What grade should I be climbing at before taking a lead class?

Hey everyone - I want to take a lead class and im currently climbing a 5.9 grade indoors. What grade would you reccommend someone be at before taking the next step to lead climbing sport routes in the gym?

Thanks!

North Col

My gym recommends that you are a strong 5.10 climber before you take their lead class, so that's usually what I tell people. Try asking the workers at the gym what they recommend.

5.9 is fine. There's plenty to lead under 5.9!

Jaren Watson wrote:

What happened? Not trying to be a dick—just curious.

Well I started backpacking and did 4 solo camping trips to algonquin park in Ontario and 2 portages, one in a solo canoe - got some good experince and gatherd some really good gear and learned what works for me backpacking

Problem is im having trouble finding a climbing partner during the weekdays, im stuck only weekends and i have no good mentor for the rock climbing “training” that i want to accomplish. I have been using the auto belay but my routes are limited and the gym im at now has me just being able to finish a 5.9 with breaks for studying the route

I have bolts in my bedroom wall to practice anchors, i have read fredom of the hills, become bear aware, gone winter camping, improved my firecraft, navagation, sleeping system, researched fall factor to 3:1 haul rigging to dyneema vs nylon to crampon points to working on my belay technique, and hangboading at the gym

Trust me ive been busy, i want that mountain

Uhhhhhhhhh

David Ebel wrote: 5.9 is fine. There's plenty to lead under 5.9!

Generally not indoors unless the routes are actually graded realistically, which is generally not the case in most gyms.

Solid on 5.10 is a good benchmark.  Most lead tests will be either a 5.9 or low 10, which should feel easy for the purposes of the test.

I just took the lead climber class at my local Rock Gym last Sunday and they only required 5.8 climbing ability.

We had an attendee who was, at best, a 5.8 climber and they did just fine.

I would say as long as your gym is okay with it (do they not have a guideline?) then do it.  

Seek out all of the instruction that you can get from competent people, it'll only make you stronger, even if you do not "pass".

It doesn't matter what grade you can climb before taking a lead class, unless the gym specifies one.

Leading in a gym is just like top roping except when/if you fall, you fall farther, but it's still very safe.

If you take a class and realize that the lead test is beyond your ability, then you'll know what bar you have to get over to pass.

And if it is too hard, then you'll get a lot of experience with falling and you'll learn not to be scared of that, which is also a good skill. Plus climbing harder routes will improve your technique faster than, e.g.,  trying to be solid on every 5.9 before you move to 5.10.

Both of the gyms I go to suggest being solid at 5.9 before taking the lead test.  With that said, a 5.9 at one of those gyms is as difficult as a 5.10 at the other gym.  Personally, I don't think there is anything wrong with leading 5.8-5.9 in a gym.  If you have goals to be a really strong climber, I'd be concerned if you are hitting a proverbial wall at 5.9 though.  Pretty much every strong climber I know could climb 5.9 the first time they put shoes on.

~ Gabe

Depends, really.
Gym leading on easier routes - think positive juggy holds - boils down to clipping. You will have to hang with one hand while clipping the rope with the other. So, as a minimum, you should be able to hang on clipping jugs for the few seconds that will be required to do this. You could practice this while on top rope - do a move, position yourself for clipping, hold that position for 5s. Rinse, and repeat. During the class, you will have more things to worry about, but this is something you can practice now.
My gym had requirement for lead class - ability to climb four 30ft routes on 15deg wall back to back.
And, you can definitely practice clipping at home, your time will be better spent if you don't have to fumble with rope during the class :)
 

As others have collectively noted, there are plenty of routes outside you can lead that are way below 5.10. The problem, if there is a problem, is whether the gym has any.  Gyms tend not to have many/ any lead climbs below, say, 5.9. Part of it is a question of best use of space.

But part this is because there are quite a few things to keep track of while leading (clipping with either hand, not back clipping, not z clipping, rope drag, route finding if trad climbing, gear placement if trad climbing, secondary pull, etc) so that you want to be physically comfortable ( i.e., relatively unchallenged) at the difficulty so your mind can focus on these kinds of considerations which will help keep you safe— at least while these considerations are becoming second nature. 
Being comfortable at 5.9 or 5.10 takes some of the athletic challenge out of the picture of lead climbing so you can focus on more technical aspects of the rope safety system. When you do start leading outside you will very likely drop the difficulty grade a couple of points for much the same reason. 

Lynn Hill led her first climb.  Lead climb as soon as you want, just don’t fall.

2nd the idea that its more mental when leading ... so you want to solid on whatever grade your climbing. (ex. 5.10's are hard, Lead 5.7-5.8)
When you're physically burnt you make bad mental mistakes as a new leader ... so don't put yourself in a low success rate lead until you get the experience. Wait a while to 'push the grade', but in a gym I'll lead to my TR limit, cause its pre-hung draws and super safe compared to outside. If your a 5.12 TR climber I would still suggest learning leads on 10's. Take it down to a grade your super solid on and then test yourself with mock leading.

+Working a Clipping stance and the dexterity of putting a rope in a draw can really throw ppl off and make them second guess how strong they think they are.

If your leading in the Gym i say take it as soon as you get the nerve up for it.  Its hard to know if your ready till you try.   

Leading is much more than just climbing, its planning the rests, and stances most importantly.  A "strong" climber can make it up a 5.10 with really poor technique/ planning.  They just overcome the bad stance or body position with more strength.  Its really hard to describe what you need because everyone has a different lead head, but if your in a Gym I say take the class, or for that matter test.  If the tester is paying attention they should be able to stop you if you look like your in over your head.  

Get out there and clip some bolts,  don't worry about the grades ! 

Marco Velo wrote: As others have collectively noted, there are plenty of routes outside you can lead that are way below 5.10. The problem, if there is a problem, is whether the gym has any.  Gyms tend not to have many/ any lead climbs below, say, 5.9. Part of it is a question of best use of space.

I think it totally depends on the Gym... There are three in a 30 minute radius of my house and two of them have draws on everything with a top rope, there are easily 20 climbs 5.9 and under any given day at the larger gym.

It's more about being comfortable with heights, falling, etc. than being able to climb a certain grade. No reason not to go ahead and take the class; it'll help you know for sure if you're ready or not.

Just as a side note, this is the first I've heard of gyms requiring a certain route and/or grade for a lead test. Is that the norm? It seems like as long as someone knows how to avoid back clips and z-clips and all that, if they just want to lead 5.7s that should be fine.

Yeah, the local Gym in Syracuse requires you to test out on a 5.9 or above.  Kinda strange because there are plenty of people that don't want to lead 5.9's in the gym but its their policy.. 

If you are talking about leading in the gym, you should look at what the requirements for you gym's lead test are. At my gym they make you lead a relatively steep 5.10 with huge jugs. The route is easy, but if you are not fit for steep climbing, it could be very hard. Additionally, some (most?) gyms have a rule that if you pump out and fall during the lead test, then you automatically fail. Make sure that you are leading in perfect form ie, not z clipping, no fumbling clips, not skipping clips, making confident movements. For the belaying portion, make sure that you keep your brake hand on the rope at all times. Anticipate your climbers movements. Position yourself close to the wall, but in a spot where you can easily see and respond to the climber's movement.

If you are talking about leading outdoors, then I would say lead something easy as soon as you safely can. This would require an experienced climbing partner to mentor you. Many crags have a random short 5.7 that is usually named something like "Timmy's first lead". Look for a route like this. 

Get a gri gri, find a noob, lead something 5.2 that you'd be cool to solo, profit

I was climbing (fairly graded) 5.9 when I took a lead class. It's more of a mental preparedness than physical preparedness thing IMO, but others may disagree. I use to help with lead classes and sometimes people who climbed 5.10 clean would come in and have a really hard time because they mentally weren't really trusting in the gear/themselves/taking falls.

First, maybe throw out the idea that you need to take a lead class to lead climb. If your potential partners can only swing weekends then make it happen and go lead some easy bolted route in your area well below your limit. Get some mileage on those easy routes and you’ll start to feel more confident to try harder grades.

If you’re set on the lead course then the answer is just like everyone else’s, be comfortable at whatever minimum grade the gym requires.