What type of belay device do you use?

Post by **usmcmars** » Wed Mar 19, 2008 10:25 pm

I just bought my handy dandy new Grigri. Love it. I found the transition from atc to grigri to be much easier than I expected.

Post by **DriskellHR** » Wed Mar 19, 2008 10:36 pm

bcombs wrote:
DriskellHR wrote:... I will grab the ATC it keeps my belay skills frosty and provides a smoother belay on lead.
I'm curious why your ATC provides a better belay on lead? When a grigri is used just like an ATC, leading is exactly the same. What issues have you had when using a grigri?

easier to feed in my opinion. Somthing just feels wrong to me about holding the cam down. Not that the gri gri does not work but I give a better belay with an atc.

maybe thats what I should of said but then again the question was for which we prefer.[/u]

Post by **DriskellHR** » Wed Mar 19, 2008 10:42 pm

Winterstorm wrote: I don't think anyone I climb with will complain about my rope handling with either device.

nope no complaints but you do smell funny.

Thats the key. As long as you can provide a attentive and competant belay it does not matter if you use a gri gri, atc, or figure eight they all get the job done safely.

Post by **Shamis** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 2:36 am

The gri-gri is better at most things. The ATC shines when you need to give a really tough belay where you want to be able to leave as little slack as possible, but still be able to feed it out instantly for a quick clip. Other than that, the only thing the atc is good for is on a route where you will have to rapel, and don't want to carry both.

For everything else, the gri-gri wins. Hands down. its a pretty nice bonus to know that your belayer could have a heart attack while belaying and you'd still be fine.

Post by **Danny** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 2:47 am

Shamis wrote:The ATC shines when you need to give a really tough belay where you want to be able to leave as little slack as possible, but still be able to feet it out instantly for a quick clip.

haha

Post by **pawilkes** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 6:26 am

anticlmber wrote:if both are used properly, how is one safer than the other??

the grigri has a built in back up. here is a situation, as unlikely as it may be, where a grigri is safer: the climber knocks loose a big block which falls down, hitting the belayer in the head rendering them unconscious, or maybe just hitting their brake hand. with a grigri, if the climber is still being belayed.

Post by **anticlmber** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 6:59 am

yeah, yeah, the old, "knocked in the head with a rock" shit. seeing how most gri-gri(french for dumb-dumb)users are sport climbers; that argument is null since most sport climbers avoid choss like the plague. if what you are climbing is that shady, wear a helmet.

also, if on a multi-pitch with a gri-gri, it is possible to be pulled into the wall, knocked out and have the gri-gri pinned against the wall; thereby disabling the "safety" mechanism IF it is not hooked on properly to avoid such a thing.

Post by **caribe** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 9:46 am

this is pretty messed up. the grigri in the wrong hands will kill you too. it sounds like you are arguing against belay device bigotry.

p0bray01 wrote:Depends on the situation....big climber or new climber that may hang a lot = grigri. Multipitch....ATC guide...is schweeet.

I am biased to gri-gris for single pitches only because I was dropped while someone was belaying me with an atc-xp...the reason was not the fault of the device mind you...but my belayer took me off belay because he said the the teeth side didn't "look right"....naturally this was on a crimpy route and I was going for a move as he did this...slipped...and I was on the ground....luckily we were in a gym...I was prob about 15-20 feet off the deck...

BUT in the hands of a competent person...ATC's are wonderful. I actually wanted to try the reverso..but have not had the chance.

Post by **ahab** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 10:45 am

i'll 3rd the belayer preference. but if the belayer if familiar w/ both devices (ATC/gri-gri) then by all means, have the climber decide should it be an issure for him/her.

me? ATC for climbs @ the leaders limit, gri-gri for top-roping or casual leads.

Post by **ahab** » Thu Mar 20, 2008 10:54 am

Lander wrote:I'm more concerned about having a good belayer that pays attention than what device they use. What makes me more nervous than anything when I'm climbing is hearing my belayer jabberin' away at the base, clearly not watching me when i'm feeling sketchy. I hate that! Sometimes I'll go "Hey, are you with me?" They'll go "Yeah, I'm with ya." then go back to spraying. Jeez!

jabberin' while belaying me on lead results in 15ft of penalty slack for you when it's my turn to belay. call it instant karma.