Table of Contents
Preface 9
A Note 11
Before We Begin: Key Terms 12
Key to Illustrations 14
Chapter 1 The Five Rules of Crack Climbing
Rule 1: Fill the Space Efficiently 16
Rule 2: Use Your Body as a Jamming Device 17
Rule 3: Keep Everything in Line with the Crack 21
Rule 4: Use Structure not Strength 21
Rule 5: More Surface Area between Skin and Rock Equals a Better Jam 23
Meet The Master: Beth Rodden 25
Summary: The Five Rules 26
Chapter 2 Finger Cracks
Hand Techniques in Finger Cracks 28
Meet The Master: Lynn Hill 49
Foot Techniques in Finger Cracks 50
Climbing Positioning 54
Meet The Master: Jerry Moffatt 57
Climbing Movement 63
Chapter 3 Hand Cracks
Hand Techniques in Hand Cracks 68
Foot Techniques in Hand Cracks 78
Climbing Positioning 79
Meet The Master: Barbara Zangerl 85
Climbing Movement 86
Chapter 4 Fist Cracks
Hand Techniques in Fist Cracks 94
Foot Techniques in Fist Cracks 106
Climbing Positioning 108
Meet The Master: Peter Croft 111
Climbing Movement 112
Chapter 5 Offwidth Cracks
Hand/Hand Offwidth Cracks 118
Meet The Master: Randy Leavitt 131
Hand/Fist Offwidth Cracks 132
Fist/Fist Offwidth Cracks 141
Meet The Master: Mason Earle 147
Arm Bar and Chickenwing Offwidth Cracks 152
Climbing Movement in Offwidth Cracks 167
Meet The Master: Alex Honnold 169
Chapter 6 Squeeze Chimneys
Size 1: Narrow Squeeze Chimneys (basic squeeze) 176
Size 2: Medium Squeeze Chimneys (the sidewinder) 179
Size 3: Wide Squeeze Chimneys (the hip thrust) 181
Meet The Master: Sean Villanueva O'Driscoll 183
Chapter 7 Chimneys
Size 1: Narrow Chimneys 189
Size 2: Medium Chimneys 191
Size 3: Wide Chimneys 192
Meet The Master: Hazel Findlay 195
Chapter 8 Stemming
Stemming in Corners 198
Meet The Master: Nico Favresse 203
Stemming in Chimneys 206
Chapter 9 Roof Cracks
Finger-Sized Roof Cracks 208
Hand-Sized Roof Cracks 209
Fist-Sized Roof Cracks 216
Offwidth Roof Cracks 216
Spin Throughs 226
Meet The Master: Tom Randall 229
Lip Turns 230
Chapter 10 Placing Gear
Choosing Your Rack 236
Racking Up 238
Placing Pro on Route 241
Meet The Master: Ron Fawcett 253
Chapter 11 Equipment
Finger Cracks 257
Hand Cracks 258
Meet The Master: Jean-Pierre "Peewee" Ouellet 261
Fist Cracks 263
Offwidth Cracks: Stacked Techniques 264
Offwidth Cracks: Arm Bar, Chickenwing, and Squeeze Chimney Techniques 266
Chimneys 267
Stems 267
Chapter 12 Taping
Taping Up Hands: The Basics 271
Taping Up Hands: Preparing to Tape 271
Taping Up Hands: The Process 272
Taping Up Hands: Building Your Tape Gloves 284
Taping Up Fingers 289
Crack Gloves 293
Meet The Master: Will Stanhope 295
Acknowledgements 296
Index 297
