What is Outdoor Climb mode?
Outdoor Climb mode is designed to track technical outdoor climbs (with rope) including rock, ice, mixed, alpine and aid climb. The mode is able to navigate you to your climbing destination, track your climb pitch by pitch, and help you return to your trailhead. After the climb, you are able to review your detailed climbing data along with voice notes (on microphone capable devices). As you complete climbs over time, the Activity Statistics page in your app displays your historic statistical data, such as most sent grade, style distribution, and more.
Highlights of this activity mode include:
- Support of multiple climbing types: Rock, Ice, Mixed, Alpine climbs.
- Support of multiple climbing grade systems: Rock YDS, Rock French, UK Trad, UIAA, Ewbank, Rock Aid, Ice Grades, Mixed Grades
- Allows you to track approach, climb, and descend separately, along with multiple laps for route link-ups.
- Allows you to record individual pitch grades, and easily identify the hardest grade in each climb.
- Allows you to properly track your rest phases between different pitches or routes (especially useful for single pitch climb).
- Pitch difficulty graphic overlay with time and elevation gain/loss.
- Single Pitch Climb Auto-Finish detects when you have returned to your starting point.
- Detects lead falls.
- Allows you to link multiple pitches but still record the total pitches climbed according to the guidebook, the hardest grade, the elevation gain, time consumed, etc.
- Edit route names for your climb after syncing the activity with the COROS app.
- Compatible with other outdoor features such as navigation, storm alert, nutrition alert, etc.
How to Use Outdoor Climb
Choose Outdoor Climb in the menu. Your first time using this mode will require choosing Grade System (Grade System can be changed in Settings later).
Hit Start, and input whether you are on approach, or starting to climb. If starting with an approach, you can follow an existing route you've built to help you navigate to your climb (just as if you were in a Hike or Run mode).
For best results, start tracking your Outdoor Climb before the approach so the watch obtains a strong GPS signal. If the activity is started at the base of the climb, the walls and overhangs may make it more difficult for the watch to obtain a strong satellite signal. Learn more getting the best GPS results for your climbing activities by clicking here.
If starting with an approach, when you get to the base of your climb it's suggested to complete racking up before you hit the dial again on your watch to begin climbing. Once you start "climbing" on the watch, your watch will assume you are ready to go.
For Single Pitch Climbs: If you have "Auto Pitch Finish" enabled, your watch will automatically end your pitch when you are lowered and returned to your starting elevation. Or, you can press the dial and select Rest to indicate you've completed the pitch. The watch will ask you for your grade and style from your previous pitch. To start climb the next route, simply press the dial again and select "Next Route".
For Multi-Pitch Climbs: When you reach your next belay, press the dial and select Rest phase so you can rest and belay your follower up their climb. Or you can skip the rest phase and immediately enter the next pitch if you are simul-climbing or short-fixing. If you decide to link two or three pitches or forget to record a pitch, simply select how many pitches you have climbed, then record the hardest grade.
In an extreme case of simul-climbing, such as Tommy Caldwell and Alex Honnold climbing the entirety of El Cap in just two pitches, they could have recorded one pitch from their watch at the top of Boot Flake and recorded "I climbed 16 pitches according to the guidebook", before continuing the other 15 pitches to finish.
If you complete one route, whether in single or multi pitch scenario, and you are moving on to the next route, you can press the dial and select "Next Route". Then your subsequent pitches will be applied to this new route. You can customize your buttons to log Next Pitch, Next Route, or to Add a Pin during a climbing phase. You can also add an approach between two routes if they are far from each other.
After completing your climbs, you can select "Descend" to track your return trip to the trailhead. Navigation is available during this phase.
In the activity summary, the COROS app allows you to review individual sections (Overall, Approach, Climbing and Descend). You can add route names and edit your grade for each pitch, how many lead falls you had, and your climbing styles.
After consistently recording pitches and climbs for an extended period, you will easily be able to track how many pitches you have climbed in a week, a month, or a season - a good measurement of how hard you have been working.
Climbing Statistics
Access your Statistics by selecting the "Statistics" button at the top right of your Activities page of the app. By filtering for Outdoor Climb, you can see an overview of all of your climbing sessions from whatever timeframe you specify.
Customize Superlock Setting
Outdoor Climb mode utilizes a unique Superlock setting to avoid unintended unlocking and mis-operation during your climbs.
Before pressing Start, scroll down to Auto Lock and toggle this ON. While recording your climb, the watch will auto lock after 10 seconds of inactivity. To use the watch again, follow these steps:
- Press either the dial or Back button on the watch
- After the lock screen appears, long press the Back button until you see the "Confirm to unlock" screen
- You will have 3 seconds to press the dial to confirm to unlock
When toggled on, Superlock in Outdoor Climb mode functions independently of your Auto Lock settings for your other activities.