Rock Climbing: Second Top-Roping Session
Today I bought a 5-punch pass to the big climbing gym (Stone Summit) and climbed with my friend Sarah. We ended up shutting the place down again, top-roping for about 2 hours and bouldering for half an hour.
She had me try an easy 5.6 downstairs (a big wall, but not as big as the tallest ones), and I started freaking out part of the way up. Truthfully, I started freaking out about 5 feet off the ground, but then I just reached a slightly difficult hold about 6 feet from the top and couldn’t move. When I asked to be lowered, I couldn’t let go of the wall for a second, but Sarah was very patient and talked me down (she wouldn’t let me climb down, tightening the rope until I let go).
I belayed her on the same route, and then we went upstairs for me to gain my confidence on the smaller walls. I completed a 5.6 and a 5.7, and I was one hold from the top of completing a 5.7 with a slight, short negative slope (it was really frustrating, but I just wasn’t well-balanced on my feet, and neither handhold was secure enough to let go of the other -- my arms were too spent).
I climbed a 5.6 and another 5.7 downstairs. The 5.7 was a bit terrifying; it had a ledge, which wasn’t too bad on the way up, but was pretty scary on the way down. Again, Sarah was able to talk me through it -- I got on my hands and knees, then let my feet hang off and lay on my belly, finding a foothold until I could lean back enough to get off the rope. (Sarah is amazing, really... I thought I was going to be stuck up there, but she was able to calm me down and break it into small steps that weren’t so scary.)
I was so full of adrenaline after making it up the 5.7, I decided to try a 5.8. I made it halfway up, and then got a bit off-course, trying for what I thought was a decent handhold, but was really just a nub. When Sarah tried it, she used some handholds I hadn’t seen on the opposite side of the rope, and nearly made it to the top (but the rope got in her way, and she couldn’t figure out a way around it... I tried moving, but that didn’t help).
Even though my arms were already tired, I couldn’t resist bouldering. I made it to the top of two of the easiest routes (the second after watching a girl use a handhold with her palm down on it... I had been trying to pull up on it, but it didn’t have good grip for that). I got close on a third route, but I was near the top and had to basically do a bicep curl with my left to keep my balance while reaching with my right. Fifteen feet off the ground was too high for me to even try. (I did end up having to jump down from that height later, and it was fine... maybe next time.)
So my fear of heights is definitely holding me back a bit, but it’s getting better each time I climb.
I’m already sore in my quads, hip flexors, abs, lats, forearms, and biceps. I guess it’s too early to be DOMS, though... Hopefully they’ll feel better tomorrow; it’s still hard to use my hands properly.
Climbing is such an amazing total-body workout, and I like how much analytical thinking it requires. I can’t really zone out like I can when on a run (maybe when I’m better? though that seems dangerous), but it’s somehow relaxing to be focused on such a simple yet difficult problem.
Note to self: bring some fuel, at least to take post-workout, especially if your sessions are going to be so long.
