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Vegasclimber
Trad climber
Las Vegas, NV.
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Topic Author's Original Post - Oct 3, 2014 - 10:57am PT
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My partner Topher just posted on FB that a rescue is underway. Have some folks I know up there right now, anyone have any details? Paging Mr. Smoking Duck...
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WBraun
climber
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Helo evac from Nose, camp 4.
Climber with head injury.
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Vegasclimber
Trad climber
Las Vegas, NV.
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 3, 2014 - 11:26am PT
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Thanks Werner. Hope they get out of there OK. Is the climber male or female?
Sorry I didn't swing by to say hello during Facelift, I was pretty busy all week :-|
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Dirka
Trad climber
Hustle City
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Prayers sent.
Many thanks to SAR team
Amazing photos tom
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OR
Trad climber
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Any updates? Praying for the best….
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Tom, you were one busy guy, there. Lots of great shots from one of the best around. We're lucky to have your talent available. Thanks again, bud!
And a big thumb up for YOSAR!
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Lynne Leichtfuss
Sport climber
moving thru
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El Cap Pics....Tom
Amazing report with pics. Pretty special to see professionals working at the highest levels of SAR. Prayers for the husband/wife climbing team. He for healing and she for everything needed to be there and to support the healing effort. Prayers for them and thanks to all.
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crankster
Trad climber
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Amazing. Hopes for a happy ending.
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Peter Haan
Trad climber
Santa Cruz, CA
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Thanks Tom. Amazing coverage.
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there say, all...
oh my, prayers for the injured and the loved one...
hoping it will get better and not worse...
also, prayers for the rescue team... stamina, strength and good safe moves, etc... very hard job... you are so appreciated...
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Bad Climber
climber
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Damn, Tom, great coverage. What a terrifying event--and on such a beautiful day, which help in the rescue, of course. Man, the blood on the stone says too much. A bad screamer of falling rock, I guess. A full recovery to the poor bloke!
BAd
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johntp
Trad climber
socal
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Good vibes to Simon and YOSAR.
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Vegasclimber
Trad climber
Las Vegas, NV.
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 5, 2014 - 01:18am PT
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Thanks for the coverage Tom!
Sending healing vibes out for the injured member of our tribe, and a hearty attaboy for the YOSAR team.
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roy
Social climber
NZ -> SB,CA -> Zurich
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That's amazing coverage Tom - the rope toss shot captures the whole thing.
I hope that Simon makes a quick and full recovery.
Cheers, Roy
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MazJ
Trad climber
Kendal, UK
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Hi all,
Thanks for your prayers and messages of good will. Simon is recovering well in hospital. He has a fractured skull but is responding well to treatment. It's very early days but neurosurgeon is pleased with his progress to date.
We'd bivvied at camp 4 and had just started climbing. We hadn't realised that there's some easier grade stuff round the corner, so Simon was trying to go straight up from the ledge when he slipped. I tried to catch him as he rocketed past, but there was enough rope out for him to reach the edge of the ledge where he then flipped upside down and hit his head.
He was wearing a HB Carbon fiber Spectra helmet. I'm interested to know whether a different type of helmet would have protected his skull better. There's barely a dint on the helmet but his fracture is just above his right ear.
A HUGE thank you to Christine and Adrian who were climbing above us and heard my calls for help. I couldn't get to my phone initially as I was too busy trying to turn Simon upright.
Jack, Arron, the helicopter pilot did an amazing rescue backed up by their fantastic team. I'm eternally grateful.
I'll pass on all your messages to Simon as I'm sure it'll help speed his recovery.
Stay safe,
Marian
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guido
Trad climber
Santa Cruz/New Zealand/South Pacific
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Best wishes for a quick recovery Simon.
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Sierra Ledge Rat
Mountain climber
Old and Broken Down in Appalachia
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That pitch above Camp 4 had some really shitty, loose rock and that pitch wasn't very well protected.
I wonder if it's been cleaned up in the 35 years since I climbed it.
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SC seagoat
Trad climber
Santa Cruz, or In What Time Zone Am I?
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Nice report! So happy to hear that prognosis is good!
Susan
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johntp
Trad climber
socal
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Good on ya Marian and all involved. Glad to read that Simon seems to be doing OK.
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Vegasclimber
Trad climber
Las Vegas, NV.
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 5, 2014 - 10:21pm PT
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Marian, thanks for taking the time to post up and let us know what happened. I hope that Simon heals quickly! Sending lots of good vibez your way from Las Vegas.
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Ed Hartouni
Trad climber
Livermore, CA
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great news,
I have a relatively recent (March) experience of a falling partner hitting the ledge off the belay, I can very well imagine what you were going through.
Wear your helmets, people!
my best to Simon and Marian
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wayne w
Trad climber
the nw
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Thanks so much for the update on Simon, Marion. He was lucky to have been in such good hands. Wishing Simon a quick and complete recovery!
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Blakey
Trad climber
Sierra Vista
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Hi Marian,
From a fellow Brit, I hope Simon is doing OK, and that you aren't too shook up by it - very nasty.
If I recall properly I used to have an HB carbon fibre helmet, light and good for impact from above, less so from the side. I think they sat quite high on the head and out at the side, and given the right circumstances I could imagine the edge of a rock, or the ledge managing to hit the side of his bonce. As it probably would with any helmet.
The what if's in these circumstances are usually so complex that rarely can you ever reach a conclusion......
Looks like you did a good job up there, this stuff could happen to any of us.......Don't well on it too much.
Regards,
Steve
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Roxy
Trad climber
CA Central Coast
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YIKES!! gnarly coverage in Tom's report!
cheers to YOSAR indeed!!
healing energy sent....
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DMBARN
Trad climber
Modesto
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He was lucky to have been in such good hands
Wayne w
The what if's in these circumstances are usually so complex that rarely can you ever reach a conclusion......
Looks like you did a good job up there, this stuff could happen to any of us.......Don't dwell on it too much. Blakey
I’m one of the charge nurses in the ICU where Simon is being cared for. Speaking to Marion on Sunday it became clear that Simon was indeed in good hands. She told me that one of the first things she did was get him upright, as he had come to rest upside down after the fall. As many of you know, an injured brain does not do well under extra pressure, and being upside down was doing just that. So, getting his head above the rest of his body I am convinced was one of the factors that will play a positive role in his recovery. I also tried to reassure her that since the factors that occur during one of these events is rapid, simultaneous and unpredictable, that neither she nor Simon could have predicted/prevented it. Like many of our experiences, it was a straight forward accent up the pitch that turned out poorly. There are countless stories on this forum recounting such an events or worse.
Simon was in good hands on that ledge at camp 4 and he’s in good hands now with Marion at his side still.
Regards,
Douglas
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Seamstress
Trad climber
Yacolt, WA
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Speedy recovery.
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Vegasclimber
Trad climber
Las Vegas, NV.
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 6, 2014 - 10:30am PT
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Appreciate the update, Douglas. Please pass on all of our best wishes for a speedy recovery!
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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Best wishes to Simon for a quick and complete recovery.
Marian, nice job taking care of him and keeping it together. . .
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AE
climber
Boulder, CO
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Helmet questions bring up new ones. After officially becoming old, I just bought a new one, but am thinking that they're perhaps ten or more years behind kids' football helmets even. That industry especially has rating standards based on concussion protection and the like, whereas we feel fortunate to merely survive any sort of head impact in climbing accidents.
I threw out the Camp model I'd gotten about 12 years ago, after playing with how flimsy the side protection, and the weak velcro inner attachments seemed, when just given the old hit-with-the-heel-of-the-hand test.
New ones even seem widely variable, from apparently ok straight-drop-protection only, to a small few that at least address side impacts, and the strength of attachment to the head.
Drop impact is fine, but really analogous only to contruction-type work helmets; once you start to address falling scenarios, even modern bicycling helmets might offer better protection than older style climbing buckets.
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Fossil climber
Trad climber
Atlin, B. C.
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Damn - I am so impressed with you guys and proud of what YOSAR has become.
And Tom - superb coverage! And Simon - get OK quick and get back up there.
Wayne Merry
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ß Î Ø T Ç H
Boulder climber
extraordinaire
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Respect, and all that, but what's those route(s) there in the pic/ pick?
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Clint Cummins
Trad climber
SF Bay area, CA
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what's those route(s) there in the pic/ pick? False Shield corner, just left of the rescuer.
It's just a little bit above the Shield Roof.
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Dave Turnbull
Trad climber
Manchester, UK
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Big big thanks to the Yosemite rescue services from all of us across in the UK, you're doing a fantastic job out there and its very much appreciated.
Dave Turnbull
CEO
British Mountaineering Council
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Soloing I was hit with ice above the ear and below the helmet wearing a BD half dome and cut to the bone. I promptly sold that POS and switched to petzl for marginaly better side protection. I feel that many climbing helmets are long on style and short on protection.
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there say, MazJ... for you and simon, marian:
so glad to know he is gettting well...
we may not know you, or even, your friends, but we all understand the same
issues that climbers all deal with and that ANY family deal with, when someone is injurred... we hope, pray, and want the best care for our fellow man... life is precious...
god bless to you...
keep on 'hanging in there' and also, know that you did the best you
could... 'shining star' wife, there... :)
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JLP
Social climber
The internet
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I feel that many climbing helmets are long on style and short on protection. They're designed to pass the ~ "blunt object from above" UIAA test - to a fault, IMO.
Seems to me, from reading these accident reports, that a majority of "saves" as well as "failures" from these helmets are basically from protecting or failing to protect lead falls - NOT falling objects from above.
The Half Dome epitomizes this flaw. It's the helmet most likely to protect from an object falling dead center from above - least likely to protect an impact from ANY other direction. I'm sure it did better than most other helmets in passing the UIAA test. I don't use mine anymore, either.
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Splater
climber
Grey Matter
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I recall the UIAA test only goes to 45 degrees from vertical.
So helmets often now focus on light weight by scrimping on the side protection.
A friend of mine shifted to an all purpose kayak/skateboard helmet years ago for the better side protection.
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phylp
Trad climber
Millbrae, CA
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I have been wearing a kayaking helmet for years. It just fits my head better than any of the climbing helmets.
Best wishes for a speedy recovery. Accidents happen so fast. Kudos to everyone involved in the rescue.
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MazJ
Trad climber
Kendal, UK
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Oct 18, 2014 - 04:17pm PT
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HI all,
Just thought you might be interested in an update. Here's a message from Simon - he's making an amazing recovery:
Thanks to Everyone for thinking of us. Getting back on my feet and looking to getting back into climbing.
Cheers,
Marian
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Crimpergirl
Sport climber
Boulder, Colorado!
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Oct 18, 2014 - 04:37pm PT
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Thanks for the update. I return here frequently to learn of the good news.
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