October 21, 2009

There are many variations to the traditional rock climbing. They can be broadly classified into free climbing and aid climbing.

In free climbing the climber uses only hands, feet and other parts of the body to ascend. No artificial aids are employed to make upwards progress; ropes and protection are used only as insurance against falls and their consequences. Free climbing is perhaps the highest and most aesthetic expression of the climbing game since it requires strength, ingenuity, skill and experience to be successful on the most difficult routes. However, as an umbrella term, "free climbing" spans four subsets of climbing styles: traditional, sport, free soloing and bouldering.

In contrast, aid climbing is a practice employed primarily in extremely sheer vertical circumstances in which equipment is directly pulled or stood on to ascend.

Most rock climbers are free climbers, using only their hands, feet, balance and wits to climb a rock face. Occasionally, however, every free climber will use an aid move or two, like grabbing a quickdraw or a couple pieces of gear, to climb past a difficult rock section. When you climb like this, using occasional aid moves to speed up your climb or enable you to pass the hard parts, it is called French freeing or French free. This type of climbing not only allows you to climb long routes more quickly, but it also allows you to climb routes at a higher difficulty level than what you usually climb.