...the man was part of a group of six other climbers who were not wearing helmets...

An American climber from Tennessee fell 10 metres at Mount Arapiles on Saturday, severely dislocating his ankle

What is it with guys from Tenn. decking?

What is it with guys from Tenn. decking?

Natural selection.

DUDE !!!! You don't wear your ankle helmet??? What kind of an ass are you. I always wear mine. Funny how they point that fact out eh?!

To the rumor mill:

Before you get too worked up on the "bumbly" this and that who did something stupid and blah blah blah.

Show some consideration and don't talk when you don't know.

The accident. That was me. I fracture dislocated my talus quite severely. There was concern over the status of my back and neck considering the fall was between 10 and 12 meters. However, I sustained no further injuries beyond the foot. I feel no need to defend my competence. I appreciate the efforts of all those involved. For any who may have helped and are reading this, I can't thank you enough.

For any who are so terribly interested in what happened so they can run away with speculation and accusation on the incorrect techniques and foolishness and bumblieness and etc... Too bad.

I'll climb again another day. In fact as soon as I get off the bloody crutches it should be Frog season.

Climb hard climb safe climb for yourself and f--- all the rest.

I was a member of the accident party, and saw the whole rescue. Thanks to the air and ground ambulances, rangers, SES and ARG members and climbers who participated. Here's what happened.

Around lunchtime Saturday, Brendo was leading Chinese Algebra. He slipped off the crux, the top piece pulled out, and two nuts below and to the right of it zippered. It happened the way every anchor textbook describes. He fell about 10m to the ground, landed on his feet, and rolled.

We, the three uninjured climbers in the party, did a primary survey of Brendo's injuries. All we found was a dislocated ankle. He was too sore for further examination, so we could not exclude a spinal injury. We chose to keep him still and call triple zero, expecting an ambulance to bring morphine, a cervical collar and a solid stretcher in about 20 minutes.

I met the ambulance near Castle Crag. The paramedics advised me that a helicopter was coming, and asked whether I thought it necessary. I pointed out where Brendo was, and said that it would be easy to carry him down on a stretcher. They called to cancel the helicopter, but their dispatcher wanted them to inspect the patient and the terrain first hand. When they saw the boulders at the bottom of Voodoo Gully, they worried that someone else would be injured in a stretcher carry, and asked the chopper to continue. Later, other rescuers opined that the wind and Brendo's proximity to Voodoo Wall would prevent the chopper from winching him out. No one pressed the issue.

Brendo was considerably more comfortable when the helicopter arrived. The crew lowered a paramedic, who moved Brendo away from the cliff to a spot where they could attempt to raise him in a harness. The chopper returned, and the crew attempted to lower a cable, but they soon gave up and left. The SES then put Brendo in a stretcher, and eight lifters carried him to the road without further drama.

I'm curious... what's a chopper rescue lift cost these days?

DMT

What, you're telling me your life is not worth the cost of a helicopter flight? First people want to climb on tied slings, then it's just regular ambulances. I suppose next it's a pair of EBs and nuts made by a surfer with an anvil.
Glad to hear the guy is okay.

What, you're telling me your life is not worth the cost of a helicopter flight? First people want to climb on tied slings, then it's just regular ambulances. I suppose next it's a pair of EBs and nuts made by a surfer with an anvil.

Tennesseans are down to earth people.

DMT

Are you related to Larry the cable guy?