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Rope solo lead with TWO ropes and two separate devices

Febs · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2008 · Points: 5

I think I'll do this until I'll get better.

I will aid climb to the top. Then top rope. Win.

Now, I have to learn how to aid, sounds fun. I think I'll start by buying this funny thing:
caponord.it/kong-panic-syst…

For what matters simple leading, I will experiment with two ropes one day when I'll have a third rope (a human belayer) as a backup. Yeah sounds clusterfuck already but I'm very curious to know if this two ropes idea may work or not and what better way to discover it than testing it personally with a safe backup?

Brady3 · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Apr 2014 · Points: 15

If you are using two ropes with a different device for each rope there's no reason that it would be more dangerous. The only think is you have two devices to deal with and two ropes to clip, two ropes of course means more weight but that won't make much of a difference on such a short climb. I am curious why everyone thinks this would be more dangerous, the two ropes are really working as seperate systems if both are safe then the whole thing is safe. You might put your secondary device on a sling, that will free up some space at your harness as the other device is a little farther away. Your primary device likely will not totally fail and will slow you some (assuming it doesn't catch you completely), making your secondary device more likely to finish the catch. Yes, it technically is more likely that both devices fail than it would be for one device to fail as well as a back-up knot that does not mean that it is likely to happen.

Febs · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2008 · Points: 5
Brady3 wrote:If you are using two ropes with a different device for each rope there's no reason that it would be more dangerous. The only think is you have two devices to deal with and two ropes to clip, two ropes of course means more weight but that won't make much of a difference on such a short climb. I am curious why everyone thinks this would be more dangerous, the two ropes are really working as seperate systems if both are safe then the whole thing is safe. You might put your secondary device on a sling, that will free up some space at your harness as the other device is a little farther away. Your primary device likely will not totally fail and will slow you some (assuming it doesn't catch you completely), making your secondary device more likely to finish the catch. Yes, it technically is more likely that both devices fail than it would be for one device to fail as well as a back-up knot that does not mean that it is likely to happen.
Thanks Brady.

My apocalyptic imaginary scenario is this.

Assuming that you know how a silent partner works. If you don't: it locks if the rope runs very fast. If it runs fast, but not that fast, it feeds.

So, what I am afraid of is: the second device (i.e. a grigri) fails to lock for whatever reason, and just slows down my journey towards the ground a bit.
Since I am now not falling at full speed, because there's this secondary unit in the way, now not even the SP engages and I crash against the heart.

So in this case having a backup would be totally useless.

Thoughts?
Brady3 · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Apr 2014 · Points: 15

I have not used a silent partner, so admittedly I do not know how they work. Maybe have the secondary on a sling that's girth hitched to your harness? In theory this should mean that the silent partner is going to begin catching before the secondary device because the sling adds to the slack in that system (even if there is less rope because the device will likely be hanging below your waist and have to come up above it in order to catch, maybe a shorter sling so that you don't take a grigri to the face?). Again, I feel the probability of both devices failing is fairly low, I use a rescucender with no back-up but I also lead solo below my limit. I do think that an ascender would be a better back-up than a grigri as a grigri can also not lock if loaded too slowly, but an ascender will lock regardless.

Febs · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2008 · Points: 5
Brady3 wrote:I have not used a silent partner, so admittedly I do not know how they work. Maybe have the secondary on a sling that's girth hitched to your harness? In theory this should mean that the silent partner is going to begin catching before the secondary device because the sling adds to the slack in that system (even if there is less rope because the device will likely be hanging below your waist and have to come up above it in order to catch, maybe a shorter sling so that you don't take a grigri to the face?). Again, I feel the probability of both devices failing is fairly low, I use a rescucender with no back-up but I also lead solo below my limit. I do think that an ascender would be a better back-up than a grigri as a grigri can also not lock if loaded too slowly, but an ascender will lock regardless.
Using a sling to distantiate the two maybe a good idea, although I feel like one unite would keep banging against my knees.
Well, I ordered two ladders (or aiders, whatever) so I think my next thing will be aiding to the top, leading, and then free climbing it, on top rope.

But, I'll give the two ropes approach a go for sure as well.
Mark Dalen · · Albuquerque, NM · Joined Dec 2011 · Points: 1,002

If two why not three ... ?

Febs · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2008 · Points: 5

So to tie your sister to the third one?

Gunkiemike · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jul 2009 · Points: 3,492

distantiate?

Febs · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2008 · Points: 5
Gunkiemike wrote:distantiate?
http://www.yourdictionary.com/distantiate
Paul S · · Fruita, CO · Joined Dec 2004 · Points: 820

Personally, something this short I'd just tie one back up knot that'd get me to the top. You wouldn't have to worry about undoing or adding knots at all while climbing. The back-up would only protect you in the upper section of the climb, but that could likely be the case with tying multiple back-up knots anyways. By the time the device doesn't catch and you reach a knot, you'd probably already be on the ground from a fall anywhere on the first 2/3 of the climb.

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

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