treks tries to teach universal outdoor etiquette and environmental ethics in a variety of ways. For example, there’s a gym-to-crag class as well as a course where students learn how to safely set up a top-rope system using natural and artificial anchors, plus mostly free clinics on belay escapes, how to clean sport anchors and other advanced lead-belay techniques.
The Importance of Rock-Rescue Skills, According to an Expert
Read article
Murphy says outreach helps too: “We try to facilitate the interaction between new climbers and the experienced community with events like Friday Rendezvous, where new climbers mix with experienced climbers in a laid-back, fun atmosphere.”
An Earth Treks team works to clean rock. Photo: Courtesy of Carissa Gross The gym also partners with the American Alpine Club on a speaker series featuring professional and non-professional climbers. Each event has a fundraising element for organizations like Front Range Climbing Stewards or the Access Fund and culminates with a local crag cleanup project. However, when it comes to unspoken rules of the rock—cleaning landing zones, simul-climbing, old tat, texting on route—new climbers can’t rely on rock gyms to do all the heavy lifting. Some insider knowledge you have to glean through the pros.
Some of the Best the Gear You’ll Need to Get Into Mountaineering
Read article
Expert climber Anna Pfaff breaks down a few important ideas in outdoor climbing etiquette and ethics:
Erase Your Footprint “Research, understand and always practice the seven principles of Leave No Trace behavior in the outdoors. It is foremost to remember we are all visitors in the great outdoors and we have to treat the environment with respect.”
How to Follow the ‘Leave No Trace’ Principles the Next Time You Go Camping
Read article
Find a Mentor “I have always sought out a more experienced climber that I trust to climb with, review skills and talk through situations. Climbing is a dichotomy of simple yet complex at the same time. Being aware of what you don’t know is the only way to learn more.”
Pfaff practices her craft outside. Photo: Courtesy of Jeff Rueppel Honor Your Outside Time “I appreciate the brisk wind in my hair, the softness of golden sandstone and the coarse friction of granite. I enjoy the bustle of leaves and the chirping birds just as much as I can laugh at the ants crawling on my toes and the bee buzzing in my ear. “This is why outdoor climbing is special.”
For access to exclusive gear videos, celebrity interviews, and more, subscribe on YouTube!
More News
Famed Yosemite Climber Zach Milligan Dies After Ice Climbing Fall
Skiing in Japan Is Back Again—and the Powder Was Worth the Wait
10 Winter Hikes to Keep You Trailblazing All Year Round
The North Face Introduces Athlete Development Program
Ocean Rower Fiann Paul Completes Most Grueling Expedition
Snowmobile-accessed Ski Touring in Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana
All Stories
More Videos
The MJ5: Tony Hawk on His Favorite Gear, Why He Always Carries His Board, and More
Here's the Difference Between Bourbon and Whiskey
Young Guns and a Supercharged Catamaran: U.S. SailGP Team Takes on New York City
With the rise of indoor climbing, what happens when the gym rats show up at the outdoor crags?
Auto-belay training in a gym, while delivering the basics of rock climbing technique in a safe, secure environment, simply can’t prepare athletes for all the nuances of climbing outside.
“What has shifted is the way people are attaining the proper knowledge and how that knowledge has been passed along,” Seth Murphy, director at Earth Treks climbing gym in Golden, Colorado, tells us.
Expert Tips on Transitioning Your Climbing Gym Skills to the Rock
Read article
“Before climbing gyms, the most popular way to get involved in the sport was by having a mentor that was an experienced climber.”
Expert Tips on Transitioning Your Climbing Gym Skills to the Rock
Read article
Expert Tips on Transitioning Your Climbing Gym Skills to the Rock
And while we can hope that trad climbers, who still train in gyms, will continue to transfer the DNA, some of the education is on the gym’s shoulders.
Earth Treks tries to teach universal outdoor etiquette and environmental ethics in a variety of ways.
For example, there’s a gym-to-crag class as well as a course where students learn how to safely set up a top-rope system using natural and artificial anchors, plus mostly free clinics on belay escapes, how to clean sport anchors and other advanced lead-belay techniques.
The Importance of Rock-Rescue Skills, According to an Expert
Read article
Murphy says outreach helps too: “We try to facilitate the interaction between new climbers and the experienced community with events like Friday Rendezvous, where new climbers mix with experienced climbers in a laid-back, fun atmosphere.”
The Importance of Rock-Rescue Skills, According to an Expert
Read article
The Importance of Rock-Rescue Skills, According to an Expert
The gym also partners with the American Alpine Club on a speaker series featuring professional and non-professional climbers. Each event has a fundraising element for organizations like Front Range Climbing Stewards or the Access Fund and culminates with a local crag cleanup project.
However, when it comes to unspoken rules of the rock—cleaning landing zones, simul-climbing, old tat, texting on route—new climbers can’t rely on rock gyms to do all the heavy lifting. Some insider knowledge you have to glean through the pros.
Some of the Best the Gear You’ll Need to Get Into Mountaineering
Read article
Expert climber Anna Pfaff breaks down a few important ideas in outdoor climbing etiquette and ethics:
Some of the Best the Gear You’ll Need to Get Into Mountaineering
Read article
Some of the Best the Gear You’ll Need to Get Into Mountaineering
Erase Your Footprint
“Research, understand and always practice the seven principles of Leave No Trace behavior in the outdoors. It is foremost to remember we are all visitors in the great outdoors and we have to treat the environment with respect.”
How to Follow the ‘Leave No Trace’ Principles the Next Time You Go Camping
Read article
Find a Mentor
“I have always sought out a more experienced climber that I trust to climb with, review skills and talk through situations. Climbing is a dichotomy of simple yet complex at the same time. Being aware of what you don’t know is the only way to learn more.”
How to Follow the ‘Leave No Trace’ Principles the Next Time You Go Camping
Read article
How to Follow the ‘Leave No Trace’ Principles the Next Time You Go Camping
Honor Your Outside Time
“I appreciate the brisk wind in my hair, the softness of golden sandstone and the coarse friction of granite. I enjoy the bustle of leaves and the chirping birds just as much as I can laugh at the ants crawling on my toes and the bee buzzing in my ear.
“This is why outdoor climbing is special.”
For access to exclusive gear videos, celebrity interviews, and more, subscribe on YouTube!
More News
Famed Yosemite Climber Zach Milligan Dies After Ice Climbing Fall
Skiing in Japan Is Back Again—and the Powder Was Worth the Wait
10 Winter Hikes to Keep You Trailblazing All Year Round
The North Face Introduces Athlete Development Program
Ocean Rower Fiann Paul Completes Most Grueling Expedition
Snowmobile-accessed Ski Touring in Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana
All Stories
More Videos
The MJ5: Tony Hawk on His Favorite Gear, Why He Always Carries His Board, and More
Here's the Difference Between Bourbon and Whiskey
Young Guns and a Supercharged Catamaran: U.S. SailGP Team Takes on New York City
More News
Famed Yosemite Climber Zach Milligan Dies After Ice Climbing Fall
Skiing in Japan Is Back Again—and the Powder Was Worth the Wait
10 Winter Hikes to Keep You Trailblazing All Year Round
The North Face Introduces Athlete Development Program
Ocean Rower Fiann Paul Completes Most Grueling Expedition
Snowmobile-accessed Ski Touring in Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana
All Stories
More Videos
The MJ5: Tony Hawk on His Favorite Gear, Why He Always Carries His Board, and More
Here's the Difference Between Bourbon and Whiskey
Young Guns and a Supercharged Catamaran: U.S. SailGP Team Takes on New York City
More News
Famed Yosemite Climber Zach Milligan Dies After Ice Climbing Fall
Skiing in Japan Is Back Again—and the Powder Was Worth the Wait
10 Winter Hikes to Keep You Trailblazing All Year Round
The North Face Introduces Athlete Development Program
Ocean Rower Fiann Paul Completes Most Grueling Expedition
Snowmobile-accessed Ski Touring in Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana
All Stories
More Videos
The MJ5: Tony Hawk on His Favorite Gear, Why He Always Carries His Board, and More
Here's the Difference Between Bourbon and Whiskey
Young Guns and a Supercharged Catamaran: U.S. SailGP Team Takes on New York City
More Videos
The MJ5: Tony Hawk on His Favorite Gear, Why He Always Carries His Board, and More
Here's the Difference Between Bourbon and Whiskey
Young Guns and a Supercharged Catamaran: U.S. SailGP Team Takes on New York City
More Videos
The MJ5: Tony Hawk on His Favorite Gear, Why He Always Carries His Board, and More
Here's the Difference Between Bourbon and Whiskey
Young Guns and a Supercharged Catamaran: U.S. SailGP Team Takes on New York City
