No 186, June 15, 1999
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Rock Craft | Sport Climbing | Destinations | Training
Recommended Reading | Gear | Higher Education | Ratings

Better redpointing
Novice sport climbers need the widespread experience that comes from doing lots of routes at manageable grades. But, after a season or so of regular weekend excursions, the one-burn, hit-or-miss ascents might start to blur together. Now is the time to start redpointing.
A difficult climb requires commitment, and sometimes it will break your heart. First you'll practice the climb, becoming intimate with the rock, learning its nuances of movement and developing cunning strategies to link sequences that once felt difficult on their own. Then you'll try to send. Even if your attempts fail, the process will have made you a better climber. And if you do succeed, you'll be proud to have pushed yourself and achieved a genuine goal ... At least until the next pretty face catches your eye.
Short-term projects
Get into the swing of redpointing by trying to do routes in one or two days. Usually this means going one or two letter grades above the standard you regularly on-sight. The following tips will improve your chances of success.
- Start by trying to on-sight or flash the climb. You might just
surprise yourself.
- If you fall, take a good rest, either by lowering to the ground or clipping into a bolt. Once you've recovered, continue to the anchors taking frequent rests on bolts. Remember, when trying to send a route quickly, your goal is to work out efficient ways to do the moves and conserve energy you'll need it for redpoint attempts later in the day.
- Identify and make sure you have a good sequence for the "redpoint crux." This is the spot where you are most likely to fall when you try to link the climb; it isn't necessarily the hardest move in isolation. The redpoint crux could, for example, be a straightforward, but strenuous lock-off that will hit you when you're pumped.
- If you expect to get pumped, try to find sneaky rests and practice using them.
- Think about the clips. Look for places where an extended quickdraw could make a difficult clip easier to reach. Occasionally, you might consider blowing off a desperate clip altogether. If you do this, however, make certain the fall you might take will be safe. Also remove the quickdraw, this will stop you from chickening out and grabbing it in the middle of the runout on redpoint.
- Rest for 30 minutes or until you feel well recovered before your redpoint attempt. Spend this time running through the moves and visualizing a perfect ascent. Tie-in. Stop thinking about the route and relax. Do it!
Long-term projects
These are routes that you expect will take three or more days of work. Here are some additional tips:
- Choose your route carefully. You might spend every weekend of
the season on a long-term project, so just trying to grab a number won't be enough to hold your interest. Pick a line, not just a grade,
that inspires you. Also pick a route that is close to home, so you can get on it regularly.
- Don't get overwhelmed. Set yourself achievable goals by breaking the route into several distinct sections you might give them names like "Pumping Pockets" and "Shake-Out Street." Try to climb these on their own before you go for the final linkage.
- Have fun with your project. Take regular breaks from it do other routes that might help you prepare, and don't get bouted by learning to fail at the same spots over and over. Once you know the moves, save your efforts for days when the conditions are good and you are rested and ready to succeed.
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