I imagine there is still some confusion about what exactly we’re doing when bouldering. We’re climbing, but not very high, and why are the climbs we do when bouldering called “Problems”? This post will hopefully lay some of those issues to rest, and give a clearer understanding of the problem solving component of bouldering.
The “Ironman Traverse”, pictured above, is a V4 boulder problem in the Buttermilks boulders in the midst of the Sierra Nevada’s. The V rating is a pseudo-standardized way of describing a problems difficulty. The problem itself is about a 20 foot long crack in a practically sheer granite face. The problem starts at the left end of the crack and continues along it to the right, until you top out over the right lip. The crack starts out as a thick shelf that juts out at 90 degrees to the face, the only problem is that the face is overhung by about 30-40 degrees, making for an awkward slopey handhold. The shelf only gets smaller as it continues out to the right, until if fades completely and there are only scattered crimps below the right hand lip. The footholds start off fairly solidly on the left side and practically disappear on the right side. All of these factors combine for a challenging start and an even more difficult finish. (Notice the slope of the wall in the photo in contrast to how I’m standing.)
The reason why these short, yet very intense, climbs are called problems is that it’s the perfect word. Each move has to be carefully considered and puzzled out, and there are times when the right Beta (information about the climb) will make a certain move much easier. When we are climbing we are not simply throwing ourselves dumbly at a wall hoping that we’ll be stronger the next time. Rather, we are constantly rehearsing the moves we are capable of and trying to figure out the kinetic problem that the particular boulder presents us with. In the following video you’ll be able to see that process. We filmed ourselves attempting the last move over and over again, and you should be able to see the way the movement changes. As we progress, we figured out how to use the left sided heel hook instead of throwing ourselves at the lip again and again.
