A climbing wall is an artificially constructed wall with manufactured grips for the hands and feet. Most walls are located indoors, and climbing on such walls is termed indoor climbing. Some walls are brick or wooden constructions, but on most modern walls, the material most often used is a thick multiplex board with holes drilled into it. Recently, manufactured steel and aluminum have also been used. The wall may have places to attach belay ropes, but may also be used to practice lead climbing or bouldering.
Polyurethane refers to a class of polymers composed of organic units joined by carbamate (urethane) links. In contrast to other common polymers such as polyethylene and polystyrene, polyurethane term does not refer to the single type of polymer but a group of polymers. Unlike polyethylene and polystyrene polyurethanes can be produced from a wide range of starting materials resulting various polymers within the same group. This chemical variety produces polyurethanes with different chemical structures leading to many different applications. These include rigid and flexible foams, and coatings, adhesives, electrical potting compounds, and fibers such as spandex and polyurethane laminate (PUL). Foams are the largest application accounting for 67% of all polyurethane produced in 2016.
Fiberglass or fibreglass is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass cloth. The plastic matrix may be a thermoset polymer matrix—most often based on thermosetting polymers such as epoxy, polyester resin, or vinyl ester resin—or a thermoplastic.
A surfboard is a narrow plank used in surfing. Surfboards are relatively light, but are strong enough to support an individual standing on them while riding an ocean wave. They were invented in ancient Hawaii, where they were known as papa he'e nalu in the Hawaiian language, and were usually made of wood from local trees, such as koa. They were often over 460 cm (15 ft) in length and extremely heavy. Major advances over the years include the addition of one or more fins (skegs) on the bottom rear of the board to improve directional stability, and numerous improvements in materials and shape.
Glossary of climbing terms relates to rock climbing, mountaineering, and to ice climbing.
Rock-climbing equipment varies with the specific type of climbing that is undertaken. Bouldering needs the least equipment outside of climbing shoes, climbing chalk and optional crash pads. Sport climbing adds ropes, harnesses, belay devices, and quickdraws to clip into pre-drilled bolts. Traditional climbing adds the need to carry a "rack" of temporary passive and active protection devices. Multi-pitch climbing, and the related big wall climbing, adds devices to assist in ascending and descending fixed ropes. Finally, aid climbing uses unique equipment to give mechanical assistance to the climber in their upward movement.
Pliers are a hand tool used to hold objects firmly, possibly developed from tongs used to handle hot metal in Bronze Age Europe. They are also useful for bending and physically compressing a wide range of materials. Generally, pliers consist of a pair of metal first-class levers joined at a fulcrum positioned closer to one end of the levers, creating short jaws on one side of the fulcrum, and longer handles on the other side. This arrangement creates a mechanical advantage, allowing the force of the grip strength to be amplified and focused on an object with precision. The jaws can also be used to manipulate objects too small or unwieldy to be manipulated with the fingers.
Rock climbing is a climbing sports discipline that involves ascending routes consisting of natural rock in an outdoor environment, or on artificial resin climbing walls in a mostly indoor environment. Routes are chronicled in guidebooks, and on online databases, with the details of how to climb the route, and who made the first ascent and the coveted first free ascent. Climbers will try to ascend a route onsight, however, a climber can spend years projecting a route before they make a redpoint ascent.
Filament winding is a fabrication technique mainly used for manufacturing open (cylinders) or closed end structures. This process involves winding filaments under tension over a rotating mandrel. The mandrel rotates around the spindle while a delivery eye on a carriage traverses horizontally in line with the axis of the rotating mandrel, laying down fibers in the desired pattern or angle to the rotational axis. The most common filaments are glass or carbon and are impregnated with resin by passing through a bath as they are wound onto the mandrel. Once the mandrel is completely covered to the desired thickness, the resin is cured. Depending on the resin system and its cure characteristics, often the mandrel is autoclaved or heated in an oven or rotated under radiant heaters until the part is cured. Once the resin has cured, the mandrel is removed or extracted, leaving the hollow final product. For some products such as gas bottles, the 'mandrel' is a permanent part of the finished product forming a liner to prevent gas leakage or as a barrier to protect the composite from the fluid to be stored.
A campus board is a training tool that has been widely adopted by sport climbers to improve their plyometric performance and led to dramatic improvements in climbing technique in all rock climbing disciplines. The campus board was invented in 1988 by German climber Wolfgang Güllich to help him climb the world's hardest consensus-graded route at the time, Action Directe, and has since become a standard training tool for climbers.
A countertop, also counter top, counter, benchtop, worktop or kitchen bench, bunker is a raised, firm, flat, and horizontal surface. They are built for work in kitchens or other food preparation areas, bathrooms or lavatories, and workrooms in general. The surface is frequently installed upon and supported by cabinets, positioned at an ergonomic height for the user and the particular task for which it is designed. A countertop may be constructed of various materials with different attributes of functionality, durability and aesthetics, and may have built-in appliances, or accessory items relative to the intended application.
A route setter is a person who designs artificial rock climbing wall routes, or problems. Also known as "setters", these professionals combine technical craft with an artistic representation of real rock climbing moves. They do this with modular resin, polyurethane, polyester, fiberglass, or wood holds or "grips" that mimic real rock features. Route setters create new challenges for indoor climbing walls, and also for competition climbing routes.
Building insulation materials are the building materials that form the thermal envelope of a building or otherwise reduce heat transfer.
An ice tool is a specialized elaboration of the modern ice axe, used in ice climbing, mostly for the more difficult configurations. Ice tools are used two to a person for the duration of a pitch, and thus in some circumstances such as top-rope-anchored climbs, a pair may be shared among two or more people, where only one of them at a time is climbing. In contrast a classical "ice axe" is used one to a person for the hours or days a party is traveling across snow or glacier. In communities where it is common to refer to an "ice tool" simply as an "ice axe", classic "ice axes" are often referred to as "traveling axes", "walking axes", or "general mountaineering axes" to distinguish them from "tools".
Reaction injection molding (RIM) is similar to injection molding except thermosetting polymers are used, which requires a curing reaction to occur within the mold.
Injuries in rock climbing may occur due to overuse or falls. However, injuries due to falls are relatively uncommon; the vast majority of injuries result from overuse, most often occurring in the fingers, elbows, and shoulders. Such injuries are often no worse than torn calluses, cuts, burns and bruises. But overuse symptoms, if ignored, may lead to permanent damage.
Climber's finger is one of the most common climbing injuries within the sport of rock climbing, accounting for about 30% of finger injuries seen in climbers. It is an overuse injury that usually manifests in a swollen middle or ring finger due to a damaged flexor tendon pulley, normally the A2 or A4 pulley. It is particularly common after a repeated utilization of small holds. Continued climbing on an injured finger may result in increased downtime in order to recover. The injury was first described in 1988 by Dr. S.R. Bollen.
In rock climbing a face climb is a type of climbing route where the rock face is fully vertical, unlike in slab climbing, and is largely featureless, unlike in crack climbing. Face-climbing routes are typically sustained and exposed, and longer multi-pitch face-routes can become big wall climbing. Face-climbing became more common with the introduction of sport climbing in the 1980s, when French climbers began to fix permanent bolts into the rock as climbing protection — in contrast to traditional climbing — allowing them to ascend the blanker rock faces in places like the Verdon Gorge and Buoux in France.
Hubble is a short 10-metre (33 ft) bolted sport climb at the limestone crag of Raven Tor in Millers Dale, in the Peak District in Derbyshire, England. When Hubble was first redpointed by English climber Ben Moon on 14 June 1990, it became the first-ever climb in the world to have a consensus climbing grade of 8c+ (5.14c); and the highest grade in the English system at E9 7b.
