How does one get into trad?

I would really like to get into trad climbing. I currently climb outdoors, but only sport. I've been looking online for trad classes in the Bay Area, but haven't come across anything. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks!

You can start here School of Rock :)

Basically, you will want to hook up with experienced climbers to mentor you. Keep your ears and eyes open at the crag and gym for people who also trad climb. There are likely many of them. Engage them in conversation about it and try to get a sense of their competence. (ask others about their reputation too) If you express an interest and are at all likable and don't give off a vibe of being a safety risk, some of them will likely invite you to come along.

You can also check for professional guides in your area and hire them to teach you individually or in a small group. (again, check their reputation with other climbers. Some guides are sketchy, others fantastic)

Try to have numerous mentors, first to be able to judge if they really know what they are doing, but also to gain a well rounded view. Some people are really narrow minded and set in their ways. You don't want to take on that attitude or you will miss out on a lot of experiences and techniques.

Have you found meetup.com? There's several climbing groups on there in our local area. The one I like best is "Bay Area Rock Climbing". I've met some competent people there and gotten my first few trad leads in with them. Not all meetups will be trad oriented, but you can usually find someone in a group that wants to climb trad.

I took an anchors class from my local gym and have been reading everything I can on the subject as well. John Long's "Climbing Anchors" book is great.

ToDoubleD Whitney wrote: John Long's "Climbing Anchors" book is great.

+1 on reading and re-reading a book on climbing anchors.

Following an experienced leader many times before you start to lead is a good plan, along with learning anchors. You will learn how to place gear by cleaning gear of an experienced leader.

Also, take a self-rescue class.

If you want to hire a guide, I highly recommend Lover's Leap guides: loversleap.net/

This post has been up for over 20 hours and not a single smart ass or irrelevant comment yet?!? We must be in the twilight zone.

As other posts have mentioned, John Long's anchor book is a very thorough source. As far as belay anchors go, here is a great free resource that covers most all of the John Long belay anchors (including the very awesome, and highly recommended equalette) as well as a minimalist and stout direct tie in method not covered in the Long book if I remember correctly.

When I was learning, I found it really helpful to have anchor points at home I could practice building different setups on. You can study in a book all you want but there is no replacement for doing something, and getting out to a crag to practice this A LOT might not be practical or realistic for your situation. I had a campus board that would accept a couple of nuts and I had two bolts drill next to the hang board so I could practice any anchor type up to 4 points.

But as far as actual placements, there is no substitute for an experienced climber teaching you good from bad on real rock.

I can second the comment about meetup.com, found a good multipitch partner that way.

Good Luck! Trad climbing is the best!

talk angie c into taking you out, i climbed with her yesterday & she's solid.

the best teachers i had when learning was climbing with really good climbers who were hurt or were 50+. they had a lot of really good knowledge to pass on and would let me lead as much as i wanted.

Wow! You guys are awesome. I didn't expect so many responses. I just bought the book on climbing anchors and I'm excited to get into it. I'll also look into some local groups on meetup. I also got a few messages from people willing to take me out. Thank you!

hmmm, my experience getting into trad was quite different.

I had a good friend who was also interested in climbing, and there were no sport climbing areas around, so we were left with top-roping or trad. After top-roping a few times, we got into lead climbing.

I think it's critical to climb with someone roughly at your level, and also climb with more experienced when you can. If you're always second fiddle you won't learn much.

Climb with more experienced people than you when you can, but don't expect them to take you out every time. Also, be wary of "experienced" people...then may be knuckleheads.

At the outset, a day with a guide one-on-one is invaluable. For me it was good to have a little experience and to have read a lot so I could make the most of the day. Maybe you should get to the point where you can lead a wicked easy climb before you throw down the cash for a guide.

Read a bunch of books. Don't trust advice on forums. (haha)

Buy some gear, go the the base of a cliff, and practice placing the gear when your standing the ground. Put it in the crack, attach a sling and hang off it to see how it works. Do this a lot. Build anchors on the ground and test them out.

Do some leads that are so easy that you probably won't fall.

Go to yosemite...tons of easy stuff, great guides (especially Nate Kerr), lots of people looking for partners.

M Sprague wrote:Try to have numerous mentors, first to be able to judge if they really know what they are doing, but also to gain a well rounded view. Some people are really narrow minded and set in their ways. You don't want to take on that attitude or you will miss out on a lot of experiences and techniques.

this is great advice

The stupid way... I call it "MY" way...

Get your Noob sport climbing partner who just spent his "school" loan on a full set of friends and nuts. Reckon that you climb 5.10 sport limestone... so an old school 5.8 Oklahoma trad granite should be a cakewalk. Never mind that when it was established 5.10 stood atop the scale. Spend 2.5 hours, 3 lead changes, and 17 placements to cover 60'. Then sketch up the 5.6 next to it to finish off the day in humble fashion. Back to camp tail tucked.

Come back the next day armed with your crew's bad ass, the small framed 5.12d sport crusher. He'll eat this things lunch right! Then watch in near horror as he spends 45 minutes struggling up the 5.6 dihedral that many have free soloed. Survive somehow.

Go home and read climbing anchors, and then find a trad mentor. Take their high angle rescue class at the university. Take confidence in all placements and anchor construction. Learn to escape the belay and associated rescue procedures, hope you never need them. Re-read. Go tick off some easy multipitch routes.

This method OFTEN results in catastrophic failure, causing injury and or death. Don't be that fool. California... you should have no trouble finding a competent mentor.

I really believe that finding a mentor or hiring a guide is the best way to get into trad. I've seen way too many neophytes that have read several books and are armed with a rack do thing that are in no way safe. Its either that or you come upon them at a belay and see a 6 point equalized multi-directional anchor. Qualified instruction from someone who's either willing to donate the time (friend) or from a paid educator (guide) is the best way to go about it. I wish I'd had the guide option when I started climbing years ago. There were none in Central PA in the 80s and the old crusty dudes I climbed with had a screw loose. I got really good at opposing and stacking nuts because none of us could afford cams.

Use today's resources wisely with meetups, instructional courses, partner finders, etc.

You can easily "get into" trad in 4 steps or less:
1. Read John Long's "How to Rock Climb" (then read it again)
2. Buy a rack (set of nuts, C4s .3-3, some trad draws, and a cordelette)
3. Find a patient partner.
4. Start leading stuff that's waaay below your limit.

It worked for me.

Buy gear and place it on top-rope protected routes. Set LOTS and LOTS of pro.

Read A LOT.

Find a mentor and follow their routes.

Find a mentor! If you voice some interest to people you currently go sport climbing with who trad climb, people at the gym you might know trad climb, etc. Become their apprentice. Get on their schedule of when they want to climb and where. Pay attention to their gear placement while following, don't just yank their gear out. Ask them about their gear placements.

After a bit of following, LEAD your own trad routes. Probably with someone else's rack at this point. Make sure it is something within your limits at first. Then get an experienced person to follow you and check your gear. Don't string up topropes and "practice" trad leading. Just go out and do it.

If you enjoy it and decide it is for you. Then buy a rack. Either piece by piece like many or if you have the money just drop $2000 and fill your rack out.

Definitely find a mentor, or even several if you can. You can learn quite a bit (about what and what not to do), from a diverse group. Do use your judgement though. If you have a local outdoor climbing club in the area it can be a great resource.

And absolutely take a multi-day course in anchor building and gear placement. A single course isn't a substitute for several season's worth of mentorship, but is great in conjunction.

And like everyone else said, READ, a lot.

Have fun and be safe. Trad is awesome (and awesomely expensive, at least initially).

I guess this is different than most. But i just bought a rack when i had the money, watch some videos, read up about it and just started going out with a friend who was brand new to it. Basically, just do some research then just go for it!