Technologies

Indoor climbing gyms have put an entirely new spin on the sport of rock climbing, and though climbing on plastic and plywood isn?t ever going to be the same as getting outside and climbing on real rock, part of what makes the indoor rock climbing experience fun is that it closely mirrors the movements, techniques, and skills required to tackle real rock climbing challenges. Though outdoor rock climbing does use a slightly different skill set than indoor climbing (for example, indoor climbers never have to do any route finding; the holds are all pretty obvious) most of what people learn while climbing indoors is immediately transferable technologies to outdoor climbing.

One of the biggest components of the indoor rock climbing experience is the lowly climbing hold. Climbing holds come in all shapes, sizes, and colors, and for good reason: try as they might, hold manufacturers will never be able to capture the variety of technologies holds you?ll be able to find on an average-sized crag. Of course, this hasn?t stopped them from trying. Rock climbing holds come in a dizzying array of designs and shapes. Some of them mirror the holds characteristic of certain types of rocks. So you?ll see climbing holds shaped to look and feel like limestone?s characteristic pockets and divots or granite?s tiny crystal edges and flakes. Novelty holds are also popular, especially for kids? walls or easier slabs. Depending on the manufacturer, you can find climbing holds in the shapes of alphabet letters, dinosaurs, or people?s faces. Some bolt-on cracks are available, though these tend to be pretty big technologies and bulky. Other huge holds are called ?feature? holds; these can be the size of a watermelon or bigger and offer route setters and climbers a wide variety of possible grip and movement combinations.

Though shape is probably the most important aspect of a climbing hold, texture is also a considerable concern. If a hold?s texture is too smooth it won?t provide enough technologies friction for good climbing; climbers will either have to over-grip the hold or risk sliding off of it, especially if the hold isn?t very positive, or in-cut. On the other hand, if a hold?s texture is too abrasive it may be easy to grip but hard on climbers? hands. Many holds which are too abrasive out of the box tend to mellow out after a few climbing sessions, offering a more pleasing texture, since most hold manufacturers would rather err on the side of making their holds friendly but a little slippery than rough and painful to hang onto.