One of the most dangerous parts of transitioning from gym climbing to outdoor climbing is cleaning anchors. In the climbing gym, one simply clips the anchors and lowers. While lowering equipment is becoming more common across USA sport crags, it is far from universal, and any aspiring outdoor climber needs to know how to clean, lower, and rappel from anchors without mussy hooks or permanent carabiners.
In this post we will present two popular, at-home tools for practicing anchor skills, Practi-Bolts and the anchor board, or “Remsboard.”
Practi-Bolts
The Practi-Bolts are plastic imitations of the most common anchor chains found on sport climbs. These magnetic practice anchors feature a quicklink-chain-rappel ring configuration. Place them on your fridge and then play around with different anchoring, rappelling, and lowering setups. If you are finding yourself enjoying outdoor sport climbing, but don’t feel confident enough to clean the anchor without guidance, these are a great tool for at-home practice.
THESE BOLTS WILL NOT HOLD BODY WEIGHT.
It is important to remember though – this is only one possible anchor setup. Use the Practi-Bolts to learn the principles of cleaning a route — learn the theory and understand what’s happening, and when you encounter a different anchor setup, you will be able to adapt to the situation.
Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/practibolts/
Buy on Amazon (two bolt kit): https://amzn.to/3PjaitB
The Remsboard
Remember how we said the Practi-Bolts only represented one anchor configuration? With the Remsboard, you can set up almost any anchor config you’d like. Designed by IMFGA Guide and Instagram influencer Dale Remsberg, the Remsboard comes with three moveable bolts, aligned in slots on a wooden board. The board can be used horizontally or vertically in order to create different anchors. You will need to provide your own chains and quicklinks if you want to practice with those things. Due to its high price ($150), this is a more useful tool for those who plan on instructing others. But the build quality and aesthetic appeal *is* a little higher than the practi-bolts.
Buy at Freestone Climbing Equipment: https://freestoneequipment.com/product/the-remsboard/
Overall
Arriving at a sport climbing anchor and knowing you have to clean it yourself can be quite scary, especially at height. The consequences for a mistake are real; they can be and have been deadly. So while we certainly encourage you to practice at home, we also highly encourage you to seek out qualified, in-person instruction, and to climb with patient people who make you feel safe.
Gym to Crag 