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 ...
, an overhang is a type of
route that leans back at an angle of over 90 degrees for part or all of the climb, and at its most severe can be a horizontal roof. Overhang (and roof) climbs have existed throughout climbing, originally in
aid climbing
Aid climbing is a form of rock climbing that uses mechanical devices and equipment, such as aiders (or ladders), for upward momentum. Aid climbing is contrasted with free climbing (in both its traditional or sport free climbing formats), whi ...
where mechanical devices were used to first scale them. They became more common in
free climbing during the 1990s as
sport climbers used new training methods that enabled them to climb routes that were continuously, and severely, overhanging. Overhangs (and roofs) also feature prominently in advanced
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 ...
and in
competition climbing
Competition climbing is a form of regulated rock climbing, rock-climbing competition held indoor climbing, indoors on purpose-built artificial climbing walls (earlier versions were held on external natural rock surfaces). The three competition ...
.
Overhanging routes require a range of
technique
Technique or techniques may refer to:
Music
* The Techniques, a Jamaican rocksteady vocal group of the 1960s
* Technique (band), a British female synth pop band in the 1990s
* ''Technique'' (album), by New Order, 1989
* ''Techniques'' (album), by ...
s to manage the demands placed on the upper body, as the feet are less weighted.
Body positioning — keeping the hips close to the rock face and the arms straight — is important.
Advanced techniques such as the drop-knee, side-pulls-underclings-gastons, and the full range of
heel and toe hooks are used for this.
Knee-bars and
bat hangs are used to rest on the routes. Overhangs can force dynamic movements such as
campusing and
dynos, where the feet lose contact with the face. Exiting an overhang (or roof) can require awkward
mantle moves.
techniques enabled
traditional climbers to
free climb dramatic roofs and overhangs, one of the most notable being ''
Separate Reality''. In 1991,
Wolfgang Gullich, who had set several grade milestones on bolted
face climbing sport-routes, ascended the short but severely overhanging ''
Action Directe'' creating the
first-ever graded route.
Gullich was a pioneer of
plyometric training in climbing, which gave him the power to ascend severely overhanging routes. All subsequent grade milestones in climbing would come from continuously overhanging sport-climbing routes including ''
Realization/Biographie'', the first-ever , ''
Jumbo Love'', the first-ever , ''Change'', the first-ever , and ''
Silence
Silence is the absence of ambient hearing, audible sound, the emission of sounds of such low sound intensity, intensity that they do not draw attention to themselves, or the state of having ceased to produce sounds; this latter sense can be exten ...
'' the first-ever .
The dominance of overhanging routes in sport climbing, meant that they also became standard in
competition climbing
Competition climbing is a form of regulated rock climbing, rock-climbing competition held indoor climbing, indoors on purpose-built artificial climbing walls (earlier versions were held on external natural rock surfaces). The three competition ...
routes.
Overhangs and roofs also feature prominently in advanced bouldering, including on notable routes such as ''
The Mandala'', ''
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 ...
'', ''
The Wheel of Life'', and ''
Burden of Dreams
''Burden of Dreams'' is a 1982 documentary film directed and produced by Les Blank.
Synopsis
The film is a making-of documentary about the chaotic production of Werner Herzog's 1982 film '' Fitzcarraldo''. It was filmed on location in the jun ...
'', the first-ever boulder problem to be graded .
Several notable
multi-pitch and
big-wall routes, feature famous overhangs and roofs, including "The Great Roof" on pitch 22 of ''
The Nose'' on
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 ...
,
and the enormous series of roofs on the north face of the
Cima Ovest through which ' ascends, the world's
first-ever graded multi-pitch route.
In 2019, freed ''Valhalla'', the world's largest roof-climb spanning over 14 pitches, and was also the world's
first multi-pitch route.
See also
*
Crack climbing
*
Face climbing
*
Slab climbing
In rock climbing a slab climb (or friction climb) is a type of climbing route where the rock face is 'off-angle' and not fully vertical. While the softer angle enables climbers to place more of their body weight on their feet, slab climbs maintain ...
*
Rock-climbing technique
References
Further reading
*
*
*
External links
Classic 9a+ The Overhanging Route: Biographie Seb Bouin (2020)
{{climbing navbox
Types of climbing
Geomorphology
*