Campus board

Campus board wood

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Trainingsboard Boulderhalle

Concet Climbing Solution Hangboard

Campus board

A campus board is a training apparatus used primarily by rock climbers to improve their finger strength, contact strength, and power. It consists of a slightly overhanging wooden board with a series of evenly spaced wooden rungs or holds. Climbers use the campus board to perform a variety of exercises, such as campus training, which involves climbing the board using only the hands, without the assistance of the feet.

History

The campus board was invented in the late 1980s by German climber Wolfgang Güllich at the Campus Centre in Nuremberg, Germany. Güllich developed the campus board to train for his groundbreaking ascent of Action Directe, the first route graded 9a (5.14d) in the world.

Design and Construction

A typical campus board is inclined at an angle of approximately 15 degrees from vertical. The rungs are usually made of wood to provide a skin-friendly surface and are spaced at regular intervals, often around 22 centimeters apart. The board can vary in height, but it is generally tall enough to allow for a range of dynamic movements.

Training Exercises

Campus board exercises are designed to target specific aspects of climbing performance:

• Ladders: Climbers move hand-over-hand up the rungs in a controlled manner.
• Max Reach: Climbers attempt to reach the highest rung possible in a single dynamic movement.
• Touches: Climbers move one hand up to a higher rung and then return to the starting position.
• Double Dynos: Climbers use both hands to jump to a higher set of rungs simultaneously.

Safety Considerations

Training on a campus board can be intense and places significant stress on the fingers and tendons. It is important for climbers to warm up thoroughly and progress gradually to avoid injury. Beginners are advised to start with easier exercises and gradually increase the difficulty as their strength improves.

Related Training Tools

• Hangboard
• Fingerboard
• Bouldering wall
• System board

See Also

• Rock climbing
• Bouldering
• Sport climbing
• Training for climbing