Defining the Climb

Announcements on a new addition coming to Cole's Climb

I toe-hook around the under-cling, moving slow to avoid barn-dooring off the problem. The next move is a dyno onto a greasy looking sloper. I look down at the gym floor below. I want to secure the send on this project, but if I screw up here, I’m in for a big whipper.

I lean on the backspace key, deleting the entire paragraph. “Ridiculous,” I mutter to myself. No one is going to know what the hell I’m talking about.”

There’s a reason I try to avoid writing like this: the jargon makes no sense to people not immersed in the sport. Even if I applied a footnote to every single keyword, having to click through all of them would completely pull you out of the story.

Still: sometimes my mountain slang does poke through — hopefully in a way which adds character to the piece.

Downtown Breckenridge, with the ski resort in the distance

I decided to put together this little glossary of sorts, for any of you who want to immerse yourself in the climbing, mountaineering, and snowboarding cultures.

Some of these terms are downright silly. Hopefully you’ll get a laugh out of a few of these. Future posts will also link there for future clarification on terms.

I decided against mailing the glossary out to everyone. It’s a bit dense for the inbox but makes a nice addition to Cole’s Climb. You’ll now be able to see it on the “helpful links” to the right of the home page.

I Want to Hear from You

Do you have a favorite bit of slang? Bonus points if it’s affiliated with the outdoors. If I missed one, let me know and I’ll update the list. Either way, I’d love to hear your comments below: