Chockstone Forum

      Sponsored By
      ROCK
   HARDWARE

Chockstone Photography

Australian Landscape Prints

Chockstone Forum - General Discussion

General Climbing Discussion

Poll Option

Votes

Graph

I require a belay to leave flat ground

Dont solo 'routes' but do unroped access scrambles

42%

I solo established routes graded 5 or less

I solo established routes graded 10 or less

I solo to within 10 grades of my roped limit

15%

I solo to within 7 grades of my roped limit

19%

I solo to within 4 grades of my roped limit

I solo at or near my roped limit

Author

Soloing

9-Aug-2005
9:04:58 PM

Interested to gauge how 'acceptable' people think soloing is. By "I solo" please include:
- have done in the past
- sometimes/often do now
- realistically expect to do so in the near future

Please tick the box furthest down the list which applies to you.

Option 2 is meant to include unroped scrambles for access to or descent from "the real climbing" (eg up to the Flight Deck), but NOT Ali's (it is a graded route).
Option 3 is intended to cover soloing Ali's, Tiptoe Ridge etc

Disclaimer: This poll/thread is not intended to encourage or endorse this dangerous activity!


climbau

10-Aug-2005
8:18:13 AM

I have in the past soloed routes up to about grade 14 (option 5), but now would only solo up to grade 10 (I ticked option 4) if at all. I feel more comfortable soloing easy grade routes than the "ungraded access scrambles", generally due to loose rock, grass and dirt on the access scrambles.
It really depends on the day though.

bne

10-Aug-2005
8:40:11 AM

i soloed alis but i wasnt so comfortable...


IdratherbeclimbingM9

10-Aug-2005
8:53:37 AM

>Interested to gauge how 'acceptable' people think soloing is.
WM the options you've presented are still limited in the respect of there being none for roped-solo which is my preferred activity along with others like Phil Box, (compared to free-solo), ... as we have gone so far as to invest in Silent Partner devices to further this pursuit.
Consequently I ticked 'at or near my roped limit', ... but for free solo it drops back one notch if its a well rehearsed short climb (eg highball boulder); two or three notches if its 'general onsight' category; or it may drop back even further ... particularly for multi-pitch!
As climbau said,
>It really depends on the day
... grassy scrambles above airy drops can sometimes give me the heebie jeebies ...

Another interesting twist on the theme could be;

*how 'acceptable' people think their own soloing is.
compared to;
*how 'acceptable' people think 'others' soloing is.


nmonteith

10-Aug-2005
9:11:10 AM

M8 - this topic is obviously about free climbing un-roped! You fall off you die. It is not about solo rope
systems.


IdratherbeclimbingM9

10-Aug-2005
9:36:40 AM

>You fall off you die.
Foolish activity methinks, but it (illogically) does not stop us doing it!

BTW Poor rope/protection skills can sometimes amount to solos whether the individual realises it or not, as decking out with a rope attached to you can still amount to the same thing.
:)


nmonteith

10-Aug-2005
10:06:34 AM

On 10/08/2005 M8iswhereitsat wrote:
>BTW Poor rope/protection skills can sometimes amount to solos whether
>the individual realises it or not, as decking out with a rope attached
>to you can still amount to the same thing.

But when you carry the trad gear and a rope you always have the potential option of making yourself
safe. When people 'solo' just wearing a harness I consider this cheating. At anytime they can clip direct
into bolts and get a rest using a single carbineer.


IdratherbeclimbingM9

10-Aug-2005
10:17:54 AM

>But when you carry the trad gear and a rope you always have the potential option of making yourself safe. >When people 'solo' just wearing a harness I consider this cheating. >At anytime they can clip direct into bolts and get a rest using a single carbineer.
Defiantly! (sic)
You are right & its an interesting scenario you present though I personally have not come across this concept.
For me its either gear solo or its free solo. Either way the real battle is in the mind of the participant ... and they make the rules for themselves accordingly.

It blows me away when I see pictures of Dean Potter et al soloing Yosemite routes with a rope coiled on their back. The 'safety' option may be close at hand but it still only takes one slip ...


nmonteith

10-Aug-2005
10:24:49 AM

In fact soloing any sport route is somewhat contrived! You can grab the bolts for safety if you get
desperate. All nude free-solo trad ascents are the ideal aim. ;-)


manacubus

10-Aug-2005
10:28:31 AM

Come back to Qld Neil. You'll fit right in.


nmonteith

10-Aug-2005
10:35:20 AM

An interesting descent technique is utilized in this Huber solo video


IdratherbeclimbingM9

10-Aug-2005
10:42:14 AM

I have tried several times (different days/locations/computers) to access this with no luck.
Could you give a brief verbal outline please nm?

---------------------------
[edit]
This time trying your link gave error message ...
>Microsoft OLE DB Provider for ODBC Drivers error '80040e21'
>ODBC driver does not support the requested properties.
>/content/index.asp, line 59


rodw

10-Aug-2005
10:56:30 AM

Try without the < br > tag ie,
http://www.berghaus.com/content/index.asp?section_id=56&content_id=6257


nmonteith

10-Aug-2005
11:12:11 AM

He free-solos a grade 30+ sport route which ends at a rap chain a fair way below the top of the cliff. The
route is very overhung and traverses across right to the anchor. At the anchor is a rope threaded through
the lower-off rings. One end is attached to a belayer on the ground, the other is a noose of a rope which
is just large enough for Alex Huber to slip his wrist into. He is then lowered (!!) to the ground by the
belayer whilst hanging off the rope attached to his wrist!


IdratherbeclimbingM9

10-Aug-2005
11:43:51 AM

Thanks rodw.
I got through this time on your link.

Re descent technique. Yes very interesting!
Must have relied on the knot in the krab or a super-light-weight prusik designed to part once loaded? ~ to keep the preplaced rope in place?
Would be a bummer to arrive at that point and have the rope slip away before accessing it ....

--------------
[edit]
Thanks nm.
My timing is out re accessing the link then posting a reply to head off your description.
Its still good to have yours though in case the link ever becomes discontinued in the future.


Phil Box

10-Aug-2005
11:44:35 AM

That reminds me in an odd sort of a way of the dogmen who used to ride the crane hooks around the Brisbane skyline. I remember watching these dudes standing on the hook simply holding on to the wire rope. The crane would then hoist them way way up there. Of course all of this has now stopped due to stupid workplace health and safety laws and regulations. I soooo wanted to be a doggy.

I did manage to sneak in a couple of rides around the building sites though. Nyuck nyuck nyah.


IdratherbeclimbingM9

10-Aug-2005
11:52:59 AM

>I soooo wanted to be a doggy.
[post edit: can't resist out of context temptation ...
... but settled for having a pirate icon instead? ... Could have been a more interesting reply here! ... imagined with Goofy (dog) like chuckle ~ Nyuck nyuck nyah]

Yes ! I am sure they inspired a generation of us ~ who ended up climbing instead!
Sad re: todays youth not getting the same inspiration ?

-------------------------------------

Back to your thoughts nm.
>M8 - this topic is obviously about free climbing un-roped!

Where would you place aid soloing a major Yosemite route using only two daisy/ett combos clipped to leapfrogged gear without using a rope as one dude has done?

Regarding this feat the reactions in print that I saw, widely considered it an outrageous (insane?) solo.

10-Aug-2005
1:07:33 PM

On 10/08/2005 nmonteith wrote:
>this topic is obviously about free climbing un-roped! You fall off you die.

Correct - please exclude rope-soloing and bouldering. Obviously you will have to apply your own judgement as to where highball bouldering stops and soloing begins. M8: you may need to adjust your vote?

Based on how the results are going I'm going to throw in a disclaimer... I don't solo, I voted 2, and this poll/thread is not intended to encourage/endorse this dangerous practice!

Edit: M8 I think you need to start your own poll (and stop corrupting this one!) with all this aid rubbish!! I don't imagine you'll get many votes though :)


rodw

10-Aug-2005
1:59:19 PM

>Would be a bummer to arrive at that point and have the rope slip away
>before accessing it ....
>

Reminds me of a story (could be urban myth)...of a climber in England who did soloing without realising...ie climbed up route clipping draws has he went, nearly coming off a few times, then when at lower off anchors clips in and yells for belay to take slack to look down to see the rope, that he had just looped into harness and forgot to tie in, get pulled out of his harness, luckily being at anchors he just clipped in and waiting for said rope to be lowered from the top for rescue. Question is does it count as soloing, even though he didnt realise he was?


nmonteith

10-Aug-2005
2:20:38 PM

Doesn't count. If I get pumped and i know I am going to fall off I do a quick check of my harness and
belayer before commiting to the airtime. If i saw a rope problem I would not be jumping and instead
clipping direct to whatever is nearby!!

There are 73 messages in this topic.