Sport climbing is a style of rock climbing that relies on permanent anchors fixed to the rock, especially bolts, for protection. The term is used in opposition to traditional climbing and top roping. Sport climbing places an emphasis on gymnastic ability, strength and endurance, while minimizing risk and skillful placement of protection. Climbers on Valkyrie at the Roaches. ... In climbing, a bolt is a permanent anchor fixed into a hole drilled in the rock, usually consisting of a glued in or expansion bolt to which a hanger is permanently fixed (allowing passing climbers to clip a carabiner to the bolt). ... To make climbing as safe as possible, most climbers use protection to prevent injury to themselves and others. ... This article or section is not written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia article. ... Top roping is a style of climbing in which the rope runs from the belayer at the foot of the route through a carabiner connected to an anchor at the top of the route and back down to the climber. ...

Sport climbing basics

Sport climbing emphasizes the gymnastic and athletic aspects of climbing, placing less emphasis on risk, control of fear and placing protection. It can be undertaken with relatively little equipment on established routes. Personal equipment required for sport climbing includes a dynamic rope, quickdraws, and a few runners. A dynamic rope is a specially constructed, stretchable kind of rope. ... Two quickdraws. ... A sling is an item of climbing equipment consisting of a tied or sown loop of webbing that can be wrapped around sections of rock, hitched (tied) to other pieces of equipment or even tied directly to a tensioned line using a special prussik knot, for anchor extension or equalisation. ...

To "lead" a sport climb is to climb a route with a rope tied to the climbing harness with the loose end handled by the belayer. As each bolt is reached along the route, a quickdraw is clipped to the bolt, and the running rope clipped through the hanging end of the quickdraw. This bolt is now 'protecting' the climber, in the case of a fall. At the top of sport routes, there is usually a two-point anchor that can be used to return the climber to the ground. The most practical place for most people to learn the proper techniques for sport climbing and the required "lead belaying" is a rock climbing gym with qualified, trained instructors. A climbing harness is a piece of equipment used in certain types of climbing. ... In climbing, belaying is the technique of controlling the rope so that a falling climber does not fall very far. ...

Sport climbing generally takes place on vertical to overhanging cliffs, often with big holds. Rock types that produce good sport climbs include limestone, granite and quartzite, though sport climbs can be found on almost all rock types. By creating an environment where a high degree of safety is easily available, the climber can concentrate on the difficulty of the moves and the flow of the rock climb, rather than making it to the next possible placement. This allows climbers to push their physical limits and fall off with little or no consequences. Indeed, falling off is considered an integral part of sport climbing, and a tool required to learn the moves of a climb. Limey shale overlaid by limestone. ... Quarrying granite for the Mormon Temple, Utah Territory. ... Quartzite Quartzite is a hard, metamorphic rock which was originally sandstone. ...

As sport climbing became popular in the 80's and 90's, the emphasis that it places on strength and stamina led to a significant rise in standards among climbers at all levels of skill.

Sport climbers place an emphasis on the style of an ascent, forming a hierarchy of accomplishment.

• On-sight if climbed the first try, without falls and without prior knowledge;
• Flash if climbed the first try, without falls but with some prior knowledge such as, but not limited to, watching another person climb it or discussing it with another climber.
• Red point climbed from bottom to top without falls or hanging from gear, and placing quickdraws on the way up.
• Pink point climbed from bottom to top without falls or hanging from gear, with the quickdraws in place on the route. This is usually considered the minimum requirement for having 'climbed' the route.

Routes that are at or above the individual climber's skill level often require 'work' to pink point. A climber may return to a climb several to hundreds of times, to work out the moves, memorize the movements and develop the strength and stamina required to complete the route. In climbing, red pointing refers to repeatedly trying the same moves on a route until the climber is able to do them. ...

Sport Climbing Around the World

Australia

Australia has some excellent sport climbing areas, and from time to time some of the hardest climbs in the world are established by either locals, or visitors such Wolfgang Gullich. Wolfgang Gullich was born in Ludwigshafen, Germany, October 24th, 1960. ...

Major sport climbing areas:

Arapiles

Nowra

The Blue Mountains,

The Grampians

Mount Arapiles is a rock formation that rises 369 metres above the Wimmera plains in western Victoria, Australia. ... Nowra is the town area and main administrative centre within the City of Shoalhaven in New South Wales, Australia. ... Cliff overlooking the Jamison Valley The Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia, are situated approximately 100 kilometres west of Sydney. ... The Pinnacle offers stunning views of the surrounding park, this photograph just one example. ...

France

France was the birthplace and longtime champion of hard sport climbing in the 80's and 90's. This was partially due to their rock not being suitable for traditional type routes. In France, sport climbing and bouldering are very popular and competitive climbing is big business. Blessed with limitless limestone and balmy weather there are a lot of sport routes to be climbed in France.

Major sport climbing areas:

Ceuse

Buoux

Verdon Gorge: Long routes or hard routes that start at the top of a thousand-foot high rock wall

Les Calanques

Some of the hardest routes in France: Grand Canyon du Verdon, view from north rim The Gorges of the Verdon river Verdon Gorge (in French: Gorges du Verdon or Grand canyon du Verdon) is a river canyon in south-eastern France (Alpes-de-Haute-Provence). ... Calanques de Marseille A Calanque or Calanche as they are known in Corsican is a geologic formation in the form of a deep valley with steep sides and a part submerged by the sea. ...

Akira, Charente, 9a+/b

Realization, Ceuse, 9a+

Hugh, Eaux-Claires, 9a

Robi in the Sky, Calanques, 9a

Germany

Many consider Germany to be the next country after France to embrace sport climbing.

Notable climbers:

Kurt Albert was in many ways the original free climber.

Wolfgang Gullich put up the world’s first 9a, Action Directe in the Frankenjura.

Major sport climbing areas: Wolfgang Gullich was born in Ludwigshafen, Germany, October 24th, 1960. ...

Frankenjura (aka Fränkische Schweiz) - a world famous climbing area with over 4,000 routes on various types of limestone formations.

Elbsandsteingebirge (aka Sächsische Schweiz), is a major sandstone climbing area in East Germany.

Holzen

Lürdissen

Ith

Some of the hardest routes in Germany:

Action Direct, Frankenjura, 9a

Die Welle, Leonhardstein, 9a

Spain

In the 1980s, Spain's limestone crags became known as excellent winter sport climbing destinations. With excellent weather and some of the finest climbing in Europe, Spain is popular with both local climbers and visitors from across Europe.

Major sport climbing areas:

Mallorca

Rodellar

Riglos

Siurana

Baltzola

El Chorro in Malaga

La Pedriza in Madrid)

Some of the hardest routes in Spain: Location Location of Mallorca in Balearic Islands Coordinates : 39° 30’N , 3°0E Time Zone : CET (UTC+1) - summer: CEST (UTC+2) General information Native name Mallorca (Catalan) Spanish name Mallorca Founded 13th century Postal code 07001-07691 Area code 34 (Spain) + 971 (Mallorca) Website http://www. ... El Chorro is a climbing area near Malaga in Southern Spain. ... Location within Spain Malaga redirects here. ... Location Coordinates : 40° 23’N , 3°43′0″W Time Zone : CET (GMT +1) - summer: CEST (GMT +2) General information Native name Villa de Madrid (Spanish) Spanish name Villa de Madrid Founded 9th century Postal code 28001-28080 Area code 34 (Spain) + 91 (Villa de Madrid) Website http://www. ...

Chilam Balam 9b

La Rambla, Siurana 9a+

Orujo, Malaga, 9a+

Il Domani, Baltzola, 9a

Las Ramblas Extension, Siurana 9a+

Thailand

Thailand offers exceptional sport climbing on limestone crags right off the beach of the southern islands. The Rock around Railay Beach The rock is all limestone and is part of the worlds largest coral reef, stretching from China to Papua New Guinea. The routes are all bolted sport climbing routes. The French grading system is used. With over 700 routes ranging from beginner 5a's to classic multipitch 6a's right up to the extremes of 8c, there's enough to keep any climber busy for years. [1]

United Kingdom

Sport climbing began in the UK around 1984.

Major sport climbing areas include:

Raven Tor

Portland

Malham

Pen Trwyn

Kilnsey

Some early proponents of the sport climbing revolution in the UK were Ron Fawcett, Jerry Moffat, and Ben Moon. They were heavily influenced by climbing in France, and the German conception of Free Climbing.

Some of the hardest sport climbing routes in the UK:

The Big Bang, Lower Pen Trwyn, 9a

Mutation, Raven Tor, 9a

Rainshadow, Malham, 9a

Northern Light, Kilnsey, 9a

At some UK climbing areas, sport climbing is frowned upon because many climbers believe that the permanent placing of bolts in mountainous and sea-cliff areas detracts from the wilderness experience, damages the rock, and devalues the achievements of the first ascensionist who climbed in traditional style, placing their own protection. Sport climbing takes place on indoor climbing walls and on a limestone and slate cliffs that are unsuited to traditional climbing. In climbing, a first ascent (FA) is the first climb to reach the top of a mountain, or the first to follow a particular climbing route. ... Climbing a rock-textured wall with belay, modular hand holds, incuts, and protrusions A climbing wall is an artificially constructed wall with grips for hands and feet, used for climbing. ... This article or section is not written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia article. ...

United States

Sport climbing is a relatively modern branch of the sport, becoming popular in the US during the 1980s. The original sport climbers in the US were trad climbers that adopted a European style of climbing. They created routes that provided plenty of fixed protection(Bolts) put in on rappel (or 'top-down'). The first routes tended to be vertical with small handholds. As time went by, new routes got steeper, placing an increased emphasis on stamina. A bolt may be one of the following things: A type of threaded fastener. ... In British English, abseiling (from the German abseilen, to rope down) is the process of descending on a fixed rope. ...

Allan Watts was the first person in the US to adopt a top-down style of climbing. His rappel bolted routes at Smith Rock were soon internationally acclaimed as some of the best climbing in the US. In 1988 Frenchman J.B. Tribout established the first 5.14 in the US at Smith Rocks called "To Bolt or Not to Be". Other notable early developers were: Scott Franklin, Dale Goddard and Christian Griffith.

Major sport climbing areas:

Smith Rock State Park

American Fork Canyon, Utah

Mt. Charleston, Nevada

Rifle, Colorado

Rumney, New Hampshire

Red Rocks, Nevada

Red River Gorge, Kentucky

New River Gorge, West Virginia

Some of the hardest sport climbing routes in the US Smith Rock State Park is a popular climbing spot in the Pacific Northwest located in central Oregons high desert near the town of Terrebonne. ... American Fork is a city located in Utah County, Utah, USA, at the foot of Mount Timpanogos in the Wasatch Range. ...

Flex Luthor, Fortress of Solitude, Colorado, 9a+

Kryptonite, Fortress of Solitude, Colorado, 9a

Psychedelic, St George, 9a

The Fly, Rumney, 9a

Livin’ Astroglide, Rumney, 9a

Access & Conflicts The United States has a strong history of traditional climbing, especially at certain crags, and considerable value is placed on routes staying as they were done by the first ascensionist. In the U.S. it is considered unacceptable to add bolts to an established traditional route to turn it into a sport climb. In climbing, a first ascent (FA) is the first climb to reach the top of a mountain, or the first to follow a particular climbing route. ...

Bird watchers and other non-climbing wilderness visitors sometimes object to being distracted by brightly-colored slings left at rappel anchors, leading climbers to use webbing the same color as the rock. Birding or birdwatching is a hobby concerned with the observation and study of birds (the study proper is termed American origin; birdwatching is (or more correctly, was) the commonly-used word in Great Britain and Ireland and by non-birders in the United States. ...

Sources

1 How to Rock Climb by John Long,

2 How to Climb 5.12 by Eric J. Horst,

3 Performance Rock Climbing by Dale Goddard and Udo Neumann,

4 Rock Climbing by Don Mellor,

See also

External Links

• Rock climbing travel guide from Wikitravel