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Time for helmets in gyms?


paradise

5-Sep-2006
2:45:01 PM

Putting in a session in a Melbourne gym Friday night i had a near miss with a rather heavy mobile phone dropped from the top of the wall. I'd be rather pissed off to sustain brain damage from such dumb incident. Has anyone else had a similar incident at an indoor gym? I always wear a helmet outdoors but would feel a bit of a knob turning up at the gym in one :) Just a reminder to always be mindful of potential injury to others.


billk

5-Sep-2006
2:55:02 PM

Some people just won't be separated from their mobiles, no matter what the rules are (and I'm pretty sure all climbing gyms have "no mobiles" rules). Those people usually want to be able to brag that "Mine's smaller than yours" so you were pretty unlucky to have someone drop a brick on you.

A while back tnd came up with a website that sells mobile phone jammers. Haven't got one yet but I'm sure it would be money well spent.


neats

5-Sep-2006
3:03:19 PM

Although common sense for most, pple don't usually climb with stuff in open pockets me thinks... could be a major insurance issue should something dreadful happen...


Flip

5-Sep-2006
3:06:21 PM

Yeah u would look like a knob showing up the the gym in a helmet but isnt the issue more with people who ignore rules in a climbing situation and place other people at risk buy placing items in there pockets be it phones or wallets
Ive had a mate climbing with his wallet and all the coinage fell out and a couple of 50c peices kinda hurt when dropped from a hight
anyway im one of those people that has to have their phone on them all the time but i have mine hanging of my harness in a leather case so i cant get scratched and ok the mp3 player with speakers if a great help
so im a clean pockets man
ok maybe a tissue on a cold day
:)

gfdonc

5-Sep-2006
3:52:43 PM

Phones in pockets? Bad idea. However there are plenty of other possibilities. Last night a chalkbag came loose from the uppermost member of the couple climbing on the rope next to us, from about 12m up.

Funny how the brain works - spotted it out of the corner of my eye, realised the trajectory was going to miss me, then flicked my attention straight back to the person I was belaying, all subconsciously. The bang as it hit the floor about a metre away a couple of seconds later was considerable.

I think helmets are justifiable when leading - have had some awkward falls at times - but not sure I'll ever wear one just to protect from "phone-fall".


tnd

5-Sep-2006
4:28:50 PM

On 5/09/2006 billk wrote:
>A while back tnd came up with a website that sells mobile phone jammers.
>Haven't got one yet but I'm sure it would be money well spent.

Here you are:
http://www.globalgadgetuk.com/cell%20phone%20jammers.htm

They might still carry the phones but they won't be able to use them...
(Note: highly illegal in Australia)


JamesMc

5-Sep-2006
6:48:39 PM

I really don't understand why people who think it's essential to wear a helmet whenever they climb on a cliff think they don't need one in a gym, (or for that matter when driving).

Can anyone explain this?

JamesMc


Chalk Free

5-Sep-2006
8:18:17 PM

On 5/09/2006 tnd wrote:
>On 5/09/2006 billk wrote:
>>A while back tnd came up with a website that sells mobile phone jammers.
>>Haven't got one yet but I'm sure it would be money well spent.
>
>Here you are:
>http://www.globalgadgetuk.com/cell%20phone%20jammers.htm
>
>They might still carry the phones but they won't be able to use them...
>(Note: highly illegal in Australia)

I'll have ten


gordoste

6-Sep-2006
11:41:20 AM

On 5/09/2006 JamesMc wrote:
>I really don't understand why people who think it's essential to wear a
>helmet whenever they climb on a cliff think they don't need one in a gym,
>(or for that matter when driving).
>
>Can anyone explain this?
>
>JamesMc

With all due respect, did you even think about this? There is no rockfall in a gym and you're almost always on toprope. So it's not an issue. If I am toproping outdoors at a crag that is not accessible from the top then I don't wear my helmet either.

When I'm driving I have a seatbelt (and most new cars have airbags). Helmet is not going to provide sufficient additional benefit to justify the discomfort.

Stephen

kieranl

6-Sep-2006
12:44:01 PM

On 5/09/2006 paradise wrote:
> I always wear
>a helmet outdoors but would feel a bit of a knob turning up at the gym
>in one :)

Even when bouldering? I don't recall ever seeing anyone wear a helmet bouldering. Which is a bit strange when you think about it because that's when we are exposing our heads to potential injury all the time. It's not that people are oblivious to the risk - the use (and overuse) of spotters and pads testifies to that - and there's no obvious reason for not wearing one. Clipping on a lightweight helmet each try should be no more onerous than arranging the spotters and pads but no-one does it - me included. It can only be a cultural thing (possible cross-thread hijack).

Actually I'm sort of surprised that gyms haven't mandated wearing of helmets. Any confined area where lots of people of are climbing above others has to be risky. You're probably just at much at risk belaying in the gym as at the foot of the Organ Pipes. (post-edit : totally unsubstantiated assertion)

Gyms could take another approach and ban the wearing of anything except boots and harness but that would not be a pretty sight.


rodw

6-Sep-2006
12:52:17 PM

>I am toproping outdoors at a crag that is not accessible from the top then
>I don't wear my helmet either.

And your rope hanging over the edge won't dislodge anything either.......if Im toproping I definately wear a helmet.


PreferKnitting

6-Sep-2006
1:44:10 PM

On 6/09/2006 kieranl wrote:
>You're probably just at much at risk belaying in the gym as
>at the foot of the Organ Pipes. (post-edit : totally unsubstantiated assertion)

Climbing is inherently dagerous. But to say that gym climbing is equally as dangerous as the outdoor variety?? The only validity that statemebnt would have if you were comparing the likelihood of a woodie worx hold falling on someone's head. There is zero probabiiltiy that a woodie worx hold would come flying out of the sky and hit you in the head if you were outdoors but more likely to occur at a gym (who uses woodie worx holds of cause).

But then again, if you happened to be at Taipan....


PreferKnitting

6-Sep-2006
1:47:57 PM

On 5/09/2006 paradise wrote:

> Just a reminder to always be mindful of potential injury to
>others.

The individuals that make up our climbing 'scene' are too self obssessed to 'be mindful of others'.

That's just wishful thinking Paradise!


cheesehead

6-Sep-2006
4:57:11 PM

On 5/09/2006 JamesMc wrote:
>I really don't understand why people who think it's essential to wear a
>helmet whenever they climb on a cliff think they don't need one in a gym,
>(or for that matter when driving).
>
>Can anyone explain this?

Style and convention I think mostly.
I pretty much always wear a helmet when cycling, and mountaineering, even if there is not rockfall danger.
Never when sport climbing, sometimes when trad climbing...
Rarely when driving.
Without actually thinking about the activity and likely dangers ('potential' dangers are infinte a waste of time), what I normally do, and what other people do come into effect.
Of course I can and do think for myself, but most of us follow the flock to at least a small, perhaps subconscious degree


sticky

6-Sep-2006
5:25:08 PM

On 6/09/2006 cheesehead wrote:
>>
>Style and convention I think mostly.
>I pretty much always wear a helmet when cycling, and mountaineering, even
>if there is not rockfall danger.
>Never when sport climbing, sometimes when trad climbing...
>Rarely when driving.
>Without actually thinking about the activity and likely dangers ('potential'
>dangers are infinte a waste of time), what I normally do, and what other
>people do come into effect.
>Of course I can and do think for myself, but most of us follow the flock
>to at least a small, perhaps subconscious degree

Mat, I thought you never wore a helmet on rock because in the UK anyone who wears a helmet is considered a 'punter' and laughed out of the Peak District. Is that still the go over there?


AlanD

6-Sep-2006
6:27:12 PM

For what it's worth. The climbing gym I was using in the UK a decade ago insisted that all kids (I think under 14 years old) wear a helmet. Personally I thought putting helmets on the kids was a sensible idea.


belayslave

6-Sep-2006
11:08:19 PM

I've competed in climbing comps where competitors (juniors) have worn helmets before.
She got some strange looks but no one really questioned it, probably meant we all knew it's not a bad
thing really.


cheesehead

7-Sep-2006
9:38:18 AM

>Mat, I thought you never wore a helmet on rock because in the UK anyone
>who wears a helmet is considered a 'punter' and laughed out of the Peak
>District. Is that still the go over there?

Good example. Jeans with turned up cuffs, death falls and no helmets are in.
Helmets also messed up my dreads


Paradise

7-Sep-2006
11:42:12 AM

On 6/09/2006 PreferKnitting wrote:
>
>That's just wishful thinking Paradise!

Why not have high hopes so they can be crushed and destroyed? :)

It seemed to me that the dude that dropped the phone was a beginner. Do the gyms remind newbies not to carry stuff in their pockets that might fall out and brain people? Seemed to be what was most lacking in this case. Perhaps a reminder sign?

jjobrien

29-Sep-2006
9:32:54 PM

I've come very close to being hit by a falling helmet before. That would be a silly way to go.

There are 24 messages in this topic.