FIRST LEAD CLIMB TOMMROW ANY INPUTS

hey im doing my first lead climb tommrow i think at kindergarten rock in garden of the gods you guys have any input for where to go or what route to do??

my first thought is not to do your first lead in the garden of the gods, from what I have seen the the rock there is partially lithified mud at best. the rock quality there automatically makes all gear at lest some what suspect for even an experienced leader.

Second. climb with someone who is experienced enough to watch there own ass and yours. There is a big difference between being good enough to climb safely and being good enough to keep your self safe, keep some one else and teach, all at the same time.

Third. If you never fall it doesn't matter how shitty your gear is. For you first 100 or so pitches it's ok to up climb, down climb, and send, but it is never, and I mean NEVER ok to fall. The secret to being a good leader at or near your personal limit is having the knowledge and skill to keep your shit straight and climb out of a bad spot(half the time this means down climbing)and the judgement and humility to admit to your self when your getting into a bad spot.

Forth. All ways keep two good pieces in between you and the hospital and two RELAY good pieces between you and a body bag! Always ask you self how much of this gear would have to fail for me to deck(on a ledge or the ground).

Be safe and have fun,
Mike J.

2nd the downclimbimg....and yur gunna not die :)

Climb well below your ability and place way more gear than you need. Use more nuts than cams, inspect the nuts and ask yourself would this save my life? If so move on. Sport climbing does not count.

Prod.

Place gear like you could fall at any second. Then climb as if there was no gear. (stolen from rgold)

as the saying goes....if in doubt, run it out. :) Just kiddin. Plug in a lot of gear...it's good practice. You're gonna have more fun than you ever did following.

There is a mellow 5.7 sport climb on the east side of Kindergarten. It isn't sandy, and you rap off. It was my roommate's first lead yesterday.

It's called Big Sky, per mp.

Big Sky would definitely be the best first lead on Grey Rock.

Not to sound like a jerk but lead something in Red Rock Canyon (about two miles away) first. I have taken many people there to do their first lead climb-there is a 5.6 at the beginning that will test your lead mentality but is also very ledgy and has tons of rests...

Either way you go-have fun!

Cheers.

that was good advice yah were going to the one grey rock that is in the garden so its not the crappy sand stone and the guy i climb with has been leading for a few years so he knows what safe and good climbing is..

Have fun!

Also a good thing to think about when picking routes is this:

You can push your grade or push your gear, but pushing both at the same time can be a bad idea.

Plan your route/s the night before and make sure you can stick to your plan. Climbing your first lead can be stressful enough remove all the excess stress by preparing for success
1)Have your gear ready and car gassed up
2)Get up early enough to get to the climb first
3)Calm your nerves and get your breathing steady while gearing up
4)Take enough gear--you should be doing a fairly easy route but you dont want to leave something on the ground you may need on the route.
5)Have Fun!!!

Thousand of people have done there first lead in the garden, there are some good options that can be stitched up nicely , if your that worried about rock quality go up Cheyenne canyon and do the first pitch of the Army Route.... granite , lots of good gear placements you can really sew it up.

Stich it up- have fun - welcome to trad

iceman777 wrote: Stich it up- have fun - welcome to trad

perfect! :)

You probably are headed out by now, how'd it go?
Steve

I don't think you mentioned if you're leading sport or trad, but Big Sky for sport and Cowboy Boot Crack for trad are nice first leads in the Garden. If you see this, try both.

I don't know the area, but I do know a couple climbs. Kindergarten Rock doesn't mean s@&$ to me. ...and the Garden is small. He can walk over to North Gateway(?) for the Boot Crack.

mountainlion wrote:Plan your route/s the night before and make sure you can stick to your plan. Climbing your first lead can be stressful enough remove all the excess stress by preparing for success 1)Have your gear ready and car gassed up 2)Get up early enough to get to the climb first 3)Calm your nerves and get your breathing steady while gearing up 4)Take enough gear--you should be doing a fairly easy route but you dont want to leave something on the ground you may need on the route. 5)Have Fun!!!

Yeah, definitely get up super early cuz the drive from the Springs to the Garden could take several minutes. Definitely gas up cuz no gas stations for thousands of... feet. And get on the trail early cuz the approach is a bitch. Could take you 8 minutes. You don't want to rush. And don't bring your dog because of the flamers.

Seriously,

Look at the route and think about possible gear placements.
Put your helmets on.
Have rope nicely flaked so your belayer doesn't fumble around.
Check your knots, harnesses, belay.
Take a deep breath head on up.
Take your time and place lots of gear.
Don't fall.
Oh, and don't bring chalk, not allowed in the garden.

Go to Bristol for an IPA.

footloose n fancy free. just make sure you get an ipa first!

Greg D wrote: Yeah, definitely get up super early cuz the drive from the Springs to the Garden could take several minutes. Definitely gas up cuz no gas stations for thousands of... feet. And get on the trail early cuz the approach is a bitch. Could take you 8 minutes. You don't want to rush.

You crack me up Greg - I was thinking the same thing. Yep, got to get that alpine start for the Garden. These urban crags are serious business! Other than the first two points, Coffman's advice is good.
A lot of us local old timers learned to climb at the Garden, tell us all how it goes steven. I'm sure you'll get home with a huge grin on your face!