Chockstone Forum

      Sponsored By
      ROCK
   HARDWARE

Chockstone Photography

Australian Landscape Prints

Chockstone Forum - General Discussion

General Climbing Discussion

Topic Date User

belaying seconds on a multipitch 18-Apr-2016 At 10:32:44 AM johnpitcairn

Message

I definitely prefer to belay off the anchor with a simple munter hitch wherever possible. Uses a single carabiner, holds a fall well, easy to lower, doesn't twist the rope if you keep the strands reasonably parallel, straightforward to tie off. You can quickly turn it into an auto-locking munter with the addition of one carabiner (though not while weighted).

If I can't arrange to get the anchor point above or behind me, I'll consider a harness belay redirected through the anchor if the stance is good, ie I won't get badly sucked into the anchor if the second falls.

I generally only use an ATC guide or similar autoblock device off the anchor when using double ropes. It's useful for bringing up 2 seconds simultaneously, but either way you really need to have practiced the lowering faff-round and use a munter backup when releasing. If I think a second might need lowering I may pre-rig the lowering setup.

I've found belaying directly off the harness to be a recipe for considerable discomfort if the second falls and the anchor or stance is not ideal. You need to be very careful about having a tight attachment from you to the anchor and keeping that in-line with the belay device and rope, so your body is not a load-bearing part of the system. Rope management can also be a pain due to your restricted movement range.