Climbers Point

I just learned at the gym that this is actually an international way of encouraging or saying "you can do it". Pretty cool when the whole gym is yelling at you "alle" or "you can do it!".

I haven't gotten there yet, but I have come pretty close to doing one, but I think it was very much my "style" as it was a very physical boulder and I have been weight lifting for a few years and have some strength. I think I was just very much lacking the technique needed to actually do the boulder. If I would have done it though I don't know if I could have counted it as actually doing a real v6, since it might have been a very soft one and very much my style. I'm not sure that really counts.

I have taken a few breaks from climbing here and there, sometimes for a few months at a time, and each time my shoes felt more like plastic than I remembered. It's not to the point where it's a whole new break-in process, but, it usually takes about a session or two to get used to them again. It's really about getting my feet used to climbing shoes again, the shoes usually keep the shape they had before I took my break, it's my feet that need to re-adapt to the tightness of the shoes.

I have washed my chalk bag a few times throughout the years, not that it was REALLY needed, but, I personally like to refresh my gear after sometime. Other gear I might buy new, but chalk bags I feel can just live on until they are really in bad shape and ruined, especially because they are not a matter of safety. When it comes to safety or performance, like quick draws or shoes, I would buy new, but chalk bags don't fit those categories so I just keep them for as long as they last and give them a little wash if I want to "renew" them.

I've been climbing for a few years now and have never had to wash my chalk bag. What happened to yours? Did something spill on it? I can't imaging why one would need to be washed unless you are trying to sell it or it got into an accident and got spilled on!

Either way, I don't see why it would hurt to wash it by hand and let it dry out in the sun. I know that some chalk bags have different materials in them besides the fabric, so they may not all be good for the washing machine, but by hand I think is alright, but I have never had to do it before so I am not talking from experience!

I would add that it also depends on if it's indoor climbing or outdoor climbing. I don't climb indoors as much as I do outdoors, but usually when we go out we easily have full day sessions, leaving in the morning and getting back at night, sometimes the next morning even.

I doubt I would be able to have such long sessions in an indoor gym though. There is something about the outdoors that just makes it possible to have such long sessions. I think that for indoors my longest session has been about 3 hours.

Hope this helps!

As Joshua answered, you really dont need to downsize beginner shoes, because they are beginner shoes. Once you get past the beginner stage and get to the point where downsizing can actually contribute to your climbing, then its worth considering downsizing.

I wouldn't. Downsizing isn't really meant to be a beginner thing, it's really not beginner friendly. The whole point of downsizing is to have better control and performance for the more difficult and advanced routes, beginners don't climb on advance routes that require high performance shoes or downsizing.

I would hold off on downsizing and only do it when you get to the higher grades and are more knowledgeable in climbing and climbing shoes, it's a whole world out there!