Tips and Tricks

Coaching Adult Team: A Final Gladness, Part II

July 29, 2019

Note: In August, long-time coach and guide  Zack Sawyer will be moving on from Salt Pump and New England as he pursues new adventures with his partner Suzy in the desert of southern California. Zack joined the Salt Pump team soon after we opened, and his positive attitude, lust for learning, and…

Coaching Adult Team: A Final Gladness, Part I

April 15, 2019

Note: In August, long-time coach and guide  Zack Sawyer will be moving on from Salt Pump and New England as he pursues new adventures with his partner Suzy in the desert of southern California. Zack joined the Salt Pump team soon after we opened, and his positive attitude, lust for learning, and…

The Load Strand Direct (LSD) – The New Kid on the Block

January 17, 2019

A relatively recent innovation, the LSD lower is primed to go mainstream. It takes the novel approach of redirecting the load rather than the brake strand. This defeats the device’s assisted braking mechanism, providing a convenient lower! Great if you need to lower a climber mid-route or use a system…

What Goes Up Must Come Down – A Lesson in Lowering from Above

December 6, 2018

  The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn… -Alvin Toffle Seldom taught are quality methods for lowering a climber from above. Yet this skillset, which often gets lumped in with other multi-pitch processes like…

The Book Wall Part II: The Book Wall Returns

December 4, 2018

From The Ministry of Routesetting It’s getting into winter now, which means it’s time to forget about those cold, snow-covered rocks, and start training for the Spring! To help you with this, we’ve reinstalled The Book Wall on the 50º board. This will stay up for at least two months.…

Journeying into the Great Outdoors

September 27, 2018

Climbing long existed on the outskirts of society and sport. Climbing gyms, especially today’s modern and inclusive ones, have dramatically changed this. At Salt Pump, we feel privileged for the daily opportunity to introduce people to the sport and enrich the lives of new and old climbers alike. We are…

Setters’ Favorite New Lead Wall Routes

March 6, 2018

By Tino Fiumara We just finished the new Lead Wall reset, resulting in 37 routes from 5.9 to 5.13b, with the majority of climbing in the 5.10 and 5.11 range. We’ve introduced colored volumes for Yellow and Blue – meaning that a Yellow volume is only for Yellow routes, etc.…

From the Training Pagoda: 4 Stretches That Will Improve Your Climbing Now

September 5, 2017

By Freddie Wilkinson Everyone knows that flexibility is critical to climbing performance, yet it’s still overlooked by many climbers. Moreover, the root cause of many climbing injuries are overworked, excessively tight muscle groups. Two of the most beneficial areas to target are the shoulders and hips. Here are a couple…

Transitioning From Indoor to Outdoor Climbing

June 7, 2017

If you are looking for a trusted partner to share outdoor rock climbing with this season, we are here for you.   The step from gym to outdoor climbing is both significant and consequential. One notable challenge is navigation: Choosing an appropriate crag to climb at, finding your way to…

How To: Dyno!

March 9, 2017

By Tino Fiumara A dyno is a large dynamic movement between holds and is an essential movement in climbing. Dyno-ing is often the only option when the hold is too far away to do statically or because trying to do a large move statically, especially in steeper terrain, is a…