Indoor climbing on artificial walls is the fastest-growing segment of the sport of rock climbing. With a wide variety of climbing challenges and the safety of a controlled indoor setting, the climbing gym is the perfect place for beginning climbers to develop their skills. In this comprehensive manual, veteran rock climber and climbing author Eric Horst presents a complete course in climbing equipment and safety gear, basic climbing skills and drills, more advanced technique, lead climbing, mental training and fear management, and physical conditioning.
For a beginning climber, this is an excellent primer. It covers most of what you need to know before, and during the first 6-12 months of your climbing journey. I'm just at the beginning of this myself, but I learnt a lot from this book and there was only a little that applied to advanced climbers. This book is great, too, on drilling certain principles that will help you in your journey. Note, though, that there's a *lot* in this book, so you'll probably want to keep returning as you learn more and progress in your journey.
What a phenomenal book! I wish I had gotten this the minute the first time I walked out of a climbing gym. Content a bit simpler and beginning friendly than Training for Climbing, a better introduction. I like it's coverage on history and safety.
Second half of the book on training/mental etc. is overlapped with Training for Climbing.
Nice overview of the sport from the indoor perspective. For some silly reason, just because the pictures seem to be primarily promoshots and because its in black and white, its just not as fun a read. But the info is good for a beginner (I'm still a beginner).
Quick read. I like how he clearly details the basic techniques and strategies. For someone getting into climbing (5.10 and some V2), this is an invaluable resource.