Pass a belay test at any climbing gym.

Just when you finally decided to give "climbing " a try, the summer is gone. Don't worry ! As a matter of fact, starting climbing at a local climbing gym is even easier and safer than outside.

In my previous post " The best way to learn climbing ", I wrote about how you could get started climbing, and one of the first basic skills you would have to learn - belaying.

At every local climbing gym, the first thing you will be asked is to demonstrate your belaying skills. Which basically comes to two skills : how to tie into a top-rope and how to belay effectively.

The video below is the easiest and most comprehensive video/demonstration of how to tie a figure eight knot I've ever seen. If I'd seen this video before , I probably wouldn't had taken the belay class in the first place: