[Fingers of a Martyr]

anyone else sick of reading this on training sites/books etc. as far as i can tell there's no evidence to back it up and from personal experience i haven't ever found any translation. has anyone? as far as i can tell the only way to train crimp strength is to, well... crimp?

[dave]

not sure i've ever read that open strength = crimp strength.

however i thinkthe main reason most training texts seem to advocate training deadhangs open is that for the vast majority of us, crimping is the defoult grip, particularly if you're on routes etc where holds need to be held as tight as possible, thus you need to be training openhand cos that's almost certianly a weekness.

[Fingers of a Martyr]

believe me its all over the interent. metoious state it several times on their website. yeah, training open handed is good but not if crimps r your weakness.

[T.H.]

Am I the only person who can't crimp?  I can half crimp obviously, but I can't fully crimp with my thumb over the other fingers.  The base of my thumb pusshes my fingers off holds.  I'm not bothered, I'm more than happy with my grip strength.

[Scouse D]

I've always climbed open handed and unsurprisingly I can't crimp to save my life.

[webbo]

i find its better to put your thumb in the hole where the bolt goes. does'nt seem to work out side for some reason :huh:

[dave]

I've always climbed open handed and unsurprisingly I can't crimp to save my life.

how the fuck did you do E5s at pex then? must be some serious crimpy ish.

[a dense loner]

where does it say open = crimp strength? they have absolutely nothing to do with one another :?

[MrBlue]

where does it say open = crimp strength? they have absolutely nothing to do with one another :?

i thought they recommended training open hand cos you knacker your joints training too much on crimps...
hum.
i'm shite at crimping, not too many on sandstone - we have these weird things called slopers

[Dolly]

The thing about training open handed is that it gives you more options.
There are so many holds outside that just can't be crimped - so why train something that doesn't have a universal application ?
AND.... it looks better

[the_dom]

I campus and deadhang open handed - I think it translates much better (as Dolly said) to all around grip strength.

Plus, I wouldn't be climbing if I campused with a closed crimp - my fingers would give out in days..

[a dense loner]

as far as i can tell the only way to train crimp strength is to, well... crimp?

blondie is pretty much on the money there.

how would u guys that say you climb n train open-handed rate your own crimp strength? i crimp quite a bit n would say that i could not begin to approach my crimp strength now, for what it's worth, if i didn't do it quite a lot. on the down side my open hand strength is really quite bad :cry:

[dobbin]

I crimp too often too, although since doing a pulley at the end of the comp season this year I have been trying not to, and whilst its a bit of a dent to the ego at first its worth persisting.

Campus board crimping is on a par with stealing from Grannies in my book. Its W.R.O.N.G!

[dave]

anyone caught crimping on a campus board shoudl have their tendons cut with a breadknife:



i was shocked ot see this photo of everyones favourite sponsor-whore the gresh crimping on a CB. all that over-caffeinated sugary drink company gone to his head or something? call yourself a training guru - its all lies! :twisted:

[Fingers of a Martyr]

i personally think campussing crimped is OK if crimps r your weakness. i've always been okish with open hand but pretty weak on crimps. the past 4 months i've been progressively performing crimpy ladder problems at the bouldering wall and deadhanging crimped and half crimped a lot more, not neglecting open handed of course. performance has shot up.

of course u've gotta train all positions but when u read trash like that on the internet it makes u wonder who these people r? fo fucks sake i read si o'conner banging on about it on scottishclimbs. :D

[T.H.]

I thought Gresham was supposed to be good.  It looks like he's trying really hard to do 1-3-6.  Maybe he needs some training advice?

[Fingers of a Martyr]

wonder how hard he boulders? probably not that high as he's a routes climber in't he?

[dave]

i think i read soemwhere that he's not that interested i bouldering, but then again he used to live in parisellas and has done equilibruim and thats like 7c+ or summert, which ain't bad.

[Bubba]

Hold on now boys, though the Gresham may concentrate primarily on routes and winter climbing, I imagine that if he turned exclusively to bouldering he'd be pretty damn good.

[Stubbs]

 It looks like he's trying really hard to do 1-3-6.  Maybe he needs some training advice?

He's probably on his way back up 1-3-6 for the 15th time in his set or something :eek2:

[Kim]

I thought Gresham was supposed to be good.  It looks like he's trying really hard to do 1-3-6.

did you miss the planetfear how-to-pose-for-the-ideal-photo workshop? covering topics such as "gurning at just the right moment", "essential sunglass positions", "how tanned do i need to be?". he seems to have missed a few modules here tho, including the crucial "the importance of logos".

 :wink:

[Scouse D]

how the fuck did you do E5s at pex then? must be some serious crimpy ish.

Crimping on vertical walls/slabs is a bit different.What I can't do is yard on crimps(which is your particular forte), as my hand just opens up- as if getting levered open.Like TH says about himself my fingers don't seem to go into the crimp position very easily only the first two fingers seeming flexible enough. On slabs and routes at pex its often the 1st two fingers that are needed so I feel reet solid-a lot of it is in the feet too, so you only crimp hard enough to be able to move your feet.

[dave]

"gurning at just the right moment",

its a fine art:



Scouse, what i don't get is that as far as i've always understood, crimping is the most obvious and natural way to hold holds when you need to hold them hard. i mean if you take a baby or toddler and get them to grip onto a table top or something like thay they sure as fuck won't be openhanding. Like when you first start climbing, goig to the foundry or whatever you will have crimped everything, cos openhanding is not natural - just watch beginners at any wall. i just get really puzzled when i hear people saying "i'm ok on openhanding but never been able to crimp" - can't bet me head round it. to my ears that sounds like " i'm ok at running but never been able to walk" :?

[Kim]

Scouse, what i don't get is that as far as i've always understood, crimping is the most obvious and natural way to hold holds when you need to hold them hard. i mean if you take a baby or toddler and get them to grip onto a table top or something like thay they sure as fuck won't be openhanding. Like when you first start climbing, goig to the foundry or whatever you will have crimped everything, cos openhanding is not natural - just watch beginners at any wall. i just get really puzzled when i hear people saying "i'm ok on openhanding but never been able to crimp" - can't bet me head round it. to my ears that sounds like " i'm ok at running but never been able to walk" :?

seriously? i would have said totally the opposite. crimping isn't a natural thing at all i don't reckon. when i've climbed with beginners i've had to show em how to crimp, otherwise they do just try and open hand everything...

[Scouse D]

I'm with you kim. I actually remember reading about crimping in climber years ago and showing Paul the article. We both went down the wall and tried it(we'd been climbing for about a year). I couldn't get my hand in the right position but paul could so I didn't persist whereas paul did. Nowadays- even though Paul is quite shit he crimps the tits off everything and I open hand nearly everything(but crimp when crimping is the only way-i.e ange naif type shit).
In short crimping is no way natural for me (steve is another guy who finds crimping totally unnatural)

[dave]

you guys are so weird. crimping is deffo the natural thinkg to do when you try and hold something as hard as possible. as i say just watch beginners climbing in extremis.

[Scouse D]

As Kim says- when I've seen beginners climb they all seem to open hand things.
Yo don't see monkeys crimpin do ya-open handed is so naturelle

[Kim]

you guys are so weird. crimping is deffo the natural thinkg to do when you try and hold something as hard as possible. as i say just watch beginners climbing in extremis.

i'll agree (just) it's the best way to hold something (well, a small crimpable hold anyway) as hard as possible, but it ain't necessarily natural. i have to really think about it an remember to crimp stuff down the wall - you've yelled at me enough to crimp something instead of gettin it with three open fingers (an why does my little finger curl up an all?) which feels more natural to me....

[Scouse D]

just read this on the planetfear

crimping only really feels natural if you are a gay....that's SCIENCE

[dave]

As Kim says- when I've seen beginners climb they all seem to open hand things.
Yo don't see monkeys crimpin do ya-open handed is so naturelle

A. I've never seen beginners openhanding on a crimpable hold.

B. why would a monkey need to crimp a tree branch?

[Johnny Brown]

I guess you just hang around with more beginners Dave :wink:

i had to be shown how to crimp, and never liked it. I don't think beginners use holds small enough do they?







p.s. getting a bit CT - you'll be arguin the linearity of the gradin scale next :roll:

[Bubba]

I don't remember having to be told to crimp - seemed natural, but then maybe that's a result of learning to climb on limestone?

I remember this guy in North Wales donkeys back - he was the crimp demon - I remember watching him in the PYB wall and even on the 4 inch protruding jugs he was crimping right on the edge of them. Weird.

[T.H.]

I even tried to teach myself to be able to crimp by putting up a half inch rung to dead hang off.  I thought it would be impossible to hold it one handed without crimping, but straight away I was hanging it open handed so I've given up trying to crimp altogether.  Even on vertical problems with tiny holds I'll open hand them, or half crimp sometimes depending on my body position.  It doesn't seem to be a problem so I'll just carry on.

[dave]

you need to get to rubicon sunshine. I recon you'll be all on not crimping there!

[a dense loner]

bloody hell tim who would need to crimp on an 1/2 inch rung :wink:

[Paz]

TH - you just need all the reach you can get mate!

Dave - I reckon it's natural to you becuase you crimped your way to Grade 6 on the Piano-forte or something.  I'm weaker than you because we only got a Touch Sensitive keyboard shortly before I gave it up, though I did a tiny bit on the organ so this is clearly why my footwork is way better :wink: .

[dave]

think i only did up to grade 5 on the ivories Paz. grade 6 was on't clarinet.

leaving the obvious organ innuendos aside, i have played a churh organ briefly, but it was hard thinking about 2 things at once. me dad is the dopest muthafukka on a church organ though. Waddage.

[Bubba]

leaving the obvious organ innuendos aside, i have played a churh organ briefly, but it was hard thinking about 2 things at once.

bites lip hard  :D

Christ Dave, church organ, clarinet, flying planes, what haven't you done ?

[dave]

E6 and 7c+ for a start.

[Kim]

think i only did up to grade 5 on the ivories Paz. grade 6 was on't clarinet.

leaving the obvious organ innuendos aside, i have played a churh organ briefly, but it was hard thinking about 2 things at once. me dad is the dopest muthafukka on a church organ though. Waddage.

no wonder you're so gangsta, dave  

[Bubba]

Isn't Westwood's dad a vicar?

[a dense loner]

who's westwood? have you got the directions wrong? :roll:

[Paz]

E6 and 7c+ for a start.

you've actually topped out on a 7c then!

[Sloper]

I can't crimp for toffee, don't train but my open hand strwength has always been ok, in fact the more crimping I do the weaker my open hand strength is :?