How Can I Explain To My Friends That Serious Rock Climbing Is Hard

Why is rock climbing dangerous?

A better question would be: how is climbing NOT dangerous?Because for anyone not familiar with the sport, its equipment and procedures, rock climbing seems like a lunatic activity only endeavored by suicidal maniacs.Everything about it is insanely dangerous. Even when you are learning it, at the very beginning, the potential for very serious accidents is real. The first time I ever climbed a rock I went up 30mts. If there was any failure in equipment and/or procedure at that time, I would get very seriously injured or could very well die.When you are learning you will mostly do toproping, that is, a more experienced climber went first and set up the rope for you, and you will climb - althoug freely - with the security of a rope coming from the top, and that rope will be kept tight, so in the event of a fall, you won't go down too much, perhaps 2mts at the most. Very small danger in this case. Once I fell while toproping and scraped most of the side of my forearm pretty badly. I was so afraid I clinged to the rock when I fell, resulting in the injury.When you become more experienced you will start to lead the climbs. This means that, you will go first, and there will be no rope above you. In the event of a fall, the safety comes from the rope that is underneath you (with the help of a partner, belaying you), and only as good as the last bolt/protection (fixed to the rock) you ran the rope through. That could mean anywhere from 1m to 15m or more. And the fall is much more agressive, since the rope will only get tight after you have fallen past the protection, so you freefall most of the way. That could get you seriously injured. And, the most dangerous part: if you mess up a procedure, or misuse any equipment, a protection will not hold you as it should, and you will fall to your death if you are high enough.Yeah, I'd say, pretty pretty dangerous.

How do you explain to a guy that does rock climbing weekly once that it's not the same as a disciplined whole body lifting training? The dude brags about finger strength (and he's thin as a twig)

Don’t know if you are trying to compare the level of physical activity involved in whole body lifting training (how many times a week?) to a guy that goes rock climbing once a week for recreation. If he is bragging about finger strength than he is probably training for his sport so I will assume that he is for my answer.The fingers are the weakest link in the chain of strength when you are pulling yourself up as they are the smallest muscle group. That is why many weight lifters use straps, so there large muscle groups are not limited by what their hands can hold on to. Can’t use straps when rock climbing. So the hands get quite a workout when climbing.Quick story, when I was about 19 and training hard, I went with my Karate Instructor to his father-in-laws service station. Really nice guy about 70 years old who had been working on cars for better than 50 years, (back before air tools). My Instructor challenged me to arm wrestle him. Now I had about 40 lbs. on him and was rock hard at the time. I reluctantly agreed and the man proceeded to put me down time after time with relative ease. Later, upon telling my father of the experience he shook his head in disappointment and told me “never arm wrestle a guy that turns a wrench for a living”. Smart man.So I guess the answer is that both types of exercise are disciplined only depending upon the person that is doing them. I’ve seen “weight lifters” that aren't worth squat in the strength department and “rock climbers” that aren't worth a squat at climbing. It all depends on the work you are willing to put in.If this guy is a serious rock climber, I wouldn't arm wrestle him if I were you.

Rock Climbing: What is it like to free solo a route?

For me the main motivation is to experience the feeling of focus that I sometimes get when leading a route. The feeling of total focus, to the exclusion of all else is, I think, many people's primary motivation for climbing. Free-soloing allows me to immerse myself in that feeling for much longer stretches than roped climbing can.I also really enjoy the sensation of moving very quickly (like 12 pitches per hour) over moderate terrain. When leading easier routes (for me that means 5.8 and under) I find the pitches to go by too quickly, and the overall feeling is broken up by belaying. Soloing long routes solves that problem.Obviously anyone who solos a lot has experienced the "Holy shit, I think I may be in over my head!" feeling. Pushing through that is...incredible. It's also scary, and everyone has a different level of tolerance. Personally, I like to solo stuff that is easy but still "real climbing" (about 5.7). For me this means that I almost never really feel scared out of my mind (though that has happened when I've gotten off route), but allows me to have enough challenge to keep the focus. I have soloed 5.10, but for me that is just too risky--the difference is that I feel like on mostly slabby 5.7 pretty much any limb could blow at any moment and there would be another one that would hold me on; on 5.9 and up it's just too tenuous. Others have different views on this. Honnold (who solos at least .12d) is a MUCH better climber than I am, but I think he's also just more comfortable with risk. Then again, there's Derek Hershey...I have tried a lot of sports, and am fairly good at several. Nothing compares to the feeling of moving quickly and smoothly over stone on a beautiful long route like the Matthes Crest or Venusian Blind. Perhaps the danger is an integral part of it.(Disclaimer for the idiots out there: climbing is dangerous, and free-soloing even more so. You should not try it because you'll almost certainly die.)