How do you set a hard slabby route in the gym? I've never seen anything harder than 5.11 on gym slabs. What makes a slabby route really hard?
Setting slabby routes
(5 posts) (4 voices)-
Posted 1 year ago #
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Climb some hard slab routes outside and see what makes them hard!
I love slab routes! Most of the 5.11s and up I've been on often require smearing on minuscule protrusions so small they're hard to see even close up, and pinching little crystals that sometimes puncture into your finger prints. Difficult to emulate with bolt on holds on a t-nutted wall.
How hard you can make 'em depends of course on the angle of the slab. The slabbiest of our slabs is nearly -20 degrees. It's really tricky to find holds that'll work for a hard route. Slopey holds get caked up pretty quickly not only from excessive feet, but also that the holds collect every bit of dust, chalk, etc. that falls on 'em.
Thin small screw-on holds work well. We made some nice tiny little one-screw-screw-ons (barely bigger than the screw head) that have been pretty cool on slabs. Some of our slab routes also require using otherwise un-noticed flaws on the wall... knots in the wood and seems.
But yeah I think you really need to climb a lot of slabs outside to get it. I've seen quite a few setters try and miss.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Call Teknik and order these... automatic 5.12 slab route.
http://www.teknikhandholds.com/holds/06_footholds/06_noshadow/noshadft_1.jpg
http://www.teknikhandholds.com/holds/05_slopers/10_no-shadow/noshadhand_1.jpg
Posted 1 year ago # -
The most diabolical slabs that I have climbed outside have all had the most minuscule dishes for your feet, something very hard to create inside.
...Now that I'm thinking about it...Take a hammer to your wall and whack just hard enough to create a half inch dent in the texture. Make sure to shape your dent with a super dumpy slope on the bottom. Repeat this process to create all the feet for your route. Of course you would never do this to your wall but I think that would be your best bet at creating hard slab.
Posted 1 year ago # -
I have those no-shadow holds, I set an interesting mantel boulder problem on the slab and then extended into the No-shadows... then sat back and watched all the best climbers at the gym struggle to grab those things... I graded the route 5.12, but I don't really know, it was up for almost a month, a few of us did all the moves, but no one got the send.
the holds are sick on the positive side of volume too.
Posted 1 year ago #
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