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Chockstone Forum - General Discussion

General Climbing Discussion

 Page 3 of 3. Messages 1 to 20 | 21 to 40 | 41 to 46
Author
Basic advise needed

nmonteith
2-Aug-2004
10:04:37 AM
Please for the sake of all of us seek some proffesional advice. Your fall sounded like it had the potenital for death or serious injury. Prussic knots can melt and then snap when they slide down ropes that fast. BEFORE you wieght the prussic make sure it is tight on the rope and will hold your wieght. Shock loading a small diameter cord will cause it to fail almost all the time. Down prussiking is something no one in the climbing world does. We all abseil. Buy a Petzel Gri-Gri and use it for single rope decent. It is a device which automaticly locks when you let go of the handle. It can also be used as a asceneder instead of the flimsy prussiks. It will be expensive -around CA$120.

nmonteith
2-Aug-2004
10:14:05 AM
PS - in 12 years of climbing I have NEVER had the situation of a descent device failing which forced me to grab the rope. The fact it happened to you on day three is pretty freakn scary for all of us who are reading this topic.

IdratherbeclimbingM9
2-Aug-2004
12:02:05 PM
Dino8943 02/08/04 said:
>How far apart should the backups figure 8's be? I tied 3 on the way up a 25' branch but >had to untie one before I started to descend to avoid blocking the prusik knot. I was >clipped on to the second figure eight when I fell..
As far apart as you are prepared to fall.
As nmonteith indicated prussik loops can burn through, and their rated strength is not ideal for catching ANY falls ...
>How far apart ?
I would suggest err on the side of caution and at least halve your present increment, or better yet use a (running) clove-hitch that you can (constantly) re-adjust to your present location / apprehension level.

>but still my instinct was to grab the rope.
This is a well documented phenomena, and many have died ...

>From now on I think rapelling will be my main way down.
As you have found with prussiking; ... things can go wrong.
... The same applies to rappelling!
You need backups, as a mis-clipped (etc) rappel can kill you ...

>you need to have nerves of steel not to grab on to the rope and let the knot do its job.
Same applies to rappelling.

IdratherbeclimbingM9
2-Aug-2004
12:18:40 PM
On 2/08/2004 nmonteith wrote:
>PS - in 12 years of climbing I have NEVER had the situation of a descent
>device failing which forced me to grab the rope. The fact it happened to
>you on day three is pretty freakn scary for all of us who are reading this
>topic.
True, ... very scary.

Whilst abseiling (cave location back in 1973) I once dropped-'slid-down-the-rope' about 35 metres (110 feet) due to an accident* causing me to let go of an abseil device and grabbing the rope above the device.
Wet rope, wet gloves, ... gained a wrap of rope around my thigh 'mid fall', but continued at a rate of knots into the deck ....
By rights I should not be here typing this, as it was a case of good luck, NOT good management ...
Thought I was experienced at the time, and by comparison to Dino8943 I was ....

Shite happens, ... (even to the experienced).

Take care Dino8943. We don't want to lose a 'cyberfriend'.

(* In hindsight, human error on my part).

Rich
2-Aug-2004
1:00:03 PM
hey dino when abseiling, connect a prusik from your leg loop (brake hand side) to the brake line (below device). ensure that the prusik cannot reach the device when weighted. then when abseiling hold this prusik and slide it down the rope as u descend. should u let go, the prusik should stop u. i prefer to use the french prusik for this knot as it is easily loosened but ensure that it cannot reach the device otherwise the device will loosen it and it will fail.

shmalec
3-Aug-2004
1:16:41 PM
I think you'll find that no arbourist ever prussics up a single rope like a rock climber or abseils out of a tree. Go buy a tree lopping type book on the subject or look up a code of practice. it doesn't matter how much we describe stuff here, you will stuff something up eventually without some good diagrams or an instructor. Listen to what people are saying here, look at the lost skin on your hand, think of the fall you took and read the signs.



 Page 3 of 3. Messages 1 to 20 | 21 to 40 | 41 to 46
There are 46 messages in this topic.

 

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