Hanging tough

Jun 27, 2006 11:40

It's been long enough; time for another climbing report ( Read more... )

climbing

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Comments 12

angelbob June 27 2006, 17:50:56 UTC
A 30-60-90 triangle has sides of lengths 1, 2, and sqrt(3).

So if the long side (ceiling to floor) is 15 ft, then the horizontal distance is 7.5 feet, and the hypotenuse is 7.5 times sqrt(3) feet, whatever that comes out to.

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angelbob June 27 2006, 17:52:40 UTC
No, wait, I'm wrong, 2 is the hypotenuse in 1:2:sqrt(3).

The long side is 15 ft, and it's also the short side times sqrt(3).

So the hypotenuse is 2 * (15/sqrt(3)), which is 30/sqrt(3).

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captain_squid June 27 2006, 19:51:02 UTC
Basic trig says that sin(60)= 0.5*sqrt(3), which is about .866. Since the sine is the ratio of the opposite side to the hypotenuse, solving for the hypotenuse gives us 15/.866, which is about 17'4".

Math is hard. Let's go shopping climbing!

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spyderella June 27 2006, 20:34:44 UTC
I do believe Mr Squid gets the kewpie doll. Although, I tell ya, it feels more like twenty-seven feet. Hmph.

(I'd rather go climbing than shopping any day.)

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the_macnab June 27 2006, 18:14:22 UTC
Why would dropping down from the top telescope your spine? Are you not on belay while doing this?

I'm a deeply unskilled rock climber and thus always impressed by these stories. Keep it up.

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spyderella June 27 2006, 20:46:46 UTC
Hee, I'm glad you appreciate the stories.

So, I unwittingly left out a key point here, eh? Yeah, this is a bouldering project, which means I'm not on belay. Bouldering is making short, difficult climbs that have technical challenges but stay low enough that it is safe to fall. "Safe," of course, means "not likely to cream you." Sprained ankles (or, I suppose, broken ones) are still a risk, just like if you jumped down from your deck or something.

At the gym, the floor is padded, and we also use "crash mats," so the bouldering line, a line on the wall that marks the highest you may climb without a rope, is about 15 feet off the ground.

Outside, you'd still use a crash mat, but you probably wouldn't--or I wouldn't--boulder quite as high even.

I just asked Flickr for photos tagged with 'bouldering,' and that gives a pretty good idea. (Man, I could look at climber photos all day...)

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the_macnab June 27 2006, 21:05:21 UTC
Makes sense as a bouldering project, then. I've never felt comfortable bouldering with my feet higher on the wall than my head would be when I'm standing on the ground. I'm six feet tall, though, so that would put my head at 12 feet up, and I could almost reach 15 feet with my hand. Is 15 feet the limit for your hands, or your feet?

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spyderella June 27 2006, 22:04:20 UTC
Hands, would be my call.

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valetoile June 28 2006, 07:58:17 UTC
I would very much like to go climbing with you! I think you said sundays were good- this sunday? Next sunday? The only way to keep plans is to make them.

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spyderella June 28 2006, 12:53:33 UTC
Yes! As a member, I get to bring a guest for a discount twice a month. (I think the entrance is free, but the gear rental and the required belay safety class might still have a price. I can find out.) This Sunday's good; next Sunday, too. We always say we'll get there at 10am but only manage 11am. We can give you a ride, too. Call me, or I'll call you this evening.

Neat!!

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me too! jipp July 3 2006, 17:11:24 UTC
I'd like to go climbing sometime with you guys too.
There were lots of large boulders just lying around the campus I was at for Beantown. I climbed up a few, but nothing worthy of the term bouldering.

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