silent partner beauty thread

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Norwegian

Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
Topic Author's Original Post - Aug 16, 2013 - 08:38pm PT

this wonderful device, originally offered by wren
now available thru rock exotica is absolutely lovely.

the belay offered is smooth, easy to manage,
predictable, convenient, and most of all safe.

i love to climb with warm-blooded partners,
but i have to admit my days alone on the mount
with the metal-blow-up-device suit me
the best.

aint nothing like coiling the rope on
top of a committing route,
that i've just overcome, me, myself, i, and the silent partner.

patrons must follow the directions included with the device,
and they should earn graduating levels of comfort with the
silent partner by starting easy and working up to greater
challenges.

i've taken 30 foot whippers on mine and the catch
was smooth and uneventful.

documentation of it's use is difficult, for
the poperautzi has not yet caught wind of my travels,
luckily my faithful friend and wife occassionally
joins me on my solo outings,






S.Leeper

Social climber
somewhere that doesnt have anything over 90'
Aug 16, 2013 - 08:42pm PT
looks like fun. I would like to try this system some time.
Norwegian

Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
Topic Author's Reply - Aug 16, 2013 - 08:54pm PT
kat if i had to pen
a slogan for the device
it surely would read,

there's nothing i can't do.

im melancholy by nature,
and i love the double negative,
like,
my worst enemy's enemy is my best friend,
or however beethoven beautifully put it.
S.Leeper

Social climber
somewhere that doesnt have anything over 90'
Aug 16, 2013 - 09:00pm PT
weegy what is the hardest route you've have climbed with the SP?
climbski2

Mountain climber
Anchorage AK, Reno NV
Aug 16, 2013 - 09:10pm PT
I just parted with my Partner. She needed to be set free..She deserved better than sitting in a closet all day. Definitely the silent type, she never said anything.. but I could just tell .. she wasn't happy.

I think Hamik will give her what she's looking for.

Be free my old friend.
Anxious Melancholy

Mountain climber
Between the Depths of Despair & Heights of Folly
Aug 16, 2013 - 09:27pm PT
I've had a long term illicit affair w my SP. We don't go out often, but when we do the excitement is almost too much to bare(sp! Ha!) I sneak away so as to not cause any undue concern for my main squeeze, and simply indulge to my heart's content.
Norwegian

Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
Topic Author's Reply - Aug 16, 2013 - 09:36pm PT
liasons aplenty! yes sir anxious.

sleeper my hardest leads to date have
been on my self belay.
i hate talking numbers though,
it makes me feel like
im posting nude.
S.Leeper

Social climber
somewhere that doesnt have anything over 90'
Aug 16, 2013 - 10:02pm PT
understood weegy ;)
Andrew Barnes

Ice climber
Albany, NY
Aug 16, 2013 - 10:45pm PT
The Silent Partner seems outlandish, until you try it. Then it feels totally natural. Not only is it natural, it actually becomes both enjoyable and addictive. I feel a bit strange recommending that people use the SP, for the obvious reasons - besides being an antisocial loser, must I not be messed up in the head to be soloing? But then, upon further rational consideration I realize that (1) it is much safer than climbing ropeless (free or aid), (2) it is the best soloing belay device available, and (3) if I'm mentally messed up enough to want to solo, it's actually safer to use the SP than not to use the SP.
The SP has been used for major (i.e. either long or difficult) routes by several big time climbers who use this site/forum. Hope some of them post to this thread. The SP could definitely use some positive publicity.
Andrew Barnes.
Deekaid

climber
Aug 17, 2013 - 04:36pm PT
just a bump as a counterpoint to that other thread
Studly

Trad climber
WA
Aug 17, 2013 - 06:23pm PT
Love my Silent Partner, it is a thing of beauty when you fall. Sometimes I curse loudly when I come up short on my backup knot, but that's my fault though, not the devices.
AP

Trad climber
Calgary
Aug 17, 2013 - 08:22pm PT
Lots of fun but ya gotta keep track of that backup knot
neebee

Social climber
calif/texas
Aug 17, 2013 - 08:34pm PT
hey there say, norwegian...

thanks for the share, and for all that joined in...

i don't know much about any of this, but i love reading and
soaking it all in...
jonnyrig

Trad climber
formerly known as hillrat
Aug 17, 2013 - 09:51pm PT
Jingy

climber
Somewhere out there
Aug 17, 2013 - 10:57pm PT
Norwegian is just a bad ass, plain and simple.


I got a silent partner at some point. Was able to use it once on some easy climb at the 5 books area of Yosemite, to be on the safe side. Sane roped solo of a climb I had done with a friend once before. I think on the same day I watched a guy take a near catastrophic ground fall from one of the other climbs on the same formation. It was f*#kin scary, I saw it coming, but couldn't for the life of me yell up to the dude as he was getting pumped and didn't want to add further delay toy to the issue.

Anyway, got up on my easy climb, got past my initial shakes, and sweated my way up the climb… easy enough… But a huge pain in the ass with the amount of work it took to get that rope up there, back down to pull the gear and release the bottom anchor then ascend to the high point.

Sweat, rope drag, sheath destruction and did I mention sweat?

Once I was at the top of the climb and on my way back to the car, I decided I'd probably not do that again and just stick to not push my limits with soloing (the big plan) and just stick to stuff that I knew I could do without too much hesitation.

Still got the brand new, single use silent partner in my small gear bag along with a small rack of medium to small cams also single use and retired.


Cheers Nor
sangoma

Trad climber
south africa
Aug 18, 2013 - 03:04am PT
Hay Jingy
I'll look after her and show her a good time ...
Norwegian

Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
Topic Author's Reply - Aug 18, 2013 - 11:07am PT
oh yes the potential for
mishaps and tangles is vast.

a couple of regular fvck ups that i endure:

a slack loop tied to the backup knot works
its way toward the silent partner, as they
are supposed to. it's the driver's job to watch
these loops and when they get near,
he/she's to let out the next back up knot.
being a space-driven bunch, these often get
overlooked. the worst is when that
loop seats across the soul of your boot and
as you attempt to stand up, it lifts
your foot right off the hold.

another one is to let the loop go all the
way into the silent partner, then you got a tight
clove hitch and tons of tension in your belay,
often this happens at crux. so you have to reverse
moves, get a hand or two free, loosen the clove
hitch, back out some slack, and the release
the next back up knot. and then reclimb the crux.

the silent partner severely twists the rope,
so after numerous laps, the rope has a warped mind
of its own and does all kinds of circus acts.

my favorite is the slack coils horribly entangling
amongst themselves, so they arrive in the form
of a giant ball of rope that your're trying to force
thru a tight little cavity, that is the silent partner
vagina.

you can see in these pictures, i've a tangle on the way
as i didn't stack my coils with care and one has looped
another:

these aren't simple outings, with the silent partner.
just like with a reel pardner,
each end of the rope has a personality,
and these play out as they will across
the moutain's jaw.
Norwegian

Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
Topic Author's Reply - Aug 18, 2013 - 11:14am PT
of note, i store my slack on a gear loop,
which is not full strength. so i have
tied a short sling around the main belt
of my harness to back up this gear loop,
to create a full-strength back-up system.

i use clove hitches instead of figure-eights,
because you can untie them with one hand, sukcas.

PAUL SOUZA

Trad climber
Central Valley, CA
Aug 18, 2013 - 03:45pm PT
Having all those loops on the harness looks Soooo awkward. Any thoughts about backpacking the slack? That's my idea when I get a SP.
Norwegian

Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
Topic Author's Reply - Aug 18, 2013 - 04:19pm PT
paul / ekat,

that picture of the rack of cloves is worst case:

the line of ascent within my scope
has no real stances / rests,
and i plan to run out my 70 meter rope to it's end
(multi-pitch climb.)

more common is the scenario where i carry
(3) or (4) cloves depending on the distance
between stances on a pitch where i can
add some slack coils along the way.

or on single pitch stuff,
it's not usually necessary to carry more
than 60' of rope,
which is about (4) cloves / coils.
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