UKC

Setting for young/small people

New Topic
This topic has been archived, and won't accept reply postings.
 RichG 27 Nov 2014
I work at a climbing wall in the southeast and a lot of the younger kids are getting really strong now and I'd like to set problems specifically for them to do. Does anyone have any experience setting for young/small people? How do you make the routes interesting and not too reachy for children without making them a doddle for adult climbers?
Thanks in advance
 Coel Hellier 27 Nov 2014
In reply to RichG:

If you put traverse moves in them, with the footholds and handholds close together in height, then the adults will find the moves hard while the kids won't!
Wiley Coyote2 27 Nov 2014
In reply to RichG:

I thjink Kendal Wall has (or used to have) a room where the traverses were deliberately set for kids. They may have some ideas.
 jwa 27 Nov 2014
Can you have separate climbs for kids and adults?
OP RichG 27 Nov 2014
In reply to jwa:

As much as I'd love to, we don't really have the space for separate climbs which is why I'd like to make one which is more aimed at kids but that adults can also do
OP RichG 27 Nov 2014
In reply to Coel Hellier:

That's a good idea, just make them child size traverses so that it's the crux if you're an adult but children should be able to get past it and put the kids crux elswhere
 Rick Graham 27 Nov 2014
In reply to RichG:

Set a route for the young/short in one colour of holds.

Give a grade for the "full size climber" but using less holds. Mark the "banned" holds with tape tags ( or use different colour holds).
 girlymonkey 27 Nov 2014
In reply to RichG:

Interestingly, I seem to set 'reachier' routes than my tall colleague. I am about the height of your average 10 year old, and I often get told by taller adults that my routes are really tricky. I think that what is a reasonable reach for a child (or me!) becomes either too low, so therefore cramped, for a taller person, so they then try to reach through to the next hold, which is very reachy. So I wouldn't hesitate to set for the kids' reach, or get a midget to set for it. My boss tries to make sure he can reach everything with his elbow to make sure reach is short.
Adding in balancey moves works, and smaller holds (not so hard for the kids as their hands are also smaller).
 LeeWood 28 Nov 2014
In reply to girlymonkey:

> I am about the height of your average 10 year old,

then you will be in demand !!
 girlymonkey 28 Nov 2014
In reply to LeeWood:

Pay me enough and I will set anywhere! I'm not fussy. Lol
 philipivan 28 Nov 2014
In reply to RichG:

Lots of small holds (some more useful than others) rather than big holds far apart?
 CharlieMack 28 Nov 2014
In reply to girlymonkey:

I also get told my routes are reachy (i'm 5'5 and my colleague is around or above the 6' mark). I think the frequency of holds just seems too high for taller climbers. This may be a good idea for setting for kids. Lots of short hard moves, that adults could skip holds, but would end up out of sequence/ in a harder sequence.
 Carolyn 28 Nov 2014
In reply to Rick Graham:

> Give a grade for the "full size climber" but using less holds. Mark the "banned" holds with tape tags ( or use different colour holds).

This seems the most obvious solution if you're short of space - set a route for grown ups, and then add extra holds for shorter people, and distinguish between the two in some way, either different colours or tags. Tags have the benefit that you're asking the grown ups/more experienced climbers to do the thinking about which holds they can use (rather than kids trying to remember which two colours they're allowed).

Or just set a kids route and an adult route on the same panel but in different colours?
 girlymonkey 28 Nov 2014
In reply to CharlieMack:

Maybe I should start puting my height on my CV, could be a selling point?!
 james wardle 28 Nov 2014
In reply to girlymonkey:

I think it could be!

My wife is the same height and set for the Castle in London in the 90's

Her happiest moments were always when one of her routes got a comment in the route book like

"no way thats 6a its far too reachy!"

the staff would have great fun pointing out to the usually lankey bloke that the route was set by a 5 ft nothing girl !

slabby walls seem to give more flexibility for setting for kids as you can focus more on balance.
 girlymonkey 28 Nov 2014
In reply to james wardle:

Yeah, I have those types of conversations all the time. I guess the other element to wee setters is that we are used to doing cunning moves to reach things, so can set genuinely reachy routes that have cunning solutions to get round the reachyness.
We recently set for a schools comp, and I set a route near a corner where I decided the bridge was out, you had to stick to the panel, but this was veto'd by my boss who said it was totally out of the grade without the bridge, and I think this was due to the compressed nature of it for him.
 stp 01 Dec 2014
In reply to RichG:

A simple way often used to test a route is to check you can reach all the holds with your elbow.

More generally you make the moves powerful rather than reachy. Often where the footholds are high for taller people it can be harder because you're too bunched up and can't 'fit' into the moves. Adding a few more footholds is always good. It makes routes accessible to people of different heights and people can use different ways to solve hard moves.

Finally try to get feedback from shorter climbers to see what they think of the routes.
 Robert Durran 01 Dec 2014
In reply to RichG:

I think you may be imagining a problem which doesn't really exist. Just make sure there are no unavoidable long reaches (often a matter of having higher footholds rather than lower handholds) and the route should be climbable by everyone.

I have a theory that, without unavoidable long reaches, most routes are actually easier for little people because the holds are relatively bigger.
 kevin stephens 02 Dec 2014
In reply to RichG:
Just like real rock, us short folk get past long reaches using high footholds and sometimes undercuts. If you set routes with these being the only option taller folk will moan about being too bunched up
Post edited at 10:41
 flopsicle 02 Dec 2014
In reply to RichG:

Why not rope in a kid? My 6yr old LOVED 'helping' route set the harder routes at our wall. I think it would be a huge motivator for any dead keen kid. From a mum's POV I appreciate all the things that tempt my munchkin into thinking more.

It'd make a great reward for effort, attention etc.
dirty crimper 03 Dec 2014
In reply to RichG:

The wall I climb at has a contingent of very strong kids. The guys that set the wall take this into account by adding small but positive intermediates and put a few extra high feet on to enable the kids to be able to reach. Most of the adults will miss these out. The setters generally add these extras in the circuits upto about v3/4. Just remember kids have small hands so what you classify as a crimp mite feel like a jug to them.

New Topic
This topic has been archived, and won't accept reply postings.
Loading Notifications...