Climbers can get away with bad habits for years. You will learn a lot from the mistakes you walk away from, I promise. Unfortunately, climbing can be unforgiving when it comes to mistakes. Learning by making mistakes is not a long term strategy in climbing. It only takes one that you'll never have a chance to correct...
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
— Will Durant
Develop good habits and attitudes early in your climbing life and you'll be a more efficient and safer climber in the long run.
Habits/Attitudes:
1) Partner check. Do them, each and every climb, each and every pitch, indoor or outdoors. Don’t get distracted. Don't become complacent.
In 1989, Lynn Hill, fell 70 feet due to an unfinished knot at her tie-in point.
2) Helmets. Wear one at the start of your climbing career, it will feel natural given time. Get used to wearing one then decide later if you want to climb without one depending on the situation (i.e. in chimneys). As a new climber you will likely be climbing on lower angle terrain that will definitely scramble your brain in a bad fall. Helmets are cheap compared to your shoes, your rope, or your quickdraws. Buy one. Buy the most comfortable one in the the colour you like because that is the one you are most likely to wear.
Last year while projecting a hard sport climb, Mina Leslie-Wujasktyk fell and suffered head injuries. She believes an ill-fitting harness was the main culprit but acknowledges that a helmet would have made her injuries less severe. Mina fell from a spot that she had fallen off multiple times before.
3) Communication. Be honest about your ability to new climbing partners. Use a system with your partner that eliminates as many possibilities of misunderstanding as possible. Discuss and agree upon a system with every single climber you rope up with before anyone leaves the ground. Do not make assumptions.
In 2002, Craig Demartino fell 100 feet due to a miscommunication with his belayer. He miraculously survived the fall but suffered traumatic injuries which eventually lead to the amputation of one leg.
In 2011, American Alpine Club Executive Director Phil Powers fell 50-60 feet when his belayer believed he was rappelling down rather than being lowered off.
4) Gear. Know how your gear works. Human error is far more likely than gear failure. Having said that, do inspect you gear regularly. Check the gates on all your carabiners and make sure your rope end carabiners don’t have sharp burrs. Check the wires on your nuts and triggers on your cams. Check your webbing, harness, tethers, etc. The list of what to check could go on. Inspect the gear your partner hands you.
In 2016, Ashima Shiraishi fell 45 feet when her belayer overrode the camming action of a Grigri.
In 2013, Tito Traversa suffered fatal injuries after falling 25 metres. Incorrectly set up quickdraws, borrowed from friends, led to the incident.
5) Rope. Coil and flake the rope deliberately each and every time. It is amazing how easily your brain will register anything out of the ordinary (fray, core shot, tree sap, soft spot). Be meticulous with your rope management and you’ll save yourself from hours of untangling coils over your climbing career. Always be aware of where the rope is when climbing. Accidents in North American Mountaineering is full of incidents where someone rappels off the end of the rope or is lowered off the end of the rope. Tie a knot at the end(s).
In 2016 Alex Honnold was lowered off the end of the rope after setting up a top rope. Alex suffered compression fractures on two vertebrae as a result of the fall.
In 2012 Dave Macleod was lowered off the end of the rope. Dave suffered an ankle injury that required surgery.
6) Good pro. Place the best gear possible when climbing on gear. Placing marginal pieces and moving above them when other options are available is stupid and is a recipe for getting hurt. Inspect fixed draws, bolts, hangers, pins, slings, cord, and anchors on the climb. There has been enough instances of ropes getting chopped by worn carabiners that one should always be wary of fixed gear on a route.
7) Be attentive. When belaying or spotting, you have one job, pay attention. Spot your climber until the first piece or bolt is clipped. Be extra alert when a ground fall is still possible before the second or third piece/bolt is clipped. Minimize the chit-chat with others on the ground. Remember that bouldering falls are always ground falls.
8) Be a boy scout. Be prepared. Do the homework for the chosen objective. Know the approach/descent. Pack a headlamp, first-aid kit, rain gear, extra layers, and anything else you might need “just in case”. Have bear spray ready where appropriate. You’ll hardly notice the extra weight.
9) Be considerate of others. Climbing areas are shared spaces. Keep your gear organized. Be willing to share routes. Have a Plan B or Plan C if sharing isn’t possible. Maybe leave the speakers at home. Your default should be to take up as small a footprint as possible at the crag. Don’t be that crowd no one wants to be near.
10) Be a student . Climbing is a process of on-going learning. Take courses. You’ll meet many climbers with different technical knowledge and skills, ask them to teach you something. Keep up with new products and techniques being developed. Absorb as much as you can, never stop adding to your skill set. If you are unsure of something, find out.
11) Accept the possibility of failure. Pushing on to finish a climb is not always wise. Bailing is always an option. The route is probably not going anywhere. Walk away and schedule a second date. Gear you leave behind can be replaced. Figure out what your personal “sphere of acceptable risk” is and climb with those that have similar views. Thoughtfully and gradually push your limits if you choose to do so.
Climb safe.
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