RRC Archives

What does soft catching have to do with safety?

I agreed with the safety issues. How could I hurt someone that way?

As long as you don't sit on the rope when the climber falls, they'll get a soft belay...


The rest of it is common sense. Lets face it....belaying isn't some big technical feat.


Don't pat yourself on the back for "taking one for the team". Thats just doing your job.

Plus, I wouldn't want someone who's all adament about "soft catch" belays to belay me on something like Ressurection Crack or Not Ice, where theres a chance of decking. Ray and I repeatedly took harsh falls that ended about 8 inches off the ground. Some pansy new school 'safe' belayer woulda broke our fuckin ankles.

2005 Goals

1. Put up 50 new routes from 5.0-5.12 of different styles (sport, trad, and mixed)
2. Boulder V8
3. Onsight "Inhibitor", might as well climb "Soul Ram" while I'm there too!
4. Visit 3 new climbing areas in different states
5. Climb in another country
6. Start training for climbing at the gym instead of goofing off and doing stupid human tricks.
7. Set 2 new routes indoors each week and 2 new routes outdoors each weekend
8. Continue to enjoy being with friends out in Nature
9. Explore the natural environment
10 Take the time to stop and smell the flowers, admire the trees, respect the rock, etc. etc.

Paul3eb wrote:

512OW wrote:Short roping is a sin.

forgive me, yasi, for i have sinned. would you forgive me if i gave you a catch on your red-point of infectious this winter?..

You're really never going to forgive yourself for that, are you? I promise that even at the time, I thought it was funny as hell. I reeeeeally wasn't even a teeny bit upset! I'll always take you up on an offer for a catch, though-- especially if it entails such soothing mid-crux questions as: "What's your favorite color?" or "What's your favorite dish that your mom cooks? Does she put garlic in it?"

Oh yeah, and finally put up some good multi-pitch sport routes at the Red... and probably do some multi-pitch trad in the process.

No resolutions about rats?

Hmm.. Rats! I'm going to keep photographing them. I've already taken picture of 10 nests and received countless reports from other climbers telling their stories. I did have another encounter with a rat last weekend. (I wrote about it on the Solar Collector Route Closure post). He stole some of my maple nut goodies! I don't think it was Rizzo though.

512OW wrote:Plus, I wouldn't want someone who's all adament about "soft catch" belays to belay me on something like Ressurection Crack or Not Ice, where theres a chance of decking. Ray and I repeatedly took harsh falls that ended about 8 inches off the ground. Some pansy new school 'safe' belayer woulda broke our fuckin ankles.

But knowing when you have to suck it up and not give your climber a soft catch is a huge part of being a good belayer. Sometimes, it's better to even sit down, if you have to or turn and run. It sucks to do either of these but it happens.

I'm frequently belayed by people who weigh more than I do. A soft catch is not inherent in that system at all. Belayers need to know what they're doing and pay attention or I get slammed into the rock. That's how I could break an ankle or get hurt. Also, I need to know not to kick off the rock or push off, that way I don't swing in hard.

I think it's all part of the process.

Shit I just remembered. Summit sex. Any takers?

Haha...awesome. I started the "Summit Club" back in about 98ish or something. If anyone happened to find my old guidebook that I lost.....if you see an SC with a 4 leaf clover (to symbolize "gettin lucky") next to a route description...I had sex on top of it...