
It’s competition season and with it come a rash of new competitors eager to showcase their climbing prowess. But even gifted climbers can fail to overcome their competition without effective comp strategy and tactics. In the helter skelter, pressurized atmosphere of a climbing

Climbing competitions are controlled chaos!
comp, it’s easy to get caught up in the action and allow it to control your day. To compete effectively you’ve got to prepare well, both mentally and physically, create a plan, and then execute on game day.
Types of comps
First things first. Let’s describe the different types of climbing competitions as each requires a somewhat different set of tools. There are a number of variations on two basic competition schemes: redpoint and on-sight.
A redpoint format means that you can make multiple attempts at the same route or boulder problem, but no points are awarded unless you complete the route from bottom to top without falling off, weighting the rope, or using an illegal hold or wall feature. You can usually choose from among all the routes available, try as many as you like, and watch your competitors’ attempts. Your final score is usually the total of your three, five, ten, etc. best scoring climbs. You will usually not be permitted to work a route or boulder problem, if you fall off you’ll be lowered to the ground where you’ll need to wait your turn in line for another attempt. Variations include specifying which routes or problems you can try, giving you a time limit to work and send each, and allowing you to work the routes. (more…)