Top rope climbing (or top roping) is a style in

climbing Climbing is the activity of using one's hands, feet, or any other part 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 fo ...

in which the climber is securely attached to a rope which then passes up, through an anchor system at the top of the climb, and down to a

belayer Belaying is a variety of techniques climbers use to create friction within a climbing system, particularly on a climbing rope, so that a falling climber does not fall very far. A climbing partner typically applies tension at the other end of t ...

at the foot of the climb. The belayer takes in slack rope throughout the climb, so that if at any point the climber were to lose their hold, they would not fall more than a short distance.

Description

Top-roping is often done on routes that cannot be lead climbed for one reason or another. Most top-rope anchors can be reached through non-technical means, such as by

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

scrambling Scrambling is a mountaineering term for ascending steep terrain using one's hands to assist in holds and balance.''New Oxford American Dictionary''. It is also used to describe terrain that falls between hiking and rock climbing (as a “scramb ...

to the top of the cliff. It is the most common style used at indoor

climbing wall A climbing wall is an artificially constructed wall with grips for hands and feet, usually used for indoor climbing, but sometimes located outdoors. Some are brick or wooden constructions, but on most modern walls, the material most often used i ...

s and is also used in situations where other methods would be unsafe or environmentally damaging. For example, in

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

and

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

in south-east

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, the

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

rock is soft and prone to erosion, so placing

protection Protection is any measure taken to guard a thing against damage caused by outside forces. Protection can be provided to physical objects, including organisms, to systems, and to intangible things like civil and political rights. Although th ...

into the rock would be both damaging and unreliable. There, top-roping from permanent anchors and

solo climbing Solo climbing, or soloing, is a style of climbing in which the climber climbs alone, without the assistance of a belayer. It is not to be confused with bouldering, a short ascent which by definition is done without the assistance of ropes, harn ...

are the only forms of ascent allowed. By contrast, in some other areas, top roping is frowned upon for various reasons – including possible erosion from people trying routes too difficult for them or a lack of suitable top-rope anchor points.

Technique

When selecting a rope for heavy top roping use, a large diameter (>= 10mm)

static rope A static rope is a low-elongation rope that is designed to stretch minimally when placed under load, typically less than 5%. In contrast, a dynamic rope is designed to stretch up to 40%. Static ropes have a wide variety of uses, for instance in f ...

(or low-stretch rope) is recommended for the anchors to prevent rope wear and reduce rock erosion and to ensure maximum safety in the event of a fall. A

dynamic rope A dynamic rope is a specially constructed, somewhat elastic rope used primarily in rock climbing, ice climbing, and mountaineering. This elasticity, or stretch, is the property that makes the rope dynamic—in contrast to a static rope that has ...

should be used for the climbers. It is important to arrange the anchor system in such a way that the climbing rope touches the rock as little as possible; damage to or destruction of the rope can result if a rope is loaded or dragged across sharp rocks enough times or with enough force. For anchors which are set back from the cliff edge, extending the anchor using multiple slings, a long adjustable-length sling, or a length of a static line is common. Most practitioners run the climbing rope through two screwgate

carabiner A carabiner or karabiner () is a specialized type of shackle, a metal loop with a spring-loaded gate used to quickly and reversibly connect components, most notably in safety-critical systems. The word is a shortened form of ''Karabinerhaken' ...

s attached to the anchor, to provide backup in case one becomes undone. In the interests of safety at least two separate and redundant anchor points should be used, with forces distributed as evenly between them as possible. In the photo above, it can be seen that only the two locking carabiners protrude over the cliff edge, allowing the climbing rope a relatively free run from the belayer to the climber.

Rationale

Top-roped climbing is safer, psychologically easier, and less physically demanding than

lead climbing Lead climbing is a climbing style, predominantly used in rock climbing. In a roped party one climber has to take the lead while the other climbers follow. The ''lead climber'' wears a harness attached to a climbing rope, which in turn is connecte ...

, in which the climber must clip into preplaced bolts in the rock as they ascend, or

traditional climbing Traditional climbing (or Trad climbing) is a style of rock climbing in which the climber places all the necessary protection gear required to arrest any falls as they are climbing, and then removes it when the pitch is complete (often done ...

, in which

is placed along the route by a lead climber. Most novice climbers initially experience the sport through top-roping. Image:Top_roping_in_black_forest_5.jpg, Both the rope up and its attachment to the climber can be seen in this view of top roping in the

Black Forest The Black Forest (german: Schwarzwald ) is a large forested mountain range in the state of Baden-Württemberg in southwest Germany, bounded by the Rhine Valley to the west and south and close to the borders with France and Switzerland. It is t ...

, Germany. Image:RockClimbingGoDownTechniqueWithPartnerAssistance.jpeg, Climber being lowered by the belayer, with weight on the top rope and hands outstretched for balance while "walking" down. File:Top Rope Belaying.webm, Top rope belaying File:Indoor top rope climbing UIAA grade 6- Neoliet Essen.webmhd.webm, Indoor top rope climbing in a climbing gym in Essen, Germany. The route is graded as UIAA 6 (YDS 5.9, Fr 5c)

References

External links

*University of Oregon Outdoor Pursuits Program
Climbing Anchors
{{DEFAULTSORT:Top Roping Types of climbing Climbing techniques Articles containing video clips