Ice climbing vs rock climbing
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How do you all feel about your personal relationship between the two disciplines? Do you you think rock climbing makes you a better ice climber, and vice versa, or not,? Do you train differently for the different seasons? If you could climb only ice or only rock, which would it be? Curious to what you all think. Please discuss. |
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I think climbing year round makes you a better climber. More consistent physical training, rope system familiarity, more partners, etc... Personally I only boulder and ice climb. Weirdly psyched out by leading on rock. I know it's backwards but I never feel as 'secure' on rock as I do on ice so leading on ice is way more comfortable for me. For that reason, if I could only do one it'd be ice. When I used to be more of a rock climber I was more focused on the sport aspect/athleticism. I did a lot of sport specific training, grade chasing, etc... and consequently got injured over-training and being stupid in the gym. Ice is more of an adventure for me. I don't care about the grade. I've hiked hours just to get skunked or ramble up some long WI2 gully. It's more about the places I get to go and people I get to climb with rather than constantly chasing a higher grade. Not leading over the summer though, I definitely start the ice season looking like I have no idea what I'm doing with the ropes lol. That's probably the greatest deficit of not being a multi-discipline climber. This might be the second ice-season in a row I miss due to a bouldering injury so I really ought to stop around September going forward! On that note, has anyone got any experience hanging on tools with a fully ruptured A2 lol? |
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Ice every day of the week for me. I came to ice climbing relatively late in life, and rock climbing even later. I started rock climbing on the advice of a world class ice climber, who told me it would make me a better ice climber. He was right, of course, but the little bit of rock I've climbed has been only in service of that goal. I'm just not drawn to rock like I am to ice. However, I've encountered several rock climbers who say that ice is boring. I think in many ways, this question is much like the "blue dress/gold dress" thing that went around the internet a few years ago... you like what you like, and no matter how hard you try, you can't really see the other perspective. |
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I have a similar relationship between rock and ice with Isaak, when it comes to difficulty and motive. I care much more about challenge on rock, because the feeling I chase there is the management of being close to the limit: scared, keeping it together, making good decisions, etc. Therefore onsight trad is where it's at for me on rock. Needless to say, I try not to get too close to the limit on ice. It's much more about being in dramatic, adventurous places. I think rock climbing makes me a better ice climber and vice versa. The way I understand movement, pressure, balance, especially on mixed terrain is all from rock climbing. And, Ive noticed i rock climb like an ice climber, hanging off straight arms, moving my feet up, to save endurance. |
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If I could only climb one or the other, it’d be ice. It’s not gonna be around for much longer, get it while the getting’s good. I also really enjoy the mindfulness benefits that it brings me. I have learned to calm myself and stay focused in situations that are frequently quite dangerous |
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I am in the ice camp for sure. as far as training goes I don't think ice climbing does anything for my rock climbing but rock climbing helps my ice climbing. I had one partner quit climbing ice because they were focused on climbing 5.14 and ice climbing interrupted their gym routine in the winter. |
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I rock and ice climb with equal frequency and passion. My ice climbing has helped my rock climbing and my rock climbing has helped my ice, but I train for them independently of one another. If anything I train more for ice because that training seems to help my rock climbing a fair amount but is easier on my joints. If I could only train one or another it would be ice. I'm assuming that includes drytooling and mixed climbing in the scenario. If I really had to limit it, I prefer alpine climbing to everything. Rock and ice climbing at some level is all just "training" for the opportunity to alpine climb. |
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“And so shines a good thread in a weary forum!” Thanks for the great topic while us Northeasterners wait for a rebuild! Ice climbing is a “means to an end“ for me in the winter here. Does it make me a better climber? Who knows but I do know it helps pass the time in the long winter months! I love good, fat ice but it has been a struggle for us over here for sure these days. Deep snow, I love that too but the split board has a little bit of dust on it also! Thankfully with the warming temps I’m able to sneak south and keep my fingies pulling down. Also fortunate to have a 20 and 45 degree wall in the basement so very grateful for the options! What I do like about ice climbing is that after a day of hard ice I’m still able to train or rock climb the following day! After a day of hard rock climbing it’s difficult to climb another day in a row on the rocks but I can still get out on the ice! I’m definitely towards the crusty edge of the spectrum so mileage can vary here for sure. I prefer the rock but also love the adventure ice climbing brings. Getting out backcountry away from the crowds will still always bring me pleasure and my wife and I still have a lot of fun wandering around in the woods as often as possible. I definitely train harder in the winter months for rock. It’s much easier to get a board or finger sesh after work than it is to get out and climb ice. It is still possible but weekends are mostly the time for ice In the winter. The cool thing is one day of ice usually on Saturday allows me to train or head south to boulder on Sunday. New England has its ups and downs but I do really enjoy this aspect in the winter months! Now if we could only get going over here for ice let’s go! Isaak B wrote: Damn dude! Two seasons in a row?! You’re too young for that shite and might want to tone it down a bit! Rest up and you’re not missing much so far anyways! |
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Ice climbing makes my head game really good for rock climbing. Spend the entire winter running it out and all of a sudden those spicy rock climbs don't seem too bad. ... I think that , interestingly enough, ice climbing has helped my foot work and my body positioning ... To a point. You get really good at keeping your weight on your feet and balancing your body. Slabs and cracks, yes. But when it comes to harder sport climbs where you might need to go fully horizontal or throw a high heel hook or something - ice climbing doesn't help with that. Ice climbing also helps with general fitness. Long snowy approaches with a heavy pack really get those legs strong. My hangboard routine stays the same all year, I just throw in some more pull ups in the winter. Typically, I tend to favor whichever sport in currently engaged in- I love both rock and ice! But I think if I had to choose one, it would be Rock, and here is why. I had to look at myself and my own thought patterns here. In March , when ice season is winding down, I'm usually ok with that. I'm not so traveling to the far both to extend the season. Instead, I'm psyched to climb rock, seeing out sunny sheltered spots. Furthermore, in October/November, when the rock season is winding down, I'm usually feeling more bummed about that than I am feeling psyched for the prospect of climbing ice. I also think that rock climbing offers a lot of variety compared to ice. You can climb overhanging schist or a granite slab and it's almost like two different sports. Also, during the winter I typically travel to climb rock. I guess, not during the part of winter when I'd miss the ice... But I don't ever travel to climb ice. Although I want to! Maybe I just gotta do more dry tooling! But for whatever reason it doesn't call to me the same way . |
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I have had springs where I felt like rock climbing felt really safe compared to what I had been doing all winter but lately now that I am solidly in my 60s rock climbing seems pretty hard compared to ice climbing.... when starting the rock season I miss having that extra 50cm of reach and those nice ergonomic grips on every hold ;) |
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I've been fortunate to live in some great places (NE, PNW, SOCAL, Japan), all with their own main attraction. While in the NE I climbed a lot of ice, however, since moving away in 2017 I think I only have about 10 total days of legit ice climbing (Canmore, Japan, Silverton). I frequently tell people if forced to give up something, ice climbing would be an easy offering without hesitation I do caveat that alpine ice and big, mutli-disciple routes would still be permissible. I suppose if I move back to better ice, the opinion might change. I do, however, enjoy 2-5 days of quality ice at a new venue whenever I'm lucky enough to have the opportunity. No real opinion on rock helping ice or vice versa. |
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I am surprised how many ice climbers I find that only ice climb like it’s almost a majority that primarily climb ice and just dabble in rock. For me I prefer rock climbing over ice climbing. |
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No you don't need to take falls on ice unless you are dry tooling. People leading 5+ should not be falling. Can't speak for Grade 6 and 7 but in general falls on ice are not a good idea. |
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Deven Lewis wrote: You shouldn’t feel comfortable falling on a screw. They’re like airbags; if they work correctly, they save your life, but you are probably gonna get messed up in the process. “Realize that falling off while leading an ice climb will likely result in a minimum of badly broken leg, ankle, head, pelvis neck, back or all of this list” https://willgadd.com/note-to-self-how-not-to-fall-off-ice-climbing/ |
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For me it ebbs and flows between the two disciplines. My overall goal years ago was to be a well rounded climber in all disciplines. So for quite a few years I was pretty focused on ice. Now I feel like the pendulum is going the other way with more a focus on rock. Maybe that is one of the things I love about climbing....you can change your focus and keep things fresh! A note on training. I think training crosses over between the 2 sports kind of how training crosses over between a lot of sports....general conditioning, big muscle group movement, big days, etc. At a beginner to intermediate level the training between them will each help the other discipline. But to be really good at an advanced level in rock or ice you need to be training specifically for that discipline. When I focused hard on ice I would pretty much quite rock climbing at the start of November and focus on ice specific training. The first season I put that much effort into ice specific training was the first season I really broke into the WI5 grade. But then come April I would be weak at hard rock (for me 5.11 and above) because the finger strength and other specifics hadn't been trained. Now after several years of climbing WI6 ice I have found that I don't need as much ice specific training to be back at the level I was climbing the previous year. This allows me time to keep up on rock climbing specific training in the climbing gym through bouldering. This change has allowed me feel confident to PR new onsight and redpoint grades on rock in the last 2 years while still climbing ice in the winter. |
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Ben B wrote: Perhaps very slight hair splitting here, but I’d modify and correct/clarify the statement to be, “You shouldn’t feel comfortable falling on ICE”. How you fuck yourself up with sharp implements and catching on ice features on the way down is independent of the pro |
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Mark Pilate wrote: I get your point but you ARE splitting hairs. Falling on a screw inherently implies falling on ice, we aren't placing them in rock. But I agree with you and would elaborate it a bit further...falling with sharp implements is serious. You should never fall on ice because of how likely it is to end badly, due to the nature of how ice forms the falls are rarely clean. Falling while mixed climbing and drytooling is still serious and shouldn't be taken lightly either. REALLY careful consideration needs to be given to the likelihood of a fall and the potential outcomes. There's definitely more mixed/drytool terrain where a fall can be tolerated, acceptable even, but it's not like sport climbing even if there's bolts there. Not to derail the thread further from the original intent, but I think that this topic can play a big part in people's individual preferences for rock vs ice and also highlights the emphasis on training a bit. Ice/mixed/dry definitely deserves more consideration about training if someone desires to progress through the difficulty grades. "Climbing your way into shape" can have a lot more serious consequences if you get in over your head a bit with the tools in your hands. |
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I'm newer to ice but came from having a rock climbing background. I'm not sure it helped much for straight ice climbing other than some endurance, but I definitely think it helped for mixed climbing. When climbing mixed, I feel like I'm using very similar thought processes to identifying holds, how I'll have to move through them, etc. Its just that I have to approach them with metal tools instead of shoes and hands. I find climbing mixed and thin ice rather rewarding for this reason. Granted I'm still TR'ing this stuff but still. |
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To clarify about the " lead head" concept...My perspective is different from Devon's, and it has nothing to do with falling. The opposite, in face... It's pretty common, for most people who climb a lot of ice, I think, to run it out. Most of the time. Even on a 5, I might place a screw every 15-20 feet? I don't think that is uncommon if the ice is good. Mentally, I can look down , see that screw a ways down , and tell myself I'm solid, I can make another move to that good stance, settle into it, kick in deep... while staying calm. Where as before I started climbing ice, I'd look at a cam by my ankles and my brain would just start sending alarms, even if I was holding a jug or perfect jam or whatever. So, to clarify, I've gotten better at staying calm , trusting my climbing ability to not fall when I shouldn't, and not freaking out when run out. And then after a couple whips in the spring on some sport route I'm usually like ",yay, I've got no spikes all over, I can fall and be fine" and then I feel good about falling, after having it been 100 percent out of the question all winter. |
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Ira OMC wrote: Hell yeah man! |
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Having climbed both rock and ice for many years. I definitely prefer rock over ice. Ira makes good points about the lead head. The older I get the less I like the cold. Having a climbing gym nearby helps the climbing fitness. I will still climb ice but I’m more selective about weather now. Plus I won’t climb under anyone and too many climbers and not enough ice |