Reliability of random partners

Just curious how many other climbers have been dropped on lead by supposed experienced partners they randomly hooked with on MP. The persons explanation was ludicrous. Dropped 15 feet onto the deck below, fractured talus. 

Not dropped but I did tell a guy I’d never climb with him again. What was the explanation?

Tommy Muddwrote:

Just curious how many other climbers have been dropped on lead by supposed experienced partners they randomly hooked with on MP. The persons explanation was ludicrous. Dropped 15 feet onto the deck below, fractured talus. 

How about some better details on the story you want to tell us?

Tommy Muddwrote:

Just curious how many other climbers have been dropped on lead by supposed experienced partners they randomly hooked with on MP. The persons explanation was ludicrous. Dropped 15 feet onto the deck below, fractured talus. 

A LOT.  I don't have a story, because I don't let randos belay me, but I've seen a fair amount over the years, in this forum and in person.  If I have no partner, someone has to come highly recommended from someone I know and trust, or I just boulder or TR solo.

At least 2 people I know have been dropped by randos

I've been participating in the seamy underbelly of the lascivious MP hookup culture since 2012 .

 I only had one bad experience in 2013, and that was partly my fault for going on a blind date on a 900' 5.10d trad line with someone who claimed to be solid at 5.10, but wasn't. I since have enacted a "no blind date to the [redacted]" rule.

I've climbed with randos that I didn't particularly enjoy being around, but no one who I would consider to be outright dangerous.

A rando who is under 60 years old who is wielding a non-assisted braking device -- hard pass.

Some of my favorite partners have been MP blind dates, and we've gone on to do awesome rowdy lines (King George IV of Belfast, looking at you buddy!).

If I were (still) a gumby hooking up with other gumbies, I would be more wary of my ability to suss out someone's competence.

Im very sorry about your accident, and I hope you recover fully.

I’m guessing that a lot more people get dropped by their familiar partner (boyfriend/girlfriend/friend) than get dropped by randos. 

I’ve never been dropped by anyone, but I had couple situations that could have turned out bad, early in my climbing career. Not from MP. One was a guy I met at the gym, and another was a woman I met online.

The guy seemed just fine when we climbed at the gym, but on the very first outing to a local crag he took me off belay while I was at the 2nd bolt, because he “threaded his ATC wrong”. It was threaded just fine, but through the left slot, instead of his customary right. He didn’t ask me to go in direct, just said “hang on a second”. I did happen to be on a jug with good feet. So I did hang on. Then asked to get lowered, and never climbed with him again.

The lady represented herself as a “mostly ice climber, but like rocks, too”. She failed to tell me that she had never lead belayed in her life, until we hiked out to the crag, and she commented “wow, there is a lot of rope movement involved!” when she saw someone belaying. Fortunately, there was someone else I was meeting up, so I never had to rely on her belay. Turned out she didn’t like climbing rocks all that much, but she did enjoy sunbathing on them. Everyone was happy, in the end.

I have gotten more choosy since those days, and while I have met a good number of people from MP, I have not had any other misrepresentations. 

My impression is the MP.com partner board has typically better than average belaying and technical skills - but lower than average interpersonal skills.

However - I think shitty, low skill belaying is the majority.  Very few actively work on their belaying skills - and that is what is needed to belay well.  Not a lot of people regularly take falls, which reinforces bad behaviors. 

James Wwrote:

However - I think shitty, low skill belaying is the majority.  

Exactly this.  Inside or outside, I find myself thinking "I'm glad they're not holding my rope" more often than I should.

I typically scout their MP resume first by checking out their ticks. Then look for the usual red flags, do they have a belay cert on their harness while outside? Are they sport climbing with a PAS. Locking belay device?

James Mwrote:

I typically scout their MP resume first by checking out their ticks. Then look for the usual red flags, do they have a belay cert on their harness while outside? Are they sport climbing with a PAS. Locking belay device?

A Grigri is a red flag?

Ricky Harlinewrote:

A Grigri is a red flag?

hip belays show experience. 

James Mwrote:

I typically scout their MP resume first by checking out their ticks.

Not everyone bothers with the MP tick list. Mine is empty since there's no easy way to bulk add (I'm not going back over 45 years and adding individual routes) and simply boring to add after a day of climbing.

Marc801 Cwrote:

Not everyone bothers with the MP tick list. Mine is empty since there's no easy way to bulk add (I'm not going back over 45 years and adding individual routes) and simply boring to add after a day of climbing.

Yeah but I see you've been active on the forum for a bit, gave the ultimate gunks  4 star classic one star (and know the gear beta for protecting your second on it). 

You might show up with a swami belt but hey you lead 5.14b and follow 5.3 so I'd climb with ya if I'm looking for a rope gun. 

Tommy Muddwrote:

Just curious how many other climbers have been dropped on lead by supposed experienced partners they randomly hooked with on MP. The persons explanation was ludicrous.

When did MP become a hook-up website?

Gumby Kingwrote:

When did MP become a hook-up website?

Wait, I thought "climbing" was a code word....Are you telling me that everyone here actually climbs rocks?

Dan Dwrote:

Are you telling me that everyone here actually climbs rocks?

no. some people boulder. 

Dan Dwrote:

Are you telling me that everyone here actually climbs rocks?

No.  We are armchair climbers...  aka, critics 

I’ve had good luck with partners from MP. For new partners though I’m not going to climb something at my limit. I usually try to suss out experience level etc. during the approach. You can tell a lot by the gear they have and how they discuss climbs they’ve done or want to do. I’m almost more nervous about climbing with a rando at the gym I’ve just met.

James Mwrote:

Yeah but I see you've been active on the forum for a bit, gave the ultimate gunks  4 star classic one star (and know the gear beta for protecting your second on it). 

About that....

Sure, lots of people rave about it and give it 4 or 5 or 20 stars...all for an admittedly spectacular 50' of climbing that comes after 150' of mediocre, meh climbing. While it has a single great pitch, it's hardly a great climb overall.

Tradibanwrote:

How about some better details on the story you want to tell us?

Apparently my belayer could not distinguish between someone climbing and clipping and he was hyper paranoid about short roping me. I had paused above the bolt to work out a crux move. Assuming my pause was that I was clipping he pulled out a bunch of slack. When I blew the move all that slack was in the system and I decked 15 feet below the bolt.