How to teach climbing

I have taught climbing for almost three decades. First, as a bumbly with a lot of self-confidence and no real experience to back it up. Then, as an experienced climber mentoring friends and partners. Finally, in 2004, I earned my Swedish rock climbing instructor licence and started teaching for real.

Becoming an instructor (whether top-rope instructor or mountain guide) is very much the start of a journey. At first, everything is about technical ability. Can you perform this or that complex rescue in less than ten minutes? Can you tie an alpine butterfly with one hand? It is also about rules. Is it "okay" (according to some arbitrary rule set) to build an anchor with only two points? One point? No screw gates?

It is very macho and very much about comparing the size of your... rack?

As the years wear on, you start to realize that although technical stuff is interesting, it is not where the real challenge lies for a person who wishes to teach climbing. It is also not necessarily what makes a great weekend at a training crag with a group of young would-be climbers. I would claim that you can be the greatest climbing engineer ever, and fail to pass on anything of value. And you can go with knowledge that´s twenty years out of date, and still successfully teach and enthuse your pupils to the point where they will never forget how to tie a bowline, and never forget the person who inspired them to become great climbers.

This blog is going to deal with the complex issue of how to teach climbing, rather than what to teach, although that will probably pop up too. I will look at methods, strategy, psychology, planning, adaption, culture, philosophy and all the other stuff that great instructors do all the time, but don´t brag about at the pub.

Hopefully, this will be useful for aspiring as well as experienced instructors around the world. Be safe!



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