New video series from AMGA lets climbers belay their skills

Hone your mountaineering skills with new videos from the American Mountain Guides Association this spring.

American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA) and longtime partner, sportswear manufacturer Outdoor Research have released the first episode of their new video series to help climbers refine 12 principal skills.

Part One, "Belaying A Leader", was just released on Outdoor Research's Verticulture blog and on AMGA.com, and 12 more are to follow, appearing every Tuesday, note the AMGA.

The videos will cover skills ranging from belaying to rappelling and anchoring, and viewers who have never climbed before would have a newfound understanding for the beauty of the sport, says AMGA Technical Director Dale Remsberg.

"While these videos are no substitute for professional guide training, these new tech videos allow industry-leading information to be available to all mountain adventurers," says Christian Folk, marketing manager at Outdoor Research.

A Wadi Climbing course in the West Bank village of Yabrud, just north of Ramallah. Photo: AFP

Now in its 30th year, AMGA is a community of over 2,700 members including climbers, skiers and outdoor enthusiasts.

AMGA offers more than 300 internationally recognised training courses, exams and certifications.

According to the International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC), 25 million people are climbing regularly, of which two million are European.

Every day, 3,000 new climbers try the sport.

Thirty-eight per cent of climbers are women, they say, whereas in most sports women make up about 31 per cent of participants. – AFP Relaxnews