Grades are Dumb

This morning as I was sipping on some coffee, staring out at the new snow on Sopris, I got to talking with our roommate about climbing and grades, and how many people are drawn to routes simply based on the grade. I think this is lame on several levels, it’s much more important to me how the route climbs, how the movement is. Who cares what the grade is. Obviously grades give you an idea of what to expect difficulty wise, but leave it at that.

If you’ve climbed for any substantial length of time, you know that grades vary from area to area. A 5.10 in Yosemite is usually much more demanding than a 5.10 in Red Rocks. Grades at Rifle are stiffer than most other sport crags in the country. The list goes on. What’s important is that you get a general idea of how hard something is, especially compared to other routes at the same area. Many people like to bicker over grades so they can compare themselves to (and often make themselves feel better than) other climbers. This is just dumb. The grades at any area are reflective of a general consensus. Holds break, new holds are found, short people find some climbs easier, tall people make longer reaches with more ease.

The climbers I’ve always admired the most are the ones that can climb hard, but that have fun on any good pitch, regardless of the difficulty. Enjoy climbing for what it is, and stop worrying so much about how hard it is. Challenge yourself, and get to know the other climbers, instead of trying to compare yourself to them. You might actually find you have a better time.