Instruction Courses

Atlantic Climbing School’s instruction curriculum is specifically designed to mirror  the progression that many of today’s most skilled and experienced climbers followed in their own climbing development. From their first exposure to the sport in a “top rope” setting, to following an experienced leader as a “second” on longer climbs, and ultimately becoming a solid leader themselves, these experts developed their skills incrementally. In our view, three important benchmarks or levels of competency highlight this systematic progression:

Level I Top Rope competency
Level II Second competency
Level III Lead competency

Our instruction curriculum presents a continuum of courses designed to facilitate a novice’s progression through these three competency levels. Each level consists of a series of courses, one building upon the other,  aimed at helping a client achieve that particular level of competency.  This inclusive curriculum design allows a client to “jump into” the continuum at any given point, assuming they make a candid assessment of their existing knowledge and skill level. Each level also includes a practice component that requires a significant commitment on the part of the client to repeatedly practice and ultimately master the skills and techniques outlined in a particular competency level.

Additionally, our instruction curriculum includes Specialty Instruction courses that highlight popular topics like aid climbing, big wall climbing and adventure racing.

 

We all started somewhere, and for most of us, it was top roping ‚ roped climbing distilled down to its essential elements. Before you can move on to the higher competency levels, a climber should, in our view, first master all aspects of top roping ‚ doing so builds a strong foundation upon which the next, more complex levels depend.

The focus of the top rope continuum is to take an inexperienced client and help them through the process of becoming competent in all aspects of top roping. The specific courses that address each benchmark along the top rope continuum are highlighted below. Clients may start at any point along the continuum depending upon their experience and mastery of the skills outlined in the Top Rope Competency Objectives.

Top Rope Competency Continuum

See where you fit in the continuum, then select the appropriate course.

First exposure to the sport.
usually light on instruction since everyone is a little anxious at first, which means information retention tends to be at its lowest. At the end though, you’re hooked. Courses 1-4 (Experience Curriculum)

Time to learn. Roll up your sleeves and focus on the basics, you know, the stuff (and much more) that you were told during your first exposure to the sport that
you immediately forgot when it was your turn to climb. Equipment, belaying, anchors, rappelling, climbing movement; all of these are covered in-depth with the focus on taking the time to make sure you “got it”.  Ideally, you leave prepared to climb with more experienced climbers in a top rope setting. Course 5

I want to be independent. So you’ve been top roping with others more experienced and knowledgeable then yourself, but they always end up doing everything: setting up anchors, making decisions on belay positioning, etc. Now you want to be like them. OK, so where are the gaps in your learning: Anchors? Top belay considerations? Whatever they are (or if you just haven’t been able to connect with more experienced climbers), it’s time to get focused instruction so you can be independent. Course 6 (and sections of Course 5 in some instances)

Climb, Climb, Climb. It’s on your shoulders now ‚ the proverb  ”practice makes perfect” never rang more true. Get out and top rope as often as you can, everywhere you can. Master the set-ups and improve your climbing technique, moving steadily up the difficulty scale. Do this, and we’ll be seeing you at the next level.

Top Rope Competency Objectives

Listed below are the specific skills and knowledge you should acquire to become top rope competent‚ all of the items listed are covered in the Top Rope Competency curriculum. If you already have some top roping knowledge and skills, use this list to identify gaps in your learning ‚ then let us know and we’ll customize any of our courses to fit your particular needs.

1. Know how to properly select, size, put on, and care for
   a harness.
2. Know how to select, coil, and care for a climbing rope.
3. Know how to tie and when to use a figure-eight follow
   through knot.
4. Know how to set-up (ATC) and back up (belayed, fireman’s,
   auto block) a rappel.
5. Know how to rappel competently on varied terrain (double
   strand, single stand).
6. Understand the components of the belay.
7. Know how to bottom belay with an ATC and a GriGri.
8. Know how to top belay with an ATC, GriGri and a Munter
   Hitch.
9. Know the signals used to communicate in bottom belay and
   top belay situations.
10. Know how to tie and when to use a girth hitch, figure-eight
    on a bight, clove hitch, water knot, stopper knot, and a
    double fisherman’s knot.
11. Know what constitutes a good anchor. Understand the concepts
    of vectors, pulleys, multiplication of loads, equalization,
    and prevention of extensions.
12. Demonstrate the ability to properly use and connect natural,
    fixed, and removable anchors for bombproof toprope anchor
    systems (both top belay and bottom belay situations), including
    the use of extensions, and the proper use of carabiners.
13. Demonstrate an understanding of basic climbing movement
    (edging, smearing, jamming, laybacking, stemming, bridging,
    chimneying, and finding/using rests).
14. Know what equipment to purchase for top roping.
15. Demonstrate an understanding of the dangers inherent in
    top roping.
16. Know how to select and manage a safe top rope site.
17. Demonstrate a conservative approach.
18. Know how to use a guidebook.
19. Understand the YDS for rating difficulty and the grading
    system for rating time required to climb a particular route.
20. Be able to identify various cliff features.
21. Understand cliff etiquette.
22. Have a general sense of climbing history.
23. Know the various types of climbing that exist.
24. Know what the Access Fund is and what it does.
25. Know what resources exist for learning more.
26. Understand what’s the next step in the progression.

 

Top Rope Competency : Course Descriptions

Course 5
Top Roping I
Course Length: 8 hours When:   Daily by appointment Maximum Ratio:   4:1
This course starts to build the foundation of knowledge and skills that you will need to climb outdoors in a top rope setting. Equipment, belaying, anchors, rappelling, and climbing movement are all covered in detail.
Please call for pricing, scheduling and pre-course details.

Top Roping II
Course Length: 8 hours When:   Daily by appointment Maximum Ratio:   4:1
This course expands upon the material covered in TR I and includes additional content that you will need to climb outdoors in a top rope setting.
Please call for pricing, scheduling and pre-course details.

Top Roping III
Course Length: 8 hours When:   Daily by appointment Maximum Ratio:   4:1
This course expands upon the material covered in TR II and includes additional content that you will need to climb outdoors in a top rope setting.
Please call for pricing, scheduling and pre-course details.

Course 6
Top Rope Anchors
Course Length: Two Days (8 hours each) When:   By appointment Maximum Ratio:   4:1
Focus on the specifics of anchor building for a top rope setting. By the end, you will be building bombproof anchors an expert will admire.
Please call for pricing, scheduling and pre-course details.

So, you’ve mastered the top roping arena have you? Could you set-up a bombproof anchor if we gave you a meager selection of nuts and cams? Expertly assess a new
top roping site for safety, access, anchors, and routes? Climb solidly, smoothly, and in control on intermediate ground? Good. That’s only a partial list, but you sound like you really are ready to start on the path to the next competency level — becoming a competent second. This is not a job to be taken lightly‚ once you become the leader you’ll appreciate this statement even more.

The focus of the seconding continuum is to assist a client through the process of becoming a competent “second” to a lead climber. The specific courses that address each benchmark along the second continuum are highlighted below. Clients may start at any point along the continuum depending upon their experience and mastery of the skills outlined in the Second Competency Objectives.

Second Competency Continuum

See where you fit in to the continuum, then select the appropriate course.

Tricks of the Trade. Give your leader confidence that your belay can be trusted, stuck gear can be retrieved, and that you can hold up your end of the bargain. Learn seconding skills like how to climb with a pack, aid through difficult sections, and follow pendulums and traverses. Course 7

The leader’s hurt. Don’t shake in your boots,  learn some of the solutions. Course 8

 

Climb, Climb, Climb. Sound familiar? It’s now up to you to log a ton of mileage following a solid leader, mastering your seconding skills and observing him or her deal with life on the sharp end. Take plenty of notes “soon enough, that’ll be you up there pilgrim.”

Second Competency Objectives

Listed below are the specific skills and knowledge you should acquire to become  ”second competent”  all of the items listed are covered in the Second Competency curriculum. If you already have some seconding knowledge and skills, use this list to identify gaps in your learning  then let us know and we’ll customize any of our courses to fit your particular needs.

1. Understand the difference between top roping and multi-pitch
   climbing.
2. Know how to properly approach a day at the crag (how to
   plan for the unexpected).
3. Know how to read a guidebook/topo.
4. Develop basic route finding skills.
5. Know what constitutes a solid belay on a multi-pitch route.
6. Understand the fall factor and what happens in a lead
   fall.
7. Be able to provide a smooth, competent belay to the leader
   using an ATC.
8. Know when (and when not) to use a GriGri for belaying
   the leader and how to use it properly.
9. Know how to belay a leader with a Munter Hitch.
10. Know how to tie and when to use the figure eight on a
    bight and the clove hitch.
11. Stance management: know how to keep the rope and the gear
    organized and how to be as comfortable as possible (including
    on small stances and at hanging belays).
12. Know how a second can assist the leader to see gear placements
    and avoid route-finding errors. Know when to offer words
    of encouragement and when to shut up!
13. Know the signals (verbal and non-verbal) used in a multi-pitch
    environment (including potential dangers).
14. Gear removal, know what to do when things get stuck.
15. Know how to efficiently re-rack gear (including double-length
    slings, cordellettes).
16. Know how to aid through difficult sections.
17. Know how to follow a traverse.
18. Know how to follow a pendulum.
19. Know how to climb with a pack.
20. Rappelling ‚ be skilled with pre-rigged rappels,
    auto block and fireman back-ups, cow’s tails, daisies,
    multiple rappels, and how to rappel in a storm, and with
    an injured partner.
21. Develop basic self-rescue skills (like ascending a rope,
    escaping a belay, and rappelling with an injured partner).
22. Know how to choose an ideal, competent partner.
23. Know what resources exist for learning more.
24. Understand what’s the next step in the progression.

 

Second Competency:  Course Descriptions

Course 7
Seconding I
Course Length: 8 hours When:   Daily by appointment Maximum Ratio:   4:1
This course starts to build the foundation of knowledge and skills that you will need to be a competent second to a lead climber on multi-pitch “trad” routes. Belaying the leader, belay stance management, gear removal and racking, multiple rappels are all covered in detail.
Please call for pricing, scheduling and pre-course details.

Seconding II
Course Length: 8 hours When:   Daily by appointment Maximum Ratio:   4:1
This course expands upon the material covered in SI and includes additional content that you will need to be a competent second to a lead climber on multi-pitch routes. Aiding through difficult sections, following traverses and pendulums, climbing with a pack, more on multiple rappels all are covered in detail. By the end, you should be ready to follow a competent leader with skill and confidence.
Please call for pricing, scheduling and pre-course details.

Course 8
Basic Self Rescue
Course Length: Two days (8 hours each) When:   By appointment Maximum Ratio:   4:1
You’re seconding an overhanging pitch and fall off, swinging out into space with no chance to get back to the rock. What to do? Learn some basic skills to help you in situations like this and many others so you are prepared for the unexpected.
Please call for pricing, scheduling and pre-course details.

Enough of following in someone else’s wake, although climbing as a second can still be plenty exciting, someone must go first. It’s time to learn what you need to know, muster up some nerve, and launch out onto the lead. Unless you’re a Hydra, all the hats you’ll have to wear as a leader (route finding, placing and rationing
protection, looking out for the second, arranging belays, managing risks, etc.) could get mighty confusing, so lets sort it out step-by-step. Forget difficulty ratings for now, you need to learn how to lead confidently: when to step on the throttle, and when to reel it back in, calmly and in control. There’s a lot of work to do, so let’s get at it.

The focus of the Lead continuum is to assist a client through the process of becoming a competent “lead” climber. The specific courses that address each benchmark along the lead continuum are highlighted below. Clients may start at any point along the continuum depending upon their experience and mastery of the skills outlined in the Lead Competency Objectives.

 

Lead Competency Continuum

See where you fit in to the continuum, then select the appropriate course.

The Sharp End. What’s this, no rope from above? Welcome to the machine. Being out on the lead, “the sharp end” as it’s known, is a whole different enchilada,  like the difference between being a passenger and a driver. Set the mystique aside and dissect the beast. Course 9

Avoiding trouble. Go beyond the basics. Know how to handle the inevitable crisis, a poorly protected pitch, an injured partner, or a stormy retreat. Remember, that guy Murphy was a genius: everything that can go wrong, will go wrong. Why not be ready? Course 10

Climb, Climb, Climb. You’ve got to want it ‚ without consistent practice and real in-the-trenches effort, it’s all just a pipe dream. But get to the point
where you’ve mastered all of this stuff and you’ll be ready to take it on the road: the world will be your oyster. Good luck and send us a postcard once in awhile.

Lead Competency Objectives

Listed below are the specific skills and knowledge you should acquire to become “lead competent‚” all of the items listed are covered in the Lead Competency curriculum. If you already have some leading knowledge and skills, use this list to identify gaps in your learning ‚ then let us know and we’ll customize any of our courses to fit your particular needs.

1. Know what equipment to purchase to create a standard leader’s
   rack.
2. Know how to choose a climb and assess its equipment needs.
3. Know how to organize a rack of gear for the lead.
4. Know what the fall factor is, what impact force is, and
   how to minimize both.
5. Demonstrate solid gear-placement skills.
6. Be able to anticipate direction of pull.
7. Be skilled in the art of clipping.
8. Know how to ration gear on the lead.
9. Be skilled in fixed-gear assessment.
10. Know what rope drag is and how to minimize it.
11. Have a fluid, controlled climbing style ‚ be able
    to climb intermediate routes in absolute control and without
    falling (recognize that the ability to move smoothly without
    falling is the leader’s first safety system). Know
    when to back down.
12. Know how to climb with your eyes first (and how things
    can be distorted from below).
13. Develop a sense of mental cunning.
14. Develop the ability to approach a lead in stages, constantly
    reassessing the situation — monitoring your strength, the
    protection you still have available, and the distance to
    another stance.
15. Be skilled at route finding on steep, complex terrain
    with few clues. Know how to use a topo/guidebook.
16. Develop a nose for danger. Be able to judge terrain, evaluate
    hazards including loose rock, weather, other parties, and
    your second’s limitations.
17. Know how to protect the second on traverses and pendulums.
18. Know how to retrieve more gear while on the lead.
19. Develop the ability to climb boldly,  knowing when
    and how.
20. Know how to aid through difficult sections and how to
    pendulum.
21. Be skilled in the art of falling. Know when falling is
    acceptable and when it must be avoided.
22. Know when to retreat (bail) and the options that exist.
23. Become skilled in all aspects of rappelling: how to join
    two ropes, rope-tossing techniques, how to ensure an easy
    pull (last-man-down techniques), how to deal with stuck
    ropes, and how to be efficient on multiple rappels.
24. Know how to escape a belay, implement an assisted raise,
    and rappel with an injured partner.
25. Become an expert at crafting a solid belay from a meager
    rack.
26. Know how to haul a pack.
27. Be skilled in all aspects of belay stance selection and
    management.
28. Know how to belay the second directly and with a redirected
    belay. With a Munter, ATC, GriGri, Reverso, and a GiGi.
29. Be trained in Wilderness First Aid.
30. Understand the difference and the techniques involved
    in sport leads vs. trad leads.
31. Know how to improvise a stick clip.
32. Know what tramming is and when to use it.
33. Know how to properly clean top anchors.
34. Understand the terms flash and redpoint.
35. Know the differences between climbing on various types
    of rock (granite, sandstone, and limestone).
36. Understand the issues related to new routes (cleaning,
    installing fixed protection).
37. Still be climbing, alive and well, at age 70.

 

Lead Competency : Course Descriptions

Course 9
Leading I
Course Length: 8 hours When:   Daily by appointment Maximum Ratio:   4:1
This course starts to build the foundation of knowledge and skills that you will need to be a competent lead climber on multi-pitch “trad” routes. Equipment selection & organization, protection placements, belay stance management are just a few of the items covered in detail.
Please call for pricing, scheduling and pre-course details.

Leading II
Course Length: 8  hours When:   Daily by appointment Maximum Ratio:   4:1
This course expands upon the material covered in Leading I and includes additional content that you will need to become a competent lead climber on multi-pitch routes.
Please call for pricing, scheduling and pre-course details.

Leading III
Course Length: 8  hours When:   Daily by appointment Maximum Ratio:   4:1
This course expands upon the material covered in Leading I & II and includes additional content that you will need to become a competent lead climber on multi-pitch routes. Poorly protected pitches, hauling a pack, aiding through difficult sections, retreat techniques are just a few of the items covered in detail. By the end, you should be ready to lead easy to intermediate routes with skill and confidence.
Please call for pricing, scheduling and pre-course details.

Course 10
Advanced Self Rescue
Course Length: 8 hours When:   By appointment Maximum Ratio:   4:1
Know how to escape a belay, haul a second, or rescue an injured leader. Learn the skills you’ll need to be prepared for the unexpected.
Please call for pricing, scheduling and pre-course details.