What is smearing in climbing? The word has multiple definitions and we’re certainly not going to get into all of them here. If you aren’t familiar with the smearing rock climbing term, you’d perhaps think it was something to do with ego-driven climbers trying to downplay each other’s achievements. “She says she does all her climbs on-sight but that’s a total lie.

” “Sure, it looked like he free soloed it on Insta, but I know he had a rope on for most of the route.” This is, of course, utter nonsense. Smearing in climbing has nothing to do with smear campaigns.

Nor does it have anything to do with coating a section of a climb with a sticky substance, or any of the other definitions of the word. No, in climbing, smearing means something else entirely. So, just what is smearing in rock climbing exactly? We've asked one of our mountaineering experts to explain all.

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In essence, rather than a traditional foothold, the climber uses the surface of the rock, relying on the friction generated between the rubber in their shoes and the wall. In order for it to be effective, the climber has to ensure that they put as much force as is needed into their foot to provide enough friction to hold it in place. It's a technique used to tackle the more featureless sections climbers may find on a given route.

Where traditional holds are found wanting, enter the smear. You’ll need decent to do it effectively on very steep terrain, as well as confidence in your technique. Most .