Why does ticking a route default to the current grade?

The grade shown for a route is the median of all grades submitted by climbers who have ticked it. When you tick a route, the default is to agree with the current grade — but you can always change it if you disagree.

Why not make grade selection mandatory?

The goal is to make ticking as quick and easy as possible. Most climbers agree with the current grade, so requiring everyone to make a choice every time would add unnecessary friction.

Why not default to "no opinion"?

If "no opinion" were the default, only climbers who actively disagreed with the grade would bother submitting one. This would skew the median and cause grades to shift inaccurately over time.

Defaulting to the current grade keeps the process smooth and the grade data reliable.