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smearing

smearing
 n.— «The trick, Sutton explained, to climbing a friction slab, is a motion called “smearing,” in which the palms of the climber’s hands, fingers pointing down, and the balls of his rubber-soled shoes are pushed into and twisted against the granite’s surface. With his rump high in the air so that his weight is distributed evenly over the smear spots, the climber spider-walks up the surface.» —“Novice discovers the pain, pleasure and danger of rock climbing in nearby Wichita Mountains” by Jennifer Meadows Dallas Morning News (Texas) Nov. 2, 1984. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)

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