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currupt4130
Nov 29, 2008, 11:14 PM
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I know this has gotten a little off track, but w/e. Here's the story of my almost unintentional victory whip...
So my almost unintentional victory whip happened at the New. I was on Lost Souls after flailing like crazy (12a, hardest route I've been on). I got to the top of the route and had climbed it on some gear that another group had hung. They let me use their stuff kindly because I was worried about not being able to get up and leaving behind something.
Anyhow, I got to the top and it started to sprinkle. I was up there and called down and asked if they wanted me to clean it. They said yea, go ahead. So I went in direct to the bolt, untied, threaded the anchors, and retied. I was getting ready to lower when they asked if it was getting wet up there. I told them no, and it wouldn't matter too much because the holds up top were huge. So they told me not to bother with it. I went back in direct to the anchors, untied, unthreaded, and retied.
I called down one more time to make sure they didn't want me to clean it. They said no. I hollered to Jim that I was about to come down, grabbed one of the jugs at the top and went to unclip my sling from the bolt. It was at the instant where I was unscrewing my locker that I realized I had never clipped back into the draws at the top. Jim still had a big loop of slack out from where I was playing around up there, and I would have dropped probably 45 or 50 feet on a route that isn't longer than 60 or 70 feet.
That almost victory whip is in my head at the top of every route.
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blondgecko
Moderator
Nov 29, 2008, 11:16 PM
Post #77 of 228
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I've consigned most of the nastiness to the recycle bin. This is supposed to be a fun thread - why turn it into a shitstorm?
Rockie, intentionally misquoting people is severely frowned upon here. Consider this a formal warning. Next time, it will be a time-out.
Others, please try to keep your tempers.
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caughtinside
Nov 29, 2008, 11:19 PM
Post #78 of 228
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blondgecko wrote: I've consigned most of the nastiness to the recycle bin. This is supposed to be a fun thread - why turn it into a shitstorm? Rockie, intentionally misquoting people is severely frowned upon here. Consider this a formal warning. Next time, it will be a time-out. Others, please try to keep your tempers.
Please BANZ zeke.
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angry
Nov 29, 2008, 11:19 PM
Post #79 of 228
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blondgecko wrote: I've consigned most of the nastiness to the recycle bin. This is supposed to be a fun thread - why turn it into a shitstorm? Rockie, intentionally misquoting people is severely frowned upon here. Consider this a formal warning. Next time, it will be a time-out. Others, please try to keep your tempers.
That's the dumbest thing you've ever done?
Weird.
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Valarc
Nov 29, 2008, 11:20 PM
Post #80 of 228
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angry wrote: blondgecko wrote: I've consigned most of the nastiness to the recycle bin. This is supposed to be a fun thread - why turn it into a shitstorm? Rockie, intentionally misquoting people is severely frowned upon here. Consider this a formal warning. Next time, it will be a time-out. Others, please try to keep your tempers. That's the dumbest thing you've ever done? Weird.
I would say the dumbest would be volunteering to be a moderator on this website.
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blondgecko
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Nov 29, 2008, 11:24 PM
Post #81 of 228
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Valarc wrote: angry wrote: blondgecko wrote: I've consigned most of the nastiness to the recycle bin. This is supposed to be a fun thread - why turn it into a shitstorm? Rockie, intentionally misquoting people is severely frowned upon here. Consider this a formal warning. Next time, it will be a time-out. Others, please try to keep your tempers. That's the dumbest thing you've ever done? Weird. I would say the dumbest would be volunteering to be a moderator on this website.
QFT. 
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Valarc
Nov 29, 2008, 11:28 PM
Post #82 of 228
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zeke_sf wrote: rockie wrote: Just one anchor point is a very stupid mistake, especially when it's a tree (edited to add that last point). Well, that means you can't ever use a tree as an anchor - or even part of your anchor. If you don't trust them at all, then you certainly shouldn't anchor to a piece that, if it failed, would pull you and your other piece(s) right off the mountain.
Since we got the nastiness deleted, perhaps we can re-start this conversation with a different tone. I'd like to hear what Rockie's professional instructor taught her in answer to Zeke's question. Since Rockie has shown a bit of a lack of reading comprehension, as well as poor language skills in general, I will try to rephrase Zeke's point.
Rockie, by your quoted post above, you seem to somehow indicate that trees are especially bad as a single anchor point, meaning that they would be worse than other single anchor point options. This would imply that you have an inherent mistrust of trees. If that is a case, how do you justify anchoring to a tree, period? After all, if a tree is, in your eyes, more likely to fail than other options, that makes it MORE dangerous to anchor to the tree than those other options, especially considering that, for a tree to fail, it would most likely have to be pulled free of the cliff wall.
If the tree were not trustworthy, and its failing meant pulling free of the cliff wall, that would mean that the tree would add a HUGE chance of failure to the rest of the system - adding the weight of a tree to your anchor, in what amounts to a factor 2 fall on potentially static cordage (your professional guide did teach you about fall factors didn't he?) is far more likely to pull the rest of your gear free than any fall you could possibly take.
So, again, how do you justify EVER using a tree as part of an anchor, if you consider trees to be inherently unsafe?
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notapplicable
Nov 29, 2008, 11:36 PM
Post #83 of 228
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blondgecko wrote: I've consigned most of the nastiness to the recycle bin. This is supposed to be a fun thread - why turn it into a shitstorm?
Damn it, I go cook diner and miss all the fun!!
PM me the recycled stuff, inquiring minds want to know.
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rockie
Nov 29, 2008, 11:42 PM
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I'm not feeding you with anything that you can then use to twist how you want to.
Think what you like.
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rockie
Nov 29, 2008, 11:43 PM
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notapplicable wrote: blondgecko wrote: I've consigned most of the nastiness to the recycle bin. This is supposed to be a fun thread - why turn it into a shitstorm? Damn it, I go cook diner and miss all the fun!! PM me the recycled stuff, inquiring minds want to know.
It's meant to be a fun thread.
It's been a real blast.
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notapplicable
Nov 29, 2008, 11:52 PM
Post #86 of 228
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caughtinside wrote: blondgecko wrote: I've consigned most of the nastiness to the recycle bin. This is supposed to be a fun thread - why turn it into a shitstorm? Rockie, intentionally misquoting people is severely frowned upon here. Consider this a formal warning. Next time, it will be a time-out. Others, please try to keep your tempers. Please BANZ zeke.
+1
Not only would this go a long way towards righting many previous wrongs but would serve as a pre-emptive strike against future problems as well.
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rockie
Nov 30, 2008, 12:07 AM
Post #87 of 228
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notapplicable wrote: caughtinside wrote: blondgecko wrote: I've consigned most of the nastiness to the recycle bin. This is supposed to be a fun thread - why turn it into a shitstorm? Rockie, intentionally misquoting people is severely frowned upon here. Consider this a formal warning. Next time, it will be a time-out. Others, please try to keep your tempers. Please BANZ zeke. +1 Not only would this go a long way towards righting many previous wrongs but would serve as a pre-emptive strike against future problems as well.
+ 1
Make that 3 of us in that case.
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rogue10186
Nov 30, 2008, 12:35 AM
Post #88 of 228
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Dumbest thing I've ever done was climb with a stoned belayer... but to be fair, this guy does practically everything stoned, so it wasn't to bad for him.
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rogue10186
Nov 30, 2008, 12:35 AM
Post #89 of 228
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rogue10186 wrote: Dumbest thing I've ever done was climb with a stoned belayer... but to be fair, this guy does practically everything stoned, so it wasn't to bad for him.
QFPTFTW
Climbing in Bama is crazy!
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brownie710
Nov 30, 2008, 12:42 AM
Post #90 of 228
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Hands down the dumbest thing.. building a belay station on a ledge on the 1st Flatiron which was home to a huge poison sumac bush/tree. Luckily I'm not allergic, unfortunately my second was. It cut my climbing trip short since I didn't really want to have his bleeding, oozing mitts touching my gear.. sorry again tommy!!!
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zeke_sf
Nov 30, 2008, 12:44 AM
Post #91 of 228
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rockie wrote: notapplicable wrote: caughtinside wrote: blondgecko wrote: I've consigned most of the nastiness to the recycle bin. This is supposed to be a fun thread - why turn it into a shitstorm? Rockie, intentionally misquoting people is severely frowned upon here. Consider this a formal warning. Next time, it will be a time-out. Others, please try to keep your tempers. Please BANZ zeke. +1 Not only would this go a long way towards righting many previous wrongs but would serve as a pre-emptive strike against future problems as well. + 1 Make that 3 of us in that case.
+1
He's always messing wit my bidness. Bad zeke!
And, oh yeah, perfect summation, Valarc. I'm not sure how that can be misinterpreted but I'm sure somebody will find a way. I could actually see, if you were in a bad situation, trying to equalize a copse of shrubs or something, but that would be a messed up situation, not your normal BFT situation.
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blondgecko
Moderator
Nov 30, 2008, 8:30 AM
Post #92 of 228
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Guess I should add my story. Actually, I can think of two - both of which involve going woefully under-equipped into climbs that were well below my technical ability, but quite challenging in other ways.
The first is one I alluded to in another thread recently. This was only about two years into my climbing career, and I'd taken a trip to the Blue Mountains with a group, including my hapless (now ex-) girlfriend. Decided to take her on a bit of an "adventure" route one day. A friend recommended a five pitch grade 13 (5.6), along with a cheerful, "oh, you won't be needing any trad gear. It's a sport route!"
Heh. As it turns out, believing him was mistake number one. If I'd just read the guidebook description a bit more critically, I might have learned the truth.
Anyway, we rock up at the base of this thing (about a half-hour hike, upon which we saw nobody else) carrying a rope, a bottle of water, 8 quickdraws and a bunch of slings.
I began to realise something wasn't quite right when the first pitch (40m) had one bolt.  The climbing was easy, though, and the belay anchor was at least bolted - and besides, I didn't want to back down in front of my girl - and so I decided to push on. Second mistake.
Second pitch was better. It had two bolts. Third was a 40m traverse, with a relatively sewn-up six bolts.
We could still have backed off from here (albeit with a bit of difficulty), but that pride thing still got in the way (and I was too dirt-poor and cheap to ever consider leaving behind any of my precious gear).
This pitch was a corner, with a crack that could have been easily filled with gear, but was considerably more sketchy with what we had with us. No bolts. Still, we felt sure that, as was the case on the rest of the route, there'd be a bolted belay waiting at the top.
For some reason, she insisted on leading this one. Did an admirable job, too. I'm honestly not sure whether some of the chockstones she slung would have held a fall, but they were never tested. After she got to the top, I heard an "I'm safe" - then everything went silent. It stayed that way for a long, long time.
Eventually, I heard a shaky "on belay!" and headed on up. When I got to the top, I understood the delay. She was sitting on a ledge a few metres wide, as flat as a pool table, slung to a wobbly shrub with a stem as thick as my wrist, and a loose boulder that weighed perhaps as much as I did. That was it. Absolutely nothing else, given what we had with us.
Anyone who's been to the Blue Mountains will know the funny bands of ironstone that run through the rock in places. They're much, much harder than the sandstone surrounding them, and hence erosion tends to leave them sticking out in big, flat horizontal sheets, generally under an inch thick. Climbing them is like climbing a ladder in terms of technical difficulty. The challenge comes in trusting them not to snap off under your weight. The next pitch was a bunch of these spaced a foot or so apart. It was also slightly overhanging.
It had no bolts. Or anything that could be slung.
Considering this anchor and the crack we'd just come up, downclimbing really didn't seem like an option. It was go forward, or sit and wait for help. The latter may well have been the best decision made that day, but I didn't make it. Instead, I decided to climb this pitch.
So that's how I ended up effectively soloing a pitch of overhanging, dodgy rock, at least 100m off the valley floor. Given the quality of the belay "anchor", in hindsight I should have just asked the girlfriend to untie - at least that way if I came off one of us would have still survived.
In any case, I climbed the pitch. I have never been so glad to see a BFT in all my life. Actually, in this case I ended up slinging two BFT's - banksias that were probably a few hundred years old - just for good measure.
Teenage gung-ho and hormones. A dangerous combination.
The other story involved attacking the grade 16 (5.8) Watchtower Crack at Mt Arapiles, for which the guidebook description reads:
In reply to: The most commanding line at Arapiles still echoes with the whimpering cries of a thousand struggling leaders...
... armed with a rack that included just two pieces big enough to actually fit the crack (and one of those just barely). 'Nuff said, really. That was a memorable day.
Edit: wayward quote tags.
(This post was edited by blondgecko on Nov 30, 2008, 10:30 AM)
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minibiter
Nov 30, 2008, 10:25 AM
Post #93 of 228
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Had this girlfriend once. Got her into climbing, got her into sport climbing, including catching me, but only at the gym. Took her outside.
Got on this route, got 6 bolts up. Got above the 6th bolt, to where it was just below my feet and fell. Didn't think it would be a big fall.
Next thing I know I'm back by bolt 2, she's at bolt 1 with my side of the rope in her hands. Magically the rope bound in the ATC when she grabbed the wrong side, but not before giving her the worst rope burn I've ever seen. Luckily that was the only injury.
So I got her to put her brake hand on and we lowered off. Waited a bit then cleaned the route, with the gri-gri this time.
Lesson #1: Don't push people into new skills too fast. Let them learn at their own pace. Give plenty of time for practice and supervise the practice.
Lesson #2: Don't lose your common sense. Too easy to do with a cute girlfriend.
Lesson #3: You should know how to use an ATC, but that gri-gri would have saved me from my closet-yet-to-death experience while rock climbing or not, saved her hands, and her pride.
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rockie
Nov 30, 2008, 10:58 AM
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angry wrote: minibiter wrote: Had this girlfriend once. Got her into climbing, got her into sport climbing,. I only had to read that far. That's rough man, I hope you learned from your epic.
Aha ha ha. That's funny.
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knieveltech
Nov 30, 2008, 3:18 PM
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blondgecko wrote: I've consigned most of the nastiness to the recycle bin. This is supposed to be a fun thread - why turn it into a shitstorm? Rockie, intentionally misquoting people is severely frowned upon here. Consider this a formal warning. Next time, it will be a time-out. Others, please try to keep your tempers.
You must be new here.
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kane_schutzman
Nov 30, 2008, 9:58 PM
Post #97 of 228
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buried my class ring in a crack and rapped off it
(This post was edited by kane_schutzman on Nov 30, 2008, 10:44 PM)
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sungam
Dec 1, 2008, 4:18 PM
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notapplicable wrote: See my avatar. After finishing a lead I untied and lowered the rope to pull up slings for a top rope but when I got the gear I just tied the rope to my harness with a double over hand so I wouldnt loose the rope. I planed to re-tie it before I lowered but forgot and it came loose something like 25 ft. from the ground while I was cleaning a hex. Thats about as dumb as it gets I'd say.  Luckily all I got was a broken wrist.
I thought that was a rollerblading injury?
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sbaclimber
Dec 1, 2008, 4:20 PM
Post #99 of 228
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sungam wrote: notapplicable wrote: See my avatar. After finishing a lead I untied and lowered the rope to pull up slings for a top rope but when I got the gear I just tied the rope to my harness with a double over hand so I wouldnt loose the rope. I planed to re-tie it before I lowered but forgot and it came loose something like 25 ft. from the ground while I was cleaning a hex. Thats about as dumb as it gets I'd say. Luckily all I got was a broken wrist. You rock climb? I thought that was a rollerblading injury?
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