A useful course for outward bound preppers

[Scythe13]

I'm not sure what I would learn from a course like this that I don't already know...oh wait...nothing. I completed my Mountain Leader Cert and it was just proving that I knew the basics of a multi-pitched climb. None of which the course taught me.

If you're going to do something like this, it's a lot cheaper to go to a local climbing centre, start off bouldering (and a lot of traversing to get your grip strength up) for the total cost of shoes, chalk bag and chalk ball. Once you have that done and are getting to know a few people at the climbing centre, people will turn around and ask if you've ever tried any other climbing, e.g. top roping or lead climbing.

Make good friends, have a great time, and learn all that you can. It'll be much better than a course, that will just give you a feeling of confidence without the experience base to back it up. When you have your first 's**tter' (where you are about to clip in your rope when lead climbing, and something happens so you fall, you drop a hell of a distance...it feels like...thus the name) you'll realise the difference between course and experience. Also when you see someone with 'disco leg' and you realise what it means, as opposed to a course that won't address it.

The safety elements can be good, e.g. being reminded about On Belay. Belay On. Climbing. Climb on. can be helpful, but that's about it.

Go to a climbing centre and make friends. That's more fun and more cost effective.

---

Just a quick note, I was surprised that someone gave this a 1 star rating before I had even read it. It you gave that rating and are in the South West region...and blatently would be into climbing, please PM me.