Rock Climbing
Rock climbing instruction at Wide Aware introduces participants to rock climbing technique , rock climbing training exercises , equipment used for rock climbing , and can be continued as a series of training sessions that lead to actual climbs on pinnacles in and around Mumbai. It is a good way of acheiving a basic proficiency with the sport and its equipment, processes and safety norms. This, of course will not bring enough experience to lead or go solo immediately, but is more a way of learning the basics thoroughly. These can be further developed with participatory experience and guided climbs until sufficient skill is developed to take responsibility on a climb.
Rock Climbing is the skill of scaling vertical or near vertical rock faces . The techniques have been refined by collective experience and serve as guidelines for safety and getting maximum performance from our limited capabilities.
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The way to begin experiencing it is in guided practice sessions . These sessions help you develop your skill, and learn fundamental techniques and rock climbing equipment . They also help develop habits of body movement that contribute to fitness and ease of movement flexibility, endurance, strength and balance and help boost climbing performance. Typically, a course will include information about the equipment, its correct use and care, followed by basic rock climbing guidelines with adequate practice time, and moving on to specific techniques and moves for use in specific situations (depending on aptitude).
In practice sessions , instructors explain and demonstrate basic techniques followed by practice time on various rock faces to cover a variety of essential techniques, holds and movements. These sessions begin with elementary moves, and progress to more advanced techniques and even training about safety systems as individual capacity expands.
Why climb?
While a lot of this training is activity specific, the sport does increase fitness levels and an overall attitude of strength and perseverance about life in general in an individual. Rock Climbing, while presenting an exhilerating fitness challenge, is also an experience in performing under pressure, planning, and redifining limits of physical abilities and endurance and often triggers a journey of self-discovery in a physical and mental sense. Our mind tunes in to challenges as a way of reaching greater heights
Reach for the sky
Well.... it only seems like that. Its more like reach for your next hold and keep doing it till you reach the top. Rock climbing is all about perseverance, endurance and consistently stretching your limits. If you're not particularly physically fit, fear not my friend - it is also one of the most enjoyable ways of getting the body into shape.
Gear
Experiencing rock climbing as a one time experience with someone knowlegable to guide you takes pretty much nothing in terms of appropriate gear. Your guide will usually have the equipment, and all you need to do is to be sure to land up in clothes that allow free body movement and shoes that fit well and provide good grip.
If you're getting serious about the whole thing, you still can count on sharing equipment with fellow climbers, but good shoes are a must. Unfortunately, in India, its a little tricky to get good climbing shoes easily. You need to know people who deal with such gear, and then it is dependent on them having what you want in the correct size. I'm adding some links to places where you can order them online, if its any help.
The next thing you'll begin feeling possessive about is a harness and the karabiner immediately attached to it, and slowly, you'll end up coveting all kinds of climbing equipment grom ropes and descenders to the increasingly fancy gadgets that keep turning up to tempt us.
I usually rely on Amazon to find interesting stuff
It gets easy to find loads of books, gear and stuff. If you think there might be something of interest..... this is what I've been looking into.
Books:
- Rock Climbing: Mastering Basic Skills (Mountaineers Outdoor Expert)
- Training for Climbing: The Definitive Guide to Improving Your Climbing Performance
- The Self-Coached Climber: The Guide to Movement Training Performance
- Rock Climbing Anchors: A Comprehensive Guide (The Mountaineers Outdoor Experts Series)
- Rock Climbing Joshua Tree, 2nd (Regional Rock Climbing Series)
Shoes and stuff - you can always browse around and find variety and what else you want :
- Rock Climbing: Mastering Basic Skills (Mountaineers Outdoor Expert)
- Training for Climbing: The Definitive Guide to Improving Your Climbing Performance
- The Self-Coached Climber: The Guide to Movement Training Performance
- Rock Climbing Anchors: A Comprehensive Guide (The Mountaineers Outdoor Experts Series)
- Rock Climbing Joshua Tree, 2nd (Regional Rock Climbing Series)

