OC HIGH / STUDENT NEWS AND VIEWS : On Edge : ROCK CLIMBING : What’s it like to take it to the max? To plummet to earth in a parachute or on a bungee cord? To hang suspended from a glider? Here is what students who participate in such “daredevil” activities have to say about their experiences.

Most of us have only seen rock climbing on TV or in movies such as “K2” and “Cliffhanger.” But for some students, the thrill of rock climbing is reality.

Chuck Ross, a junior at Sunny Hills, has been a rock climber for four years.

“Climbing a rock is a challenge, and I like defeating challenges,” Ross said, adding that after he reaches the top, he feels satisfied.

Freshman Brian Kim, who has climbed two or three times a year for the past four years, says, “After a climb, I feel like I’m on top of the world.”

There are three types of rock climbing: top-rope climbing, lead climbing and bouldering. The first two require two climbers: one to act as a belayer (the person who secures the rope) and the other as a lead climber.

In top-rope climbing, a rope suspends in a U-shape from a metal ring at the top of the rock. As the lead climber scales the rock, the belayer protects him or her by holding the other end of the rope. If the lead climber begins to fall, the belayer pulls the rope, acting as a lever.

Kim, sophomore David McAllister and freshman James Anderson usually top-rope climb, with two remaining on the ground as the other climbs.

In lead climbing, the lead climber paves the way for the belayer, who climbs from below.

Though the lead climber may seem the more glamorous of the two, the belayer is a crucial last defense, like a goalie in soccer or hockey. If a climbing partner should fall, the belayer uses leverage to help break the fall.

Lead climbers attach rope to pins as they scale the rock. In some popular climbing areas, pins remain in the rock to prevent damage by having them repeatedly secured into crevices. In other areas, it is illegal to insert pins.

Bouldering is climbing without ropes or other safety equipment, relying solely on muscle strength.

“When you boulder, you climb only as high as you feel safe without rope,” Kim said.

“It’s scary because there’s no one to help you,” he said.

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But even the protected forms of rock climbing are dangerous, according to Kim and Ross.

“It may not be as dangerous as other sports,” Kim said, “but you get a lot of cuts and bruises, and you have to know what you’re doing.”

Even having a belayer isn’t foolproof. “You’ve got someone to catch you if you fall, but he could always fall off too,” Anderson said.

Kim has fallen many times during a climb, but usually only a drop of about five feet. And he’s gotten his share of cuts and bruises on the way up.

But the danger is part of the attraction.

“Rock climbing can be both relaxing and stressful,” McAllister said. “There’s a lot of adrenaline.”

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Climbing can be an expensive hobby.

Basic climbing equipment includes a harness, rock climbing shoes and a figure-eight descender to propel down the rock. Protection and gear may exceed $1,000, but equipment can be rented.

Popular places to climb in the area are Joshua Tree and Big Rock in Lake Paris. Artificial rock climbing is available at Rockreation in Costa Mesa. Admission is $14; rental equipment is extra.

“There are guidebooks that tell you how high a climb is, how difficult, how much rope you’ll need, where it is and when the best time of year to climb it is,” Kim said.

The guidebooks rate climbs on a scale of 5-1 to 5-14d, the latter being the most difficult.

McAllister, who has climbed once a month for the past two years, plans to tackle Suicide Rock, in the San Francisco Bay Area, sooner or later.

Kim hopes to be a professional rock climber one day.

“One of these days I’ll climb El Capitan,” he said. “I have a picture of it at home, and me and my friends always say we’re going to climb it.”

Jhoanna Infante is a junior at Sunny Hills High School in Fullerton. This article first appeared in the school paper, The Accolade.