Multi-pitch follower can't make it up a pitch...now what?

If your follower can't send a pitch, for whatever reason, and is hanging at the crux below with no option to lower them to the ground, what are some suggestions to aid them through the crux and complete the pitch? Prusiks? Micro Traxion? 

What you do and what the follower does depends almost entirely upon the terrain they're climbing and can't get past, as well as their level of knowledge.  Ideally some sort of progress capture or combination of friction hitches to jug the line are in order, but it's very subjective based on what you're looking at.  Sometimes they can inch their way up and you can capture the progress from above just to get them through the crux.  Sometimes they just have to jug the line because it's overhanging, etc.  

The best thing you can do is not climb multi with someone that doesn't know how to configure an ascending system with just cord, slings and a few carabiners.  If you have a follower that can do that and has those skills, you can get them out of just about anything, or they can get themselves out of it, rather.  Qualifying people for multipitch partnership is a thing.

If climbing with a much weaker second who may not be able to free the crux, you can sometimes plan ahead and set yourself up to avoid this situation as you lead the pitch. If there is a distinct short crux, you can sometimes place a piece right after the crux and hang a long sling on it. If your partner is able to free the crux, great. If not, there's a long sling hanging within reach to grab and pull up on.

option 1: birthday belay while they pull on gear/draws

option 2: they climb the rope past the crux

option 3: make a 3:1 and give them a lil haul

Drop line assist is another option if they are within 1/3 of the rope length to the belay. Drop a loop of the brake strand down to them with a locker attached, they clip the locker to their harness, and they batman up the brake strand as you pull the other end. It's sort of a 2:1 haul system that's set up directly on the follower. When done correctly, it actually feeds rope through the belay device so no excess slack is generated. 

But I agree that as the leader, you should understand the abilities of your second and plan ahead by placing a piece either at the crux, or above the crux with long slings, that the follower can pull on to French free through the hard moves. This is way faster than setting up any sort of haul system. 

curt86iroc wrote:

option 1: birthday belay while they pull on gear/draws

option 2: they climb the rope past the crux

option 3: make a 3:1 and give them a lil haul

Birthday Belay? Haven't heard that term before. 

Depends.

If you don’t know what it depends on then you’re not ready to lead multi pitch. 

Option 4: be the one with the knife

https://youtu.be/pqmYP0OmHcw?t=144

I had this exact thing happen to me on a multi pitch.   I met this person in the gym and they were super strong -- climbing 11s/12s.   We did a 3 pitch climb called R&D in Icicle canyon as a intro.  It is rated 5.6.   I climbed the first pitch and didn't think anything of it -- super easy and thought my second would cruise it.   The first part of the climb they were flying up the pitch - then the rope stopped...  for like 15 minutes.   I had to escape the belay and use the extra rope I had brought up to rap down to see what was going on.   My second was completely stymied in a short stretch of chimney -- there were few face holds and you really had to get into it like santa claus.   It turns out that the gym really doesn't train one to climb chimney.   Once we did some quick on the spot demo I scampered back up to the belay and my second soon followed.  Lesson to be learned was never to make assumptions and know how to escape they belay.

Have them hook in direct to a piece, give them some slack. Have them attach the grigri in front of their figure eight going to the anchor. Use the grigri as a basic jumar. If possible put a prussik on above the grigri and then run the brake strand of the grigri through the carabiner attached to the prussik. You now have mechanical advantage. A Microtraxion is better because you can attach it even when the rope is taut.

It is best to put a knot in between the grigri and the figure eight that way the grigri doesnt get sucked into the knot. A loop of rope will start to build up as the climber ascends. If this is a problem hook back into the next piece and pay out rope from the grigri. This is also a common way to simulclimb.

Robert Meshew wrote:

I had this exact thing happen to me on a multi pitch.   I met this person in the gym and they were super strong -- climbing 11s/12s.   We did a 3 pitch climb called R&D in Icicle canyon as a intro.  It is rated 5.6.   I climbed the first pitch and didn't think anything of it -- super easy and thought my second would cruise it.   The first part of the climb they were flying up the pitch - then the rope stopped...  for like 15 minutes.   I had to escape the belay and use the extra rope I had brought up to rap down to see what was going on.   My second was completely stymied in a short stretch of chimney -- there were few face holds and you really had to get into it like santa claus.   It turns out that the gym really doesn't train one to climb chimney.   Once we did some quick on the spot demo I scampered back up to the belay and my second soon followed.  Lesson to be learned was never to make assumptions and know how to escape they belay.

The young gym bro was visibly shaken, and dropped his chalkbag and gri-gri to the ground. I asked the gym bro, “do you even know how to chimney?” As I lowered him to the ground he cried big, strong tears, but did not ask me, a traditional climber, for any advice. 

Everyone at the crag asked us how it went. When they heard the gym bro couldn’t chimney, they all laughed out loud. Everyone at the crag burned their belay tags that day. The gym bro ran away on his hands, crying. 

That gym bro’s name—Adam Ondra.

I regularly "haul" my wife through tough sections on multi-pitch climbs.  I belay with an atc guide so its a simple matter of attaching a prussik to the climbers end of the rope and running the slack/brake end of the rope through a biner (or pulley) clipped to the prussik.   Can be fast and easy.

Kind of like this image below,, only just an atc guide (where the micro-traxion is), a prussik (where the tibloc is) and a biner (where the pully attached to the tibloc is):

Brooks K wrote:

Drop line assist is another option if they are within 1/3 of the rope length to the belay. Drop a loop of the brake strand down to them with a locker attached, they clip the locker to their harness, and they batman up the brake strand as you pull the other end. It's sort of a 2:1 haul system that's set up directly on the follower. When done correctly, it actually feeds rope through the belay device so no excess slack is generated. 

But I agree that as the leader, you should understand the abilities of your second and plan ahead by placing a piece either at the crux, or above the crux with long slings, that the follower can pull on to French free through the hard moves. This is way faster than setting up any sort of haul system. 

Definitely a sweet solution. It's so quick and effective that I would consider intentionally planning to use it on a short section of a route.

https://people.bath.ac.uk/dac33/high/11Cheating.htm#gettingthesecondup

Realizing no matter what they say - they’re going to hate you and find someone else to climb with that isn’t so selfish about choosing routes - you lower them back to the nearest belay and bail - if you want to stay partners.  For even the best and most competent - hanging and flailing up a climb over your head sux.

A variant of the drop line is to fix a section of the brake strand, drop it down and just let them tie whatever bights they need to stand in as a ladder or use as handholds. This does work best if they are directly below you, of course. If you are cloved in on a single rope, you could exchange that for a sling as PAS and untie if you need more rope reach your second.

Aaron Wait wrote:

I regularly "haul" my wife through tough sections on multi-pitch climbs. 

And she doesn’t complain about the route selection? ;-) What’s your secret?

3.1 pulley set up with a Prussik or small sling would do the trick.   Www.multipitch.com has a wealth of information, including an answer to this, also YouTube has step by step videos. 

Learn how to haul off a working-prussik or if the follower is close enough a drop loop so you can do a "Climber Assist".

I don't get to MP much but the partners I go with know this stuff.

Learn these techniques online, from an AMGA manual, or take an SPI course to rehearse them with someone who defintiely has to perform these tasks on the daily.

Miles Johnson wrote:

Learn how to haul off a working-prussik or if the follower is close enough a drop loop so you can do a "Climber Assist".

I don't get to MP much but the partners I go with know this stuff.

Learn these techniques online, from an AMGA manual, or take an SPI course to rehearse them with someone who defintiely has to perform these tasks on the daily.

How does a droop loop work?

Nick Haha wrote:

How does a droop loop work?

Previous comment touched on it. I don’t have the SPI manual with me at work this week.

“Drop line assist is another option if they are within 1/3 of the rope length to the belay. Drop a loop of the brake strand down to them with a locker attached, they clip the locker to their harness, and they batman up the brake strand as you pull the other end. It's sort of a 2:1 haul system that's set up directly on the follower. When done correctly, it actually feeds rope through the belay device so no excess slack is generated.”

https://youtu.be/ocOcujRmZ9I

This example shows what is sometimes called “haul rescue” or “dead haul” for someone that is unconscious or unable to provide much help.

The technique discussed about the drop loop works similarly but you drop a length of rope to a conscious climber and then slide them down a locking carabiner if they don’t have one. They clip that to their belay loop with the drop loop inside.

When using an ABD if they pull on the dead end brake strand and you pull on the tail of that dead end brake strand they will come up quite easily and the device will capture progress easily and safely. The main risk here is the assisted persons hand getting sucked into the biner and getting miffed due to pain. 

Miles Johnson wrote:

Previous comment touched on it. I don’t have the SPI manual with me at work this week.

“Drop line assist is another option if they are within 1/3 of the rope length to the belay. Drop a loop of the brake strand down to them with a locker attached, they clip the locker to their harness, and they batman up the brake strand as you pull the other end. It's sort of a 2:1 haul system that's set up directly on the follower. When done correctly, it actually feeds rope through the belay device so no excess slack is generated.”

https://youtu.be/ocOcujRmZ9I

This example shows what is sometimes called “haul rescue” or “dead haul” for someone that is unconscious or unable to provide much help.

The technique discussed about the drop loop works similarly but you drop a length of rope to a conscious climber and then slide them down a locking carabiner if they don’t have one. They clip that to their belay loop with the drop loop inside.

When using an ABD if they pull on the dead end brake strand and you pull on the tail of that dead end brake strand they will come up quite easily and the device will capture progress easily and safely. The main risk here is the assisted persons hand getting sucked into the biner and getting miffed due to pain. 

I understand the 3:1 pulley method in the video with a klemheist, I just hadn’t heard the term droop loop. Thank you for the explanation though.