It Depends on How Mental You Are or Overheard in the Gym

Belayer: You just have to step up with the right leg and let go.

Climber: Let go?

Better than ever.

Meghan's daughter's enthusiastic response to How are you?

Mom, will you spot me?

A.J. (who wanted to boulder) to Leah

A.J.'s Pancake Impression

Switch position!

There's a trio of French-speaking climbers who brought along a newbie and the belayer was giving the climber instructions in French when I heard him switch to English on a route call Switch Fast. Guess the route was appropriately named.

Yoga has helped me with my balance.

Woman with limited vision

Patti: A lot of climbing is mental.

David: Yeah, it depends on how mental you are.

David, Level of "Mental" Unknown

I think this route requires tallness. It also requires technique.

A belayer to a climber

Feet up then hands up.

A climber offering advice to a newbie

I think that I may actually throw up.

New Hot Yoga Practitioner

You don't hate me, do you?

The nauseous one's friend

Microfiber Towels -- Good for Absorbing Sweat & Vomit, If Necessary

Roll this (mat) up for me; you're 25 years younger.

Mother to daughter after Hot Yoga

The Gospel According to Patti

That's Patti a.k.a The Tenacious One over to the left -- lead climbing a route outdoors and what follows below is her gospel.

Do your hands ever get sore?, I asked in child-like wonder. My hands get so tender while climbing at times.

Patti turned her hands over and discussed the merits of calluses that have fallen off. Yeah, they get sore but I just don't talk about them because my knees are sore, my back is sore and my elbows are sore. Your problem is that you're not sore enough....

If I start it, I'm going to climb it.

Mike and I were trying to figure out the The Skull Cracking route which had a challenging beginning. It looked impossible to start so we called Patti over. Patti is like that Mikey kid in the Life commercials; she'll climb anything and, sure enough, she did. Once the belay was off, Patti said, That one's all about balance.

I was attempting to climb Girl Power, a challenging 5.9 route. I had attempted it several times before I concluded that maybe I wasn't tall enough.

Patti: How tall are you?

Me: 5'3

Patti: I think you're taller.

Me: (Crumpled brow)

Patti: I certainly think I'm taller...

The move needs to be deliberate and controlled, more advice from Patti as I tried to ascend Girl Power, a 5.9 route.

What happened to muscle memory? Me after trying to get over the arête of Girl Power

Patti: You gave it new memory.

You know that part that you always get stuck on? Step on that rock instead, do a drop knee and it'll just shove you up to the top...

Patti's advice after I climbed Pacman Revival, a 5.9 route whose crux continued to baffle me.

After not being able to get over the arête of a route...

Me: Are you going to show me how to do it?

Patti: Well, I'm going to either show you how to do it or how not to do it.

The ladies at work told me that I'm a hypochondriac.

I told them that I'm a conversationalist and I talk about what ails me.

Patti: That's like a dangling modifier.

Me: Wow, I haven't heard that in awhile. Anybody see that comma splice? This conversation has really taken a turn for the worst.


Mike: No, it hasn't; we haven't talked about colons yet.

Patti: You're doing excellent. It took me a year to climb 5.9's and, if I weren't climbing better than you right now, I'd be disappointed since I've been climbing for three years.

If I don't say it enough, it's because I don't say stuff like that. Remind me in nine months and I'll tell you again.

Remember, I'm the cool one -- after Patti gave me advice on how to tackle a burly 5.9*

I always tell my kids it's all about the attitude.

Patti to me after a series of pep talks about climbing goals, not going against the grain of routes, having fun and not being hard on myself after I mentioned that I had hit the proverbial wall when it came to climbing.

Don't be a purist.

Patti to me after I struggled with Now That's More Like It, a 5.9 route; I insisted on going left even though I had lots of footholds on the right side. In addition, I didn't want to cheat my way up by using holds that didn't belong to the route.

Patti: I'm going to climb this (Now That's More Like It) even though it's hard.

Me: :o, That's mean.

Patti: (Chuckling) Are you still surprised about that now?




*Patti acknowledged her coolness after I told her what Gingersnapper wrote...

You Find The Strength Somehow: A Look Behind The Rock Climbing Scene, Part II of III

This interview is part two of one that I conducted with Jessica and Patti, two of my belay partners. I wanted more information about rock climbing and I couldn't think of a better place to start.


‘Drea: What would you consider your climbing style?

Jessica: I like to go side to side. I like to flag a leg out, do drop knee, do a lot of – kind of almost contorting…twist my body. I like the logical routes that are built for people who are about my height. Yusuf (former Upper Limits employee) is a really soft climber and I really like his routes because they force you to climb like him where you’re doing that reaching but you can kind of twist and you can get it.

‘Drea to Patti: And what about you? What do you consider your climbing style?

Patti: I don’t have a style. Brute force.

Jessica: That’s not true. You like to push and pull -- get into corners. You also tend to keep your body straight onto the wall. You like to be more stable. You’re also more daring than I am. I’m using more techniques and kind of tricks to get there and mom is using technique but she also jumps for things more often than I would. She goes for it and commits to a move that I find hard to commit to.

‘Drea to Patti: So, are you a jumper?

Patti: Usually, I’m a faller. (all around laughter)

Jessica to Patti: But you’re more willing to do that. I’m still working on that.

'Drea: What kind of books would you recommend?

Jessica: I haven’t read it yet but The Rock Warrior’s Way; it’s about the mental part of climbing and pushing through. Training for Climbing is a book that we've read.

‘Drea: Any reason why you chose Evolv shoes?

Jessica: Mom and I both have wide feet so we went with Evolv men shoes. Steve is a good person to talk to about shoes. Every time you see him, he has on a different pair of shoes.

Some people actually have, if they're hardcore about it, they'll actually wear one type of shoe on the right foot and a different type of shoe on their left foot. They'll have a crack up on the left side and a certain shoe is good for crack climbing but the other shoe is good for smearing. The Evolv that we have is just a good multi-purpose shoe...

I went shopping with Kam for shoes and he said, “Oh, I like this color.” The woman was like make sure it fits your foot; it doesn’t matter what color it is. So, I wouldn’t order online the first time.

‘Drea: Did you both take lead climbing class?

Jessica: Well, you have to be able to climb a 5.9 lead test up front. So, you have to climb up to the fifth clip without falling, clip in, climb above it, fall and then climb back up and finish the route without any problems and we were not climbing 5.9s consistently for awhile after we got through with the class.

And people’s definition of what the ratings are is very different from person to person. It depends on how tall you are, what your style of climbing is. So, we actually waited until there was a lead route that we could climb consistently and was relatively easy so we weren’t going to be freaking out. The two routes that are up right now, I don’t think that I would have passed the test.

It was good to hear what Jessica said about the lead routes because I attempted that 5.9 lead route this day, struggled mightily and barely made it halfway up.

‘Drea: How many times have you been lead climbing?

Patti: About two dozen.

Jessica: When you talk to different people, they have different attitudes about it (lead climbing) and I don’t think a lot of people would appreciate the attitude that I have towards lead climbing. It’s uncomfortable and that’s not what I feel like I want out of climbing – to feel that uncomfortable and to pursue it. Mentally, I think that could be a very good exercise... I think it’s more dangerous and, for me, I don’t feel like it’s necessary. I don’t like having my heart pounding the whole time. That being said, when I did lead climb and it was a route that was harder, I did feel really good when I pursued it.

Patti: …You know the consequences of not doing it (a lead route). As you’re climbing and you think, I don’t know if I can do this then you think, Oh my God, I have to or else I’m going to fall; you find the strength somehow.

Jessica: Yeah, you can’t ask for take just anywhere on the route or if you do ask for a take, you’re going to fall.

‘Drea: What about bouldering?

‘Drea To Patti: I know that you fell in a love with a little red route.

Patti: I don’t like bouldering because you climb up 12 feet and then you have to get down and I know that on my delicate ankles that would not work.

Jessica: And bouldering is more dynamic. So, it’s putting the five or six hardest moves right together. Whereas climbing is more about endurance and I don’t really like doing all of the hard stuff back-to-back. I like that it’s a puzzle where I’ll have a hard moment here and there that you have to figure out then trying to get the endurance to get through the rest of it. Bouldering is harder on your body; it’s harder on your tendons. It’s usually more of, like, a young man’s power through game but there are some women who are excellent at bouldering; there are some older people who are excellent at bouldering. It’s not my cup of tea.

‘Drea: What's the highest route you’ve climbed?

Jessica: A 5.10+ (inside). The routes are longer outside. I’ve lead outside once and it was terrifying and I vowed never to do it again. The only way that I would do lead outside again is if it were super, super easy – like grips all over the place. Here the clips are maybe about five feet apart. Outside, it’s usually about ten. If you get up to the next clip and you botch it, you’re falling 20 feet.

‘Drea: That doesn’t sound very good.

Jessica: Not my cup of tea. (laughter)

Patti’s highest route inside is a 5.10 and a 5.9 outside.

‘Drea: What do you think is good supplemental exercise for rock climbing?

Jessica and Patti: Yoga.

Jessica: I think swimming is good. You do need a certain level of strength but, at some point, muscle becomes more weight that you’re taking up. Pilates, I bet, would be good...


Note: Steph Davis just recommended Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind for someone who wanted to increase their resistance to fear.

Part I of Interview with Jessica and Patti

Maybe Slower Than A Sloth

I am in awe of the human body.

Yesterday was my first time making it not only over the arête but up the dang And You're Ready Now?, the 5.8b route that I have been trying to ascend for what seems like forever.

I wondered if my muscles would remember. They did. Unbelievable. There were so many aborted attempts to get over the arête. At one point, I felt like a 12-month old trying to stand up but I couldn't stand up in order to reach a crucial hold -- even though I knew the power was in my legs and that climbing is best done relying on one's legs.

And You're Ready Now? is still a challenge but getting over the arête doesn't seem nearly as onerous a task as it did before.

As I was waiting for the route to open, this guy climbed And You're Ready Now? I was captivated by his ascent. He moved up the route like a sloth -- maybe slower than a sloth.

Patti was telling me that's how great climbers ascend a route. When Patti and Jessica took their six week introduction to rock climbing course, one exercise included wearing bells on their shoes with the goal being to make as little noise as possible while ascending a route.

Right now, I'm bullish about my ascents -- not intentionally; that's just the way it is right now. The sloth has been climbing for four years. The whippersnapper started the sport when he was 18.

I climbed eight routes:

5.7, Sol (Warm-Up Route)
5.6, Truxton or Bust
5.7, Gymnopaeda
5.7, Unnamed
5.8, Bright Idea
5.8, Face Plant
5.8b, And You're Ready Now?
5.6, Sunshine (Warm-Down Route)

Climb X Media has a series of videos featuring accomplished climbers. Lynn Hill's main advice? Patience. In this video, she scales a rock that looks totally unscalable.

The Climber's Situation

Me: (((Yawn)))

Patti: Am I keeping you up?

Me: I'm up.

Patti: No, you need to keep me up.

Yes, dear. I know my job description:

Belayer responsibilities

As the climber moves on the climb, the belayer must remove the slack from the rope by paying out or pulling in excess rope. If the climber falls, then they will free-fall the distance of the slack or unprotected rope before friction applied by the belayer will start to slow their descent. It is extremely important for the belayer to concentrate on the climber's situation, as their role is crucial for the climber's safety... from Wikipedia

The first route (turquoise one) almost wore me out today. It's bad when you tussle with the first route because you feel all tuckered out but I was able to make it up several more routes including three 5.8's; the 5.8's are never done prettily but I'll take it:

Bright Idea, 5.8 (complete with holds that had faux red light bulbs)
Face Plant, 5.8
Sol, 5.7
Truxton or Bust, 5.6

I wonder what goes through the route setter's head when he or she is naming the route.

I know what should be going through my head: climb with your legs and, as REI Anna points out (1:32), position your arms so that you are putting the weight on your skeleton and not your arms.



I was doing way too much gripping today. My hands were so tender by the time I warmed down on Truxton or Bust that it was almost a bust.

Callus Watch: