More climbing training
Oct. 21st, 2016 04:20 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sawylEarly to the Quay to avoid the rush, where I discovered a new innovation: some giant beanbags in the middle of the floor. Definitely better than setting on the floor!
After a few circuits of easy boulder problems to warm-up, I hopped on the auto-belays and went for milage. After doing the routes in sequence, I switched to focus on my leading technique. Having watched one of Neil Gresham's masterclass films for a bit of inspiration, I think I've discovered the cause of my less-than-stellar forehand clipping technique.
Instead of allowing the rope to run over the tips of my fingers, I've been positioning it too far back in my hand, making it harder to snag the rope with the carabina. I've also noticed that I don't follow through correctly — more of a problem with a rope off-cut, where you don't have the weight of the rest of the rope working for you — because I've got a poor grip on the rope and can't complete the move to ensure it pops through the gate without risking putting my finger through as well.
With a bit of refinement, I found something that worked for me and spent the afternoon doing as many routes as possible, as many times as possible, clipping all the quickdraws on the way up. Not only has it improved my technique, but it's boosted my confident by reassuring me that, even when I'm really tired, I've almost always got enough left in the tank to clip the rope, even when I have to hang off a nasty sloper to do so...
After a few circuits of easy boulder problems to warm-up, I hopped on the auto-belays and went for milage. After doing the routes in sequence, I switched to focus on my leading technique. Having watched one of Neil Gresham's masterclass films for a bit of inspiration, I think I've discovered the cause of my less-than-stellar forehand clipping technique.
Instead of allowing the rope to run over the tips of my fingers, I've been positioning it too far back in my hand, making it harder to snag the rope with the carabina. I've also noticed that I don't follow through correctly — more of a problem with a rope off-cut, where you don't have the weight of the rest of the rope working for you — because I've got a poor grip on the rope and can't complete the move to ensure it pops through the gate without risking putting my finger through as well.
With a bit of refinement, I found something that worked for me and spent the afternoon doing as many routes as possible, as many times as possible, clipping all the quickdraws on the way up. Not only has it improved my technique, but it's boosted my confident by reassuring me that, even when I'm really tired, I've almost always got enough left in the tank to clip the rope, even when I have to hang off a nasty sloper to do so...
