pigsteak wrote:actually, tom's scenario is 90% of the falls taken around here. most folks see the bolt at their waist or knees, freak out and yell "take". this results in a hard short fall onto the bolt, or a nylon burn from grabbing the runner.
Good point.
We don't want to hurt anyone in tests, so we've kept the fall factors reasonable. In the six tests conducted last Friday, the forces on the bolt were recorded accurately. The forces on the falling climbers, via their harnesses, were about 65% of the forces on the bolts. The 65/35 distribution between climber and belayer is estimated until testing is done with the load cell located between the belayer's harness and the belay device.)
One important point to note here is that the force on the arresting bolt is
not in direct linear proportion to the fall factor. In this thread, we're focusing on forces applied to bolts.
Rick
We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand. - Randy Pausch
None are so old as those who have outlived enthusiasm. - Henry David Thoreau