Dumb things other climbers have said

Ted Pinson wrote:At Brooklyn Boulders, which has an annoying policy of fixing GriGris to every toprope with cheap screw gates... Me to gym employee: Hey, just to let you know, the carabiners on these GriGris have been jamming up a lot. Gym employee: Oh, just don't tighten them all the way...

I get the humor in this, but when I first learned to climb, I was told to not close screwgates all the way for this exact reason: they can get jammed, and they wear out quicker. I was taught to screw it until it stopped, and then unscrew it a very very tiny bit, like a millimeter.

Right or wrong?

Seth Cohen wrote: I get the humor in this, but when I first learned to climb, I was told to not close screwgates all the way for this exact reason: they can get jammed, and they wear out quicker. I was taught to screw it until it stopped, and then unscrew it a very very tiny bit, like a millimeter. Right or wrong?

Yep. It's an old problem, mostly with hook-nosed lockers. I often back-turn my screwgates to prevent jamming.

"I'm pretty ballsy on a rope" - guy climbs like 5.6 on TR no lead experience.

In the recent video titled "Chasing the Naked Edge Speed Record" on Vimeo, one of the climbers going for the record says, verbatim:

“I think it’s pretty safe, just as long as either of us don’t fall.”

No f-ing duh.

Seth Cohen wrote: I get the humor in this, but when I first learned to climb, I was told to not close screwgates all the way for this exact reason: they can get jammed, and they wear out quicker. I was taught to screw it until it stopped, and then unscrew it a very very tiny bit, like a millimeter. Right or wrong?

I have never had this problem with a single one of the gazillions of screwgates I've used...including ones that have been dropped, gunked up with dirt/chalk, exposed to elements. This, to me, suggests manufacturing defect caused by cheap ass carabiners. It's not like we were halfway up El Cap in the middle of a storm...leaving locking carabiners intentionally unlocked seems inherently unsafe to me, particularly when it's being used for a belay. The fact that a gym employee would recommend this in a gym...is horrifying. I can't imagine what gumbees would come up with when told to "loosen their locking carabiners a little."

Ted Pinson wrote: I have never had this problem with a single one of the gazillions of screwgates I've used...including ones that have been dropped, gunked up with dirt/chalk, exposed to elements. This, to me, suggests manufacturing defect caused by cheap ass carabiners. ...

Older screw gates locked up very easily if screwed down all the way. It was very common. You had to back them off a little (not unlock them as you suggest) to keep it from happening. It is just the way old screw gates were designed. Newer lockers don't thread down all the way and have some play so they don't lock down when they're loaded. I've got several old lockers that have been retired for this very reason.

A good friend of mine Rob tells this story about when him and some people were climbing at Foster Falls a while back and this guy and girl came by and asked where they could set up some topropes. The group with Rob offered t set them some because the woman was super hot wearing short shorts and a sports bra. A little later this girl is TR'ing a 9 when she really begins to struggle. Rob says that every time she highsteps all the guys can see straight up her shorts and she doesn't have any panties. About this time the woman says in frustration speaking about the next hold "I can see it but I just can't touch it!" The guys on the ground immediate break out in laughter for the irony.

'Um....like, he didnt use an anchor, he just like jammed his shoulders into that crack and belayed me. He does it all the time!'

Background:
A couple decided not to wait for our 3 person group on the 3rd pitch of Group Therapy at Red Rocks. The leader went off route to pass us and climbed out of site. His follower (thinking girlfriend) tried to follow his 'new' route and ended up 90 degrees from his piece with a featureless slab between her and his newly sended route. A fall would have been nasty, swinging her into a pillar. After nearly biffing it, she managed to follow his lead. After giving them time to clear out, we continued our climb. The girl was just leaving for the 4th pitch when our leader reached her. Making conversation, he asked where her partner placed his gear for his anchor. No anchor, just a shoulder brace from her boo. How sweet he was!

Can't rememeber which climb it was, but I was looking at the page for a multi-pitch at Smith Rock and one of the comments said something along the lines of "lots of bolts, the way sport climbing SHOULD be"

That was a first for me, especially concerning smith - figured some old timers on here who put that place up might chuckle at that

I was in the process of setting up a TR next to a popular hiking trail and an elderly woman walked by and said I wouldn't look very good as a splat.

I made a tyrol crossing to a riverside crag that usually is accessed by tyrol. Girl that was part of a group on the other side said I was going to die as I was releasing my weight off the tree and onto the tyrol.

Found out later that the ice bridge they used had broken apart during the day...and they still didn't use the tyrol to cross back over.

At the Gunks: "I never lead anything I can toprope." So much for the adventure aspect.

(While being lowered from a climb and belayer lets go of rope):

"Hey, put your brake hand back on the damn rope now!"
"Nah it's ok, I'm using a Gri-Gri..."

Me: Can you use my gri-gri to belay? I feel safer that way.

Ex-Boyfriend: Nah, I feel safer using my ATC.

(Top rope)

Natalie Salazar wrote:Me: Can you use my gri-gri to belay? I feel safer that way. Ex-Boyfriend: Nah, I feel safer using my ATC. (Top rope)

I don't the "dumb". Well I kind of do and it's not your boyfriend. Let people belay with what they're comfortable with. An ATC is very reliable.

Yeah, I'd rather be belayed by someone who's comfortable with an ATC than someone who's uncomfortable with a GriGri. If you don't trust somebody to belay you without an assisted breaking device (especially on toprope!), don't climb with them.

You have a point, it was a little more situational than that. He knew how to use a gri gri just fine, it wasn't lead climbing, I was cleaning a route so I didn't need to be lowered, and this was our first time climbing outside together. It wouldn't have been so bad if he didn't choke the rope relentlessly the next day when I was leading, on at ATC.

Natalie Salazar wrote:Me: Can you use my gri-gri to belay? I feel safer that way. Ex-Boyfriend: Nah, I feel safer using my ATC. (Top rope)

I would've told you the same thing. I know how to use a grigri, but don't own one and rarely use one, while I've belayed thousands of pitches on an ATC. What's dumb here exactly, that he is more practiced and comfortable with an ATC? That he's honest with you about that? If he's better with an ATC, and you for some reason absolutely have to be belayed with a grigri, perhaps you're just not compatible climbing partners.

I was at the red when I overheard this. This was a 20 year old college kid bragging to a girl (and said 100% seriously):

"I get 15% off Prana since I work at the climbing gym at my school... so I'm basically sponsored by Prana."

Overheard from a crew of spring breakers at Horseshoe Canyon Ranch:

"anyone know a knot to tie this tent down with?"