At ESAC you can learn a lot about climbing and mountaineering. As ESAC, we offer our own training courses for sport climbing, details can be found on this page. The training committee (OC) provides these courses. Training in the field of mountaineering is provided by NSAC.
The flow chart on the right shows which courses the ESAC offers. The courses in the green boxes are the climbing courses, those in blue are the instructor courses and those in red are the supervisor courses. A short description of each course can be read below. A more detailed description can be found on the program-specific pages.
Indoor Toprope (IT, beginnerscourse)
Indoor Toprope (IT), is the beginners course for sport climbing. During this training you learn to safely climb and belay in the gym. When this training is successfully completed you can independently climb in all climbing halls in the Netherlands. Detailed information about this course can be found on the Indoor Toprope page.
Indoor lead-climbing (IV)
During the Indoor lead-climb course you will learn to lead-climb independently. The difference between lead-climbing and "top roping" is that with lead-climbing you take up the rope yourself during climbing. This involves various techniques that you will be taught during this course. After completing this course of four evenings and the corresponding exam you can independently lead-climb in the hall. Detailed information about this course can be found on the page Indoor Lead-climbing.
Outdoor Leadclimbing Single Pitch (OV-SP)
If you have mastered lead-climb indoors, and you want to start climbing outside, the next step would be outdoor single-pitch climbing. During the OV-SP (outdoor-lead single-pitch) course you learn to climb a single rope length outside. In addition to indoor lead-climbing this involves additional techniques and risk assessment. After completing this course and the corresponding exam, you can join ESAC weekends as an independent climber. Detailed information about this course can be found on the page Outdoor Lead-climb Single Pitch.
Outdoor Lead-climbing Multi Pitch (OV-MP)
After you have learned to climb a single rope lengths for the IV / OV-SP courses, you can start the OV-MP course. Multi Pitch stands for multiple rope lengths, this means that you can climb walls that are much more than 30 meters high. You have to master a number of rope techniques that you will be taught during this course. After completing this course and the corresponding exam, you can multipitch independently in non-alpine terrain. Detailed information about this course can be found on the page Outdoor Lead-climbing Multi Pitch.
Trad course (OV-T)
During the trad course, you learn how to climb in a multipitch scenario, placing your own gear. Instead of bolts, you use cams and nuts, and will also learn how to build a safe belay station. For this course you need multipitch experience on wide bolted routes. Some advantages of trad climbing are: you can go crack climbing in Ettringen. In trad routes you are usually alone, which means there is no waiting. You are also not bound to bolts, which opens up other routes.
As you gain experience, you are allowed to climb more and you can climb more independently. After some time it is even possible to become an instructor yourself. This way you can give back to the association whilst also getting perks like front row spots for weekends. Instructors are also called "kader". More about becoming an instructor and supervisor can be found on the instructors page. As you can see in the flowchart, you have SKBs and SKIs within the instructors. You can then continue to supervise the training of new instructors. More about our current instructors can be found here.
Indoor instructors (I2&I3)
In collaboration with Neoliet Eindhoven, we offer training courses for Indoor-Toprope instructors (I2) and Indoor Pre-climbing instructors (I3). You can start this journey after you have obtained your IV / OV-SP license. As I2 or I3 you train students during the IT or SP course.
Sport climbing guide Outdoor Lead-climbing (SKB-O)
After you have completed your MP course you can start the SKB course. As an SKB you guide non-independent climbers on weekends and during courses. More information can be found here.
Sport climbing instructor Outdoor Lead-climb Single Pitch (SKI-OV-SP)
Another option, after completing your MP course, is to enter the SKI-OV-SP route. You then become a sports climbing instructor in one step, but only in the single pitch field. More information can be found here.
Sport climbing instructor Outdoor Lead-climb Multi Pitch (SKI-OV-MP)
If you have been SKB or SKI-SP for a while you can enter the SKI-MP track. As a SKI-MP you are responsible for weekends and courses. More information can be found here.
Trainers
In order to train new instructors and guide them in their educational track, there are the following supervisor trainer roles. The role is on top of your instructor status.
Practice Councelor (PB)
If you are SKI you can enter the Practice Councelor track. As a PB'er, you guide people intro becoming instructor
Learning Coach (LC)
If you are a PB, you can become Learning Coach. As LC you are ultimately responsible for the guiding instructors to be. You guide staff and you keep an overview of the training framework.
Assessor (BE)
If you are an SKI you can become an assessor. As an assessor you assess instructor exams.