(Part 3) Top products from r/climbing

2 books come to mind, coaching climbing and climbing games

Coaching climbing is just what it sounds like, a book about coaching. It's got a lot of information you may or may not need, but it's a great resource for drills and activities, some of which take the form of games. Bonus points for pictures of Tommy Caldwell and Chris Sharma in their early teens.

Climbing games is a tiny little book with 50 or so "games" in it. Some of them are great, some of them are useless, and some of them don't even make sense, but it only costs $11 and it's easy to flip through right before a class if you need quick ideas.

See if you can convince your climbing gym to buy both of those books. It's a pretty paltry investment for a gym, and they're worth it to help new instructors come up with fun and useful classes.

It really depends on what type of climbing you enjoy: adventure, sport, mountaineering, etc.

Here are some of my favourites:

If you like alpinism and want to learn how pathetic and weak willed you are compared to Steve House, check out Beyond the Mountain. Great book. Dude has insane ethics that make me feel bad for clipping bolts.

If you're more into big wall climbing and how it fits in with life lessons, The Push by Tommy Caldwell is phenomenal. He really throws it all out there and gives you an insight as to just how hard he worked to free the Dawn Wall and all the lessons that came with it.

If you want a really well written account of one of climbing's most bizarre controversies, The Tower by Kelly Cordes was one of my favourites this year. It gives a back-and-forth history and insight into climbing Cerro Torre and really gives a glimpse into life in Patagonia and the history of climbing Torre.

If you're a big dreamer and history nut, The Bold and The Cold gives first hand stories of the first ascents of some of the biggest routes in Canada. From the Bugaboos to Robson, it's a fantastic read and really gets you longing to get out out there.

Eiger Dreams was a fantastic collection of unrelated short stories centering around climbing and mountaineer. Some big characters and bigger adventures that are well told by the same author (and climber!) that gave us Into the Wild.

And finally, I recommend The Calling by Barry Blanchard for no other reason than it's a really well written account of the life of a fading alpinist in the Canadian Rockies.

Hope this helps!



Bonus recommendation: not climbing related, but a really great read for anyone who loves the outdoors: The Names of the Stars is a fantastic book that follows the personal account of a retired Park Ranger who spents 5 months alone in the wilderness of Montana watching fish eggs. It's a boring premise but the author is so vivid with his descriptions and shows the connection between us and the wild. I read it in a day, it was that good.

I'm a rehab based Chiropractor and treating climbers is a large part of my practice. A few years ago I was looking for something similar as I know there are seminars/certifications for golf, running, lifting etc - but couldn't find anything solid for climbers. My best advice is pick up some climbing injury books and start there. I listed the books I own below in order of my preference. I second u/wristrule's recommendation of make it or break it and checking out Training Beta. They have PTs/Chiros/Trainers/Coaches talk about injuries and prevention. Follow those people and their professional work as they all have blogs, books, videos etc.

As far as research goes, there is actually a decent body of evidence but sample sizes of the studies tend to be small. The best collection of climbing research in one place is probably The Beta Angel Project https://beta-angel.com/research/research-inventory It is sorted into categories which is a nice touch. Also you can pubmed search 'rock climbing' and there are a bunch of studies there.

Here are the books I own and recommend:

https://www.amazon.com/Make-Break-Climbing-Injuries-Dictate/dp/0956428134

https://www.amazon.com/Climbing-Injuries-Solved-Lisa-Erikson/dp/0692296646/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1535818900&sr=1-5&keywords=rock+climbing+injuries

https://www.amazon.com/Climb-Injury-Free-Dr-Jared-Vagy/dp/0692831894/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1535818900&sr=1-2&keywords=rock+climbing+injuries

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Theres a few more books out but I haven't checked them out just yet.

Hope this helps you help other climbers!

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Eiger Dreams is an excellent book.
http://www.amazon.com/books/dp/1599216108

Maybe look around the area and see what gyms there are and get her some day passes to them.

Honestly though, the best support you could probably give her would be to climb with her. Then you too could become addicted!

Miramontes is great. http://www.amazon.com/Joshua-Tree-Climbs-Robert-Miramontes/dp/0982615442 It's pretty comprehensive. Nice color pictures. A good amount of "fluff/culture/history" to keep you busy on the car ride as well.

Welcome to Yosemite!

First of all, do you trad lead? You have to be able to climb on gear to get the full favor of Yosemite climbing.

When are you going? At this time of the year the Valley can be really hot. Bring a lot of water. Or consider climbing at Tuolumne, which is much cooler.

Get your crack skills and friction climbing dialed. They are almost like prerequisites for climbing at the Valley.

A double set of cams up to #3 and single set of nuts should take you a long way. Single 60m rope is fine but having a second rope can sometimes be handy for rappelling.

Get the Supertaco guidebook... they are the best for first-time Valley climbers.

Camping is a bitch... I usually spend the nights somewhere in the national forest outside of the park.

Routes: you gotta be more specific about what you want to climb. Are you thinking about single pitch cragging? Short multipitch? Or all day adventurous routes?

I have been really interested in rope soloing too. One of the resources I've been using to learn and understand the systems at play has been Me, Myself & I. It has a lot of great information on systems needed to solo on rope. Im pretty sure there is some top rope information towards the beginning of the book though most of it revolves around lead / big wall climbing.

as a new climber who is hopefully pushing their limits, I'd go ahead and get familiar with common climbing injuries. it can be a huge help in even minor situations to know if you're overworking yourself and how to properly remedy the situation to save yourself a lot of time and soreness in the long run. excellent book here

come join us over in /r/climbharder. We get deep into details just like this, and many other things you'll encounter as you start training.

I'd recommend getting a book or two on climbing training and injury rehab before starting any hangboarding. Look at it as educating yourself before beginning something that has potential to cause injury.

The Rock Climber's Training Manual is great, as is Dave MacLeoud's Make or Break

Best of luck to you!

I've been reading this one recently. It's pretty helpful with a lot of techniques.

This one is great, too for just learning everything about the sport in general.

Buy this guide book and it should help. Off the top I think there's Clear Creek, Morrison, Boulder Canyon, and so much more. Buy this one, or the second edition when it comes out, for climbing in the summer. You're in a pretty damn good spot for bouldering.

The climbit FAQ catalogs everything you could hope to know. In particular, it recommends the book Mountaineering the Freedom of the Hills. It's a must read for anyone in climbing.

On Rope looks like a pretty good book. I think I might have to add that one to my library! For anyone else looking:

http://www.amazon.com/Rope-American-Vertical-Techniques-Rappellers/dp/1879961059/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1343399155&sr=1-1&keywords=1879961059

The local climb shop (Summit Hut, Tucson, AZ) recommended On Rope when I asked this same question. I never bought it, but did page through it. Seems very detailed. Probably the best book about climbing rope. Lots of knots, too. Even if it is about caving.

If you haven't heard of it yet, I think you'd really enjoy the rock warrior's way. It's a wonderful book about how to focus and engage with fear in a methodical way. There's a follow-up of practical exercises in Espresso Lessons. Both these books put the whole thought process into the clearest words I've ever read or heard.

A little different than the others but definitely worth your time- Death Grip by Matt Samet. It's an autobiographical piece that documents Samet's addiction to prescription benzodiazepines and the awful toll it took on his life. I was so captivated by the book. Climbing is definitely not the focus (his addiction and healing is) but, being a very accomplished climber, it was obviously a very affected part of his life.

I can't recommend it enough.

Check it out

not much sport. i like the mostly comprehensive book from wolverine publishing.

There is one from vogel that has a lot of the history and interesting stories but it's a little bit more limited in routes(though still pretty comprehensive). it has a green cover and is called classic joshua tree routes & bouldering.(though that might just be the first edition of it)

Gift certificates to MEC/REI!

Or a cool climbing book? These two are really fun/interesting.

Geology for rock climbers:
http://www.amazon.ca/Flakes-Jugs-Splitters-Climbers-Geology/dp/0762748370

Climbing dictionary:
http://www.amazon.ca/Climbing-Dictionary-Mountaineering-Neologisms-Illustrated/dp/1594855021/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1322521445&sr=8-1

If you can find this one somewhere for not a stupid marked-up price, its great. It went out of print recently so of course, dicks are trying to sell it for $100+. Maybe see if your local REI or climbing gyms have any copies left.

The Bold and Cold is a good read: https://www.amazon.ca/Bold-Cold-History-Classic-Canadian/dp/1771601159

probably the best resource would be andy kirkpatrick

he wrote this massive behemoth https://www.amazon.com/Higher-Education-Big-Wall-Manual/dp/1999700597/ref=sr_1_1?crid=WIO1SX6TTS3T&keywords=andy+kirkpatrick&qid=1559039715&s=gateway&sprefix=andy+kirkp%2Caps%2C265&sr=8-1

there's also lots and lots of information all over his blog

Seconding commenter below, I use this one. Really extensive guide with great pictures.
I think I got it for $40 at Nomad Ventures by the park entrance, and last I saw they still had it in stock.

These are mostly moderate climbs and great resources:

https://www.amazon.com/Yosemite-Valley-Free-Climbs-Supertopos/dp/0967239141

https://www.amazon.com/Tuolumne-Free-Climbs-Greg-Barnes/dp/0976523574

Look into getting a guidebook. Some good ones for the area are Bay Area Rock, Rock Climbing the San Francisco Bay Area, and Bay Area Bouldering. All of them have a lot of information about bouldering in the region.

Ice Cream Parlour is pretty fun. It's in the shade all morning, too. Hot Karl Sunday was my favourite route there.


Wall Street is the other obvious spot. High first bolts on a lot.


I used this guide book when I was down there, but there's enough online that you probably don't need it.

Colorado Bouldering: Front Range has a good overview of most of the spots in the area if you want one book to cover everything. https://www.amazon.com/dp/1892540614/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_OsjdAbCGH6XJE

Just agreeing with you, and posting a link to the Southern Illinois bouldering guidebook.

I'm sure you can purchase the book once he's done with it. You can find his other kickstarter book Me, Myself & I on Amazon.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beta_(climbing)

wikipedia is full of surprises! there are also books.

http://www.amazon.com/Climbing-Dictionary-Mountaineering-Neologisms-Illustrated/dp/1594855021

http://www.amazon.com/Espresso-Lessons-Rock-Warrior%1As-Way/dp/0974011231/

Direct Amazon Link

Here you go: https://www.amazon.com/Bay-Area-Bouldering-1-Supertopo/dp/0976523531

http://www.amazon.com/Redpoint-Self-Coached-Climbers--Sight-Climbing/dp/0811707644/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1454081974&sr=8-2&keywords=redpoint

http://www.amazon.com/Sport-Climbing-Redpoint-Techniques-Success/dp/1594852707/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1454082004&sr=1-2&keywords=redpoint

Here, I'll even look it up for him

For books I'm looking at:

Best Climbs Moab

Classic Desert Climbs

There's a whole book of these:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Climbing-Games-Paul-Smith/dp/1906095167

Bought it, but haven't really read it yet, mostly flipped through it.

Andy Kirkpatrick’s book
Higher Education: A Big Wall Manual
https://www.amazon.com/Higher-Education-Big-Wall-Manual/dp/1999700597

St. Louis, MO (so, UMSL, Wash U, and SLU for the big schools, plus numerous other small schools) has Climb So Ill (So Ill Holds's gym) and two Upper Limits locations. We are also just a few hours from Elephant Rocks State Park and all of the bouldering offered in southern Illinois, as detailed in guides like this one.

> "Death Grip"

Here's the book..