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Climbing Mentor Program

Purpose & Objectives

Develop instructors with the needed competencies, motivation, and structure to actively support climbing activities as well as other roles within the Alamo Council climbing community.

  • Provide Initial instructor training
  • Provide a structured approach to attaining needed certifications and advanced instructor levels
  • Provide continued training and exposure to other skill sets to maintain and update their knowledge base

Training Resources

  • Climbing Instructor Class – Develop instructors with the needed competencies (knowledge, skills, and attitude) for Climbing Instructor Level 1 (and appropriate certifications based on demonstrated experience)
  • Climbing Instructor Mentoring Program – Develop needed certificates and competencies for Level 2 Instructor within 12 months; and then to provide continuous development afterwards
  • Climbing Committee Meetings – Not yet formalized.  10-20 minute sessions on discreet skills to train and expose instructors to various skill sets and maintain knowledge.
  • Instructor Documentation – the council climbing committee maintains a DropBox with equipment logs, trip reports, etc.  If you’re a certified instructor, ask the director or webmaster for access.

Climbing Instructor Mentor Program – Not Yet Formalized

  • Blue Card Approach – Having all mentoring areas linked to a certification enables the blue card approach.  See Competencies below
  • Mentoring candidates – Candidates may inquire and apply at any hands-on council climbing activity after they’ve completed Level 1 Climbing Instructor
  • Mentor selection – Mentors are nominated by the Climbing Committee, and voted on by the Climbing Directors
  • Certification Verification – Consider having a lead mentor for each certification area who is responsible for signing off that area to ensure consistency of ability and checkoff
  • Instructor Level Verification – Directors vote on giving full Level 2
  • Timelines – Although the goal is 12 months, those with more experience may progress much faster—that is the goal

AAC Climbing Instructor Competencies & Certifications

The AAC Climbing Committee identified these competencies as our main focus for our program. This in no way is an all inclusive list of all knowledge in climbing or scouting.  This outline is a general plan to make new instructors and introduce them to the knowledge, skills, and attitude the committee expects.  Some items are specific to the Alamo Council area and other programs in other councils may vary.

Level 1 Knowledge Competencies

  • Awareness of safety procedures and risks inherent to climbing/rappelling
  • Understand steps to plan and conduct a safe climbing event
    • Verify Site suitability
    • Emergency Response Plan
    • Weather Considerations
    • Leave no Trace
    • Crowd Control
  • Manage participants (Challenge by choice)
    • Ground school
    • Manage fear
    • Work with disabilities
    • Review medical and release forms
  • General Knowledge of Natural Anchors
  • Incident resolution
  • Pre- and Post-event inventory and inspection

Level 1 Skills Competencies

  • Knots
    • Ability to explain proper use and function of each specific knot
    • Working knowledge: Alpine Butterfly, Prusik, Clove Hitch, Girth Hitch, Double Fisherman’s
    • Demonstrated competence: Figure 8 on a Bite, Figure 8 Follow-through, Super 8, Stopper Knot, Water Knot, Munter Hitch, Mule Knot
  • Basic Climbing Skills
    • Climb with feet first then hands (Example, how do you climb a ladder?)
    • Maintain balance over feet
  • Rappelling
    • Properly rig and use rappelling devices – Figure 8 or Rescue 8
    • Demonstrate safe, fluid descent
  • Spotting
    • Proper training and use of spotters on ground school
    • Appropriate use of ladders
  • Belaying
    • Properly rig and attach appropriate belay device such as an ATC
    • Demonstrate safe, fluid belaying of both climbing and rappelling using the recommended belay method (chop)

Level 1 Attitude Competencies

  • Ability to work within a team of instructors
  • Appropriate and timely judgement
    • Ability to analyze problems
    • Appropriately resolve dilemmas
    • Understand and work within personal limits
  • Raise concerns and seek clarification using appropriate lines of questioning
  • Extend existing knowledge and skills to new situations using appropriate lines of reasoning

Certifications

These certificates are meant to address specific needs within the Alamo Council area.  The short descriptions are only meant to give a general clue as to what each certificate is for.  This is no way details every task you need to accomplish to gain a certificate.  The certificates coincidentally match our REGULAR OUTINGS and the committee encourages working up the outings ladder and thus you’ll work up the certifications ladder.  Normally, certification is good for 12 months, renewable by attending outings and demonstrating continued competency to the climbing director.

  • Level 1 Ground School – You can manage a group of adults and instructors to cycle a group of children through proper conduct, proper attire, use of equipment, rappelling, and belaying practice.  This is typically done during a unit’s typical meeting time in order to prepare for an upcoming outing.
  • Level 2 Auto-Belay Cert -At Bear Creek you can execute proper protocols for wall reservations, safety preparation, gear checkout/in, proper gear usage, and finally managing a group of adults and participants through the Bear Creek Wall.
  • Level 2 McGimsey Tower Cert –  At McGimsey you can execute proper protocols for tower reservations, safety preparation, gear checkout/in, proper gear usage, and finally managing a group of adults and participants through the McGimsey Tower.
  • Level 2 Natural Areas Cert* – Instructor School will introduce you to available natural rock at Bear Creek.  Enchanted Rock will require more time and preparation from you.  Ideally, you would make recon trips of your climbing area.  Even better, you’d help another unit with their event.  *Receiving a natural areas cert from the climbing committee does not mean you’ll know how to rig every rock and tree in existence.  That’s why climbing is a dynamic sport.  The cert reflects your ability to apply the Climbing Knowledge, Skills, and Attitude within the Alamo Council area.

Level 2 Climbing Instructor Knowledge

  • Understand our council’s programs and issues
    • Done by attending Council Climbing Committee Meetings
  • Understand other council climbing programs and policy differences
    •  SHAC & Capitol Area are our friends but they do some things differently
  • Understand climbing structure (tower and natural) maintenance and upkeep
  • Familiarity with technical overlap and differences with caving and canyoneering rope work
  • Develop lessons learned from council/troop climbing events
  • Understand previous incidents and their resolution

Level 2 Climbing Instructor Skills

  • Reserve, check out, and return Wilderness Box (Wilderness Box is reservable online)
    • Properly inspect, log, and store all equipment
  • Plan and conduct safe tower events (Tower is reservable online)
  • Plan and conduct safe natural climbing events
  • Plan and conduct ground schools
  • Develop an Emergency Response Plan for a climbing activity
  • Demonstrated climbing & rappelling incident resolution
  • Schedule, reserve, and utilize climbing resources for your own troop event not during non-council events such as Open Climb.
  • Ropework – Hands on experience in actual climbing scenarios
    • Ropes
      • Properly inspect a climbing rope and log any issues
      • Properly uncoil and coil ropes
    • Knots
      • Mastery of all level 1 knots
      • Ability to demonstrate multiple methods of tying all level 1 knots
    • Anchors
      • Demonstrated inspection and use of all fixed anchors on all council assets
      • Demonstrated proper natural protection selection and use on natural climbs
  • Belaying and spotting
  • Equipment
    • Demonstrate ability to inspect, maintain, and recommend fixes/retirement of council equipment

Level 2 Climbing Instructor Attitude

  • Ability to understand, stay within, AND mitigate personal limits
    • Gaining necessary knowledge and/or skills
    • Using team approach to utilize others’ strengths
  • Ability to maintain broader, event-level perspective
  • Ability to form and lead teams of instructors and non-instructors
    • Demonstrate appropriate communications
    • Resolve differences and conflicts
  • Ability to identify and forward lessons learned for consideration at Council Climbing Committee
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