Ten Sleep Fatality

Very few details are available, a small amount of information can be found in this News Article.

This was a post on the FB page since removed.  

RIP climber.  

https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-the-schleicher-family-honor-jons-memory

There is a GoFundMe to support the Schleicher family

Hate to hear it. RIP fellow climber.

Jon was the prom king of movement. He held space for others in the community whenever you saw him at the crag in the alpine boulders, the gym or out on the town. Keep his positivity and grace for others alive.

I knew Jon from Kansas City, I hadn't seen him in a few years. I was lucky to see him and hug him last Wednesday in Ten Sleep.

One time in 2018 I convinced him to come to a local choss pile that was in development, he belayed me all day and didn't get to climb much. A few years later we were with a group of friends at a campfire in Wild Iris. We were playing a game to the tune of a guitar, where you lightly "roasted" somebody in the group. When it was Jon's turn he said my name and I immediately knew where it was going, to that day at the choss pile :) , a well deserved roast!

Jon always seemed to have a smile on his face and warm energy. He will be missed. 

My deepest condolences to the family and friends. I haven't seen anything describing how or where this accident occurred, does anyone have any information? 

Vince Hwrote:

My deepest condolences to the family and friends. I haven't seen anything describing how or where this accident occurred, does anyone have any information? 

Louie Anderson (owner of Ten Sleep Rock Ranch) made a Facebook post on the Ten Sleep Canyon Climbing page. I believe the crag was Funky Town. This is the post:

I thought Funky Town was the crag that was closed due to the infamous chipping and all routes chopped years ago?

Adam Wwrote:

I thought Funky Town was the crag that was closed due to the infamous chipping and all routes chopped years ago?

Yes, and it recently re-opened. 

Rachel Pwrote:

Louie Anderson (owner of Ten Sleep Rock Ranch) made a Facebook post on the Ten Sleep Canyon Climbing page. I believe the crag was Funky Town. This is the post:

Lots of misinformation going around about yesterday’s accident.  Without going into unnecessary details, a climber fell from about 60-70 feet up on a route when their knot failed.  This resulted in a ground fall.  Sadly, it was a fatal injury.Please look out for each other, hold those you care about closely, and check your knots and belay devices EVERY SINGLE TIME.Our hearts go out to those involved, those who knew this climber, and everyone else affected by this loss in our community.

Thank you for the information... And again, my deepest condolences to all those that knew him. Be safe out there!

I offer my sincere condolences to the fallen climber and Thier families and friends 

RIP

Rachel Pwrote:

Louie Anderson (owner of Ten Sleep Rock Ranch) made a Facebook post on the Ten Sleep Canyon Climbing page. I believe the crag was Funky Town. This is the post:

Lots of misinformation going around about yesterday’s accident.  Without going into unnecessary details, a climber fell from about 60-70 feet up on a route when their knot failed.  This resulted in a ground fall.  Sadly, it was a fatal injury.Please look out for each other, hold those you care about closely, and check your knots and belay devices EVERY SINGLE TIME.Our hearts go out to those involved, those who knew this climber, and everyone else affected by this loss in our community.

I think the details are necessary. Knot failed during a fall? 

Or knot failed after an anchor exchange? This is very common and more likely unfortunately.

grug gwrote:

I think the details are necessary. Knot failed during a fall? 

Or knot failed after an anchor exchange? This is very common and more likely unfortunately.

I was simply sharing Louie's post. Reach out to him yourself if you must know the details.

grug gwrote:

I think the details are necessary. Knot failed during a fall? 

Or knot failed after an anchor exchange? This is very common and more likely unfortunately.

First, this was a huge shock. It hit really hard—Jon was someone I knew from the Front Range climbing community.

He was a great climber, sending multiple double-digit boulders and hard sport routes. He was also incredibly cautious—way more than I ever was, to be honest. I’ve climbed sketchy things, highballs, even after drinking or smoking. Maybe that’s just part of the climbing culture.

After turning 30 and getting married, I felt it was time to take fewer risks and focus more on sport climbing. But accidents like this are a sobering reminder that climbing is still incredibly dangerous—more deadly than football or fighting.

From what I’ve heard, Jon was eager to get on the route and started climbing before being put on belay (something I’ve done before too). It sounds like there was no buddy check. He climbed to the crux, fell, and his knot either wasn’t finished or was improperly tied—we still don’t know the full details, or whether it was a figure 8 or a bowline. When he fell, the knot failed, and he hit the ground. This wasn’t a case of anchor exchange—just a simple, tragic mistake.

I’ve tied in over a thousand times, and it only takes one slip for something fatal to happen. Since the accident, I’ve told so many friends: always check your knot. I’ve caught myself checking mine three, four, five times in a row now.

RIP Jon. My deepest condolences to his friends and family. And to those who witnessed the accident or helped in the rescue—I'm so sorry you had to go through that.

SuckaPunk AJwrote:

First, this was a huge shock. It hit really hard—Jon was someone I knew from the Front Range climbing community.

He was a great climber, sending multiple double-digit boulders and hard sport routes. He was also incredibly cautious—way more than I ever was, to be honest. I’ve climbed sketchy things, highballs, even after drinking or smoking. Maybe that’s just part of the climbing culture.

After turning 30 and getting married, I felt it was time to take fewer risks and focus more on sport climbing. But accidents like this are a sobering reminder that climbing is still incredibly dangerous—more deadly than football or fighting.

From what I’ve heard, Jon was eager to get on the route and started climbing before being put on belay (something I’ve done before too). It sounds like there was no buddy check. He climbed to the crux, fell, and his knot either wasn’t finished or was improperly tied—we still don’t know the full details, or whether it was a figure 8 or a bowline. When he fell, the knot failed, and he hit the ground. This wasn’t a case of anchor exchange—just a simple, tragic mistake.

I’ve tied in over a thousand times, and it only takes one slip for something fatal to happen. Since the accident, I’ve told so many friends: always check your knot. I’ve caught myself checking mine three, four, five times in a row now.

RIP Jon. My deepest condolences to his friends and family. And to those who witnessed the accident or helped in the rescue—I'm so sorry you had to go through that.

Thanks for sharing. There is value in getting basic facts of accidents, if only to remind us why it's worth repeating the same safety checks every time, no matter how lame or uncool they make us feel or seem to others. Every single time you tie in, even on TR, you put yourself in a situation where one small mistake or omission can kill you. Ironically the most experienced climbers tend to become the most likely to backslide on this issue. Keep that beginner's mind.   

shar mander wrote:

I don't usually engage in MP discussions but someone recently shared this one with me. It’s frustrating to watch people picking apart the details of someone's last moments - especially when they didn’t know him, weren’t there, and have no connection to him or the people involved. Ask yourself honestly, why do you feel the need to fish for details or weigh in on this? If you're not just a stranger engaging in trauma porn and your goal is to become a safer climber, there are far better, more respectful ways to do that: read a book, take a class, learn from trusted mentors.

Not to mention, the details shared here are simply inaccurate and put full responsibility on someone who is not here to set the record straight or defend himself. Well-intentioned or not, all this thread does is cause more pain for the people already living with that trauma and loss so please have some respect.

This part of the forum is usually used to actually analyze/discuss/theorize such accidents. I'm sorry you feel it disrespectful.
The memorial section is where to post if you dont want folks to enagage like that.

Wanting to know how a fellow climber has an accident is relevnt to creating better practices or to drive home the point certain ones are indeed something to worry about. Its relevant because if its a novel way the accident happens its may expose a flaw in maybe a peice of kit they were wearing and drive a recall. The list goes on to the reason, IMO, it is important to dive into the details of serious accidents with no clear means as to what happened.

The respect for the dead and talking about the accident the deceased was involved, are not mutually exclusive.

I hope you dont find this response to be attacking or anything. More just explaining what happens in this part of the forum and my opinion around it.

I hope you, and all those burdened by the loss, find healing and the support they need.

We are all imperfect humans. 

Hey Shar, 

I hear you, but we've been through this many times before on MP.  

You will find that opinions are really split on this issue. 

I think it's important to recognize that there is no right or wrong--there are just different ways that people process pain, confusion, grief, doubt, and so on. 

Personally, I think that discussing accidents openly, with respect and honesty, is absolutely the right thing to do.  And the injuries and accidents forums specifically exists to have this sort of disucussion.  

You have said that there is a great deal of missinformation and innacuracy surrounding this accident. 

If you would like to contribute to this thread, I suggest that you share your knowledge so that you can help communicate a clear picture of what took place.  

Otherwise, share your feelings about the deceased on the memorial thread. 

I hope you and others in your community find a way to work through this death. 

Bb Cc wrote:

I disagree. What "facts" or "misinformation" are you referencing? Not asking from a personal attack position, just want clarification of your position.

I believe healing begins with disclosure of facts. Often these facts are well know by more than the immediate witnesses soon after an incident. To be useful facts get vetted via an "expert group" like participants of the extreme sport involved. Suppressing this information and process does not facilitate healing. Knowing facts that don't have to wait for a committee to vet, an editor to select, and valuable time to pass before any reasoned adaptation to prevent similar accidents from recurring frequently is a better outcome.

Those most afflicted should refrain from reading/searching sources that bother them.

I have particpated in some form of "risk" activities since childhood. I have always learned how to be safer/identify risks from my injured and deceased friends and acquaintances, and even fellow participants that I only got to know from stories/reports/anthologies.

Sincerely,
Bb Cc

Those actually affected by an accident like this are typically well aware of the "facts" of the accident. I strongly disagree that having strangers online examine/speculate on your loved ones death helps those affected "facilitate healing". That's completely outrageous.

From what I have read Jon sounds like a great person. My condolences go out to his friends and family.

shar mander wrote:

I definitely understand where you’re coming from but that’s what accident reports are for. I just find it a little tactless to be digging around for these facts two days after an accident, before the individual was even buried. Everything shared here is speculation and much of it is not accurate which is why I don’t think forums like this are a good idea in general. Again, if your concern is being a safer climber, I recommend reading Accidents in North America by the AAC. Thanks for understanding my perspective. 

As an intermediate climber, I benefit greatly from this discussion, including the speculation, no matter how much evidence backs it up. I do read the accident reports, and get much from them. In these forum discussions, I get something different. 

I get to hear and ask about 'what if' scenarios, what could the victim have done differently, and hear knowledgeable people debate this. I benefit greatly from the different points of view. I can't get this from an accident report. 

I do read many books on the subject, and find them very useful, but, there is nothing like a real accident and real consequences to help hit home to me the importance of these details. It has an impact that helps me be safer. 

I agree that it can seem callous and distasteful, but this is about helping the living be a little safer and stay alive, uninjured. I would suggest loved ones not read these threads if they are, understandably, sensitive to this discussion. 

If I get injured or die while climbing, I hope everyone on this forum discusses the hell out of what went wrong, what might have gone wrong, and what I could have done differently, especially if I did something out of ignorance, tiredness, or poor judgment. Call me a fool, just please not to my family.