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How many feet = whipper?

Original Post
a d · · Los Angeles, CA · Joined Mar 2010 · Points: 5

Is there a consensus on how many feet you must fall for it to be considered a whipper? Took a 30 footer yesterday with a healthy slam into the wall.

Glenn Schuler · · Monument, Co. · Joined Jun 2006 · Points: 1,330

That qualifies in my book, no idea what the consensus is however. Glad you didn't get banged up worse.

Brendan Blanchard · · Boulder, CO · Joined Oct 2010 · Points: 590

I've heard people say a 15' whipper, but that really doesn't do it for me. Sport, I'd say a whipper is 20'+, trad a little higher simply because it's trad :)

dorseyec · · Unknown Hometown · Joined May 2009 · Points: 5

12.234 feet is the agreed upon consensus. I'm assuming this post was made to brag about your "whipper"? Sad..

Rob Gordon · · Hollywood, CA · Joined Feb 2009 · Points: 115

I never understood the need for a term to brag about falling.

camhead · · Vandalia, Appalachia · Joined Jun 2006 · Points: 1,240

It's great that important topics like this can receive serious attention on mountainprodge. We should make this thread a sticky, right along with "how far can I fall without dying?" and "What is a splitter?"

Buff Johnson · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Dec 2005 · Points: 1,145

It's gotta be a bonafide 12.234 feet, you can't just go 2 feet above your pro and have the belayer zing out the gri just to make it look good on camera.

Mike Lane · · AnCapistan · Joined Jan 2006 · Points: 880

If you have time to look down and basically 'experience' the fall. Most dinks and drops happen so fast that you don't perceive much when it happens. With a whipper, you have time to mentally register either an 'Oh Shit' or a 'wheee"; depending on your nature.

coldfinger · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Oct 2010 · Points: 55
Mike Lane wrote:If you have time to look down and basically 'experience' the fall. Most dinks and drops happen so fast that you don't perceive much when it happens. With a whipper, you have time to mentally register either an 'Oh Shit' or a 'wheee"; depending on your nature.
Perfectly said!
a d · · Los Angeles, CA · Joined Mar 2010 · Points: 5
dorseyec wrote:12.234 feet is the agreed upon consensus. I'm assuming this post was made to brag about your "whipper"? Sad..
Definitely not a brag. More curious as to what the consensus was, as I felt that my fall might have been on the borderline. Sorry for using the forum for its intended purpose.
Chad Wagner · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Aug 2007 · Points: 75

Consider that 2' above the bolt fall can hurt worse then that 15' above the bolt fall. In our world problems are solved by finding the first person to do it, in this case the first person to dub the term whipper, then ask them to explain the reasoning on the first ascent, first time using the word in our delimma. But this has become overshadowed in some parts of the world by concensus.

Chad Wagner · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Aug 2007 · Points: 75

Or, just a term for a bad belay? good fall? Oh the wonders of climbing terminology!

Wiled Horse · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Dec 2002 · Points: 3,669

how tall are you?

dorseyec · · Unknown Hometown · Joined May 2009 · Points: 5
Alex G. Davis wrote: Definitely not a brag. More curious as to what the consensus was, as I felt that my fall might have been on the borderline. Sorry for using the forum for its intended purpose.
Its just a saying... Did you honestly expect there to be some agreed upon exact number?
Scott O · · Anchorage · Joined Mar 2010 · Points: 70

I once took a factor 2 daisy fall. It wasn't very far, but I'd consider that a whipper.

a d · · Los Angeles, CA · Joined Mar 2010 · Points: 5
Darren Mabe wrote:how tall are you?
I'm 5'8, 150 lbs. Belayer is 5'8'' about 140 lbs I would guess.

It was on the second pitch of a route. Belayer was at a hanging belay, which my thinking is that it would have made a dynamic belay much more difficult. Normally, I would have pulled him up a few feet up, but this time his body movement was stopped by the anchor.
Scott O · · Anchorage · Joined Mar 2010 · Points: 70
Rob Gordon wrote:I never understood the need for a term to brag about falling.
Who said anything about bragging?
dorseyec · · Unknown Hometown · Joined May 2009 · Points: 5
Alex G. Davis wrote: I'm 5'8, 150 lbs. Belayer is 5'8'' about 140 lbs I would guess. It was on the second pitch of a route. Belayer was at a hanging belay, which my thinking is that it would have made a dynamic belay much more difficult. Normally, I would have pulled him up a few feet up, but this time his body movement was stopped by the anchor.
Hahaha the dude who asked for your height was just making fun of you.... Apparently that went over your head.

What kind of shoes did you have on? This will allow me to decide whether you actually took a "whipper" or not.

As I said its not some exact scientific measurement, its just a phrase... So I am not sure what you are looking for here???? Other than to brag about your sick gnar whipper bro!
Wiled Horse · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Dec 2002 · Points: 3,669
dorseyec · · Unknown Hometown · Joined May 2009 · Points: 5
Alex G. Davis wrote: Belayer was at a hanging belay, which my thinking is that it would have made a dynamic belay much more difficult. Normally, I would have pulled him up a few feet up, but this time his body movement was stopped by the anchor.
Also I assume he was anchored in and sitting 3 feet or so below the anchor?

That still gives you six feet of upward movement before the anchor will stop you, so your thinking is wrong there too.
a d · · Los Angeles, CA · Joined Mar 2010 · Points: 5
dorseyec wrote: Hahaha the dude who asked for your height was just making fun of you.... Apparently that went over your head. What kind of shoes did you have on? This will allow me to decide whether you actually took a "whipper" or not. As I said its not some exact scientific measurement, its just a phrase... So I am not sure what you are looking for here???? Other than to brag about your sick gnar whipper bro!
Why so hostile?

And, actually, height could make a difference if the term "whipper" was subjective, based on the climber experiencing the fall. For example, I'm pretty sure a fall by a 5'0'' girl would feel much further than a 6'2'' man.
Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

General Climbing
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