Plan a climbing grade pyramid for YDS routes or V-scale boulders: pick a goal grade and see how many climbs to send at each lower grade.
What a Grade Pyramid Shows
A climbing grade pyramid is a way to display more completed climbs below a smaller number near a selected goal grade. This planner makes that idea explicit with user-chosen arithmetic. It does not contain a validated training prescription. You choose the goal-grade count, how many grade levels to show, and either a widening factor or a base count.
In counts mode, count at level = ceiling(goal count x widening factorlevel). Level zero is the goal grade, level one is the next listed grade below, and so on. Factor mode rearranges the endpoints: widening factor = (base count / goal count)1 / intervals. Intermediate counts are rounded upward, while the entered top and base remain exact.
| Grade | Unrounded model | Displayed count | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5.12a | 1.00 | 1 | Goal-grade record |
| 5.11d | 2.00 | 2 | One listed grade below |
| 5.11c | 4.00 | 4 | Two listed grades below |
| 5.11b | 8.00 | 8 | Three listed grades below |
Named Grade Systems Stay Separate
The page supports Yosemite Decimal System route grades and V-scale bouldering grades. It steps only within the selected ladder. It does not translate a YDS route into a V grade or claim that adjacent entries represent equal physiological increments. Official and research sources emphasize that climbing uses multiple systems and that grades are subjective. A gym, area, setter, rock type, height, and style can all change how a nominal grade feels.
Define What a Count Represents
Use one consistent definition before entering counts. A completed route may mean an onsight, flash, redpoint, or any send; a boulder record may include repeats or unique problems. Mixing those definitions can make a pyramid look wider without representing the same accomplishment. Venue and style also matter: ten problems on one board angle do not necessarily provide the same breadth as ten varied outdoor problems.
Interpretation Limits
A wide base does not prove readiness for the next grade, and a narrow base does not prove that a climber should avoid it. Performance also depends on movement skill, tactics, endurance, strength, confidence, recovery, route fit, and opportunity. The planner does not schedule sessions, assign attempts, or account for fatigue and injury. Treat the output as a record-organizing scenario that can prompt questions about breadth, not as permission to progress.
Worked Examples
With one 5.12a at the top, three lower levels, and a factor of 2, the displayed counts are 1, 2, 4, and 8 for a total of 15. With two V8s, four lower levels, and a factor of 1.5, independent upward rounding gives 2, 3, 5, 7, and 11, totaling 28. These are consequences of the entered model, not recommended targets.
Sources
British Mountaineering Council: Indoor Climbing Grades Explained
IRCRA: Reporting Grades in Climbing Research and its 2016 position statement
UIAA: Scales of Difficulty in Climbing. These sources describe grading systems; they do not validate the entered geometric count model.
