Tomorrow I will go on a climbing trip out of Florida where i will get to trad climb, any suggestions to help a first timer?

breathe.
keep your body in balance.
ledges bad for ankles, pro good for ankles.

When seconding/cleaning, approach cams gingerly. Make sure you have good pull on the triggers before you push on the stems. Look at them first to see if they're in any "keyholes" or slots that dictate they way you pull them out.

Have fun. Pause. Look around. Have more fun.

Trim your fingernails tonight.

Second the breathing. Kept a clear head. Have fun!

go to vedauwoo.

And if that's too far, check out the voodoo in New Orleans.

Not sure if you're looking for suggestions on where to go or what to do but on the former here's my list in order of closeness to FL.
Sunset Rock... Chattanooga TN (quite shady)
Linnville Gorge / Table Rock... NC
Seneca Rocks WV
Eldorado Canyon... CO
Rocky Mountain National Park... Estes Park CO(Alpine)
Toulumne Meadows... CA (maybe something south facing in the Valley).

I'm not sure what grade you feel comfortable on or I would suggest some routes.

As for leading tips i would have to say warm up on something 2 or 3 grades lower than you do in the gym or sport climbing and well protected. If you see good gear take it. Don't get on anything more than 3 pitches at first (unless it's Nutcracker :)). And I like what Buff said...Breathe.

HAVE FUN and BE CAREFUL!

When placing or cleaning gear look for the best possible stances, and stay relaxed.

I find it best to hold my breath and clench my butt checks. This prevents me from doing bodily function that I can do the night before or the night after.

Oh, and don't fall!

If you haven't led much, go with a strong trad leader. Before placing gear on lead, practice placing it in a non-climbing situation, like the base of a climbing wall where gear placements are available. Practice, tug on it hard, hard, hard, twist it around a bit. Does it stay, did it walk, can you remove it easily? Then follow one of the above poster's advice, and lead something well below your abilities so if the placement isn't so good, you stand less chance of falling on to something marginal. After all, to climb trad you must be able to place good gear proficiently. Have fun and keep it safe. As you are in Florida, North Carolina does have some sweet areaas not so far from you!

-Don't forget your nut tool. If you don't have one, buy it tonight. The leader will thank you because he won't have to leave his on the first stopper he places.

-If the leader sets the stopper too tight and your nut tool doesn't do the trick, give it a sharp upward yank in the direction it was set, it should come out. Don't leave that stopper until it is removed and racked on your gear sling or harness.

-Know how to safely rappel with confidence. It amazes me how people scamper up a multi pitch route without knowing how to rappel. It baffles me even more when an experienced leader brings an inexperienced 'climber' up a multi pitch route without teaching that person how to get down safely.

-Learn and observe. Ask questions when the leader is not obviously stressed. Take the role of mentoree and learn as much as you can.

-Remember it's about having fun.

Cheers and good luck,

Shane

oh yeah....and just in case no one has mentioned this to you before.
Have fun because YER GONNA DIE!

If you are following make sure you have a good hold on the gear when you are racking it on your harness or sling to make sure you do not accidentally drop your partners gear.

When I am handing a piece of gear to my partner or vice versa at the belay I always ask if they have it before I let go of it. This is a bit redundant but gear is expensive and it could hurt someone below if you drop it.

Have fun and relax and if you have a question ask it!!!

Don't lead anything. Even experienced trad climbers place marginal gear that is "psychological ONLY"--as in, do not fall. Being new to trad, it is prudent to assume that ALL of your gear placements are suspect.

That said, follow a competent leader and analyze their gear placements. Analyze their anchors. Ask questions. Learn everything you can while life is cheap on toprope.

Clean gear, clip it to your harness, then unclip from rope. Any deviation from that sequence makes dropped gear a distinct probability.

Acquire a nut tool before you leave. They're cheap and essential. Mine never leaves my harness, even when I'm out sport climbing, just so that I will never forget it.

Analyze the placement before you start working on removing it. Was it slotted in from above? Did the cam walk? Etc. This will save time and frustration; not to mention that just randomly yanking on shit can lead to irretrievable gear.

Try putting the hook of your nut tool into the hollow part of the nut and twisting--does the trick almost every time. Only if all else fails try yarding on a stuck nut. Be sure your belay is tight before doing this, and watch out--it may come flying at your face when it finally pops.

Leave your nut tool on a carabiner, and clip it to the rope before working on the nut, for the same reason you leave the gear clipped to the rope until it's racked.

Enjoy the view. Breathe, stay calm and relaxed.

Finger/hand/fist/toe/foot jams hurt sometimes. That usually means that it's good, but try not to fall and twist while bodyparts are jammed in a constriction--that's bad.

Know how to tie a munter hitch and what it's used for. Don't drop your belay/rappel device, but know how to tie and use the munter hitch anyway.

Carry some accessory cord, and know how to tie and use an autoblock (Klemheist or Prusik) if long rappels will be involved. Scratch that, know how to tie it anyway, even if long raps aren't involved--it could save your life someday!

www.animatedknots.com is one of the greatest websites ever. Practice your knots before you're off the deck.

Don't forget to enjoy your tradventure!

I would lead something if you have practiced placing gear on the ground and have spent a significant amount of time following and cleaning gear while climbing with a competent leader. What is your experience level? How long have you been climbing? Perhaps you could find a short pitch of 5.2-5.3 that would allow you to practice placing gear and building anchors. Only, I repeat, ONLY after you have spent a significant amount of time following and cleaning. I've known awesome climbers who were leading in a short amount of time after they spent time as an apprentice(so to speak).

Oftentimes, after a leader has taken a hard fall(whipper) onto a stopper, 'twisting' the stopper with a nut tool is essentially useless. I have fallen onto a variety of stoppers as well as cleaned gear from long falls from climbing buddies, and, have found that a good UPWARD yank does the trick when all else fails.

Have fun and be safe!

Shane

I was assuming that his knowledge = 0; he did say "first-timer." If his knowledge is > 0, then he will be able to sort out what is relevant advice from what he already knows. :)

cheers

Agreed, Justin. A first-timer will be able to sort out his own advice. I obviously missed 'first timer' in my analysis. Take care and be safe out there.

-Shane

David,
This is a relevant excerpt from an email conversation:

I rushed into leading trad, and don't regret it but think I could've learned about the sharp end a bit more safely/efficiently had I followed some of my advice [above.] I think I learned the most about good cam placements when I fell on a bad one and had it rip. Fortunately the next piece was bomber and I didn't have to fall on the anchor. Yikes. Glad to have been able to walk away and learn from that one!

Moral of my story: don't rush it. Like I said earlier, enjoy life while it is cheap (on toprope) so that you don't pay for it on the sharp end.

Best of luck to you, have fun!

Wear a helmet.

Lots of good stuff here.

I must add:

"When in doubt, run it out"

"If you aint flyin you aint tryin!".... but I guess that is more of a sport saying...

Anyways, David how did your trip go!?