[T.H.]

This fits quite nicely with the poll.

I'm really beginning to get p*ssed off with slopers.  Especially in comps, where I always manage to f*ck up the probs with evil slopers in them.  I'm mostly talking about slopers where the feet are really poor, or you have to go footless on them.

The annoying thing is that I don't feel weak on them, it's more that I just seem to slide off them, where other's are just sticking to them.

I think it's likely to be some sort of technique thing, or possibly a wrist flexing weakness.

I don't think it's finger strength, and it can't be body tension (front levers are my forte).

Any advice from sloper experts will be greatly appreciated.

Cheers.

[Jim]

I think the big thing about slopers is the body position has got to be just right

[dave]

steven jeffries did a ProTip about slopers - have you seen that?

from a personal perspective i see that those climbers who are big in the upper body seem to be better on slopers - i think strong triceps help.

[paulh]

get your body postion right and dont try and over grip them

tis the only way

paul

[Pantontino]

Try being more dynamic. Don't expect to static between them. If you stay low on them, they generally feel good, sort your feet out and move up quickly, connecting with the next hold as fast as possible. Even the worst sloper in the world will take your weight for a moment or two, just make sure you're moving whilst your skin is still sticking.

On traverses keep dropping your weight as low as possible.

Strong thumbs can also help: hooking pebbles or nubbins.

Also experiment with open crimp hangs (i.e. 90 degree finger position with thumb dropped low).

But at the end of the day, you need to climb on them a lot and have good power and body tension to succeed.

[Ste]

This is not really related to hanging slopers indoors!! But it does work on the rock.

I always think that there is little correlation between being able to hang slopers indoors and the ability to hang them outside. Im sure that this is down to indoor slopers usually requiring work to be done by the thumb. In my experience weighted dead hangs are really useful in developing specific strength at a given hand position. The three positions that I use are full crimp (no little finger or thumb) and more importantly for slopers, half crimp and open (both without the thumb.)

With weighted hangs I give a slight bend in the arm (10 degrees maybe) and raise the chest up with shoulders flexed. This particularly hits the abdomen and releases some of the pressure off your elbows. With smaller muscle groups such as the forearm flexors its been proven that longer duration reps are required to improve strength. If you try to mimic arm strength techniques such as short 1 rep max (6 sec hang) you tend to find the limits of your skin and worse you tendons first. 30 sec hang, 1min interval for five sets in one position. 15 min rest before training your next position. Starting with your weakest position appears to work best.

Over the last two years I have made bigger relative strength gains from the 30sec hangs than 6-8 sec hangs.

Cheers. Steve

[Paz]

But with a longer duration hang, especially with weight don't you run a higher risk of injury, or are you still not in endurance territory?

[Ste]

Sorry, I wasn't very clear in my original post. I use two hands, front on, for the hang (much more specific than one handed, side on, hangs and you cut out a lot of the movement.) I'm sure that most of the injuries that come with doing hangs are from one handed, straight armed efforts!! This is all performed on a first joint edge.

As for moving into endurance territory! Your more on the border of power (strength) endurance with a 30sec hang, proper endurance training in the terms of hangs involves avoiding the onset of the pump (low intensity long duration.) Being a sad bastard I read it first in a Sports science journal. The experimental evidence from a sample of gymnasts proved that physiologically 30sec is optimum for isometric strength gains.

Im not suggesting that this IS the best method, just that having experimented with lots of different intensities and durations it appears to work best for me.

Cheers Steve.

[dave]

very interesting.

not sure i have the requiered attention span for 30sec hangs though.

[Paz]

No wonder you don't do so many routes these days then.

[dave]

just cos things i climb don't fall to bits.

[a dense loner]

except for your hands  :wink:

[Paz]

Thin actually just told me my project's a bit `chossy'.  I mean, yes.  And?