While the softer angle enables climbers to place more of their body weight on their feet, slab climbs maintain the challenge by having smaller holds.
[1][2][3] Slab climbs on rock surfaces with good friction, such as granite or sandstone, emphasize the foot technique of 'smearing', and thus can have almost no hand holds for very hard routes.
[4][3][5] The lack of holds and features gives a greater sense of exposure and falls are painful due to scraping against the face,[6] making slabs feel intimidating.
[2] On advanced slab-routes, the lack of options for inserting protection makes traditional climbing challenging (e.g Prinzip Hoffnung) or dangerous (e.g. Indian Face).
[9] California is particularly notable for its abundance of high-quality granite slabs (e.g., Suicide Rock),[3] with routes such as Tommy Caldwell and Beth Rodden's Lurking Fear on El Capitan, one of the world's hardest multi-pitch slab-routes.