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Roped Soloing - Who Does It? (for OP) |
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18-Jan-2008 5:40:12 PM
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Organ Pipe wrote;
>I'd be keen to get an idea of how many Chocky members have tried roped solo aid, or roped solo lead climbing before?
>Or even if you don't lead solo, for example if you sometimes hit the crag solo, with a pre placed line from top to bottom, and use a shunt or similar???
Do you participate in roped soloing?
Please choose your most frequent option.
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18-Jan-2008 6:04:37 PM
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It's TR (Petzl Ascender) and lead (Rock Exotica Soloist) freeclimbing roped soloing for me.
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18-Jan-2008 6:35:07 PM
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If you go to:
http://en.petzl.com/ProduitsServices/B17%20ASCENSION%20B17502-F1_1.pdf
then page 3 diagram 6, you will see the Petzl recommended way to solo with a top rope.
The Petzl Shunt is not recommended for self belay when soloing as if you grab it when you fall you can
cause it to slip.
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18-Jan-2008 6:40:13 PM
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Mini traxion is really good on a fixed line from above, after a couple of meters the rope doesnb't need
weighting.
A modified gri gri seems pretty good on lead...
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18-Jan-2008 6:44:51 PM
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Some of the options are just weird ! top rope lead aid?, lead free climbing un roped (solo), lead aid un
roped, I can think of deans Yosemite solo where he aided on gear through the 5-11a sections but that's
about it.
Maybe as choices just have: Solo Aid, rope solo, Top rope Solo.
Personally I just "rope solo", that's free climbing with a rope and no belayer, but if it gets super hard then
I switch to "solo Aid " that's aid climbing with a rope and no belayer.
My favourite will always be climbing with a rope and belayer! BP
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18-Jan-2008 7:02:08 PM
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On 18/01/2008 bomber pro wrote:
>Some of the options are just weird
(snip)
Yeah, I noticed that but it seems a mod has had a go at cleaning them up. Maybe the 'F5' refresh button will help?
>I can think of deans Yosemite solo where he aided on gear through the 5-11a sections but that's about it.
Agree.
>My favourite will always be climbing with a rope and belayer! BP
Although I solo (mostly roped but sometimes not), I agree.
There is much to be said for the camaraderie of the rope.
I love my Silent Partner.
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19-Jan-2008 6:08:14 PM
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I love the focus I experience while top-rope soloing...it's a good opportunity work on both physical and mental techniques of a route without distraction. It's also a nice backup in case a partner bails.
I use the Singing Rock Locker with a prussik for backup. I like that the Locker has no teeth, allows me to downclimb, and catches quickly if I fall(which I have). It is similar to the old Yates/Troll Rocker device(same patent, new manufacturer).
http://www.patrollersupply.com/equipment/item_142.asp
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20-Jan-2008 10:27:58 AM
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I like how I don't have to listen to my shunt telling me how good it is.
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20-Jan-2008 1:41:50 PM
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Shunts are crap.
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20-Jan-2008 1:49:36 PM
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On 20/01/2008 Phil Box wrote:
>Shunts are crap.
I second that, the petzl microcender or rescusender is where it is at.
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20-Jan-2008 2:21:28 PM
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On 20/01/2008 Eduardo Slabofvic wrote:
>I like how I don't have to listen to my shunt telling me how good it is.
I don't imagine you have to buy the shunt a bottle of stout if you fall off either.
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20-Jan-2008 4:38:26 PM
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On 20/01/2008 Phil Box wrote:
>Shunts are crap.
I totally agree. The hundreds of hours I've done on a shunt, and the hundreds of falls I've taken attest to
its crapness.
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21-Jan-2008 8:52:32 AM
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Yes I think a mod has tried cleaning up my Friday arvo rushed post. (Thanks Mod) (sorry folks). I felt that the original options I posted were also valid, yet the Mod has made it clearer. However not sure about the addition of the ropeless options. I think they are a bit outside the scope of the original query and subsequent survey???
BP & M9,
My goal was to determine what people actually do with regards to roped soloing. I only "freeclimb top-rope solo", but occasionally I will top-rope solo to practice aid techniques, therefore I ticked the TR Solo Freeclimbing option. I believe that all the options are valid as some will lean towards one method more than the other and those who practice multiple methods are able to express that tendancy. For example - If you set out to climb something TR solo but have to resort to aid to get through a section then for the purposes of that climb and hence the survey you would say that you were "freeclimbing TR solo" (assuming of course that you would normally set out with that intention, otherwise choose the most applicable).
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5-Feb-2008 8:47:51 AM
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On 18/01/2008 climbau wrote:
>Do you participate in roped soloing?
Can someone who does this give some feedback on how enjoyable it is? seems like a lot of buggarising around.
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5-Feb-2008 9:25:22 AM
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On 5/02/2008 westie wrote:
>Can someone who does this give some feedback on how enjoyable it is? seems
>like a lot of buggarising around.
It certainly can be a fair bit of buggerising around.
Maybe the question should be 'How desperate are you for a climb when no partner is available?'; as it certainly fills that niche.
I find roped solo leading very fulfilling, particularly on hardish aid as the timeframe involved allows me to test my mental reserves. After a good session (when everything flows, as compared to snarfus), I feel like I have been through a detoxification of sorts, where the crap (mental and otherwise!), seems to get purged.
It also heightens my sense of awareness / clarity of perception not only at a simple eg visual level, but also in an 'appreciative of life' (and relationships), sort of way.
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5-Feb-2008 9:38:33 AM
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hmmm.
I definitley would like to climb more often but partners aren't always free so... I saw the link to Petzl and how they recommend you do it. Is this spot on? I'd rather hear from (some) horses mouth than do it from diagrams. Where else can I read up on it M9?
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5-Feb-2008 9:51:49 AM
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Shunts are great for a quick lap up something vertical or slabby using a fixed line. I used to do this a lot at Kangaroo Point when i lived there. I still use it occasionally to suss out new routes when i can't convince anyone to come climbing with me.
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5-Feb-2008 9:59:36 AM
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On 5/02/2008 westie wrote:
> I'd rather hear from (some) horses mouth than do it from
>diagrams.
I'm no horses mouth (a little bit further south maybe), but it really is a piece of piss to do what I do (solo
top rope – for want of a better description).
Set up an anchor, hang a rope off it, rap down, tie your pack onto the bottom of the rope (or coil it up, or
what ever to make a little bit of weight on the bottom of the rope), attach your device (I use a shunt as
rescue senders et. al. were no invented when I started doing this, but as others have mentioned, it's crap,
so maybe I should spend a bunch of cash buying several other devices that do exactly the same thing -
note the shunt can be used with two ropes if you want to). Attach yourself to the device and start
climbing.
The weight on the end of the rope keeps the rope a little bit tight so the device slides up the rope with you
as you go, but not so tight that it tries to pull you off.
When you fall off the device holds you and stops you from dying. Take along some sort of set up that
allows you to either ascend the rope when you’re too pumped to climb anymore, or swap over onto a
descender if you want to go back down. For this I use a Tibloc and a Gri Gri, I’m sure you’ve got
something lying around that will do the job (like a prussic loop and Wog knot for example).
This system probably not recommended by any manufacturer, and will no doubt prompt many to decry
perceived (or real) faults, however, I have been doing this for 14 years and am still around to type about it,
so it obviously works.
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5-Feb-2008 10:09:02 AM
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The only thing i'd say with a Shunt is to avoid steep routes OR tie a backup knot about 6m off the deck. Many years ago i watched a guy zipper 45m down his fixed line and he only survived because of his backup knot at the 6m mark! Shunts don't 'catch' the rope when weighted sideways (ie on an overhang). Seeing this guy plummet so far right next to me was truely frighteing. There were several recorded serious accidents at KP in the 90s with people using shunts on overhangs without backup knots. Take care!
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5-Feb-2008 10:16:04 AM
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On 5/02/2008 Eduardo Slabofvic wrote:
>I'm no horses mouth (a little bit further south maybe), but it really
>is a piece of piss to do what I do.
So essentially - its a case of climbing beside a fixed line with an ascender attached and maybe a loose prussic to back it up and a knot, as Neil suggested, a good distance above the deck. All you have to do is ensure the ascender is in a good position to grip as it should if you fall or pump out.
Might try it.
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