CWI Climbing Wall Safety & Equipment 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which condition in a climbing gym environment poses the highest risk of hold failure on a woodboard training wall?
- Excessive chalk buildup on the hold surface
- Holds mounted with T-nuts that have spun or pulled through the board (Correct answer)
- Holds that have been repainted more than twice
- Holds positioned at angles greater than 30 degrees from horizontal
Correct answer: Holds mounted with T-nuts that have spun or pulled through the board
Spun or pulled-through T-nuts lose their gripping capacity and can cause holds to rotate or detach unexpectedly under load.
Question 2: What is the recommended minimum ceiling clearance above the top of a climbing wall for safe operation?
- 1 foot
- 2 feet
- 3 feet (Correct answer)
- 5 feet
Correct answer: 3 feet
At least 3 feet of clearance above the top anchor allows for safe rope handling and prevents a climber from contacting the ceiling during a fall.
Question 3: A CWI observes a climber wearing open-toed sandals on the wall. The correct action is to:
- Allow it if the climber is experienced
- Stop the climber and require proper climbing shoes or closed-toe footwear (Correct answer)
- Have the climber sign a waiver and continue
- Only intervene if the climber is above 10 feet
Correct answer: Stop the climber and require proper climbing shoes or closed-toe footwear
Open-toed footwear creates a significant risk of foot injury from holds and the wall surface, and proper footwear is a mandatory safety requirement.
Question 4: When a climbing rope shows sheath slippage (the sheath bunching or sliding relative to the core), the rope should be:
- Washed to realign the sheath and core
- Retired from use (Correct answer)
- Used only for top-rope, not lead climbing
- Trimmed at the bunched section and re-used
Correct answer: Retired from use
Sheath slippage indicates the sheath and core have separated, compromising the rope's dynamic performance and requiring retirement.
Question 5: During a lead climbing fall, a 'whipper' refers to:
- A fall where the rope whips and strikes another climber
- A long, dynamic fall where the climber swings or falls a significant distance (Correct answer)
- A fall caused by a hold breaking unexpectedly
- A rope that snaps back toward the belayer after a catch
Correct answer: A long, dynamic fall where the climber swings or falls a significant distance
A whipper is slang for a long, dynamic lead fall where the climber swings or falls far before the rope catches them.
Question 6: What is the primary reason climbing instructors should conduct a daily visual inspection of the climbing wall surface and holds?
- To update route grades if holds have been repositioned
- To identify loose holds, damaged surfaces, or hazards before climbers use the wall (Correct answer)
- To document attendance for liability records
- To verify that anchor hardware is aesthetically aligned
Correct answer: To identify loose holds, damaged surfaces, or hazards before climbers use the wall
Daily inspections catch loose holds, cracked panels, or debris that could cause injury before climbers are exposed to those hazards.
Question 7: In a top-rope system, what is the purpose of using two opposite-and-opposed locking carabiners at the masterpoint?
- To distribute weight evenly between both carabiners
- To ensure the system remains secure if one carabiner rotates into a gate-loading position (Correct answer)
- To double the kilonewton rating of the anchor
- To allow for faster rope transitions between climbers
Correct answer: To ensure the system remains secure if one carabiner rotates into a gate-loading position
Opposing and opposing carabiners ensures that if one biner rotates so its gate faces the load, the other biner's spine will be loaded instead, maintaining security.
CWI Climbing Wall Safety & Equipment 5
Which condition in a climbing gym environment poses the highest risk of hold failure on a woodboard training wall?