One thing keeps me from trad climbing

Basics of extending here: climbing.com/skill/learn-ex…

One other good idea is to make sure that your first piece will resist outward and upward pulls, to prevent your pro from zippering if the rope comes under tension.

gription wrote: QFT!

Quantum Field Theory? I know this post is out there, but Quantom Filed Theory!

;)

Muscrat wrote: Quantum Field Theory? I know this post is out there, but Quantom Filed Theory! ;)

Quoted For Truth!

Peease note the ';)' at the bottom of comment. Yes, but it is also Quantum Field Theory, and i'm sticky two eat.
Or whoever

Brian morin wrote:Want to start trad climbing but there's only one thing keeps me from doing it........fear of rope drag that walks my pro How do you guys deal with this ESPECIALLY when climbing a new route for the first time? Do you fully extend every draw with 60cm/24" and 120cm/48" slings? Last thing in the world I want is to be caught in a situation where i feel rope drag and have to down climb to the problem piece to extend further

Hmm... I'm also struck by this "last thing in the world" bit. Downclimbing is part of trad climbing. If you are not comfortable downclimbing your way out of a fix you've gotten yourself into, you may not be ready to start leading. What will you do if you discover you've made a wrong turn, and the best solution is to go back the way you came? Jump off?

That out of the way, there are a ton of things involved in not having your gear walk.

1 - Anticipate how the rope will run, and sling accordingly (which does not mean sling every piece).

2 - Nuts rarely walk. They should still be slung appropriately, but if lightly set, in a good placement, a little movement from the rope will not budge them.

3 - Some nut placements will "capture" the nut. If you slot them down and in, you can wiggle them every which way, they absolutely will not come out. No need to set these placements at all. Develop an eye for these placements and use them.

4 - Many cam placements cannot, or are unlikely to walk, due to the specifics of the crack. Too many to go into here. Learn these and develop an eye for them.

5 - Some cam placements make no difference if they walk, due to the very parallel crack.

6 - Some cam placements should never be cam placements - if the crack flares up and/or out, and the cam walking will cause it to pop out, do not place a cam there. This is more properly a nut/hex placement, or no placement at all. If you have to use it, sling appropriately and don't fall.

GO

Here is a great article on rope drag in general, by Blake Herrington.

cascadeclimbers.com/rope-dr…