Learn · Video

Tutorials

Short, practical videos on single techniques — alongside the cheat sheets and learning videos. Watch first, then try it on the wall.

Tutorial

Clipping a quickdraw — basics

Pro climber Jim Pope shows how to clip the rope efficiently — grip changes with body position on the rock. Clean clipping saves energy and cuts mistakes when pumped.

The essentials

Technique depends on position — left, right, overhead, or off to the side.
Watch the rope path: not behind a leg or the bolt (zig-zag).
Orient the carabiner correctly: rope into the gate from behind, not twisted.
Stay calm — take a second to set up rather than clip in a rush and miss.

Video © Hannah Morris Bouldering — watch on YouTube ↗

Tutorial

Sketchy lower-off — lowering with a Prusik backup

When stripping a sport route you often hang only from the lower-off while unclipping draws. If the anchor looks untrustworthy, a Prusik autoblock on the belayer’s strand means you are no longer loading that one point alone.

The essentials

Problem: while lowering and unclipping, your full weight is on the lower-off.
Fix: get a short Prusik (pulled up from the ground, or the partner sends it up the rope).
Wrap the Prusik as an autoblock on the strand to the belayer (often 5–6 turns on a single strand), carabiner into the belay loop.
Keep the autoblock open on purpose while lowering — otherwise it locks.
If the lower-off fails, the Prusik catches: worst case is a fall to the next draw, not a free fall from the anchor.

More background in the SicherAmBerg video series → and belaying with a tube under Belaying →.