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Crack technique?


cracked

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After flailing my way up the N. ridge of Stuart Sat, Sun, and Mon, I've got a question. I lead both pitches of the Gendarme. The second pitch has a 'fist' section that took a bomber #3.5 Camalot. I tried to fist jam it, but my fists are too large. So the crack was too small for fists, but too big for hands. How the hell do you jam something like this? I ended up laybacking, but I'm really curious what kind of techniques work in this situation.

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cracked said:

After flailing my way up the N. ridge of Stuart Sat, Sun, and Mon, I've got a question. I lead both pitches of the Gendarme. The second pitch has a 'fist' section that took a bomber #3.5 Camalot. I tried to fist jam it, but my fists are too large. So the crack was too small for fists, but too big for hands. How the hell do you jam something like this? I ended up laybacking, but I'm really curious what kind of techniques work in this situation.

 

how dare you call laybacking a "technique"

more like the LACK OF TECHNIQUE

 

yellaf.gif

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Cupped hands as tlg suggested, or instead of a fistjam where the thumb and pinky are left-right (i.e. equal depth in the crack), rotate the fist so the thumb is closer and the pinky is further. Raise your index and middle fingers out of the way so that your hand can arch, making the fist narrower.

 

Check out the cracks on the slightly-overhanging S-facing wall on the UW Rock. The left one for me goes from good hands to cupped hands, and the one on the right goes from small fists to large fists for me, I believe.

 

Many of the .10a handcracks at Index widen to a fist-jam (at least for me) towards the top.

 

But damn, you must have huge hands! A blue camelot for me is usually where hands end and fists start.

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Use a whole role of tape on each hand. rolleyes.gif

 

Actually, like she said, cup your hands. Cammed hands can work good too. Check out "Advanced Rock Climbing" by Long. A close-finger hand jam(which can hury a bit) could help you, it is a fist jam, but sideways. Or maybe try your forearms.

 

Personally, when it gets that big I use the cammed hands.

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E-rock said:

You must have some serious meat-clubs for hands if a 3.5 camalot is tight fists or cups. For most people it would be a crunched down #3 or an open #2.

A good #3 is excellent hands for me. A #2 is tight, but still good hands. #3.5 is goes from cups to fists for me.

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Bill_Simpkins said:

Use a whole role of tape on each hand. rolleyes.gif

 

Actually, like she said, cup your hands. Cammed hands can work good too. Check out "Advanced Rock Climbing" by Long. A close-finger hand jam(which can hury a bit) could help you, it is a fist jam, but sideways. Or maybe try your forearms.

 

Personally, when it gets that big I use the cammed hands.

Me too thumbs_up.gif
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cracked said:

After flailing my way up the N. ridge of Stuart Sat, Sun, and Mon, I've got a question. I lead both pitches of the Gendarme. The second pitch has a 'fist' section that took a bomber #3.5 Camalot. I tried to fist jam it, but my fists are too large. So the crack was too small for fists, but too big for hands. How the hell do you jam something like this? I ended up laybacking, but I'm really curious what kind of techniques work in this situation.

 

Thrutching, swearing, and bleeding.

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Dru said:

 

how dare you call laybacking a "technique"

more like the LACK OF TECHNIQUE

 

haha, like TLG said, some climbs just insist.....try jamming Perry's Layback on Grand Wall.....yellaf.gif

 

As far as technique, the good thing about the narrow profile fist jam where knuckles are up and the hand is

arched, is that squeezing the hand gives a very secure jam whereas a cupped hand jam with knuckles and

fingers against the sides of the crack is generally very insecure. Also, jamming deep in the crack can allow a lot

of forarm/elbow contact which gives extra security.

 

 

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