Usolicited Advice Part I: Planning

[mike_anderson]

For some reason, most climbers seem afraid of the idea of planning anything, so I'll start out easy. Let's start with the very basic task of planning a day at the crag. Now, I'm not talking about sitting in the parking lot at Miguel's deciding what crag to go to right before you hop into the car...that would be the opposite of planning. For best results, you ought to think a little further ahead.

Before you even leave your house, identify what your goal is for the climbing day...is it a performance day, or a training day? If it's a performance day, are you working on on-sighting or redpointing? If redpointing, is it an existing project or are you starting a new one. These things should be determined well before you hop in the car. Decide which route you have in mind for the day, and what the right conditions are for that route (when does it get shade, etc.). Check the weather forecast. This will determine when you should arrive at the crag...as a hint "when your bros wake up" is not a good way to plan your day. If the route gets shade in the morning, plan on getting up early, which may mean you need to plan on getting some partners who are motivated enough, and care enough about you and your goals to accommodate you from time to time.

Figure out what your warm up will be. Make sure there are appropriate warm up routes for you nearby, or adjust the plan to warm up at another crag. You might like to do a progression of increasingly harder routes, or a couple laps on one route. Some folks always warm up on the same route that they have wired...either way, know what your warm up will be in advance.

How many burns do you expect to have, and how much rest will you need between burns? If the route is in the shade until 2:00, and you expect to get 4 burns, with an hour rest between burns, but you don't get warmed up until 11:00, then you've already blown it. If you're working a new proj, are you going to take a massive 2 hr first burn figuring out all the beta (if so, you better give your belayer a heads up if you ever want to climb with them again)? Maybe you would be better off taking two shorter burns? If the goal is a short burn, consider having your belayer enforce a time limit -- they'll be all too happy to do it. If it's a new project, are you going to try to on-sight it, then switch into project mode if you don't send, or will you just go bolt-to-bolt from the start? These things make a difference in how you approach it (more on this later).

You should probably plan these things out with your partner(s) to make sure everyone's goals can be met, but make sure you do some planning.

This may seem like a trivial thing, and it's "obvious" to many climbers, but most folks don't think about these things at all. Being deliberate about what and how you climb is one of many small steps towards controlling how you perform as a climber. You can float through life reacting to events as they unfold before you, and ending up wherever the currents take you, or you can steer yourself toward long term goals by making deliberate course corrections that get you to the destination you have chosen.

[Andrew]

Good advice Mike, but I am too lazy for that.

[Saxman]

Don't even get started on all the people who run out of food, water, or warm clothing.

[Brentucky]

i have now discovered the antithesis of pretty much ALL of my climbing partners! we have never even thought to think about these things. i've had enough though, i'm coming over and dragging asses out of bed at 6:45 in the morning next time out! you better buy some big ass locks and shatter proof windows or else!

[ahab]

that sounds complicated. what if you have 4 people with 4 different ideas of what they want to climb that day? what about when you pull up to a full parking lot and have to go else where? what's all that planning got you then? set up for disapointment, that's what. no no, best to finally hop in the car at 11am, half-assed 'discuss' where to go (the driver ultimately decides anyway), then adjust accordingly.
i have to get up at 6:30 to go to work. climbing should be anything but like work.

[krampus]

I kept waiting for the punchline cus it had to be a joke. don't take this the wrong way but uh....you kinda take the fun out of climbing

[Canuck]

What is this "performance day" or "training day"? My goal is usually just to get out of town and away from school/work, so I don't snap and kill someone.

[rhunt]

i have to get up at 6:30 to go to work. climbing should be anything but like work.

This is my favorite lame-ass excuse why people refuse to get up early to climb. Your love for climbing should have you up at 5am because you only have two days to climb and all week to go to that job you hate. For me, I can only climb on the weekends, that's 48 hours to climb, sleep and drive, what am I going to spend most of my time doing?

I think most people who have the discipline the train hard and thus climb hard also take the time to plan things out well. At least that's my experience being around climber who are constantly push their limit.

[DriskellHR]

I'm all about an early start but as soon as my rig is pointed twords the red my problems wash away and all is right with the world. To me the rest is just details. 8)

[jordancolburn]

This is my favorite lame-ass excuse why people refuse to get up early to climb.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all about the early start, I've had plenty of early days, but sometimes they make me question my sanity. I have to get up for work at 6, and Sundays I play at a church so I have to be there for practice at 8:30. So sat is my one day to get sleep, its kind of a balance between getting in a more full day of climbing(with a 2 hour drive I'd like to get all I can) and Being awake and coherent enough to even climb worth a crap.

Oh, and anyone ever run a 5k or 10k(or more?) then come down and climbed two days in a row.....not the best idea for performance.