WasatchGirl: thanks for sharing. Back when I started climbing I read a few classic books on safety and anchors/ protection from cover-to-cover, but thinking back on it, it is amazing that my climbing partner and/or I did not get injured beyond the occasional flapper. It is that gap between theory and practice that we all tend to fall into.
If you are like me you will see this incident in your dreams a few times whether you continue to climb or not.
If you walk you can stumble. If you run you can whip out. If you swim you can drown and if you climb ___. I see a certain level of assumed risk as part of life. Now, if I had been involved with the Roadside incident, I am not sure I could maintain such a sterile attitude about it. I might have been wrestling with renouncing climbing entirely.
I feel for both of you . . . all the best.
Art
Accident at Roadside?
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ScrmnPeeler
- Posts: 223
- Joined: Thu Oct 24, 2002 5:46 pm
This was a pretty traumatic event for the climber, belayer, and witnesses. I am glad she survived and everyone can learn from this situation. We can all afford to be extra careful. I think I will totally freak out if anyone I am belaying wants to try this system! Keep it simple is good advice.
I too had a close call the second time I went climbing. I was seconding a trad line and when I got to the top, the guy I was with told be to clean the webbing off the tree and rappel down. I shouted 80 feet down that i did not know how to set up a rappel. He said, I tell you. (needless to say, I ended up on one side of the rope, about to jump off the cliff assuming someone had the other end)! I shouted down at the last second to find that they assumed that I would rappel down on both sides without help from them. Close call.
I too had a close call the second time I went climbing. I was seconding a trad line and when I got to the top, the guy I was with told be to clean the webbing off the tree and rappel down. I shouted 80 feet down that i did not know how to set up a rappel. He said, I tell you. (needless to say, I ended up on one side of the rope, about to jump off the cliff assuming someone had the other end)! I shouted down at the last second to find that they assumed that I would rappel down on both sides without help from them. Close call.
Hauling a big ego up a route adds at least a full grade.
How about helping to prevent it?rhunt wrote:I have a few "walk away" moments while at the cliff - number one being when I hear someone being taught at the anchors how to clean/transfer. Its not that I would not help if someone is injuried, I just don't want to see it happen.
the lurkist wrote: I think of Terry and him probably overstepping the conventional bounds of familiarity with a party at the cliff that he didn't know from Adam to tell them in no uncertain terms that they were fucking up.
I use to say stuff but now people are so far gone an usually so offened that I don't bother. If there is certain impending doom then I will say something. 60% of the beginners (notice I didn't say gumbies) I see at the cliff have no business being there.
Opps sorry we are getting away from the point of this thread. Again I hope she makes a full recovery and that all involved take something positive away from this and stay in the game.
Opps sorry we are getting away from the point of this thread. Again I hope she makes a full recovery and that all involved take something positive away from this and stay in the game.
"Climbing is the spice, not the meal." ~ Lurkist
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anticlmber
- Posts: 3393
- Joined: Wed Jun 18, 2003 12:34 am