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Rock Climbing Terminology |
By:
Spence Talbots |
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Rock Climbing Terminology
Spence Talbots
Rock climbing is considered an extreme sport and it is true. Once you get a taste of it, however, you will be addicted. To immerse yourself in the fun of hanging from vertical services, you need to know the terminology used.
A bivouac is one of those things you will only use when you become an advanced climber. It is a sleeping bad/tent that you use in the middle of a climb when night sets. It hands from the wall and is uncomfortable.
I and many people love Elvis. Rock climbers are no different and invoke his name. The Elvis is a term used most often for new climbers that get stressed and fatigued on a climb. The Elvis occurs when a leg starts to shake horizontally, much like Elvis dancing.
Lead climbing is a step up in the climbing world. When you lead, you are displaying the skill to work the route, the pitch and place anchors. You also risk the potential of falling farther than those below you. All and all, an advanced level of climbing.
The next step down from a bolt is a camming device. The device is placed in cracks on the climbing surface. The modern version is spring loaded, so it snaps open in the space creating friction and a hold that can support a lot of weight.
If you are going to do some serious ice climbing, your feet are critical. You need to anchor yourself on the ice with your toes, and rigid crampons are the answer. They fit snugly over the bottom of your boot and have spiked toes that anchor into the ice.
As your skills advance, you will advance to top rope climbing. Top rope is a form of climbing where the climb has a rope hanging from the top of the climb down. It allows you to get comfortable moving up vertical surfaces with plenty of safety.
Frog in the headlights is a slang term used for a climber that freezes when they look down from a high climb and get intimidated. Their eyes get big like a frog and they freeze like a deer in the headlights of a car.
Once you finish a climb, you need to get down. This process is known as rappelling. Ironically, a lot of people get hurt rappelling, particularly the first couple times they do it. It should be a controlled descent completed by running a rope through a friction device on your belt.
Obviously, the above represents a small sampling of the terminology used by climbers. If you are getting into the sport, pick up a book and learn all you can. Of course, you’ll need to learn the slang on the climb.
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Article Source: http://www.statssheet.com/articles/article64680.html |
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