DavidR

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Just another software engineer. Longtime outdoor sports enthauist. Avid rock climber.

	1,956 reputation	bio	website		visits	member for	10 months
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May 20	comment	swapping lead when climbing in a group of three using a pair of half ropes Are you describing having the two followers both tie into the same rope? I have seen people do that, but its pretty sketchy, and much safer just to borrow a 2nd rope from someone, and bring the two followers separately. Each person gets their own rope.
May 17	comment	swapping lead when climbing in a group of three using a pair of half ropes I don't have an answer, other than to just not to do multipitch routes with 3 people. Every time I've done it I regretted it.
May 17	comment	swapping lead when climbing in a group of three using a pair of half ropes +1. And your question is about how to do this efficiently, right? How to avoid a massive rope tangle, and 15+ minutes at the belay, trying to transition?
May 15	comment	How tight should the line be kept for toproping? Thanks for clarifying the length of the routes... The same day you posted this, someone asked a different question about toproping 200' routes outdoors. I (at least) was thinking in those terms when I saw your question. :)
May 15	comment	How tight should the line be kept for toproping? And I think there was an old meta about this, in the context of avalanche safety...
May 15	comment	How tight should the line be kept for toproping? I can, but it'll be a few hours. (About to go to a meeting)
May 15	comment	How tight should the line be kept for toproping? Can we take this into a meta discussion? :)
May 15	comment	How tight should the line be kept for toproping? When the route moves sideways instead of straight up and down. It introduces the chance of swinging. It esp becomes an issue on routes that weren't intended to be toproped - a route may traverse 15' or more, and introduce wild swings. A route that was a safe lead may have a pendulum that could result in hitting the ground or a buttress of rock. Sometimes.
May 15	comment	Toproping with two ropes joined by a double fisherman's Rope manufacturers publish "elongation" statistics, which I believe are UIAA certified. Accidents are going to be tricky, because they only get reported if there was a rescue. In this scenario, the climber may get a sprained / broken ankle from too much rope stretch,, but could still be lowered by his friends, probably.
May 15	comment	Toproping with two ropes joined by a double fisherman's You could look at the material associated with the AMGA "Single Pitch Instructor" course, but I think it's only available if you take a class from them (no online).
May 14	comment	How tight should the line be kept for toproping? I'll edit. I actually keep it at the point where there is neither slack or tension, but that's a little tricky and takes experience belaying.
May 14	comment	How tight should the line be kept for toproping? :) ahhh! such a preference thing. I shouldn't have answered it... I don't think you can write an answer that captures everyone's possible preferences, while also making sure that a beginning climber doesn't deck his friend.
May 14	comment	How tight should the line be kept for toproping? hey - part of why people are having a hard time giving a concise answer for this is that there are vastly different scenarios where one may be toproping, and the answer changes between them. Are you talking about gym-climbing (or climbing outside on 50' or less cliffs, where the route doesn't traverse, and there aren't ledges in the middle of the route)? Because there is a simple answer for that question. :)
May 14	comment	How tight should the line be kept for toproping? part of the problem is that there are multiple audiences reading these questions. Experienced climbers, who just have narrow technical questions, and beginners, who don't understand the full context, and can and do miss-interpret the things they read.
May 14	comment	How tight should the line be kept for toproping? @RussellSteen - I'm sorry, but that's not true. That's like saying you can learn to drive by reading about it on the internet. There's a lot of information to impart, and performing it correctly requires a combination of skill and mechanical knowledge. Even if someone did manage to write an answer that covered all aspects of the subject, the odds of someone reading it, then translating it correctly into practice on the first try is pretty low. Rock climbing (not to be dramatic) is a life-or-death game, and reminding beginners to get proper instruction is the only responsible choice.
May 2	comment	If an autoblock inteferes with a belay device will a fireman belay have any effect? As someone who frequently answers a slightly more general question than was asked, I applaud this. So often, people recognize a critical situation, but ask exactly the wrong question about it. :)
May 1	comment	Any tips to reduce chance that I have to get up and pee in the night (not counting dehydration, of course) @DonBranson - I think that's the Answer. I'd upvote it, if you wrote it up. Death & Taxes aren't the only two certain things in this world.
May 1	comment	What is the correct way to attach an autoblock to your harness for rappelling? there are two systems for backing up a rappel - regular prussik above the rappel device, or french prussik below the belay device. When the regular prussik is above the device, and it catches, its straightforward (but difficult) to unload it. If you put a regular prussik below the device, and it manages to catch your whole bodyweight, there isn't a direct way to fix it without breaking out more complex techniques. People argue about which of the 2 systems to use, but you can't mix and match them. :)
May 1	comment	What is the correct way to attach an autoblock to your harness for rappelling? No! There's an important distinction. :) An "ordinary Prussik" can catch the entire weight of your body directly on itself, without even loading the belay device. And it can't be released unless you can get your weight off the knot. If this happened during a free-hanging rappel, you'd have to perform a self-rescue or you'd be stuck. A "French Prussik" can't grip that tightly, and can only be used to help the main belay device engage. And I actually had a regular prussik jam on me once (in a rescue practice), it was very hard to fix.
May 1	comment	If an autoblock inteferes with a belay device will a fireman belay have any effect? yeah... there are a lot of bad, or at least sub-optimal, techniques that float around out there. Maybe some of them made more sense a generation ago when climbers used slightly different equipment. And you'll run into climbers who have been doing them for years, sometimes. That doesn't mean that there isn't a scenario where the outdated technique wouldn't cause a problem.