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Forums:
Climbing Disciplines:
Big Wall and Aid Climbing:
First Solo Aid.:
Edit Log
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blueeyedclimber
Nov 24, 2007, 12:09 AM
Views: 4142
Registered: Nov 19, 2002
Posts: 4602
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This is also my first post in the Aid forum. I have been wanting to practice some aid techniques for some time. I have done a little aid with a partner, but I figured it would actually be easier to practice and work out kinks w/o one. My wife and main climbing partner has been injured this fall, so I took advantage and went out solo today.
I truly came here to practice, so I wanted to aid, haul, rappel and jug/clean a full pitch.
I set a bottom anchor and racked all my gear. I noticed that the gear was small and very thin in places so I used all big gear for the anchor. As it turned out, I could have used more small cams. I leapfrogged a WC zero 5 times. I made sure I had two pieces in before moving it.
It took a long time to do everything, but with practice and maybe adding a few pieces of gear (i.e. a 2nd ascender, maybe a solo belay device (used a grigri)), I will get more efficient. Up top, I probably could have used a couple hooks, too. THere were no more gear placements, so I had to free the last 5-8 feet. That was a little scary, even though it was probably only 5.4 at that point.
Then I hauled a bag, rappelled, then jugged up on 1 ascender and 1 friction knot.
A couple things that I thought of in my n00biness:
1. I did not have my etriers attached to anything when I was weighting a piece. If one blew, I might have lost it. Do you usually tether it to something?
2. To jug up, i attached a sling via friction knot to my harness, and used the ascender for an etrier. It would have been easier with 2 ascenders, but given what I had, it felt pretty efficient. Should you attach to both jugs to back yourslef up?
Man, Aid takes a long time.
Josh
(This post was edited by blueeyedclimber on Nov 24, 2007, 12:10 AM)
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