In article , Blom2229
wrote:

Confused, varying suggestions......we live in Rockford, IL, almost on the IL-
Wisconsin border.

There is a good reason for varying suggestions. Climbers are just roses
with long canes. Every rose is a unique individual, like every person.
Climbers don't all grow alike, with one exception: if you train the
canes horizontal , you will get flowers all along the length of the
cane, from lateral stems, instead just at the tip of the cane.

This is where the similarity ends. Some roses kill off and replace
those laterals within a season or two, others bloom on the same
laterals until the entire cane is too aged and needs to be pruned off.
Some produce 14 foot basals canes. Some produce 6 foot basal canes and
14 foot continuing laterals.

So, what roses are you asking about and what kind of structure do you
want to train them on? And how old are the roses?