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Different crampon adjustments for ice vs mixed climbing

Original Post
Bug Boy · · Boulder, CO :( · Joined Aug 2017 · Points: 81

Do any experienced winter climber folk adjust their crampon fit for mixed routes vs ice climbing? (mixed routes in this case being 90%+ rock) 

My thoughts: Standard configuration for ice climbing is with the boots "farther back" on the crampon so the secondary points can engage, however this also increases the distance between the end of the boot and the tip of the front point leading to more calf fatigue/less precision. Recently got new crampons (darts) and while they climbed ice way better than my old cyborgs they definitely felt "different" on rock. Maybe I am just over thinking things and just need time to get used to new pons but curious about what people think. 

Melanie Shea · · Denver · Joined Oct 2015 · Points: 10

I think it’s relatively common to have crampons adjusted a bit differently in the way you describe if you have one set for mixed and another for ice. I’ve changed my forward backward adjustment if I’m going for a week of only ice or a long route of mostly rock.

Karl Henize · · Boulder, CO · Joined Aug 2013 · Points: 648

Yes.  It is standard practice to adjust crampons differently for ice and dry tooling.  

Having your front points far forward will cause your calves to fatigue more quickly on vertical and less than vertical dry tooling.  Secondary points also often get in the way, when drytooling, as they reduce the range that you can pivot on a monopoint.  You generally want your secondary points to be as far back as possible, when dry tooling or walking long distances.

I eventually decided to cut down the secondary points on my Darts because the secondary points can sometimes make it harder to get foot placements in thin/delicate ice.  I find having extended secondary points doesn't really provide any real additional security, it just takes some stress off the calves.  After chopping the secondary points, I no longer adjust the crampon relative to my boot but I do adjust the front point forward and back, relative to the crampon.  

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

Ice Climbing
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