Sometimes you just don’t fit in. In the second part of his crack climbing guide Adrian Berry takes a look at those hellish wrong-sized cracks.
It is quite amazing that the majority of cracks we find ourselves climbing happen to be either hand or finger cracks. When jamming your way up a perfect crack that’s just the right width to provide sinker hand jams, you could be forgiven for thinking that the whole cliff was just designed to be climbed by a benevolent maker who likes to see us enjoy ourselves.
Of course, this is only half the story. There are other cracks out there - those that are too wide, too narrow. And if the man upstairs made all the nice ones then he must have left the construction of the rest to someone of a less benevolent disposition.
Off-fingers
First up are cracks that are just that bit too wide for snug finger jams, but far too narrow to consider trying to hand jam. Climbers with “twiglet” fingers will no doubt experience these situations where climbers with “sausage” fingers will still be happily finger jamming. As with just about all climbing techniques, start off by looking for footholds. With the right footholds, you may be able to simply layback for a couple of moves until the crack narrows down to finger size, or widens to hand size.
If there are no footholds other than the crack, then you’ll need to press your toes into the crack in the same way as for finger crack – though this time the crack will be a little wider so a bit easier on your feet. Look for any irregularities in the crack that widen it up, or flare the outside to allow for a slightly more secure foot placement. Softer shoes will get more purchase on the edges of thin cracks than stiff ones, so dig out those old slippers with the worn-down edges – they’re probably the best tool for this job.
When it comes to putting your fingers in an off-fingers crack, the first emotion is usually despair. However take comfort in the fact that climbing odd shaped cracks is mostly about putting up with some discomfort and getting the technique right – strength is rarely a major factor. Just like for hand jams, there are two methods for off-finger jamming: thumbs up and thumbs down. By varying between the two methods you can take advantage of any weaknesses in the crack, and reduce the strain caused by repeatedly making the same move – a change is as (almost) good as a rest.
Thumbs up
The idea here is to stuff your fingers as deeply into the crack as possible. The crack will off course be too narrow for your thumb, so keep that on the outside and dig the rest of your hand in. Your hand will probably stop at your knuckles, which will provide a degree of purchase. Now, complete the jam by pressing hard with your fingers against the side of the crack.
Thumbs down
Standard finger jam technique applied to an off-fingers crack will result in your fingers stacking diagonally above each other; these jams are often referred to as ringlocks. Your index finger works in conjunction with your thumb to anchor the jam: place your thumb into the crack with your fingers, and slide your index finger and middle fingers down so that the pads of those fingers are on your thumbnail. The taper of your thumb will help your fingers jam with enough security to make a move. Alternatively, if the crack is too wide to accept your thumb and finger combination, you may find that a standard finger jam will work if you place your thumb on the edge of the crack in opposition.
Off-hands
Whereas off-fingers is a crack slightly too large for your fingers, off-hands is a crack slightly too wide for your hands, but too narrow for fists. One option here is to simply place your forearm deep into the crack and press your fingers against one side of the crack, using your arm to provide additional purchase.
The other option is to make a half-fist jam by arranging your hand so your fingers and thumb all meet at their tips - it looks a bit like a sock-puppet. Now insert your hand as far as it will go (it shouldn’t go much deeper than your middle knuckles) and try to make a fist, you should find a jam will emerge that uses the index, middle, and ring fingers stacked tightly together. Whilst not the most secure of jams, your feet should be in snug foot-jams, and taking most of your weight.
Off-width
An off-width crack is one that is too narrow to climb inside and climb as a chimney, but too wide for any hand-jamming technique. Whilst with finger and hand jams, good technique should mean you use minimal physical exertion, off-widths can take a huge amount of effort, and your will to succeed is key! There are a variety of techniques which can be employed, depending on the width of the crack, usually a combination of several different techniques is the key to keeping moving and not getting too tired. For all these techniques, wearing long sleeved clothing, preferably made from heavy weight fabric such as denim, is essential.
Arm bars
Camming your upper arm is usually the best method of supporting your upper body. Simply bend your arm and insert it into the crack with your elbow pointing upwards. Your palm presses against one wall of the crack and as you weight your arm, your elbow locks against the other side. You can only place one arm bar at a time, so with your free hand you can take a shoulder-press hold on the side of the crack.
Hand stacking
Very occasionally, you may find this of use. If a crack is too wide for a hand jam, then try using two in tandem. The most secure double-hand jam is the butterfly jam, which can be placed by putting your hands back to back and adopting a hand jam technique with both hands. This allows you to shuffle your lower body up the crack, but of course, the hold fails when you move either hand. The best way to use a butterfly jam is to place it on the edge of the crack – that way you can move your hands up twisting to one side and then laybacking the outside of the crack until you can place another butterfly jam. It works well at the top of Goliath. But then so does laybacking with your eyes shut.
Thigh jams
Moving down the body, thighs placed in narrow off-widths can produce good holds, just bend your leg to expand its width. In wider cracks it may be possible to use both legs together.
Heel-toe bars
A good foothold can be formed by angling your foot down, placing your heel against one side of the crack and then pulling your toes back until your foot jams in the crack. Heel-toe bars work best when you pull against them, rather than standing down on them. Because of this, it is often better to place a deep heel-toe in the back of the crack at waist height than to keep both of your feet directly below you.
Stacked heel-toe bars
If the crack is too wide for heel-toe bars, you will need to use both feet together. Place your feet in a ‘T’ shape, one foot providing the heel-toe functionality, the other simply adding some width.
Moving up
Knowing the various holds for climbing off-widths is but a fraction of the knowledge required to actually climb one. Whereas in face climbing, the bends in our arms and legs allows for rapid upward movement, when off-width climbing with our arms fixed into arm-bars and our legs obstructed by the crack, there is simply less body available to bend. Because of this, moving up an off-width is a process measured in a very different way to any other climbing technique – you may only cover a few centimetres in each ‘move’, and expand a considerable amount of energy to achieve that. If that sounds off-putting, remember: it may be hard to go up, but it’s actually quite hard to actually fall off too.
Jams and cams
One of the best things about climbing cracks is that there is always plenty of protection. Cams are by far the fastest means of protecting regular cracks. And models which place the cams the widest, and with the strongest springs, are the most secure in simple cracks, though it’s always worth extending them to be sure they won’t walk off anywhere.
A good skill to have when climbing cracks is to be able to associate a size of cam to the crack and to your chosen jam. For example, a size 3.5 Friend is a perfect hand jam (for me!), so if I’m climbing on perfect hand jams, I know what size to reach for. Similarly, if I know that a certain crack takes size 1.5 Friends, then I can guess it’s going to be rattly off-finger jams, so will probably want to add a bit of tape to my digits.
For the very widest cracks, you are unlikely to be carrying more than one size 6 Friend, so you’ll probably find yourself pushing the cam up the crack ahead of you as you climb it – though be sure to clip your leading rope into the cam, and not clip direct with a sling.
Taping up
If you’re new to jamming, then taping-up your hands is a good way to learn without scraping-up your hands. Take a wide roll of Strappal climbing tape and cover the backs of your hands, securing the tape around the bases of your fingers, and your wrist. Don’t cover your palm, but do add tape to the sides of your hands if you intend to be fist jamming. Taping your fingers is simply a matter of tearing off a thin (about 1cm) strip of tape and loosely running the tape around the upper sections of your middle, ring, and index fingers. Cross the tape on the palm side of your fingers rather than the knuckles – if you want to be able to bend your fingers - which you do.
Now you know how to do it - no excuses. I expect to see you practising on your local thrutch-fest!
Adrian Berry is one of the UK’s most experienced climbing coaches, and has just released his first book: Sport Climbing. Adrian is also available for personal coaching - see www.positiveclimbing.com.
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