This is definitively NOT an official accident report and, to my knowledge, none of the parties involved has been contacted by any institution for an authoritative report. That said, no information is being actively repressed. There are no people to my knowledge withholding information. So, know in advance that what I post here is a third- and fourth-hand summary of what I have been able to piece together from various sources, including the belayer, who is continuing to work through his own recollection of this horrific accident. I know that the people involved in the fall and rescue intend to contact the organizations that report annually on Climbing and Alpine injuries and fatalities. For those of you seeking non-conjecture, authoritative finality, keep an eye out there.

The bottom line is that with any ground fall, if the rope or harness didn't break and bolts didn't fail - and in this case they didn't - the error is a human one. The failures that led to Mike's fall began long before his group hiked into the Darkside and they revolve around a set of beliefs and poor safety habits that are, unfortunately, all too pervasive in the climbing community. This includes “quickie” peer instruction for lead climbing/lead belaying; an over-reliance in the effectiveness of lock-assist devices; a willingness on the part of more experienced climbers to put less experienced belayers in situations requiring difficult catches (I've been told, and those of you who have belayed on Elephant man know, that it is a tough catch); and a general ambivalence toward the use of helmets - and I'm guilty of this too.

The belay device used at the time of Mike's fall was a Cinch, and the belayer inexperienced at using it. Clearly, it did not engage. Reports from the site indicate that the device was correctly loaded. Reports from the site also indicate that the belayer did not have a fixed hand on the brake. So, what this means is that the device did not engage and that the belayer was not using one of the fundamental actions required of a belayer: braking.

We know that a belayer should always have a fixed hand on the brake. But this accident presents a more complex situation that requires a look at what went wrong. On a Cinch, the device will not engage if 1) the device is manually held down, per Petzl's instructional videos on feeding rope to a lead climber; 2) the device is tipped on its side, which prevents rotation of the Cinch plates; or 3) if you belay from a position in which the pull force on the device is perpendicular to the belayer. This last scenario is particularly prevalent in a lead situation where the rope runs out (rather than up) from a belayer to the first bolt. Because of the steepness of Elephant man and the talus at the bottom, the latter situation seems to be the most likely.

Just because you know how to do something doesn't mean you know how to effectively teach it to someone else. What’s more, the people you choose to instruct become your responsibility. If you aren't qualified to teach someone don't pretend you are. Send them to someone who is qualified. And, if you're on the receiving end of instruction from your "buddy who's been doing it, like, forever and is really good" - use caution. Your instruction may well be inadequate.

That's not my take on the above exchange. The response was in equal measure to the innuendo. In a couple words: even handed.

Obviously, I do think this site needs to sometimes stand between subjects of threads who are suffering and us onlookers. It may not be perfect but it needs to be looked after in the name of decentness.

Bill L

While I fully understand the advantages to the community as a whole that can come from analyzing accidents, I believe common decency far outweighs any "need" we may have to climb.

I climb at the Darkside when I'm in top shape. I've not tried that route but if it has a dangerous eg deadly clip, it's best to know about it and even have community change it so it shouldn't prove the scene of another tragic accident. JMO...

This is definitively NOT an official accident report and, to my knowledge, none of the parties involved has been contacted by any institution for an authoritative report. That said, no information is being actively repressed. There are no people to my knowledge withholding information. So, know in advance that what I post here is a third- and fourth-hand summary of what I have been able to piece together from various sources, including the belayer, who is continuing to work through his own recollection of this horrific accident. I know that the people involved in the fall and rescue intend to contact the organizations that report annually on Climbing and Alpine injuries and fatalities. For those of you seeking non-conjecture, authoritative finality, keep an eye out there.

The bottom line is that with any ground fall, if the rope or harness didn't break and bolts didn't fail - and in this case they didn't - the error is a human one. The failures that led to Mike's fall began long before his group hiked into the Darkside and they revolve around a set of beliefs and poor safety habits that are, unfortunately, all too pervasive in the climbing community. This includes “quickie” peer instruction for lead climbing/lead belaying; an over-reliance in the effectiveness of lock-assist devices; a willingness on the part of more experienced climbers to put less experienced belayers in situations requiring difficult catches (I've been told, and those of you who have belayed on Elephant man know, that it is a tough catch); and a general ambivalence toward the use of helmets - and I'm guilty of this too.

The belay device used at the time of Mike's fall was a Cinch, and the belayer inexperienced at using it. Clearly, it did not engage. Reports from the site indicate that the device was correctly loaded. Reports from the site also indicate that the belayer did not have a fixed hand on the brake. So, what this means is that the device did not engage and that the belayer was not using one of the fundamental actions required of a belayer: braking.

We know that a belayer should always have a fixed hand on the brake. But this accident presents a more complex situation that requires a look at what went wrong. On a Cinch, the device will not engage if 1) the device is manually held down, per Petzl's instructional videos on feeding rope to a lead climber; 2) the device is tipped on its side, which prevents rotation of the Cinch plates; or 3) if you belay from a position in which the pull force on the device is perpendicular to the belayer. This last scenario is particularly prevalent in a lead situation where the rope runs out (rather than up) from a belayer to the first bolt. Because of the steepness of Elephant man and the talus at the bottom, the latter situation seems to be the most likely.

Just because you know how to do something doesn't mean you know how to effectively teach it to someone else. What’s more, the people you choose to instruct become your responsibility. If you aren't qualified to teach someone don't pretend you are. Send them to someone who is qualified. And, if you're on the receiving end of instruction from your "buddy who's been doing it, like, forever and is really good" - use caution. Your instruction may well be inadequate.

This is definitively NOT an official accident report and, to my knowledge, none of the parties involved has been contacted by any institution for an authoritative report. That said, no information is being actively repressed. There are no people to my knowledge withholding information......

This incident involved a death, from which I surmise that a police report was taken from those involved, and that an investigation, albeit likely short, was carried out. All I was wondering was if the findings of this investigation had been made public. I was not, in any way, demanding information from anyone directly related to the accident, as I had assumed any pertinent information had already been passed on to someone less emotionally involved.

Your responses, blondgecko, are unneeded and entirely counterproductive. Those involved do not need to you to play the part of their protector. Likewise, you easily could have made the point you were trying to without taking such a defensive and incendiary tone.

That and $7.50 will get you a half-caf vanilla soy frappuchino at Starbucks.

No, those involved do not need my "protection". I don't know any of them, and will probably never meet any of them. But that's completely beside the point. The point is respect. As long as I am a mod of this forum, I will be doing my best to make sure that discussions (a) remain accurate and fact-based, and (b) are held at the discretion of those close to the accident.

If those who know what happened do not want to share, that is their perogative. Coming in with an entitlement complex, making accusations of cover-ups and/or demanding information from those for whom the shock and grief is still fresh, is the surest way to get a thread shut down, and to get yourself banned from the A&IA forum.

Ask, politely, for information. If none is forthcoming, move along. Do not complain, do not demand, do not make shit up. It's that simple.

As long as I am a mod of this forum, I will be doing my best to make sure that discussions ... are held at the discretion of those close to the accident.

If those who know what happened do not want to share, that is their perogative.

Coming in with an entitlement complex, making accusations of cover-ups and/or demanding information from those for whom the shock and grief is still fresh, is the surest way to get a thread shut down, and to get yourself banned from the A&IA forum..

Reports on accidents investigated by the US's NTSB are available on line, in searchable database form. Coal mine and oil well accidents are analyzed in all the

Could rockclimbing.com have such a feature added to it?

I'm not sure that that is the best policy. I can think of no other risky activity where those close to the accident have veto power over public analysis of the accident. The benefit of the information to the safety of other participants in the activity is considered paramount. In both skydiving and flying, accident reports and analysis are major features of publications that cater to skydivers and pilots. When I was flying, the accident reports were the main reason I subscribed. Reports on accidents investigated by the US's NTSB are available on line, in searchable database form. Coal mine and oil well accidents are analyzed in all the media. I don't see why discussion of climbing accidents should be treated differently.

Jay

I was not present when the accident occurred, but I was the 'buddy' who had given the belayer a 'quickie' instruction in the fall of 2009. Therefore I feel responsible for what happened.

I was the one who recommended the Cinch over grigri and ATC to the belayer involved for the lead belay, because I have witnessed an accident involving an ATC used by inexperienced belayer, who panicked and let go of the breaking end of the rope, and because I did not like the idea of manually blocking the grigri when feeding out the rope. Cinch, when used properly, allows easy rope release without need for blocking the cam. At the same time, when you hold it with your index finger and a thumb, the breaking end of the rope is always in your hand. You never need to let it go.

It was his first, I believe, instruction in lead belaying. We went to a gym and I explained how to hold the cinch properly with a finger and a thumb in the pivot hole and holding the breaking end of the rope in the hand. Unlike Grigri, the Cinch during the lead belay has to be tilted horizontally with its colored side up. When the leader falls, the cinch turns up and blocks the rope, providing the rope is held with the hand. When held properly, the rope is always in your hand and you never need to let go of it. See the demo video, around 2:10:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9TO5ikqXwo

Unfortunately, due to schedule conflict, I never had a chance to continue instructions and watch the belayer to practice more with the device. I was planning to go with him to the Red, but our weekend schedules never matched.

After the accident, my other friend experimented with the cinch and found that when it was held like grigri, i.e. vertically and not tilted, the device did not lock the rope. I did not know about this when I was giving my instructions, but I remember that I specifically told the belayer involved in the accident to hold the cinch horizontally, green side up, with index finger and the thumb in the pivot hole and the breaking hand always on the rope.

I don't know how the cinch was actually held during the accident.

I still think that when used correctly Cinch is a very safe device. However, the rules for using grigri are not applied to the cinch. These are two different devices and are supposed to be held differently. Perhaps, Trango needs to explore potentially dangerous positions of cinch and make the results of this study public.

Lee is correct by saying that when force is applied perpendicular to the belayer the cinch may not lock, especially since it is normally held horizontally. Like with all other devices, it is advisable that the belayer stays under the first draw.

I feel that my instructions were adequate and correct, but insufficient in terms of practicing time with the device. I don't know whether in 6 or so months between my lesson and the accident the belayer used the cinch correctly and did not confuse the grigri and cinch belay methods. I simply never had a chance to lead climb with him after that.

I also know that Mike was not very familiar with the Cinch. He asked me about the device a few months before the accident being curious about it. Therefore, he could not provide the belayer with proper instructions and he might suggest the incorrect grigri technique when using cinch.

[T]he Cinch during the lead belay has to be tilted horizontally with its colored side up. ... See the demo video, around 2:10:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9TO5ikqXwo

do you mind tell us what is climbing experience? years leading or top roping etc

most experienced climbers do know that none of the auto-belay devices lock by themselves and you as the belayer have to manually engage the locking cam to arrest the fall.

I've never used a Cinch, so I can't speak from experience, but looking at the video and the design of the devise, it does not appear to me that the Cinch has to be held horizontally to feed rope.

I've never used a Cinch, so I can't speak from experience, but looking at the video and the design of the devise, it does not appear to me that the Cinch has to be held horizontally to feed rope.

The problem isn't the orientation of the device. The problem is blocking the cam with you hand. This should never be done when a climber is falling.

I started lead belaying in 2005 using ATC, then switched to grigri, practiced with super-8 and then switched again to Cinch.


This is incorrect. I hope you were testing me with this statement. Just holding the breaking end is sufficient to lock the rope. Grigri will lock most of the time even without holding the end, but it is not recommended.

I was not present when the accident occurred, but I was the 'buddy' who had given the belayer a 'quickie' instruction in the fall of 2009. Therefore I feel responsible for what happened..

Orientation matters. If you hold it in your palm vertically, like Grigri, instead of with a finger and a thumb horizontally, the cinch may not lock. I played a lot with it after the accident and there are positions in which the cam does not engage.

the rope size, the position of the hand has to be in the right angle to engage the caming device in the gri gri . just holding the end of the rope does not grantee full arrest of a falling lead climber.

It's in the manual that comes with the device.