Climbing Magazine

Welcome to Climb Naked Shoes - When good climbing shoes are all you need!

Picking the Right Place to Start

Regardless of where you decide to start climbing, ClimbNakedShoes.com is here to support you. As you work your way up each rock and up the grading scales, from the jungle gym 5.0 – 5.4-grade climbs, to world-champion grade 5.14 and 5.15 climbs that make climbing glass look easy, we’ll have the shoes you’ll need.

Getting started in rock climbing can be easy, since, after all, you could just Climb Naked, right? Your friends might not appreciate you hanging out in nothing but your climbing shoes, though, so be aware that typically climbers do invest in some additional gear. Now, depending on what type of climbing you want to do, you’ll eventually need to scrounge some coin for the additional gear, which will run you anywhere from around $100 for shoes, chalk and a bouldering pad, to infinity and beyond to outfit yourself for trad climbing.

ClimbNakedShoes.com encourages you to try out as much gear as you can borrow, cheat, or steal from your new climbing buddies before investing in your own, especially if you plan to invest in a full rack. Everyone knows plastic surgery is expensive, right? Not that kind of rack – the kind of rack slung with “friends,” carabiners, belay devices, and nuts to protect, well, your nuts (and other precious body parts) while climbing.
It’s also important to know where to go. Obviously, a beginning climber is not going to succeed on his first ascent of Everest. Start easy, and work your way up. There are multitudes of climbing guidebooks and online references. Pay attention to the grading scale – any previously established route should be assigned a grade from 5.0 (vertical cakewalk) to 5.15 (God did not intend for this to be tread by human feet).

You might also want to consider taking some basic climbing lessons before you go. If climbing were really as easy as pulling yourself up a ladder, you wouldn’t have quite so many people (like us here at ClimbNakedShoes.com) who are completely obsessed with it. A few lessons can help you succeed on climbs you might otherwise fall right off of. Take Garett, the intern, for example. The first time we got him higher than 15 feet on a climbing wall, he was holding himself so close to the wall that we were seriously concerned he might accidentally inhale one of the holds. “Relax your arms!” we screamed frantically. I don’t think he heard us, though, because the next day he came in with Icy-Hot™ caked all over his forearms.

Simple technique lessons like relaxing your arms and paying attention to your footwork can save you precious time and energy while climbing. Plus, your climbing buddies will be much more likely to invite you out for another trip if you don’t look like C3P0 trying to scramble up a rock face. And Garett, the pungent smell of Icy-Hot™ should not be considered a substitute for cologne. Or deodorant, for that matter.

Here at ClimbNakedShoes.com, we realize that training and technique are key components of any successful climb. People often think that their arms do most of the climbing, but actually, your feet and legs should bear the brunt of the work pushing you up the wall. This will, of course, go easier if you have an excellent pair of shoes, and also if you get up off your couch, put the Cheetos™ away, and get some exercise after purchasing said shoes online.

That said, walking on your hands is just one of several circus tricks that any serious climber should master. Others include tight rope (a.k.a. slack-lining), trapeze (a.k.a. rappelling), and, of course, that plate-spinning trick (just to show off)..