My climbing rope arrived today, and I've managed to get it looped over the tree limb at the spot I wanted. From the ground to the branch is about eighteen feet, and since the rope stops a couple feet short of the ground, it looks to be about sixteen feet for the climb, assuming I start sitting down. That's four feet shy of the formerly-official Short Climb, but since the rope isn't quite that long without the loop anyhow, it is what it is.
Until I get into better shape, the first attempts will begin with me standing, and will require no more than about twelve feet, hand-over-hand. I should be able to manage most of that now, though I dunno if I can do it in an L-sit, which is, of course, one of the goals -- can't neglect the old abs.
The ideal form is to sit upon the ground, legs extended and spread slightly, feet and toes pointed, climb the rope in that position to the top, then come back down the same way.
A lot of it is in conditioning the hands -- clambering up a hemp rope is much harder on the grip than doing chins or pull-ups holding onto a smooth steel bar. Plus the dynamics of the tree limb are such that it will give under my weight and bob up and down a bit, which, depending on my timing, will either be something of a help or a hinderance.
I'll let you know how it goes ...
hello,
ReplyDeleteThis looks like tremendous fun, I can wait to see if there's a difference in getting hit by you as a result. ;)
I'm curious about two things -
1. what kind of rope did you use (you mentioned hemp, what thickness? 1.5" was mentioned in an earlier post) and where did you get it?
2. What knot did you use to secure it to the tree?
Well, I'm only hitting you at 10% power now, so probably you won't notice any difference ...
ReplyDeleteI got online and found a place that sells gym equipment. You can get different kinds, ranging from standard hemp to some softer-on-the-hands artificial fibers, which I probably should have gotten, but it's more expensive. Inch-and-a-half is what I have, that's standard.
I got mine at morelyathletic.com, but if you plug in "climbing rope" and "gymnastics," you'll get some other places that carry 'em. Lot of those are mountain climbing supply house, you don't want those.
Cheaper to find a marine supply house and buy it by the foot, I expect.
It comes with a metal clamp that you can secure to an eye-bolt, if you want to drill, but I just made a loop and pulled it through. If you look at the picture full-size, you can tell. Wrapped that section in duct-tape to help keep the water out.