Vertical Thrill

Went wall climbing with Roxie, MJ, Simon, Julius, and Marlyn at Power-Up, Silver City. Gerard, one of the instructors, first taught us how to do proper belaying, climbing, and basic equipment handling. To avoid any accidents, he told us that the communication between the climber and the belayer must be clear.

Before climbing, the climber should tell the belayer that he is ready to climb,

Climber: "Climbing!"

The belayer should then confirm that he is aware of the climb and is now ready to secure the climber,

Belayer: "Climb on!"

While the climber is up against the wall, he can make any of the following calls depending on his need:

If the climber needs the security of a tighter rope,

Climber: "Tension!"

If the rope is too tight, and the climber needs the belayer to loosen it off a bit,

Climber: "Slack!"

When the climber is already on top, as the saying goes, the only way to go is down. But before he could go down the wall, he should first inform the belayer of his descend,

Climber: "Down!"

Then, the belayer should pull any remaining slack to ensure that the climber won't fall. Once done,

Belayer: "Let go!"

Apparently, all the climbing commands are straightforward and are very easy to remember. Using them would be as easy as ABC - or so we thought.

Roxie as Climber: "Climb on!"
Me as Belayer: "Climbing!"
Gerard: "Baliktad!!!"

Roxie: "Aray! Ang sakit! Ang sakit!"
Gerard: "Anong sabi mo?"
Roxie: "Slack! Slack! Slaaack!!!"

Me: "Pagod na ko! Bababa na ko..."
MJ: "Down?"
Me: "Oo, down na!"
MJ: "Let go!"
Me: "Promise?"
MJ: "Oo!"
Me: "Talaga?"

Hahaha! ^_^ After climbing the beginner's wall a couple of times, we decided to try a more challenging wall - one that was slightly angled. I clenched and clawed and laughed my way up the wall without much agility and success. I found it difficult to sustain a strong grip on the hand holds. Guess it goes to show how heavy I am. Ehe. I don't think I got higher than six feet when I slipped. Argh!

MJ climbed the angled wall with so much ease and grace. She was almost able to reach the top of the wall. Galing! No wonder Spidey fell in love with her! ;)

Hehehe. ^_^

And what better way to end this day than to watch Spiderman 3?!