Ryeko

It's pretty simple. There're 9 sort of rules... that I... sort of discovered after 35 years of Rock Climbing. Uhm, most of them are pretty basic.

Number One: Don't let go!

Uhm, very short success method. But really truely often you think about letting go away before your body does. So hang in there and you come up with some pretty peculiar solutions.

Number Two: Hesitation is bad.

This is a friction climb up in Tuolumne Meadows in the Yosemite high country.

And friction climbing doesn't have any sort of hard positive edges.

It's sort of you're climbing on  little dimples and nubbins in the rock.

And the most friction you have is when you first put your hand or your... uhm, foot on the rock.

And then from that point on, you're basically falling... falling. So momentum is good, Don't stop.

Rule number three: have a plan.

This is a climb called the Naked Edge in El Dorado Canyon, outside the Boulder.

This climber is on the last pitch of it, he's actually right about where I fell.

And there is about 1000 feets of air below him, and all of the hard pitches are actually below him.

And so often what happens is you're planning so hard for like "how do I get through the hardest part, how do I get through the hardest part."

And then what happens? You get to the last pitch, it's easy. 

And you're completely flamed out. Don't do it. You have to plan ahead to get to the top.

But you also can't forget that each individual move you have to to able to complete.

(Rule # 4: The Move is the End) 

This is a climb called the Dike Route on Pywjack Dome up in the Yosemite high country.

The interesting thing about this climb is it's not that hard.

But if you're the leader on it, at the hardest move, you're looking at about 100-foot fall, onto some slow angle slabs. 

So you've got to focus, you know, you don't wanna stop in the middle like Coleridge's "Kublai Khan".

You've gotta keep going.

Rule number five: Know how to rest.

It's amazing. the best climbers are the ones that in the most extreme situations can get their bodies into the some position, where they can rest, regroup, calm themselves, focus and keep going.

(Rule #6: Fear Sucks)

This is a climb in the "Needles" again in California.

Fear really sucks. Because what it means is you're not focusing on what you're doing,you're focusing on the consequences of failing at what you're doing.

Because any given move should require all your concentration and thought processes to execute it effectively.

(Rule #7: Opposites are good)

One of the things in climbing is most people sort of take it straight on. And they follow the most obvious solution.

This is a Devil's Tower in Wyoming, which is a columnar basalt formation that most of you probably know from "Close Encounters".

With this, typically crack climbers would put their hands in and their toes in, and just start climbing.

The cracks are too small to get your toes into so the only way to climb is using your fingertips in the cracks.

 And using opposing pressure and forcing yourself up.

Rule number 8: Strengh doesn't always equall success.

In the 35 years I've been a climbing guide and taught on indoor walls, some stuff like that.

The most important things with guys were always trying to pull ups.

Beginning guys, it's like they thrash, they thrash, they get 15 feet up, and they can do 15 pull-ups, right.

And then they... they just flame up.

Women are much more in balance because they never, they don't have that idea that they're gonna be able to do 100 pull-ups.

They think about how to get the weight over their feet because it's sort of natural. They carry you all day long.

So balance is really critical in keeping your way on your feet. which is your strongest muscle.

And then of course there is, rule number 9.

I came up with rule number 9 after I actually didn't plan for a fall and, went about 40 feet and cracked a rib.

Once you get to that point where you know it's gonna happen, you need to start thinking about how you're gonna let go.

Because that's the critical piece of not geting hurt. How you're going to, uhm,  fall under the rope or if you're climbing without a rope. Uhm... fall to a place where you can actually control the fall.

So don't hang on till the bitter end.

Thank you very much.

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peculiar 獨特的;罕見的
friction climb 徒手攀岩
Meadow 草原
high country 高地
dimple 小凹;酒窩
nubbin 小片;小塊
momentum (持續前進的)動力;氣勢
El Dorado (傳說中位於中南美一處)黃金之地
Canyon 峽谷
Boulder 美國科羅拉多州的Boulder city
pitch 等級;程度
flame out 燃燒殆盡 -> 筋疲力盡
dome 穹窿
slab (a thick flat piece of a hard material such as stone)
regroup( to stop and think about something, so that you can start to do something again in a better way)

wyoming 美國懷俄明州
columnar 圓柱的
basalt 玄武岩
formation 結構
thrash 努力掙扎前進