Dealing with fear while lead climbing
Happy Friday!
When's the last time you were lead climbing and felt nervous about falling? (Most likely, it was the last time you lead climbed!)
I've talked to dozens of people lately who feel fear when lead climbing. I've talked to almost zero people who feel NO fear while lead climbing.
They use words like "freeze up", "feel tense", "don't want to fall", "don't commit", etc.
I'm working on a detailed (and long) Climber's Guide to Conquering Fear. I've had it out "in the wild" for test-runs with quite a few people, and today, I'm sharing the first two chapters with you.
Read the first two chapters here, laugh at my poor prose, and start conquering your fear --> (pdf)
There's a few exercises in the book you can work through with your climbing partner next time. Here's what one person said about exercise two ("Trading Places"):
The second drill was harder to nail down. We were both like "wtf, this feels wrong" and then all of a sudden I timed things right and it all clicked. This is how [catching a fall is] supposed to feel. It really demonstrated how important the timing of a jump is for a catch.
So, get after it. :)
-Josh
PS: reply to this with questions, complaints, criticisms. Every single thing you say, I will answer, consider, and make sure is covered in The Climber's Guide
PPS: you: "Why the first two chapters, Josh?" I say: Because that's all I've written so far. I've got the rest outlined and lots of thoughts rolling around my head, but have not finished.