How to Tie In on a Rock Climbing Wall

When you take an introduction to rock climbing class at a climbing gym, the first thing you will learn is how to tie a figure eight knot, which is the knot climbers use to attach themselves to a rope that is hanging from a climbing wall. You must clearly understand how to tie this very important knot before you can rock climb safely. Use this article as a guide to learn, but before you tie into a rock climbing wall, make sure to double and triple check your skills with an experienced climber or in a class with an accredited instructor or guide.
First, you must tie the first half of the knot. Take a full arm's length of rope, holding the end of the rope palm facing up in the right hand and the other part of the rope in your left hand, palm down, pinching it between your fingers. Then, twist the rope in your left hand twice (as if you are twisting a wired twisty tie), and use your right hand to put the end of the rope through the loop you have made by twisting the rope with your left hand. Let the new knot fall. The knot should be in the shape of an eight.
Second, thread the knot up through the leg loops and waist belt of your harness until the knot is just a couple inches from your leg loops. Then "retrace" your knot. To do this, hold the figure eight knot in your left hand (after threading it through your harness and leg loops) and, holding the loose end with your right hand, retrace the first knot with that end. When retracing the knot, you should start threading the end of the rope through the bottom of the knot (i.e. when you hold the knot in your left hand such that it is not twisted, the end that is closest to the harness is where you start threading). As you retrace the knot, you will be creating a visual "train track." After you retrace the entire knot, pull the end (or "tail") of the rope out and away from you. The tail should be six to eight inches long, and the knot should still be just a few inches from your harness. Then, "dress" your knot by cinching it down as tightly as possible.
Finally, tie a safety knot at the end of your retraced figure eight knot by placing the loose tail of the rope parallel with the piece of rope it is next to. Cross the loose tail over the other rope and wrap it around twice. Create an "X" as you do this by wrapping the rope once away from your figure eight knot and once toward it. Then thread the tail end through the "X" that you have created, hold the safety knot as closely to the figure eight as possible, and cinch the knot tight.