
Beta is a
climbing term that designates information about how to ascend a
climbing route
A climbing route () is a path by which a Climbing, climber reaches the top of a mountain, a rock face or an ice-covered obstacle. The details of a climbing route are recorded in a climbing guidebook and/or in an online climbing-route database. De ...
, and the specific
climbing techniques required—and how to apply them—to overcome the key challenges encountered. Traditionally sourced in
climbing guidebook
Climbing guidebooks are used by mountaineers, alpinists, ice climbers, and rock climbers to locate, grade, and navigate climbing routes on mountains, climbing crags, or bouldering areas. Modern route guidebooks include detailed information o ...
s, online databases and apps now provide detailed climbing beta. The term is attributed to Texan climber Jack Mileski.
When a climber completes a route on their first attempt and without falling, it is called an
onsight if they had no beta, or a
flash if they had beta (a completion after several failed attempts is called a
redpoint). New
grade milestones in the on-sighting and flashing of routes are actively followed in the climbing media. The discovery of ''new beta'' has led to the re-grading of notable and historic climbing routes.
Description
The complexity of ''beta'' can range from a small hint about a difficult section (i.e. referred to as "some" beta), to a step-by-step instruction of the entire climb (i.e. referred to as "the" beta).
[ Sometimes there is more than one way to climb a route and thus more than one beta; climbers can follow different route beta depending on their body shape (e.g. whether they have a long or short reach), and/or their preferred style and technique (e.g. may not have the power to overcome a roof, and thus take a different route).] Multiple route options–and thus betas–are particularly common on long multi-pitch climbing and big wall climbing routes, for example on the famous Yosemite
Yosemite National Park ( ) is a national park of the United States in California. It is bordered on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the northwest by Stanislaus National Forest. The park is managed by the National Park Service ...
route '' Freerider'' and its optional "Huber boulder problem".
In rock climbing
Rock climbing is a climbing sports discipline that involves ascending climbing routes, routes consisting of natural rock in an outdoor environment, or on artificial resin climbing walls in a mostly indoor environment. Routes are documented in c ...
, beta can include background information about a route's grade of difficulty (e.g. what drove the grade), detailed aspects about the crux
CRUX is a lightweight x86-64 Linux distribution targeted at experienced Linux users and delivered by a tar.gz-based package system with BSD-style initscripts. It is not based on any other Linux distribution. It also utilizes a ports system ...
(e.g. "you need to use your left hand, not your right"), the climbing style needed (e.g. long reaches or tiny crimps), the best way to protect the route (e.g. "insert a number 4 SLCD before attempting the crack"), and specific information about hand or foot holds.[ ebook: ] For mountaineering
Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become mounta ...
and alpine climbing, beta may include information about the approach (e.g. crossing bergschrund
A bergschrund (from the German for ''mountain cleft''; sometimes abbreviated in English to "schrund") is a crevasse that forms where moving glacier ice separates from the stagnant ice or firn above. It is often a serious obstacle for mountaineer ...
s), the ability to find the correct route (e.g. "avoid the crack system on the left"), the feasibility of exiting the route before completing it (e.g. key abseils to set up), and the situation regarding rock-fall and avalanche dangers.
Sometimes climbers display beta on a graphical ''beta-map'' (a more detailed move-by-move instruction guide than the route topo). Advanced climbers on very difficult routes try to connect the beta of their route to their muscle memory, so they don't have to think about the next move.
Competition climbers are given a fixed time to inspect the route as a group before the competition, but once the climbing begins, they must remain in the isolation zone away from the climbing wall
A climbing wall is an artificially constructed wall with manufactured grips (or "holds") for the hands and feet. Most walls are located indoors, and climbing on such walls is often termed indoor climbing. Some walls are brick or wooden constr ...
, to prevent them learning more beta from watching fellow competitors attempting the route. During a time-limited pre-competition inspection, climbers try to work out the beta starting from the top of the route and working down, to avoid losing time.
Derived terms
The derived term spraying beta designates when a third party begins to impart unwanted beta without being asked for it (which can ruin an onsight attempt). The term breaking beta designates when a climber is able to bypass or skip a whole sequence of moves (e.g. using a dyno).
Access
The official climbing guidebook
Climbing guidebooks are used by mountaineers, alpinists, ice climbers, and rock climbers to locate, grade, and navigate climbing routes on mountains, climbing crags, or bouldering areas. Modern route guidebooks include detailed information o ...
s were the first systematic forms of beta.[ The beta in these physical climbing guidebooks was limited to the basic details of the ]climbing route
A climbing route () is a path by which a Climbing, climber reaches the top of a mountain, a rock face or an ice-covered obstacle. The details of a climbing route are recorded in a climbing guidebook and/or in an online climbing-route database. De ...
(e.g. length, grade, direction/topo etc.) so as to manage the size of the guidebook and avoid giving so much information that would spoil an onsight attempt. With the development of the internet, a significant quantity of more detailed beta began to accumulate (e.g. complete YouTube
YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
videos on how to climb a specific route, per example opposite).[
Both established climbing guidebook publishers (e.g. 'RockFax' in Europe), and the new dedicated online climbing databases (e.g. Mountain Project and 'theCrag.com'), began to aggregate this detailed beta in online databases and apps, alongside the traditional guidebook-type information. Open-source beta databases such as 'OpenBeta' also aggregate user-generated climbing beta.
]
Origin
The original use of the term ''beta'' in climbing is generally attributed to the late Texan climber Jack Mileski, who climbed predominantly in the Shawangunks during the early 1980s. "Beta" is short for Betamax
Betamax (also known as Beta, and stylized as the Greek letter Beta, β in its logo) is a discontinued consumer analog Videotape, video cassette recording format developed by Sony. It was one of the main competitors in the videotape format war ag ...
, an early videotape format since largely replaced by the VHS format. Reputedly, Mileski had a near photographic recall of many routes in the Gunks and would share said info with his friends while they climbed.
Onsights and flashes
When climbers are attempting a graded climbing route for their first time, a distinction is made on whether they complete the route on their first attempt without falling. This distinction is further split depending on whether they had prior beta about the route. Where they had no beta, their ascent is called an onsight, and where they had prior beta, it is called a flash.
The climbing media records new grade milestones of onsights and flashes of major sport climbing
Sport climbing (or bolted climbing) is a type of free climbing in the sport of rock climbing where the Lead climbing, lead climber clips their climbing rope, rope — via a quickdraw — into pre-drilled in-situ bolt (climbing), bolts for their ...
routes. As of 2023, the highest milestone in flashing a route was by Czech climber Adam Ondra who in 2018, became the first-ever climber in history to flash a graded sport climbing route, ''Super Crackinette''. As of 2023, the highest milestone for on-sighting a route was set by German climber Alex Megos who in 2013, became the first-ever climber in history to onsight a graded sport climbing route, ''Estado Critico''. As of 2023, Slovenian climber Janja Garnbret remains the only female climber to flash (''La Fabelita'' in 2015) and onsight (''Fish eye'' in 2021) an graded sport climbing route.
Effect on re-grading
When a climber has made the first ascent
In mountaineering and climbing, a first ascent (abbreviated to FA in climbing guidebook, guide books), is the first successful documented climb to the top of a mountain or the top of a particular climbing route. Early 20th-century mountaineers a ...
(or first free ascent) of a climbing route, they will assign a technical grade to the route to reflect the difficulties encountered. This grade will be a function of the particular beta that the climber used to make their first ascent. As subsequent climbers repeat the new route, they may discover ''new beta'' that makes the route easier and thus lowers its grade. Notable examples include the 2021 downgrading of '' Bibiliographie'' from –the world's highest grade at the time–to after a slightly easier sequence of moves was worked out for the crux
CRUX is a lightweight x86-64 Linux distribution targeted at experienced Linux users and delivered by a tar.gz-based package system with BSD-style initscripts. It is not based on any other Linux distribution. It also utilizes a ports system ...
. New beta can also emerge from new climbing techniques; examples being the introduction of knee pads that enabled knee bar rests, and use of more advanced heel hooks. In 2002, the famous bouldering
Bouldering is a form of rock climbing that is performed on small rock formations or Climbing wall, artificial rock walls without the use of ropes or Climbing harness, harnesses. While bouldering can be done without any equipment, most climbers ...
route ''Dreamtime
The Dreaming, also referred to as Dreamtime, is a term devised by early anthropologists to refer to a religio-cultural worldview attributed to Australian Aboriginal religion and mythology, Australian Aboriginal mythology. It was originally u ...
'' was downgraded from being the world's first-ever graded boulder to being grade , with the discovery of new beta that used heel hooks to make the route slightly easier, thus reducing the grade.
Notable beta
Certain famous climbs have beta around very specific necessary sequences of movements or actions that have in themselves become notable:
* "Rose Move". In 1985, leading French climber chipped out a series of tiny pockets on a limestone sport climbing
Sport climbing (or bolted climbing) is a type of free climbing in the sport of rock climbing where the Lead climbing, lead climber clips their climbing rope, rope — via a quickdraw — into pre-drilled in-situ bolt (climbing), bolts for their ...
route in Buoux to create '' La Rose et le Vampire'', only the fourth-ever route at the grade of in climbing history. The elegant sequence of cross-over movements needed to overcome its crux became known as the "Rose Move".
* "King Swing". One of the most famous pieces of beta in big wall climbing is the 100-foot pendulum that climbers need to execute to move from a crack-system that ends at 'Boot Flake' into a new crack-system that starts at 'Eagle Ledge' on the ''Nose
A nose is a sensory organ and respiratory structure in vertebrates. It consists of a nasal cavity inside the head, and an external nose on the face. The external nose houses the nostrils, or nares, a pair of tubes providing airflow through the ...
'' ( VI 5.9 C2) of El Capitan
El Capitan (; ) is a vertical Rock formations in the United States, rock formation in Yosemite National Park, on the north side of Yosemite Valley, near its western end. The El Capitan Granite, granite monolith is about from base to summit alo ...
in Yosemite
Yosemite National Park ( ) is a national park of the United States in California. It is bordered on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the northwest by Stanislaus National Forest. The park is managed by the National Park Service ...
.
See also
*Glossary of climbing terms
Glossary of climbing terms relates to rock climbing (including aid climbing, lead climbing, bouldering, and competition climbing), mountaineering, and to ice climbing. ebook:
The terms used can vary between different English-speaking countries; ...
* List of grade milestones in rock climbing
* Redpoint (climbing)
References
External links
What is Beta in climbing: Cracking the code
''HardClimbs'' (July 2023)
Don’t Worry: I Have the Perfect Beta For You
''Climbing
Climbing is the activity of using one's hands, feet, or other parts of the body to ascend a steep topographical object that can range from the world's tallest mountains (e.g. the eight thousanders) to small boulders. Climbing is done for locom ...
'' (July 2023)
theCrag
Europe's largest online rock climbing route database
MountainProject
North America's largest online rock and ice climbing route database
{{Climbing navbox
Climbing terminology
Competition climbing