The Salt Lake Craggin’ Classic returns. On September 6th and 7th, rock climbers from all over will gather at Alta for a weekend-long celebration of all things climbing. Think of this event as a festival dedicated to the act of moving vertically over rock. You can immerse yourself in it with clinics, vendor tents, yoga sessions, gear giveaways, education, music, good food and beer, and a whole lot more.
This year’s event is being held at the Peruvian Lodge at Alta. Tickets are on sale now. Here’s the full schedule from the Craggin’ Classic website:
Weekend Pass Includes:
Yoga w/ Lululemon
Saturday & Sunday morning coffee by Silver Bean Coffee and breakfast by Black Diamond and RAB
Saturday night camping at Tanners Flats
Saturday night program with dinner, beer, presentations, raffle, Tunes by Matty D, and good times!
Two full day clinics or four half day clinics
Participation in the stewardship project with Tree Utah
Access to all the festivities!
Saturday & Sunday Day Pass:
Yoga w/ Lululemon
Includes coffee and breakfast
One full day clinic or two half day clinics
Substitute your Saturday morning clinic for a stewardship project with Tree Utah. RSVP via Facebook and register here to secure your spot…Space is LIMITED!
Vendor village
Saturday Night Festivities Pass:
Includes beverages by Moab Brewery
Delicious food by Himalayan Kitchen
Gear Giveaways from our great sponsors
Evening slideshow presentation and interview with past Live Your Dream Grant recipients Jewell Lund and Kim Hall. Learn how you can apply and have a chance to go on your own dream trip from the American Alpine Club Grant program!
Music by Matty D will be taking us to another planet to dance the night away…DO NOT MISS OUT!
Clinic Overview
Mountain Education and Development
FULL DAY OPTIONS (Saturday September 6th/Sunday September 7th, 10am-4:30pm)
Outdoor Rock Climbing for Kids
This clinic is taught together with the instructors from Momentum Climbing Gym and Red River Adventure. Focused on fun, exciting and effective techniques for introducing and encouraging kids as they experience outdoor rock climbing.
Intro to Outdoor Rock Climbing
New to rock climbing? Are you looking to transition from climbing at an indoor rock gym to an outdoor crag? This clinic will introduce participants to outdoor rock climbing in a top rope setting. Equipment use, belaying considerations, clear communication and basic climbing movement are all discussed and practiced.
Sport Lead Climbing
Are you looking to take that next step and start lead climbing? This clinic introduces participants to lead climbing fundamentals in a sport or fixed protection setting (bolts, etc.). Equipment use, leading principals, anchors, route setup and cleaning are all discussed and practiced. Participants will lead climb in a mock top rope environment.
Traditional Lead Climbing
You’ve seen the gear and wondered how it works? Maybe you think placing traditional protection on lead is intimidating and less secure? This clinic will start with a thorough discussion, demonstration and practice of placing passive (stoppers) and active (cams) traditional rock protection. Once comfortable placing gear on the ground, you’ll expand into the vertical environment. Leading principals, anchors, route setup and cleaning are all discussed and practiced. Participants will lead climb in a mock top rope environment while an instructor ascends a fixed line and provides live feedback on each of your placements.
Huge Days with a Light Rack
Join pro climber Scott Bennett to learn how to climb more pitches in less time. Scott holds the speed record on the Naked Edge (29 minutes bridge to bridge!) and fancies himself an expert in getting after it. To be an expert in this field, one must operate at a high level not only in the psych department, but also in the area of efficiency. This clinic will cover the basics of making the transition from the single-pitch to the multi-pitch environment with a particular focus on the gear, systems, strategies and tactics that contribute to maximizing multi-pitch days.
Light & Fast Alpinism
This is an intensive clinic designed to help climbers and alpinists push their limits in order to accomplish bigger objectives in less time. The light & fast ethic and style has been pushed to extremes in recent years with speed ascents of the Eiger, done-in-a-day pushes on Himalayan Peaks, and unimaginable link-ups in Yosemite Valley. While these examples show what a light & fast approach can accomplish, they do not help us understand the more important underlying benefits of this approach. These are benefits, skills and strategies that can be applied in every area of our climbing and alpinism. The clinic is designed to isolate and develop these more immediate benefits of the light & fast mentality with a focus on the skills and strategies that help us realize these benefits in the context of our own objectives. Over the course of two days, the clinic will cover everything from mindset to training to skills to gear. Day one will focus on the learning and day two will focus on the application. Participants should choose to attend both days to maximize their experience, but can also choose to only participate in Day 1.
*The course is being taught by Jesse Mattner who runs CAMP USA Inc., the wholly-owned US subsidiary of the Italian climbing gear manufacturer C.A.M.P.
HALF DAY OPTIONS (Saturday September 6th/Sunday September 7th, 10am-1pm & 2pm-5pm)
Multi-Pitch Transitions & Efficiency
You’ve spent a lot of time climbing at single pitch crags. You now want to go higher and further. Or maybe you’ve been stacking pitches but find the transitions from one to the next confusing or frustrating? Stance/rope management, equipment use, and belaying techniques all contribute to our multi-pitch transitions and efficiency. The more efficient, the more enjoyable the experience and the more climbing we can fit in. This clinic focuses on tips and tricks to help take your climbing further with more fun!
Anchors for Climbing
Bomber, solid, trucker….all terms you might hear people say when referring to their climbing anchor. What does it mean? How do you build a solid anchor for climbing? This clinic discusses fundamental points in climbing anchor construction and applies them to different environments. Learn how to build climbing anchors in a fixed (bolts, etc.), natural (trees, rocks, etc.) and traditional (passive, active, etc.) setting.
Base Site Self Rescue
Things don’t always go as planned while out climbing. Resources are limited and what may be a simple scenario could turn stressful very quickly. This clinic discussed self-rescue principals specific to bottom up rock climbing situations (top rope and single pitch lead climbing). Belay transfers, belay escapes and counter ascension/lowering skill sets are taught and practiced. Self-rescue involves the use of common tools and equipment that you might regularly have with you while out at the crag.
Top Site Self Rescue
You’re belaying from the top of a pitch and watch as a rock comes lose and strikes your partner in the shoulder. They’re unable to keep climbing and need to go down. You’re three pitches up. What do you do? This clinic focuses on self-rescue principals specific to top down rock climbing situations (multi-pitch climbing, etc.). Belay escapes, technical descents with an injured climber, rope ascension and hauling considerations are among the skill sets taught and practiced. This clinic will make use of common tools and equipment that you might regularly carry on a longer multi-pitch rock climb.
Shortroping
Movement through 4th and 5th class terrain can sometimes be intimidating for you or your partner. Should you pull out the rope and pitch it out on the up or setup a rappel on the down? Is there a more efficient way to utilize the climbing rope in this more moderate terrain that provides increased security for your climbing team? This clinic discusses the concept of shortroping and shortpitching. Participants will learn how to manage a climbing rope using kiwi coils, terrain belays, and other associated techniques. Efficient travel through lower grade rock terrain while maintaining climber security will be the primary focus.