Beginner Crack Climber

Hey guys! After climbing in Tucson for the last year I have discovered that I have zero crack climbing skills. Yesterday I was up at the Atamen crack and got schooled. I am looking for some suggestions for cracks in the red rocks area that I can top rope and self belay myself so I can really practice my jams.
The atamen crack is one crack that is real easy to set up a TR anchor and self belay on, however its 10a and has a long approach. Any suggestions on cracks to self belay on, or crack climbing suggestions for a bigginer would be awesome.
Thanks!

The Fox

How about 5.10b/c climbs I could toprope self belay on? Anyone got suggestions on that as well as some cracks I can toperope self belay on?

sqwirll wrote:The Fox

Oh, yes, ouch. It's a good pain. A must do one pitch climb!

-keep your arms straight as much as possible so that you are not constantly working your muscles.

-work on yoga poses that focus on hip flexibility. Be flexible enough so that you can easily turn your feet sideways into the crack and get a really solid foot jam. Don't overjam to avoid injuring your feet.

-look for constrictions to set your hand jams, similar to the way you would set passive pro. Try setting your jam by tugging on it a little before weighting it. (climbing in Wingate cracks is another story)

-breathe!

-use only enough muscle tension to get the job done. Shake out and relax if a rest presents itself.

-make a crack to practice on in your backyard.

Kevin,
How would you make a crack? That sounds interesting.

A couple RR cracks that might get you started, probably hard to set up a TR on them though (maybe aid them first?).

Red Zinger (10)
Straight Shooter (9)
The Fox (10)
there are a couple cracks close together, maybe 'little red riding hood' or 'grandmother's house' or something like that 9ish or so.

having a hard time remembering any onther single pitch ones that i have done for some reason. 'atman' and 'yin and yang' are probably your best bet for what you are looking for. vegastradguy might have some more, as he has climbed quite a few routes out there.

my advice is to be patient and not get discouraged. when i started crack climbing i never thought that i would be able to take the pain in my feet. wear comfy (ie not sport tight) shoes. HAVE FUN!

Ross Purnell wrote:Kevin, How would you make a crack? That sounds interesting.

Relevant recent discussion:

mountainproject.com/v/arizo…

Cloud Tower

Makin' crack! I used a couple 2 by 10 by 8 ft boards joined by 2 ft sections of 3/8 inch all thread rod at approx. 2 ft intervals. Add some wingnuts, nuts, washers, and you have your very own adjustable crack machine. Of course you'll need something to hang it off of course...

I ended up cutting a chunk out of a pre-existing 4 by 8 foot bouldering panel and adding the adjust-a-crack to it. If you have space you can make one a lot taller, and support with posts, attach it to a building superstructure, etc.

Mine is overhanging, so although I can only get a few good jams on the way up, the overhang makes sure they are good jams... Fun way to practice at home whenever you get the chance.

Might want to thing about J-Tree if your still in Tucson It is 6 hours from Tucson and is a great place to learn cracks. Paradise Forks is also a great place to plug in gear; bullet proof rock and many pure crack climbs. This thread is another good resource: mountainproject.com/v/arizo…

i'd recommend the overlook. moderate difficulty, bomber gear, crack and face instead of pure crack. 4 hours from tucson too.

Ross Purnell wrote:Kevin, How would you make a crack? That sounds interesting.

Ross,

I built it from 2 x 10s 14' long. I went to the quarry and they let me go through there scrap pile to select thin, long pieces of sandstone. I used the strongest construction adhesive I could find (not LN, but the Heavy Duty might work-not on the market at that time) and glued the stone to the 2x10s.

Then I used all thread, washers and nuts to join them with the idea of keeping the width adjustable. At the top, I drilled holes to put through a 1/2" piece of galvanized pipe. I painted the wood a color that blended in well with the tree.

Being so heavy with the stone, pulleys had to be used to hoist it upright against a large tree. I attached it to the tree with old climbing rope and steel cable with the pipe as the attachment point.

It was overhanging and tilted a little which made it a lot harder. The sharp edges of the sandstone were painful on the feet. All of which made for great training.

Because it was so heavy, it felt very solid while climbing it and didn't sway or flex at all. I self belayed while climbing it, and usually rappelled instead of down climbing.

The tree blew down in a wind storm and the crack cracked in half. I want to build another one, and am thinking about using natural stone again.

Hey guys thanks for all the replys. I asked Red Rocks because I am actually up here for the summer living at my parents place with a job. Only here for the summer so thought I would try to work on my crack skills here since Tucson lacks a lot of cracks.

I think Atman might be the best thing I can self belay myself on I guess. I do not have the rack to aid anything at the moment so looks like I may stick to Atman for now.

Killis,
I totally agree with you about a climbing mentor. In fact I have my mentor and number 1 climbing partner back in Arizona. The reason I was thinkin about TR soloing here is because I am only here for a summer job, and we do not have good cracks down in Southern AZ.

Thanks for all the feed back guys!