Levels of difficulty - How do they work?

There is always a big debate about difficulty levels - both in Boulders and in the wild.

What determines the grading of a problem? What makes it a specific difficulty level?

In this week's blog post, we will try to provide some answers to this question.

When climbers fall off a problem, it's common to say ''It's certainly not red'', ''Wow a difficult blue'' and many similar phrases.

In an attempt not to get sucked into a discussion about grading, ask yourself. Did you think it was a cool problem, did you climb it well and did you enjoy the climb?

You have to ask yourself, what is a grade and why are you climbing it? Some people climb a specific grade to improve their level and others climb for pleasure or exercise.

Who decides the grading?

In Boulders, the route builders set the grading, they have a great frame of reference for how the colors relate to the difficulty level. The route builders use their years of experience to determine the grades. There is of course an overlap on all difficulty levels, which makes it possible to progress from the color you normally climb.

What factors influence the degree?

Gradings are intended to give an indication of the level of difficulty to expect. There is no fixed formula for how difficulty levels are related, but there are some guidelines to follow.

1. The most difficult movement on the problem (the crux), determines the degree of difficulty.

So while a problem may feel blue much of the time, there may be a movement that makes it a purple problem.

2. How many difficult movements are on the problem?

If there are many moves on the problem that are hard, it can make the difficulty level increase, even if the problem is equally hard all the way up and even if none of the moves in isolation is the specific difficulty level.

3. The length of the problem

Almost in the same way as many difficult movements, the length of a problem can increase its difficulty.

4. Different grips and angles on the wall.

The size of the grips, the length between movements and the angle of the wall can also have an impact on the level of difficulty.

5. Difficulty levels are very subjective and something that is difficult for some may be easy for others.

This can be due to many things, such as height, length of fingers, length of arms, agility, technical or strength level and many other factors.

If you're looking for how our difficulty levels relate to the V and Font scale, you can read our previous blog post with a chart.

In other words, difficulty levels are subjective and are not an exact science. Don't get too hung up on the grade itself, but enjoy the climb. We love to serve you delicious climbing :)

MVH Boulders Crew