Five Tips for Sport Climbing Etiquette

With the heat of the summer mostly behind us and beautiful sendy fall temps ahead, now is as good a time as any to review some tips for etiquette at the sport crag. We all want to go and enjoy ourselves on the rock. This list isn’t exhaustive but hopefully these tips will help to make your day out a little better for everyone involved:

1. Respect other people’s projects

Unlike a stuck cam or nut, quickdraws on a sport climb are not booty. If someone has left their draws on a route, it means they have the intention to return and redpoint it. You can still climb the route and enjoy clipping the the pre-hung draws, but do not take them with you. And if the person that hung their draws shows up for their send burn, it’s courteous to allow them to climb in between your attempts.

2. Don’t leave janky draws on your project

If you are leaving draws on a route, you don’t have to leave your newest, shiniest gear. But do bear in mind that it is a privilege to be able to leave your draws, and the expectation of the community is that they will be able to climb on them safely while you’re not on the route. If you leave a route equipped with ratty dogbones or chewed-up carabiners, this clogs the bolts with gear that no one trusts. Even if you believe your gear is totally safe, others may not. Leave draws that others can confidently clip.

3. Share the wall

If you want to project a route all day, be sure that others at the crag know they can hop on between your burns. No individual owns a crag, and no one has exclusive rights to a route for the whole day just because they arrived first. If someone at the crag has had a top-rope up for hours on a route that you’ve been wanting to climb, don’t hesitate to ask them if you can have a go. Climbs are meant to be shared and enjoyed by all who are there that day.

4. Keep noise levels down

Music at the crag is a big no. Not everyone shares the same taste in music, and not everyone delights in hearing music while climbing. Also try not to talk too loudy at while at the crag. Too often you see belayer and climber shouting a conversation back and forth while the climber is hang-dogging 20 metres off the ground. Avoid going to the crag in big groups as this situation nearly guarantees that you’re going to be noisy. 

5. Don’t beta spray

It’s always exciting to see someone else climb a route that you’ve been on—you feel an automatic camaraderie and are undoubtedly eager to share the knowledge you acquired when you unlocked the beta. But if you feel compelled to share your findings, always remember to ask first. The puzzle-solving component is such a large part of the enjoyment of climbing, and receiving unwanted beta can often ruin the whole climb for someone, especially if they are trying to onsight.

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