A sling, or runner, is a loop of strong nylon or Dyneema webbing used throughout climbing — to extend protection and reduce rope drag, build anchors, attach to the rock, and carry gear. Slings come sewn in standard lengths and are a fundamental, versatile part of any climbing kit.
A dynamic rope is a climbing rope engineered to stretch and absorb the energy of a fall, reducing the force on the climber, gear, and belayer. Its stretchy kernmantle construction — a core sheathed in a woven cover — makes it the standard rope for lead climbing and top-roping, distinct from low-stretch static rope used for rappelling and hauling.
An ATC is a lightweight tube-style belay device. The name comes from Black Diamond's 'Air Traffic Controller' and is now used generically for similar tubes. The rope bends through a slot and against a carabiner to create friction for belaying and rappelling. Simple and versatile, it works with one or two ropes and has no moving parts.
A pitch is a section of a climb between two belay points, no longer than a single rope length. Routes longer than one rope length are split into multiple pitches that the climbing team ascends one at a time. A single-pitch route is climbed in one go; multi-pitch routes link several pitches up a wall.
Climbing grade conversion is the approximate translation of a climb's difficulty between the world's different grading systems — such as YDS, French, UIAA, V-scale, and Font. Because each system developed separately, conversions are only ever approximate, but they let climbers compare routes and boulders across countries.
The V-scale (or Hueco scale) is the American system for grading bouldering difficulty, running from V0 for beginners upward — V5, V10, V15 — with no fixed upper limit. Created at Hueco Tanks, Texas, it rates the hardest moves of a boulder problem and is the most common bouldering grade system in the US.
The French grade, or sport grade, is the most widely used system for rating climbing routes worldwide. It uses a number plus a letter and an optional plus — such as 6a, 7b+, or 8c — with higher values meaning harder. It rates a route's overall difficulty and is the standard for sport climbing across much of the world.
Gym climbing is climbing on artificial walls indoors, with colour-coded plastic holds marking routes and problems. Gyms offer top-rope, lead, and bouldering in a controlled setting with rental gear and classes, making them the most common entry point into climbing and a popular year-round training venue.
Sport climbing is a style of rock climbing where climbers ascend routes protected by permanent bolts drilled into the rock, clipping the rope with quickdraws as they lead. Because protection is fixed and reliable, it emphasizes hard, gymnastic movement over placing gear, making it the most popular form of outdoor lead climbing.
To send a climb is to complete it cleanly from start to finish without falling or resting on the rope or gear. The word covers any successful clean ascent — an onsight, flash, or redpoint all count as sends. 'Sending' has become general climbing slang for nailing a goal.