Slopers

Slopers are easily recognizable as they appear exactly as they sound: sloping. Slopers are characterized by their lack of any positive feature on the hold. Climbers must use an open hand grip and clever body positioning to create enough friction to hold onto a sloper. While slopers are a more advanced type of climbing hold, you will rarely find a home wall without one. They are an excellent way to create a variation on the wall as no other hold requires the type of open hand grip as a sloper. Outdoor climbs generally have slopers near the top as the rock rounds or on the sides (or aretes), so slopers are great for preparing climbers for outdoor adventures as well. If you are just starting out, you probably only need a couple of slopers for your home wall, but you’ll quickly discover how fun and frustrating slopers can be!