Self Arrest Fail...

Point of order,
Point of order.

Shouldn't this topic be: "Self Arrest Flail"?

carry on

Stich wrote: Why the hell climb in a group of three if you aren't roping up? All the other people can do is drop shit on you or fall on you. How about climb another route with no one above you, or, wait for the other person to finish the route before you get on it? Or shit, rope up.

+1

Even when I'm roped up on belay on rock, I find something else to climb if someone is free soloing above me. The last thing I want is a 150#+ sack of meat plummeting towards me. Add ice tools to that, in a narrow gully no less, and it gets even uglier.

Maybe he stays up late and responds to those "Double your IQ, or no money back!" TV commercials?

Stich wrote: Why the hell climb in a group of three if you aren't roping up? All the other people can do is drop shit on you or fall on you. How about climb another route with no one above you, or, wait for the other person to finish the route before you get on it? Or shit, rope up.

Yeah, then he could have pulled the other two off when he fell. Genius.

David Appelhans wrote: Yeah, then he could have pulled the other two off when he fell. Genius.

He didnt say they were simul climbing... Why would you pull them off if they are belaying from an anchor? Which is what I am assuming he is suggesting...

Stich wrote: Why the hell climb in a group of three if you aren't roping up?

C'mon, go easy on the guy. This is mainly a moderate-angle snow gully. People climb unroped on that sort of terrain all the time. How many people do you know that would pitch it out every step of the way on Skywalker/Lamb's Slide/Flying Dutchman/Dreamweaver/etc?

There were objective dangers that he ignored, which could have been managed by roping up and belaying, but what the hell, it's his choice after all.

Sure, "fast is safe" but not if "fast" is an uncontrolled pinball down a rotten gully. Better to slow down a little and rope up and belay.

Martin le Roux wrote: C'mon, go easy on the guy. This is mainly a moderate-angle snow gully. People climb unroped on that sort of terrain all the time. How many people do you know that would pitch it out every step of the way on Skywalker/Lamb's Slide/Flying Dutchman/Dreamweaver/etc?

^this. Look, the guy did a pretty good job of screwing up by losing his balance because a piece of ice fell. Ice falls all the time, sometimes you have to hold on and let it hit you. Don't try to catch it. You should also always be ready to self arrest.

However, their method of climbing is normal. Try pitching out thousands of feet of easy terrain. Most likely you'll end up in the dark. Simul it and pull your partners down with you. This isn't a couple pitch rock climb with someone "soloing" above you. It is a different kind of animal.

If you rope up, it is assumed you are placing either snow pickets or rock pro where you can get it. Those of you that suggest otherwise are spinning your own stupid scenario. It's been shown time and time again that a roped party with no pro placed puts everyone in danger.

I was suggesting that that the guy climb some other route with no one above him. Much safer, no?

As for Skywalker, yeah, we soloed that.

David Appelhans wrote: Yeah, then he could have pulled the other two off when he fell. Genius.

Maybe you don't understand the whole leading, making an anchor, and belaying thing.

Stich wrote:If you rope up, it is assumed you are placing either snow pickets or rock pro where you can get it. Those of you that suggest otherwise are spinning your own stupid scenario. It's been shown time and time again that a roped party with no pro placed puts everyone in danger. I was suggesting that that the guy climb some other route with no one above him. Much safer, no? As for Skywalker, yeah, we soloed that.

Doesn't not climbing with someone above you in the Front Range mean not climbing?

Glaciated snow? Sure, rope up, most everything else? Nope. You probably shouldn't be climbing snow if you need ropes for it in CO.

Merlin wrote: Doesn't not climbing with someone above you in the Front Range mean not climbing? Glaciated snow? Sure, rope up, most everything else? Nope. You probably shouldn't be climbing snow if you need ropes for it in CO.

On most of the snow climbs I have done there were no other parties on the line for the time we were there. On Martha however, there was a party dropping snow on us from above, but no ice or rock. That was the most I've had to deal with. We could have just waited an hour and not had to deal with that. No one was behind us. We roped up for the mixed pitches on Martha and Dreamweaver.

Stich wrote: Maybe you don't understand the whole leading, making an anchor, and belaying thing.

Neither did the poor SOB playing pinball down the gully.

Merlin wrote: Doesn't not climbing with someone above you in the Front Range mean not climbing? Glaciated snow? Sure, rope up, most everything else? Nope. You probably shouldn't be climbing snow if you need ropes for it in CO.

The guy in the video didn't fall when he was on snow--he fell off of manky water ice.