FAQs: The Nagging Questions Non-Climbers Ask About Climbing

The most difficult challenge we climbers have ever faced is not the Dawn Wall. It’s explaining rock climbing to non-climbers.

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See that guy! He's rock climbing. (Photo: Kiff Alcocer)

The most difficult challenge we climbers have ever faced is not the Dawn Wall. It’s explaining rock climbing to our mothers (with the exception of Brooke Raboutou, Connor Herson, and others born to moms who send).

You see, the general public’s perception of our sport tends to be wildly inaccurate. In an effort to bring greater understanding, we have provided the FAQs below. We encourage you to print these out and send them to any parent, relative, significant other, coworker, acquaintance, doctor, teacher, or NY Times commenter who needs clarification.

Question: Is climbing dangerous? 

Answer: When performed properly, rock climbing is relatively safe—it’s likely safer than the drive to the crag. It’s true that accidents do happen. They’re almost always due to user error. If you believe your beloved climber and their partners are smart and responsible, you don’t have much to worry about. If the climber in your life is a reckless idiot, however, feel free to become worried—very worried.

Yosemite National Park estimates that visitors climb a cumulative 25,000 to 50,000 days in the park every year, and the average number of annual climbing deaths is 2.5. That’s .01% if we estimate high.

Question: But what happens if you fall?

Answer: The rope catches us. Why do you think we tie into the rope? Climbing falls are very common and usually a non-event. We typically free fall 10 feet or so, then the rope begins to stretch, slowing us down gradually. It’s more common to injure an ankle swinging into the wall during a fall, or hurt a finger due to overuse, than anything serious.

Don’t believe us? Check out our Weekend Whipper Archive.

Question: What about that guy who climbs without a rope? You don’t do that, do you?

Answer: We get this one a lot. It’s perhaps the most frequently asked questions by non-climbers since 2018. An extremely small percentage of climbers, including Alex “that one guy” Honnold, sometimes climb without a rope. Millions of people go rock climbing in the United States every year, and most of us view climbing without a rope as an unacceptable risk. That’s because, like most human beings, we fear death. That said, free soloing is very dangerous. People who do it sometimes do die.

Question: How do you get the rope up there?

Answer: We climb up with the rope hanging from our harness and clip it to thingies in the rock as we go up. Sometimes we clip the rope to metal bolts drilled into the wall. Sometimes there are no bolts, and we place aluminum devices and chocks called protection into cracks as we go (this is called trad, short for “traditional” climbing). Both are more than capable of holding the weight of a car. They’re very secure, designed by smart people with engineering degrees, and thoroughly tested. Then the leader who “gets the rope up there” can secure it to an anchor for others to toprope the climb. If you’re toproping the climb and you fall, your fall will be minuscule (assuming, of course, that you have a good belayer).

If we fall while climbing above our last clip, we’ll fall twice the distance between us and the clip, plus a little more due to rope stretch. The rope stretch absorbs most of the force, so the load on the bolt or protection isn’t substantial. Actually, the higher we are off the ground, the more the rope can stretch, and the safer it is to fall. Weird, right?! We do have to worry about landing on ledges below, which is why climbing across roofs, while appearing the most dangerous, is actually the safest, Mom.

For more information, check out A Beginner’s Guide to Lead Climbing

Question: Are climbers adrenaline junkie daredevils?

Answer: No. Adrenaline junkies usually prefer to huck their bodies off things (see BASE jumping, wingsuit flying, freestyle motocross, etc.). While there is some crossover with climbers who enjoy climbing up something, then jumping off, the goal of climbing is usually not to plummet through the air. Climbers prefer to be calm and controlled. Our sport is closer to gymnastics than jumping a skateboard over a flaming bus. It’s kind of like solving a puzzle using every muscle in your body.

Question: You must be so strong! I bet you can do like 100 pull-ups.

Answer: It doesn’t hurt to be able to crank out pull-ups for days, but—believe it or not—it’s not that important. Rock climbing is more about finger strength, core strength, and most importantly, technique. We try to keep our weight on our feet and use leg muscles to push us up the wall whenever possible. If you see someone pulling himself up a wall then he is, yes, absurdly strong, but also possibly a terrible climber.

Question: If a climber is injured and requires rescue, will my taxes go up? I am not concerned with human life, only my gross personal income.

Answer: It’s true that search and rescue teams receive tax money, but not much. For example, Rocky Mountain Rescue is all volunteers and operates on just $40,000 a year (and some of that is from donations and grants). Yosemite’s team only spends 10% of their time on climbers; they mostly help lost or injured hikers. So why don’t you try asking your out-of-shape hiker friend this same question? Also, spending every moment worrying about taxes is a sad way to go through life. Consider finding a hobby. May we suggest rock climbing?

Question: Don’t you get scared up there?

Answer: Yes. As with any scary activity, we do on purpose, like riding a rollercoaster, watching horror films, or singing karaoke in front of strangers, that’s part of the fun.

Question: Why do you do it?

Answer: It could be the satisfaction of overcoming seemingly impossible physical challenges. Or maybe it’s the gratification that comes from experiencing beautiful natural areas from vantages few others will ever see. There’s also the simple joy of spending a day outside with friends. I don’t know. It’s better than sitting on the couch watching Netflix.