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spwrozek posted:Another Denver gym opens tomorrow. Limited to 50 people at a time. Mine here in the Springs announced their re-opening yesterday for Monday. They backed off of the thing where you had to reserve a section of the gym, which is good because it was stupid. $13 for 90 minutes, reserved ahead online, limited to two sessions a week per member. Happiness Commando posted:The PCT Excellent, happy trails!
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Jun 6, 2020 13:50
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You have (had?) to pay despite being a member? Dang. As was discussed they are definitely losing a lot of money, but that's really unfortunate.
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Jun 6, 2020 15:03
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I don’t know about that poster, but our gym gave members the option. We go to a smaller gym, so we felt like $57/month was worth supporting them through everything. They’ve reopened with reservations as of a couple days ago; we’re not sure when we’ll be ready to go yet.
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Jun 6, 2020 15:42
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Sab669 posted:You have (had?) to pay despite being a member? Dang. As was discussed they are definitely losing a lot of money, but that's really unfortunate. They aren't drawing anyone's membership fees, but they are restricting people to those who have pre-existing memberships or punch cards. Also it's about $40 more per month if you use your maximum of 2 sessions per week as compared to the monthly membership (if you're on the single membership, it's more like $90 more for a couple). Kind of whack. I'm glad it's time to climb outdoors and that I have time to do lots of it.
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Jun 6, 2020 21:26
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Lol gently caress that.
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Jun 6, 2020 22:54
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I kind of get it. How can you have an unlimited month pass if you can't honor it right now? Maybe they will see what happens and adjust. Honestly I assume most gyms have no clue how many people will show up and if they can stay solvent. I am giving them all the benefit of the doubt for now. Plus it is summer, just climb less in the gym and more outside.
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Jun 6, 2020 23:16
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spwrozek posted:I kind of get it. How can you have an unlimited month pass if you can't honor it right now? quote:Plus it is summer, just climb less in the gym and more outside. 
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Jun 7, 2020 00:30
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Outdoors is tough when it's an 80 minute drive each way and you've got 2 dogs at home to take care of by yourself  Canadian border needs to open back up so I can go to my usual crag that's ~40 minutes away 
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Jun 7, 2020 00:50
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Sab669 posted:Canadian border needs to open back up so I can go to my usual crag that's ~40 minutes away Lol good luck with that one
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Jun 7, 2020 17:04
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spwrozek posted:Maybe they will see what happens and adjust. Honestly I assume most gyms have no clue how many people will show up and if they can stay solvent. I am giving them all the benefit of the doubt for now.
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Jun 9, 2020 00:05
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Suicide Watch posted:On the other hand, should a climbing gym chain really have 5 locations in a 10 mile radius? There's a gym chain in the northeast that I like but to me it's always felt like the epitome of excess. OTOH I lived in NYC which exploded in gyms too. Fwiw the actual mega chain in Denver (earth treks, planet granite, movement) didn't take any dues this whole time and hasn't said anything about reopening from what I can tell.
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Jun 9, 2020 00:16
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Suicide Watch posted:On the other hand, should a climbing gym chain really have 5 locations in a 10 mile radius? There's a gym chain in the northeast that I like but to me it's always felt like the epitome of excess. OTOH I lived in NYC which exploded in gyms too. Central Rock?
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Jun 9, 2020 01:18
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Suicide Watch posted:On the other hand, should a climbing gym chain really have 5 locations in a 10 mile radius? There's a gym chain in the northeast that I like but to me it's always felt like the epitome of excess. OTOH I lived in NYC which exploded in gyms too. Yeah I think a lot of gyms are going to close. The boom was already really big and I think the market was getting oversaturated already. If COVID scares off the little kid birthday parties and the "college kids on a date" day pass crowd, there aren't enough committed members to keep many tens of thousands of feet of climbing space open in all but a handful of cities.
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Jun 9, 2020 01:24
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I don't think it is weird for a climbing gym company to have multiple locations in the same metropolitan area. You have experience with building out, staffing, and operations. You have relationships with investors. You've shown there is demand. If your gyms are packed, opening another across town seems reasonable. Talking to staff, I've been lead to believe that opening new locations in distinct areas of the city grew the number of members instead of shifting people around. I think that high-profile documentaries and climbing in the Olympics have and will continue to grow the sport. Do people have the same feelings about traditional gyms? I don't see a huge difference between owning multiple of them and multiple climbing facilities. All of this was written ignoring COVID. Yeah, that is going to gently caress both climbing and normal gyms. I think they'll bounce back if they can survive though.
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Jun 9, 2020 01:43
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Niyqor posted:I think they'll bounce back if they can survive though. Some will close but I think this right and in a gym there's a lot of hardware that might just be bought by someone else for "cheap" and they'll reopen with another name or something. That's the best worst case scenario I think. I just hope the "big" gym in my city stays open and doesn't need to increase the price too much once this is all over KingColliwog fucked around with this message at 02:35 on Jun 10, 2020 |
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Jun 10, 2020 02:27
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Soooo, I decided to get into outdoor rock climbing other than bouldering. The only experience I have with stuff that isn't bouldering is climbing on auto-belays indoor. I'm taking a class in a couple of weeks which is a very basic intro to outdoor rock climbing / belaying and I'll try to get experimented people to help me out after. I'm also planning on getting the long class on climbing outdoors later, but the gym suggested I get some experience first and assimilate basic things before joining that class. For the moment I'm only wanting to get into top roping in easily accessible places where you can access the anchors from the top and then walk down before climbing. There's quite a few nice easy spot like that close-by. I'm really only looking to learn the basics and supplement my bouldering. I will probably wait until next summer to get into actual "real" climbing outdoors unless a very experimented friend lures me deeper. What is the equipment one would need for that? I already have a harness, an ATC (but I'll probably buy a gri gri just because), a few carabiners and basic personnal stuff like chalk, chalk bag, shoes, etc. From what I've read so far I'm planning to buy the following : - Helmet - A couple quick draws for top anchor (and may be other stuff if I should get it... All the places I've been too that are suitable for top roping seem to have the same double bolts on the top that would suit a basic double quick draw anchor) - A rope. Any suggestion on what to look for in a first rope? Is this a "buy something """cheap""" first and figure out what you need" kind of thing or should I get some minimum specs first? - A grigri because I have the money so why not - Some form of rope protector since from what I've read and how accessible anchors seem to be placed I'm guessing otherwise there would be a lot of abrasion when top roping - I'm guessing I'll probably need some stuff like static rope and mystery equipment to safely access the top anchors without risking an unlucky slip to my death I'll ask during the class for other things I should get, but I'd like your opinion too so I can ask better questions too. Sorry for the very newb question. I'm also doing my homework, but so far SA has always delivered when I'm trying to learn something new. KingColliwog fucked around with this message at 02:21 on Jun 14, 2020 |
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Jun 14, 2020 02:17
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KingColliwog posted:Soooo, I decided to get into outdoor rock climbing other than bouldering. Definitely seek some qualified instruction on this. Vdiff is a good place to start for online reading: https://www.vdiffclimbing.com/basic-intro/ but I wouldn't say it's a good idea to use the internet as your only resource. I don't know what your top rope anchors are like, but for where I climb, I would skip the rope protector and instead get a cordallete or two (~20ft) That way you can extend the anchor so there is essentially no rubbing on the rock at the top. Rubbing midway on the route won't be helped by a protector anyway. You also want to use locking carabiners for the rope holding bits, and probably for the bolts too. Quickdraw anchors work but are not the most ideal and are less versatile. For top access safety you could go low tech with some slings or get a PAS / petzl adjust / similar. Slings will be nice to have anyway. So here's a bare minimum TR list: -6 lockers (2 oval type for the rope, 2 smaller ones for personal anchoring, 2 could be whatever) -1 cordallette, 7-8 mm diameter, 20 ft -2 single length slings, sewn or tied (60 cm) -1 double length sling, sewn or tied (120 cm) Bonus stuff, if you want it: -quickdraws -some non-locker carabiners -dedicated personal anchor Use the lockers and cordallette to build your anchor. Supplement with slings to get more reach to avoid rubbing as necessary. Tether yourself to the bolts while you're setting up the anchor with two slings. This assumes two bolt anchors either on the cliff face or a short distance back from the lip (say < 5 feet). And obviously there's a lot of nuance here that is not easily conveyed on the internet and is dangerous if you get it wrong. As for the rope, my opinion is get a cheap ~10mm in whatever length you need to climb the local stuff. Then once you've worn that one out through newbie abuse get a nicer one with the bonus features you decide you want.
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Jun 14, 2020 03:20
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Anachronist posted:Definitely seek some qualified instruction on this. Vdiff is a good place to start for online reading: https://www.vdiffclimbing.com/basic-intro/ but I wouldn't say it's a good idea to use the internet as your only resource. I am seeking qualified instruction like I said, but I always feel like I get more out of a class when I get there with some knowledge first. This way they can correct my thoughts when they are wrong and whatever they tell me makes sense so I remember it. Otherwise I sometime feels like I miss a lot of nuance and details that end up being important because everything is new. Your post as a whole was really great thank you, it's been helpful. For stuff like personal anchors : From what I've been reading in north america it seems that people use slings mostly while in Europe they seem to make stuff out of dynamic rope. Is there any reason to use a static personal anchor over a dynamic lanyard? The lanyard seems both cheaper to make and probably safer too? Everything else makes sense so I'll probably go with your list as my basic shopping list and adjust based on the info I get in my class.
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Jun 15, 2020 17:17
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Easier said than done esp in the time of covid, but in addition to class instruction, if you’re able to find an experienced leader who will take you out a few times, that’ll go a long way for your learning/safety as well as understanding what kind of gear you need/like so you don’t wind up buying a bunch of extraneous stuff that’s not relevant for the crags you climb at. Lots of climbers learn this way and I think there’s a pretty good (albeit not universal) willingness to pay it forward by helping newbs in the climbing community. And also generally there’s a pretty rich counterculture history so I think many climbers don’t mind or actively prefer the company of freaks, geeks, outcasts, and by extension, goons. OTOH climbers hate it if you’re: flakey, unreliable, unwilling to suffer (early starts, long hikes, etc), too self assured or know it all-y, and - maybe worst of all - assume that just because you’re a newb getting mentored about climbing that the mentor will do *everything* while you just sit back and enjoy.
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Jun 15, 2020 17:54
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KingColliwog posted:For stuff like personal anchors : From what I've been reading in north america it seems that people use slings mostly while in Europe they seem to make stuff out of dynamic rope. Is there any reason to use a static personal anchor over a dynamic lanyard? The lanyard seems both cheaper to make and probably safer too? The main thing is that you should NEVER fall on a static personal anchor. Like, don't even fall a single foot on it. They're fine if they're tensioned, but it it a very sudden stop and can literally break your back if you fall a short distance and are caught on a static line. I use a PAS sometimes when climbing multipitch because it is convenient, but generally I try to just tie in with the rope itself. When setting top rope anchors and using something to protect yourself at the top, static line is fine but you shouldn't have slack in it. You want it to be long enough that you can get to the bolts/trees/whatever to build the anchor, but not long enough that you could fall off the edge and be caught by it. As far as slings go, there are degrees of "static-ness" nylon has a bit of give, whereas dyneema has essentially none. Blends may fall inbetween somewhere. Even nylon slings are nowhere near as dynamic as a climbing rope (typically capable of around 30% dynamic elongation).
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Jun 15, 2020 19:51
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Had anyone ever looked at the loading on the body of falling on 2' of static vs falling on 2' of dynamic? The dynamic should be better but does it stretch enough to really help a lot? I just know falls with 20' of rope out vs 100' hurt more all else being equal. E: still don't fall on your personal anchor either way.
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Jun 15, 2020 20:26
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spwrozek posted:Had anyone ever looked at the loading on the body of falling on 2' of static vs falling on 2' of dynamic? The dynamic should be better but does it stretch enough to really help a lot? I just know falls with 20' of rope out vs 100' hurt more all else being equal. Here's one that goes over it. TLDR is that it's high enough to possibly break a dyneema sling on even a 2 foot fall and doesn't even come close on a "sling" made of dynamic rope. Forces are proportional to the distance the body has to decelerate in, on a dyneema sling that distance is very small, so even the small stretch you get out of 2 feet of dynamic rope is significantly larger.
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Jun 15, 2020 20:41
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not much info. yet, but Luce Douady fell 150m on approach yesterday
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Jun 15, 2020 20:56
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M. Night Skymall posted:Here's one that goes over it. TLDR is that it's high enough to possibly break a dyneema sling on even a 2 foot fall and doesn't even come close on a "sling" made of dynamic rope. Forces are proportional to the distance the body has to decelerate in, on a dyneema sling that distance is very small, so even the small stretch you get out of 2 feet of dynamic rope is significantly larger. Yeah. I figured there was some data out there. Thanks. E: looks like it is in the realm of "it helps a lot but I still don't really want to fall on it". spwrozek fucked around with this message at 21:09 on Jun 15, 2020 |
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Jun 15, 2020 21:04
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Hauki posted:not much info. yet, but Luce Douady fell 150m on approach yesterday Looks like she died unfortunately. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-53054385
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Jun 15, 2020 21:10
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spwrozek posted:Looks like she died unfortunately. Yeah, sorry, I figured that was obvious from the height but I should’ve clarified. That’s the first major news outlet I’ve seen reporting it though.
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Jun 15, 2020 21:38
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Hauki posted:Yeah, sorry, I figured that was obvious from the height but I should’ve clarified. That’s the first major news outlet I’ve seen reporting it though. I kind of figured but since it was in the approach you never know. Bummer though.
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Jun 15, 2020 22:10
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I'm still very on the fence about heading back into even the giant Englewood EarthTreks... we still know approximately jack and poo poo about the virus and plenty of people are having very long-term effects from getting it. Is failing on a 5.9 really worth the risk to me? Dunno.
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Jun 15, 2020 23:14
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ShaneB posted:I'm still very on the fence about heading back into even the giant Englewood EarthTreks... we still know approximately jack and poo poo about the virus and plenty of people are having very long-term effects from getting it. Is failing on a 5.9 really worth the risk to me? Dunno. My current thought is 2021 at a minimum... Maybe I am crazy but my partner works in healthcare, can't work remote. Not worth it.
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Jun 15, 2020 23:46
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Cool, I'll go with a dynamic anchor doesn't seem to be any reason to get a static one instead. I have a very experienced colleague that should come bouldering with us later this week since she has no crashpad. I'll ask her if shed mind helping me out with the top rope stuff. Great timing. KingColliwog fucked around with this message at 01:07 on Jun 16, 2020 |
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Jun 16, 2020 00:51
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ShaneB posted:I'm still very on the fence about heading back into even the giant Englewood EarthTreks... we still know approximately jack and poo poo about the virus and plenty of people are having very long-term effects from getting it. Is failing on a 5.9 really worth the risk to me? Dunno. I mean, the measures they announced seem pretty reasonable all things considered (for reference: only open to existing members, must make reservations, masks at all times, all locker rooms/showers/kitchen areas closed, altered hours & minimal rental/loaner gear due to cleaning/quarantining). On the other hand, while I really miss climbing even insofar as slumming around on easy gym stuff and I'm sure dropping the bulk of my recreational physical activity during all this hasn't helped me, it definitely feels a little surreal to even consider going to a public gym right now spwrozek posted:I kind of figured but since it was in the approach you never know. Bummer though. yeah, definitely a bummer, she was super young & had a ton of potential
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Jun 16, 2020 01:35
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Hauki posted:I mean, the measures they announced seem pretty reasonable all things considered (for reference: only open to existing members, must make reservations, masks at all times, all locker rooms/showers/kitchen areas closed, altered hours & minimal rental/loaner gear due to cleaning/quarantining). Yeah I think their measures seem good, i think they couldn't do much more. It's just a risk vs reward thing mentally.
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Jun 16, 2020 01:39
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KingColliwog posted:I am seeking qualified instruction like I said, but I always feel like I get more out of a class when I get there with some knowledge first. This way they can correct my thoughts when they are wrong and whatever they tell me makes sense so I remember it. Otherwise I sometime feels like I miss a lot of nuance and details that end up being important because everything is new. A static personal anchor is going to be more compact, cheaper, and lighter than an equivalent dynamic anchor. The dynamic anchor's advantage is as stated previously, you can take a more significant fall on it and be just fine. A double length dyneema sling gets way smaller than a fist, weighs 28 grams, and costs like $15. Nylon is even cheaper, slightly heavier and bulkier. A petzl adjust is 125 grams, not as compact, and $50. A diy dynamic lanyard will be cheaper assuming you can find a short piece of rope, but even bulkier. All that said I own a petzl dual connect adjust and like it a lot. The other point you are probably seeing discussed which is less relevant in a top roping context is using the rope as your personal anchor. If you lead a pitch, you are already tied in to the rope, and can use a locker / two lockers to clove hitch to bolts at the anchor. The rope is great in this case because you have it with you already. On the other hand, if you are walking up to some top rope anchors from the backside, you don't need to be tied in to the rope and you're probably carrying the whole rope with you. So if you use the rope as your personal anchor you have to deal with 60m of rope, or drag part of it through the dirt, etc. Plus you have to at some point get both ends of the rope down to the ground, so you can't use it as an anchor then. So in a top roping scenario it's less useful.
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Jun 16, 2020 15:11
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The thing about the dangers of falling on a static anchor is that it's entirely a danger of your own making, it's not that people fall on their anchors all the time and shouldn't use static anchors, it's just a warning that in a situation where you want to put yourself in a position to fall above the anchor, you should always be on the rope. If you're sitting at an anchor wanting to go up, you're almost assuredly tied in anyway, just clove hitch into the static anchor, solved. If you're in some situation where you have to climb above your anchor and the rope isn't available to you you're probably in some hosed up emergency situation anyway so probably just don't fall. That or you're setting up a top rope from above, but if you set up top ropes all the time from above and you're concerned you're going to pitch off the cliff and be caught by something you've clipped in below you uh..gently caress man don't do that because that fall's going to suck no matter what you clipped in. I have seen people climb above anchors on long slings so they can sit on the cliff and take pictures or whatever, so I guess just be aware if you want to do that what the risks are. As far as a PAS goes, a dynamic anchor sounds insanely bulky, just use slings like a normal person. For single pitch sport, which is probably all you'll do for a while anyway, all you need are 2 60cm slings, a couple lockers, an ATC(with its own locker) or some other device to rap with, a set of draws, and a rope. I also pretty much require people to have an assisted belay device nowadays. From there you can probably just buy accessory cord and rig up whatever else you want.
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Jun 16, 2020 17:11
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Class+online research+experienced friend is a recipe for success alright. I'm teaching a friend to lead and the questions they ask back are really worthwhile, so don't be afraid to challenge them. Some stuff has stuck with me and made me thoroughly question what I'm doing. In Europe, I think we like dynamic anchors like the petzl adjust because they're so efficient on multi-pitch euro sport routes. Get to the belay, clip in to bolt one, clove hitch onto bolt 2, call safe, take in, away. KingColliwog posted:From what I've read so far I'm planning to buy the following : Please do get a helmet. Rocks get dislodged, people drop gear, all sorts. Unless I'm at some super duper immaculate sport crag where I can't actually climb any of the routes, I'll have a helmet on from when I arrive to when I leave. I'll use a pair of quickdraws on the anchor if there are going to be other clips on the rope, but if you're top roping with no intermediate clips then think about incorporating screwgates or put a pair of quickdraws back to back on one of the bolts. Failure at the anchor isn't the end of the world if you've got ten other quickdraws in, but if the anchor is the only point of attachment then it's worth being a bit paranoid. Any authentic climbing rope not from alibaba will have been tested to satisfy minimum standards of deathproofiness. 10mm sounds good for thickness and 50m length will give you the versatility to take it on lots of routes. Don't worry about dry treated. Don't go for super skinny ones because you'll make lots of mistakes at first and a skinny rope gets wrecked too easily. Do make sure the rope size is compatible with all your belay devices. Uncoil it properly the first time. If there are top rope anchors set up for rigging from the top (not something we really have in the UK) you should be able to extemporise a safe way to get to the anchors. Sling your rope round a tree and sort of walking-abseil down to the anchors, then clip in with a sling before pulling the rope through. That sort of idea.
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Jun 17, 2020 00:08
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Endjinneer posted:Class+online research+experienced friend is a recipe for success alright. I'm teaching a friend to lead and the questions they ask back are really worthwhile, so don't be afraid to challenge them. Some stuff has stuck with me and made me thoroughly question what I'm doing. Yeah I'm getting a helmet for sure. Went to buy one today but they were all out except for insane 150$+ helmets. I'll probably just order one online. I already bought some 7mm cordelette, 2 stainless biner and a bunch of screw gates to build a quad anchor. Seem to be easy enough to make/use and extremely safe and I'm not going to risk anything more than I have too. I'm risk averse (well not really since I boulder and it's dumb, but unnecessary risk averse) so after reading a bit more it seems pretty obvious that the quickdraw idea I had at first wasn't the smartest. Also bought a few meters of rope to build a dynamic anchor and practice knots. I got a pretty good price on a rope that seems like a good first rope (sterling velocity 9.8mm) so I'm probably going to pick that up. Also going to get a gri gri for sure. Yeah getting to the anchors is one of the big question mark I have. Some are safely accessible from the top and I won't have any problem accessing them to stick a personal anchor in them, but some other ones are "safe". Like I could go there 1000 time and not fall down, but I could see how one could get super unlucky and slip while trying to clip in. My climbing buddy injured his wrist when we were bouldering earlier this week so I'm going to use the time off climbing to get a good look at how accessible the bolts are on "walk-ups" and try to see if there's some way to anchor myself to access them safely. Probably going to go take a look tomorrow. All the help and feedback is awesome thanks guys. KingColliwog fucked around with this message at 02:52 on Jun 17, 2020 |
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Jun 17, 2020 02:44
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Endjinneer posted:Any authentic climbing rope not from alibaba will have been tested to satisfy minimum standards of deathproofiness. 10mm sounds good for thickness and 50m length will give you the versatility to take it on lots of routes. UK must be different because a 50m rope could get you in trouble in the US. Most routes expect a 60m, and more and more are being developed for 70m now. Routes are even going in for 80m ropes in some rare spots. I bought a 70m and it's nice not having to worry. A 50 meter rope here is going to have you spending a lot of time looking in the guidebook checking route lengths and skipping some classics.
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Jun 17, 2020 05:57
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Once you start leading sport, expect to cut atleast 15 meters from the ends of the rope to get rid of damaged portions before retiring it. If all you're gonna do is TR a bunch, you won't need the extra rope. As for what kit you'll need for anchors the answer is: it depends. If the anchors are designed for rapping off, you might want to extend the anchor over the edge and for that you'll want (~10 meters) of static rope (NOT cord) and possibly a rope protector. Only extend an anchor if its necessary and make sure it won't be able to move back and forth over a sharp edge. 400 cm cordelette (~6mm cord), 240 cm (quad length) slings or pre tied kits (such as quads) are generally used to equalize trad pro. Equalizing bolted anchors is unnecessary. There'll not be any significant forces on the second bolt should the first one fail. If it's a regular sport bolted two piece anchor, lockers or even just a couple of draws are super good enough. Rounded biners are better than I-bream construction biners. Steel is obviously longer lasting and better for dedicated anchor building, but once you move on to leading it'll be a piece of kit you'll never use again. Provided you use a rope mat to keep your rope clean of sand, aluminium biners will last hundreds of sessions. Safely building a TR anchor often involves rappeling. You don't wanna accidentally take a tumble when faffing around with hard to reach bolts. It's common that beginners construct elaborate macramé anchors. Complexity is something that should be avoided. Personal anchors can be a wide range of systems: PAS, daisy chain, lanyard, Purcell prusik, 60 cm (single length) sling with or without knots, girthed dogbone with locker. They all have pros and cons. It's a piece of kit that most people get and many stop using after a while. Still I'd probably recommend getting one as it'll keep the complexity down at the anchor which is where most accidents do happen. Worst case is that you'll stop using it after a while. Sigmund Fraud fucked around with this message at 12:49 on Jun 17, 2020 |
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Jun 17, 2020 12:38
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KingColliwog posted:For the moment I'm only wanting to get into top roping in easily accessible places where you can access the anchors from the top and then walk down before climbing. There's quite a few nice easy spot like that close-by. I'm really only looking to learn the basics and supplement my bouldering. I will probably wait until next summer to get into actual "real" climbing outdoors unless a very experimented friend lures me deeper. I would suggest looking at an https://www.activejunky.com/ account for when you can't get things from your local gear shop. Getting 8%-12% cash back can take a little of the sting out of buying gear. What areas are you near? If you post the crag name some bored goons that have been locked out of climbing might go on mountain project and look at some routes and help guide your gear selection. I have the Falcon Guide 'Climbing Anchors' book. It deals alot with building gear anchors so it might be overkill for clipping bolts but it does do a good job of explaining the pros and cons of a few different systems for bolted anchors and a great reference for knots. My local library also had 'Rock Climbing: The AMGA Single Pitch Manual' in E book form so I read that during lock down. Not sure I'd pay for it but it was worth a look. KingColliwog posted:Yeah getting to the anchors is one of the big question mark I have. Some are safely accessible from the top and I won't have any problem accessing them to stick a personal anchor in them, but some other ones are "safe". Like I could go there 1000 time and not fall down, but I could see how one could get super unlucky and slip while trying to clip in. My climbing buddy injured his wrist when we were bouldering earlier this week so I'm going to use the time off climbing to get a good look at how accessible the bolts are on "walk-ups" and try to see if there's some way to anchor myself to access them safely. Probably going to go take a look tomorrow. Smart move, even just knowing the best approach makes doing a little scouting worthwhile. It is less embarrassing and frustrating to wander around with the guide book alone than to have all your gear on your back and a friend eager to climb and not be able to find the area you are looking for. Super hero points if you do a little trash pick up while you scout. I took an anchors class a couple years ago and the instructor would have us tether in while working at the cliff edge. It was a simple system, sling a tree, a big rock or place a bomber piece of gear, then attach a bit of cord long enough to reach the work area, put a stopper knot in the end of the cord and use a prusik clipped to your belay loop to attach to the cord. By slipping the prusik along the cord you keep the fall distance low and still are able to move around a bit.
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Jun 17, 2020 16:12
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Recently TR soloing I've been fixing my normal lead rope to bolts (fig8 on each end with carabiner to each bolt) and using an ascender on each side and treating each end as independent. It does stretch quite a bit so I'm thinking of switching to a static rope to save wear on my rope. Another problem I face is when pulling the rope (as a double strand) sometimes the looped end can get caught. I can just undo one figure 8 and pull it as a single strand though.Sigmund Fraud posted:If the anchors are designed for rapping off, you might want to extend the anchor over the edge and for that you'll want (~10 meters) of static rope (NOT cord) and possibly a rope protector. Only extend an anchor if its necessary and make sure it won't be able to move back and forth over a sharp edge. I never knew this. I thought 7mm+ cordelette (and not static rope specifically) was desired when building anchors. Is static rope extra burly for dealing with edges? What about anchors that are expected to have contact with the ground (ie ground bolts above a rounded cliff edge), is this also where thick rope to extend is preferred? There's a rope shop about an hour away and I might pick up some static line (10mm) for both my TR setup and anchor building. Rope shops will generally have leftover cut lengths that they'll sell for cheaper.
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Jun 17, 2020 17:34
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