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phylp
Trad climber
Millbrae, CA
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Jan 10, 2013 - 01:42pm PT
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Good story and even better news, Jim.
So, has anyone ever even seen webbing that color? I haven't. Which, if true, would mean that the color was totally bleached out from sun exposure.
I hate old webbing, so I always carry a few knotted runners to leave behind at rap anchors.
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nutjob
Gym climber
Berkeley, CA
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Jan 10, 2013 - 02:13pm PT
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Scary stuff. What a gift is this life, and your ability to appreciate it!
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Jon Beck
Trad climber
Oceanside
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Jan 10, 2013 - 02:24pm PT
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tied slings are not the must have item they used to be, but I always have a couple on me. Thanks for the reminder, glad you are fine.
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ydpl8s
Trad climber
Santa Monica, California
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Jan 10, 2013 - 02:27pm PT
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Ugh! That damn UV and nylon just don't get along! Glad you had the 2nd thought to backup on the knotted sling!
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High Fructose Corn Spirit
Gym climber
-A race of corn eaters
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Jan 10, 2013 - 02:37pm PT
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Wow!
Your OP didn't say, did you test the system before taking off?
Anyhow, happy second birthday!
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Crimpergirl
Sport climber
Boulder, Colorado!
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Jan 10, 2013 - 02:39pm PT
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Goose bumps. Blargh.
Happy birthday!
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Mighty Hiker
climber
Vancouver, B.C.
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Jan 10, 2013 - 03:02pm PT
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Very glad that Jim is AOK, and looking forward to seeing him at the FaceLift. We've both got the Third Pillar on our list.
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RP3
Big Wall climber
El Portal/Chapel Hill
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Jan 10, 2013 - 03:08pm PT
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Holy moley! That is terrifying! Congratulations on surviving.
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Paul Brennan
Trad climber
Ireland
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Jan 10, 2013 - 03:23pm PT
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A friend of mine had a similar closr call in j tree in nov. Had just done some obscure route and was about to lower off the fixed sling anchor. The thought crossed his mind to test it.....and the sling ripped like tissue paper. He is from ireland too, where we don't really have fixed anchors. Sometimes annoying, but it negates this particular hazard.
Glad you're ok.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Jan 10, 2013 - 03:27pm PT
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Yikes! Yet another tale of the times we came this close to a meaningless too-early end. Glad you're still here to tell it.
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Alpamayo
Trad climber
Chapel Hill, NC
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Jan 10, 2013 - 03:29pm PT
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Donini truly does have a climbing "6th sense"...I'm not sure I would have clipped the second sling, especially since you said you didn't think it looked all that good!
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looking sketchy there...
Social climber
Latitute 33
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Jan 10, 2013 - 03:33pm PT
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Thank you for this cautionary tale
...and that you are able to relate it to us.
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bvb
Social climber
flagstaff arizona
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Jan 10, 2013 - 03:38pm PT
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So Donini, does that make 7 or 8 of your nine lives?! Glad to see you still had some in reserve...
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Jaybro
Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
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Jan 10, 2013 - 03:39pm PT
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I broke an old sling on a route on maverick buttress once. I was climbing third and the tr anchor was two pins with an old sling each backed up by a cam. My friend asked how the slings were and I said "okay." seconds later, while adjusting the rope I put ally weight on one of the slings a d it popped I to smoke! Needless to say I pulled up new sling and replaced that on both, anchors!
Be careful out there!
So Donini gets to start over again at 2?
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zBrown
Ice climber
chingadero de chula vista
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Jan 10, 2013 - 03:40pm PT
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Hey Jim:
Happy rebirthday. I will quibble with an earlier statement you made about getting old. This event shows you're not (along with most every other aspectt of your life).
Bruce
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MisterE
Social climber
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Jan 10, 2013 - 03:43pm PT
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Yep, it is listed as no fixed anchor in our book, with a notation that there is a bad anchor.
Never did that one, the start looks chossy but the upper crack looks pretty good. Meaning of Life is the continuation.
Glad you are OK, Jim - sounds like a close one.
Erik
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steveA
Trad climber
bedford,massachusetts
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Jan 10, 2013 - 03:55pm PT
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Crap Jim--I just read this.
I'm sure BITD, you have had other close calls, but at our "advanced" age, we really don't need anymore.
I'm sending this on to my daughter, who is on the way to Mexico to climb.
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crunch
Social climber
CO
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Jan 10, 2013 - 04:06pm PT
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Wow. Sobering. Glad you are still around, Jim.
Surprised at how easily the webbing parted. My experience is that bleached webbing is surprisingly strong (I did one about the last ascents of the Shield on the original RURP webbing on the Groove pitch; very, very scary. That webbing was a decade old, crispy, white, all gone but for a few strands, obviously severely damaged, still held my weight).
Do you have any idea how strong the rest of the broken webbing is? From the nice photo, it looks like you brought it down with you.
I'd be really interested in some kind of testing, either formally by the guys at BD or else just by making a loop, hanging (just over a bouldering pad or a couple inches off the ground or somewhere safe) and seeing how easy it is to break the remains just with bodyweight.
My hunch (hope?) is that your "inspection" was basically visual, and did not involve running your fingers all along the inside, unseen side of the webbing. And I kinda hope that where it broke it was either on a sharpish edge and/or an abrasive section of rock and the unseen, invisible side was severely worn/cut already from wind, etc.
Maybe wishful thinking on my part. If the rest is horribly weak then I'll be recalibrating, for sure.
And again, glad you survived to live and climb another day!
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10b4me
Boulder climber
Somewhere on 395
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Jan 10, 2013 - 04:16pm PT
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glad to hear that you lived to tell the tale Jim.
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Topic Author's Reply - Jan 10, 2013 - 04:28pm PT
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Nice story Coz. Crusher, Bill Bellcourt from BD is coming to the Ouray Ice Festival. I'm giving him the sling to take back for testing. It broke in an area where there were no previous dings. I did run my fingers around the sling as part of my inspection, I'll post the test results.
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Let us know!