Im going through this right now because I take decent size falls sometimes ( over 20 feet ) and I have 80 pounds on my belayer. I use the ABC rule and have her anchored to the ground to her belay loop. I have her belay me off of a gri gri. I have her stay static on the anchor at all times. I have often wondered if the forces generated from opposing pull are harmful to her loop. I really dont think it would be, I understand how belay loops are rated and tested. Anybody have any input on this?

I've had a lighter belayer in the gym get taken to the first clip while I decked...IMO, its mostly a problem in the gym because there is so little friction from the strait bolt lines. Granted, it can happen outside, but in fairly specific circumstances...overhanging, strait lines etc. If you're worried about it, clip yourself into the ground. I've climbed with people literally half my weight and never had a problem outside, and rarely has it been a problem to make some kind of anchor on the ground for lighter belayers.

I've noticed a lot of the guys here seem concerned about the well-being of their light belayer, and not themselves. Why? I think it is more dangerous for the climber, I think it is so brave to climb with a lighter belayer.

My regular climbing partner is 90lbs heavier than me. While it sounds cool I belay a heavier person, really, the daring one is him, and not me. I get the security of knowing there is a huge margin of error for me if I fall. I get kind of nervous if my belayer is even my weight, and unless I'm on toprope, I won't climb with a belayer significantly lighter than me.

My climbing partner took his first 30-35 foot whipper last weekend, with 6 bolts clipped. I used a gri-gri, which was good because I got pulled to the first clip where the gri-gri prevented me from going up more.

this is what it felt like: he actually announced he was going to fall, when he couldn't clip the next bolt he had reached. I took in the excess slack I had given for him to clip the bolt. I watched him fall for a while, but didn't feel him weighted on the rope for what felt like a really long time. Then, I felt him on the rope. But there was a lot of friction in the system and I didn't get jerked up suddenly, like I do when someone falls from a bolt closer to the ground. I just felt like I was rising slowly, up to the 1st bolt.