Stories of Bad Belays

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Toker Villain

Big Wall climber

Toquerville, Utah

Topic Author's Original Post - Feb 12, 2018 - 03:37pm PT

Lets have a little climbing content;

So this was about 40 years ago and Stephen and I wanted to top rope some cracks on the Practice Cliffs in Zion.

Stephen was on top with a rope and rack after I had led Casual Sex and then had rapped off to walk the base and find another crack. Having done so I called to Stephen who positioned himself above me an threw down the end of the rope.

Shortly I was tied in and Stephen yelled "on belay".

What I did not know was that Stephen had assumed that I wouldn't fall, so had merely girth hitched a bush and braced his feet against a large rock.

Twenty feet up I got into trouble and managed to warn Stephen before falling.

With almost no resistance I plummet to the deck and look up in time to see the large rock that had been a foot brace 2' across hurtling right at me. I scramble out of the way and it crashes into my impact point.

"Well I didn't thinkYOU'D fall!" was his excuse

That was my last climb with Stephen.

Last year I had the opposite experience;
I was doing a 5.9 in a party of three that went up, diagnaled, and then went straight up again. Ammon (no not the pirate) led it, and yelled "on belay" after pulling up the slack.

I went second, but got a little crossed up and tried to down climb.
With my foot only inches from the "rest" hold the rope locked up.

I yelled for slack repeatedly attempting to hold onto the rock in the middle of the hard move.

Ammon yelled, "I can't. Its locked up!"

Finally pumped I let go.

It seems that my lazy millennial partner chose to belay off the anchor using an auto-lock system.

Now I should say, BITD the first time I did the Yellow Spur was in a party of three with Antoine leading and Teri and I following 20' apart. Because he was belaying us both with gardas we could fly up the route. in 1:40, but we both KNEW that we couldn't downclimb.

Ammon had made a bad decision on the belay, but he made a worse one in not telling me.
(Then for strike 3 he started to set up the same system for Danielle.)

Putting your life in another's hands is what distinguishes our thing from virtually all other sporting activities.
Belaying is a sacred obligation.

I can't be the only one with a bad belay story,...

Trad climber

Calgary

Feb 12, 2018 - 03:46pm PT

In the 70's two guys were climbing Cascade waterfall near Banff.
There are 2 roped pitches separated by an easier slope.
The leader is at the belay stance above the first pitch.
The second gets to the steep part near the top of the pitch at the same time the leader takes his hand off the belay rope to light up a smoke.
The second comes off, the leader can't grab the rope, so the second takes a 90 foot fall and lands in soft snow at the base of the pitch.
He is unhurt

Toker Villain

Big Wall climber

Toquerville, Utah

Topic Author's Reply - Feb 12, 2018 - 03:51pm PT

THERE'S an awkward conversation.

Ferretlegger

Trad climber

san Jose, CA

Feb 12, 2018 - 04:31pm PT

In the early 1970's I was climbing in San Ysidro Canyon near Santa Barbara. A friend of mine had established a (hard for the time) 5.9 face climb and a 2 lads were giving it a go. The leader made it to the ledge and anchored in and sat down on the ledge with his legs over the side. The second climbed up, unclipped from the last protection bolt, and just a foot or so from the ledge, he fell off. There was a horrible scream, and i looked over just in time to see both climbers plunge off the climb. There was a huge crashing noise as they impacted the bottom. The climb was at least 75 feet high, and everyone climbing thought for sure that they were dead or horribly injured.

Our sight of the last 15 feet of the fall was blocked by a rib of rock. Someone started running out of the canyon to get help, while the rest of us hot footed it for the base of the climb to render what aid we could. And then from around the back side of the rib came an awful groan and a "weeerrre allllll riiighhhht...", followed by thrashing noises and curses. When we rounded the rib, we saw both climbers embedded in a huge sticker bush, covered in blood. After a bit, we managed to extract them from the "Death by 1000 Thorns" landing pad and they shuffled off down the canyon looking like they had been put through a blender, but with only superficial wounds, although they sure had a lot of them.

What had happened was that there was a single bolt on the ledge for an anchor (Silly, but those were pretty early days...). The leader had clipped the bolt with the tied off climbing rope to his swami (yes, a swami...) with a single oval carabiner. In those days locking carabiners were rare and very expensive. When the second fell, he pulled the tied-off leader tight onto the anchor and partially off the ledge. By chance, the carabiner had become twisted, and the gate levered against the bolt hanger and unclipped, sending them both on what should have been their final ride. Only pity stayed god's hand. "It's a pity these wretched idiots smell so bad", said the Reaper. And in a fit of pique he deposited them into the middle of the only piece of vegetation for a 100 yards that could have acted as a cushion. They lived to climb again, and I bought my first locking carabiner.

True story.

Michael

thebravecowboy

climber

The Good Places

Feb 12, 2018 - 04:38pm PT

west pawnee butte: "c'mon up and try not to fall plz." my buddy unclipped from this one as I back-aided

Another single-serving partner experience: new partner unclips my tether atop p2......

Mei

Trad climber

mxi2000.net

Feb 12, 2018 - 04:53pm PT

What's the name of the knot used in the above picture for the tieoff? I personally would have done girth, but I like the look of the above knot and would like to look it up.

To be honest, despite the crumbly look of the crud, I don't see anything wrong about the anchor setup if those three spikes are the only "protection" available. In other words, the picture might haven been posed as a joke, but I think the person did everything right and better than most people could have done, assuming the right equalization and redundancy in the part not framed in the picture, given the condition, didn't he/she?

thebravecowboy

climber

The Good Places

Feb 12, 2018 - 05:13pm PT

not sure what knot dude used. my leader belayed just fine, on his RENE anchor. it's certainly what I'd call a bad belay (anchor), as in, not secure.

Trad climber

Calgary

Feb 12, 2018 - 05:30pm PT

In the gym many years ago. Two teenagers next to me.
"Got me?"
"Yup"
then i heard zzzzzzzzzz thump
He fell 35 feet and was OK

phylp

Trad climber

Upland, CA

Feb 12, 2018 - 06:03pm PT

First (and last) time climbing with a new partner, who I met in an internet Forum:
For our first route I started up something and about 40 feet and a few pieces up, realized I was in the wrong crack system, so I had to downclimb about 25 feet to start up the left crack. I called down to tell the belayer what I was doing, and when I got to my low point, looked down to see that no slack had been taken back in as I was downclimbing, all the extra rope was sitting in a big heap on the ground. I moved very quickly up this crack but higher up, got to a place where there was a long runout, followed by a place that was a bit tricky to pro. I spent a minute or two placing the tricky gear and then started up again. Went about another 30 feet and set up the belay. When I brought the second up, it was explained to me that the belayer thought I was at the anchor during the time of the long pause and had taken me off belay. Without my calling down and saying anything. Without calling up to me and saying what they were doing.

Gary

Social climber

Desolation Basin, Calif.

Feb 12, 2018 - 06:06pm PT

I'm leading MC1 at Christmas Tree Pass. Somewhere above the second bolt, which is about 70 feet off the deck, I came off. I slid by the second bolt, which was OK. Then I saw the first bolt go by...

By some miracle the two down at the belay regained control of the rope.

Reilly

Mountain climber

The Other Monrovia- CA

Feb 12, 2018 - 07:01pm PT

Are we talking belays when there are actual anchors? Just want to clarify that.

rwedgee

Ice climber

Feb 12, 2018 - 07:08pm PT

Quite a few years ago I was climbing with a guy who said he guides at a well known shop in Bishop. I'm leading a 160' pitch and at ~100' he's saying the rope is stuck. After waiting about 20 minutes at a piece I put in a belay WTF ? I know I placed runners where they were needed and it was a fairly straight crack. After another 15 minutes of yarding on the rope I fix it and start rapping the single. About 4 pieces down I get to a cam that has my 1st three pieces that were nuts, wedged up against the cam with a knot in the rope under them. What the hell ? I thought about it a bit and realized there was a knot in the rope as he was paying it out, he took me off belay without saying anything and passed the knot. The passed knot got stuck in the 1st nut and as I yarded on the rope it pulled the nut upwards and out, then did the same to the 2nd and 3rd nuts but got stuck on the cam. He led the next pitch taking an hour + and all the gear was crap as well as the belay; 3 cams under a flake leaning against the wall and I let him know. If he weighted it the cams would push the flake and all 3 would fall out. After putting in a new belay I weighted his and it pulled. Told him he had no business climbing. I gunned the next 2 pitches climbing as if I was soloing as I had no faith in the belayer, then blasted for the car, no words the whole time. Got to the car and was exchanging gear I set some of his cams/slings on the pavement and he harps about petroleum damaging them...."Seriously ?? Your poor placements are going to kill you before any supposed oil"
Never again.

TLP

climber

Feb 12, 2018 - 07:44pm PT

I had a partner for a couple years, we did a ton of great routes mostly in Yosemite, especially long ones. He'd be annoyed if I tried to consume food, water, ...other things you take in, ahem, during a climb... except while belaying. "Waste of time! Light up while I'm leading!!" It was a given that you wouldn't let go of the brake hand to do it, but also that taking falls wasn't on our list of activities.

Sierra Ledge Rat

Mountain climber

Old and Broken Down in Appalachia

Feb 12, 2018 - 10:33pm PT

Bad belays???? So many to remember....

1. Scree bollard on the summit of Cabezon volcanic plug, Rio Puerco, New Mexico, after an unprotected pitch of vertical volcanic ash.

2. Knee jam belay about 5 pitches up on the Shield, Sandia Mountains, New mexico

3. Adding a tied-off knifeblade to greatly enhance the security of a belay on a winter alpine climb on Dana Plateau, California

4. The scariest? Traversing corniced ridges in Alaska with heavy packs and no belays at all.

mouse from merced

Trad climber

The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.

Feb 12, 2018 - 11:26pm PT

I just related the incident on Swan Slab with Skeeter on The Flames thread.
http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.php?topic_id=2607974&msg=3060112#msg3060112

There was the time Mathis and I climbed Rixon's center. Jeff had the lead off the ground. I belayed him. For some reason I was smoking a cigarette and my attention wavered and I went walkabout for at least 30 seconds and had abandoned the fockin' rope (hip belay days). Jeff saw me out of the corner of his eye as he was looking for a pin on his rack and it really freaked him out.

I got a real ass-chewing over that one and never pulled anything like it ever again. I've only told this to no one I can remember, but it's still fresh in my mind. One of those things you never live down...

dangerous danny

Trad climber

Rifle, CO

Feb 13, 2018 - 08:17am PT

..well put TV, keep this thread rolling folks, chime in with your "bad-belay" stories, I'll share one of mine here soon, gotta run for now..

Off White

climber

Tenino, WA

Feb 13, 2018 - 04:02pm PT

This thread needs a picture.

StahlBro

Trad climber

San Diego, CA

Feb 13, 2018 - 04:28pm PT

Me too. A friend of mine almost decked my girlfriend on Orangohang because he was distracted and smoking a fatty.

Alexey

climber

San Jose, CA

Feb 13, 2018 - 07:02pm PT

phylp and rwedgee - I both enjoyed and scared by your stories which both ended "never again!" How you found such morons? Are they posting on ST?

chainsaw

Trad climber

Feb 13, 2018 - 07:52pm PT

Hi Mei, I wasnt there so Im not sure, but it looks like a half hitch (overhand) on a bight. Better than girth hitch because once cinched up, it doesnt loosen like a girth might. And girth hitches put mechanical strain on the webbing in a 2:1 fasion as they bite into themselves when loading. The overhand is almost as strong as a figure eight and can be adjusted to snug fit easily.

RURP_Belay

Big Wall climber

Bitter end of a bad anchor

Feb 13, 2018 - 08:02pm PT

Ferretlegger

Trad climber

san Jose, CA

Feb 14, 2018 - 08:43am PT

Ojai Alex,
I do not remember the name of the climb, but as I recall it had maybe 4 bolts and was a little to the left of the central area that was being climbed in those days. It was put up by the late Rick Moser. There is a faint chance I could identify it if I had a guidebook. It was in the early/mid 1970's.

All the best,
Michael

Mei

Trad climber

mxi2000.net

Feb 14, 2018 - 12:49pm PT

it looks like a half hitch (overhand) on a bight. Better than girth hitch because once cinched up, it doesnt loosen like a girth might. And girth hitches put mechanical strain on the webbing in a 2:1 fasion as they bite into themselves when loading. The overhand is almost as strong as a figure eight and can be adjusted to snug fit easily.

Chainsaw, thanks. I think you are right. Upon close examination, the knot does look like an overhand on a bight. I'm aware that girth tends to loosen when not weighed down, so I like a knot that can cinch down for that use (as shown in the photo). I'm not too concerned about strength as I've yet to hear about such a failure. However, based on my experience, you need to have nimble fingers to tie an overhand knot with a small nylon loop and still be able to cinch it down satisfyingly. Removing the three slings and untying the knots can be difficult too.

I think clove hitch might be the best knot to use come to think of it.

phylp

Trad climber

Upland, CA

Feb 14, 2018 - 04:05pm PT

Oh, God, Alexey, not Supertopo. All my Supertopo friends who have become partners are wonderful. This was someone from rockclimbing.com. Does that even exist anymore?

WBraun

climber

Feb 14, 2018 - 07:54pm PT

I once set up a belay on El Cap with one fixed horizontal pin that was driven straight up under a roof.

I asked partner if he was willing to die on this belay.

He shrugged and clipped in with the haul bag.

We both stared at this one pin anchor we were hanging on.

My partner then proceeded to do a giant pendulum off our one pin behaving badly anchor.

We made it and didn't die ........

Toker Villain

Big Wall climber

Toquerville, Utah

Topic Author's Reply - Feb 15, 2018 - 01:20pm PT

Sometimes pins driven straight up can be surprisingly good.

I got caught by a 1/2" angle driven up halfway only. Thirty foot, fall factor 1.5 !!!!

tradmanclimbs

Ice climber

Pomfert VT

Feb 15, 2018 - 04:39pm PT

1986 Zion. No idea what climb but something you could see from the road... P1 was fingers and Hard. Belay was a tat death triangle with both drilled angles completely loose in their holes. We did a 2nd pitch because we wanted a better anchor. Charlie made belay in a wide crack with my#10 hex and a rusty button head with rusty home made hanger... We did not want to rap from the single buttonhead in sandstone so Charlie tried to get us to the top though I have no idea how we would have found t the walk off if we had made it. Naturally it got wide and Carlie walked our single #3.5 Friend up the crack until he got too scared so he sent a loop down for my hex. I sent that up and he kept going back cleaning, running out of gas and eventually aiding on the two pieces. I have my knee jammed in the crack stareing at the single rusty 1/4incher, Charlie is 70 or so feet above me with zero gear in between us thrashing away looking like he is going to Air mail at any second..... Finally the friend and hex max out and start slideing backwards.... Charlie bails on My hex, we then rap from the button head, and the loose drilled angles.....

Mike Honcho

Trad climber

Glenwood Springs, CO

Feb 15, 2018 - 05:52pm PT

uuuhhh, sorry, but dangerous johnny threw me off for a second....

..well put TV, keep this thread rolling folks, chime in with your "bad-belay" stories, I'll share one of mine here soon, gotta run for now..

I thought that was hilarious for someone who only has ONE post ever on Supertopo, then I was like, dude, you came back and call yourself Mike Honcho now dumbass!

OK, so, I was in Eldo in my Sophomore year of High school. I was casually, yet attentively belaying a partner and it occurred to me that the two parties next to me both had a partner named Scott..

In the same 10 seconds, a person named Scott was leading and a person named Scott was belaying and about the same time one yelled "OFF BELAY SCOTT" and the other yelled "BELAY OFF SCOTT" and neither off these two parties were related. So I drolly looked over and was shocked to see a climber from both parties taking the other "OFF BELAY/BELAY OFF"!!!!

Trying to explain and unf*#k these 2 parties and not scare the crap out of them was truly a memorable moment of all time for me. Really 1st rate communication on my part, which is hilarious..

Sierra Ledge Rat

Mountain climber

Old and Broken Down in Appalachia

Feb 15, 2018 - 07:49pm PT

I once set up a belay on El Cap with one fixed horizontal pin that was driven straight up under a roof.

YIKES

Reilly

Mountain climber

The Other Monrovia- CA

Feb 15, 2018 - 09:09pm PT

If it was horizontal how was it driven straight up? Is that like new math?

neebee

Social climber

calif/texas

Feb 15, 2018 - 09:23pm PT

hey there say, mike... :O

as to this quote... i ACTUALLY have wondered if stuff like this
has ever happened... :O

your quote:

OK, so, I was in Eldo in my Sophomore year of High school. I was casually, yet attentively belaying a partner and it occurred to me that the two parties next to me both had a partner named Scott..

In the same 10 seconds, a person named Scott was leading and a person named Scott was belaying and about the same time one yelled "OFF BELAY SCOTT" and the other yelled "BELAY OFF SCOTT" and neither off these two parties were related. So I drolly looked over and was shocked to see a climber from both parties taking the other "OFF BELAY/BELAY OFF"!!!!

NOW, i know, :O

whewww... glad it ended well, and most likely they all learned something, :O

Evel

Trad climber

Nedsterdam CO

Feb 15, 2018 - 10:03pm PT

Worst belay I know of is the 6th pitch of "forbidden fruit" in NC. Topo says to "assume a firm stance"
Right on.

Toker Villain

Big Wall climber

Toquerville, Utah

Topic Author's Reply - Feb 16, 2018 - 12:03pm PT

tradesman, horror for sure, but who gave the bad belay. (That said I wouldn't mind seeing that photo of Dale and the 5 rurp belay)

Mike Honcho, dangerous Danny is known to me, and has decades of experience, including numerous FAs with big name climbers. He was likely occupied, but doubtless has great stories.

NutAgain!

Trad climber

South Pasadena, CA

Feb 16, 2018 - 01:15pm PT

I seem to recall trying to link pitches at end of Crest Jewel and running out of rope. Instead of a brief bit of simul'ing (which we actually did a lot of on Royal Arches during the approach), I wedged my knee or thigh in a crack and that was my anchor. I like to think slab falls wouldn't generate that much force... sort of like the magical thinking of a mom sticking out her harm to hold back a kid with no seatbelt in a car crash.

Obviously didn't die from that, but screwed up the on-sight of north dome gully. Spent the night back-to-back with teeth chattering somewhere in the manzanita east of the proper descent. In the morning woke up to sound of a jet flyover, but it was actually a big rockfall from high on Half Dome. Filled the valley over to Glacier Apron area with a cloud of dust.

Another time, on an FA near Via Aqua and Aquamist, I reached a mossy wet dark alcove, and couldn't find a single bomber placement. I ended up equalizing a few crappy cams any one of which would pull, but at least half the belay was my chest squeezed in the alcove. When I exhaled, I slid down a little bit. Got pretty slimed on that one.

tradmanclimbs

Ice climber

Pomfert VT

Feb 16, 2018 - 02:17pm PT

Toker. I felt the belay with me jamming my knee in the crack and a single aincent button head was pretty usless considering Charlie had led the entire pitch with just the hex and friend pushing them up with him. when he started aiding about 60ft above me and both pieces were maxing out I had us both written off... that's a bad belay in my book....

Risk

Mountain climber

Formerly TMJesse

Feb 16, 2018 - 06:56pm PT

When I was about 13 or 14 years old (1970 - 1971), we set out to conquer Sunnyside Bench. Goldline, bongs, angles, and all. We successfully went up several pitches not knowing where we were, and finally decided to retreat. We randomly rappelled down to some ledge held up with dried selaginella moss and crumbling decomposed granite lacking any features to set up an anchor at all, and we didn't have a bolt kit. Stupidly, we retrieved our rope, or ropes, and found ourselves marooned on a featureless ledge about 150' off of the valley floor. But, there was a nice oak about 18 feet over, with full, unprotected exposure to get to it. After much contemplation (fear of embarrassment, and after at least an hour), we decided to go for the anchor-less belay traverse from the ledge to the tree. Needless to say, it worked out. I remember doing an unanchored hip belay as my partner made the perilous traverse, knowing that if he fell, I would either follow him or let go. It was flat-out stupid and taught me a lesson. Regretfully, I've found myself in similar circumstances in life; fortunately, all such occurrences have so far turned out similarly.

Mike Honcho

Trad climber

Glenwood Springs, CO

Feb 16, 2018 - 08:21pm PT

Mike Honcho, dangerous Danny is known to me, and has decades of experience, including numerous FAs with big name climbers. He was likely occupied, but doubtless has great stories.

Yeah Ron.. that guy has 1 post on the Taco, that was all I was saying. Glad he's in your "click". Wasn't really what I was trying to convey, but fine............

Hankster
[Click to View YouTube Video]

The internet is a never ending??? Thing..

Bad Climber

Trad climber

The Lawless Border Regions

Feb 17, 2018 - 01:17pm PT

A fairly recent sample of the genre:

I was taking out a relatively young climber--about 18. He'd been gym climbing, and we'd done some top-roping the year before this event. My plan was to take him up Cathedral Peak. We climbed at Clark Canyon, working on technique and signals--leading, belaying, lowering. He seemed like a fairly bright kid, and he'd hiked the whole John Muir Trail when he was in his early teens--pretty badass. Oh, but were his brightness not so dim. We get to the base really early--first ones. Nice. I lead the first pitch and bring him up. No problem. I start up the second pitch and get about 30 feet up and realize I've left a piece I want on the ledge, so I tell my protege that I'm going to down climb. "Just take in the slack as I come down," I say. Easy ground, no problems. I get down about 20 feet and look down to my belayer. He's standing there, arms limp at his sides, hands empty, staring at me like a dumb cow, the rope starting to pile up on the ledge. I was not going to fall, but holy sh*t! How does he not understand the basics of how all this works? Brake hand, belay, don't let go, life. We'd gone over it. I yell: "What the f*ck are you doing?" He stares dumbly back: "But you're right there." I read him the riot act, grab the gear, and head back up. Later, I have show him how to tie a loop in the rope and clip in the pack to work through the chimney section. Here's the clincher: HE'S AN 'EFFING EAGLE SCOUT!

We got to the top safely, and I was damn glad to get off in one piece. He actually did a pretty good job with the scrambling to get off. I'm good friends with his mom, so I was feeling ultra-careful. The kid went on to work full time for the Church of Scientology, which may tell you something. Ugh.

BAd

Bad Climber

Trad climber

The Lawless Border Regions

Feb 17, 2018 - 05:14pm PT

+100 Tad. I read a GREAT book about that whole slag heap: Going Clear by Lawrence Wright. Friggin' fantastic. Not much about bad belays, however.

BAd

Toker Villain

Big Wall climber

Toquerville, Utah

Topic Author's Reply - Feb 18, 2018 - 01:03pm PT

Pretty harsh Hank, you and DD have likely shared a rope with some common partners.

You weren't in such great shape the last time I saw you, hope you're doing better.

I started this thread, not so much for stories of poor anchors, but rather poor judgement that affects others. That said, when a partner yells, "on belay" when the anchor is schit without warning his partner, then that applies.

Belay skills vary, but when it falls below a certain threshold,.....

Off White

climber

Tenino, WA

Feb 18, 2018 - 04:00pm PT

Back in 1978 BVB and I did our first Grade V, The Happy Hooker on Trono Blanco in Canon Tajo. Second day, 3rd to last pitch I think it was, is an unprotected traversing pitch (maybe 5.8 but the traversing part isn't that hard) which goes at an upward angle just above a sizable jelly roll roof. Bob was all anxious and launched off with just a couple nuts so he could place one at the very start and run it out to the belay. Following, I have the pack with the bivy gear on my back, the teardrop pack with the second rope and the entire rack on kangaroo style, and since I'd dropped one shoe in Watusi's driveway on the way out of town, my right foot was sporting rotting gum soled burlap surfer shoe with my sock sticking out the bottom at the ball.

If I come off I'll swing sideways and over the jellyroll roof, so I'm pretty anxious and careful, all the while pretty irritated to be left with all the gear. Bob of course had no gear when he got to the belay, so he used my chalk bag sling, sewn on my mother's 1939 Sears cabinet sewing machine with cotton tread, girth hitched around a small long dead tree as the sole belay point. I was a little perturbed, if I had fallen it would have really ended badly.

Of course, it was all moot because on the next pitch, while tugging to get the rope out from under a flake, it came right out of my harness since I hadn't even finished tying my figure 8 on the large ledge two pitches below. I suppose that's a different thread though...

phylp

Trad climber

Upland, CA

Feb 19, 2018 - 09:17am PT

Now that was an excellent story!

wivanoff

Trad climber

Feb 19, 2018 - 10:15am PT

Mei wrote:

What's the name of the knot used in the above picture for the tieoff?

It's an overhand slip knot, isn't it?
http://www.chockstone.org/TechTips/SlipKnot.htm

tradmanclimbs

Ice climber

Pomfert VT

Feb 19, 2018 - 04:29pm PT

Ron, I have had a few of the kind of belays you speak of over the years but felt it might be more fun to tell the stories of the ones we created for ourselfs......

StahlBro

Trad climber

San Diego, CA

Feb 19, 2018 - 04:55pm PT

I was following a strong but sketchy friend up the 3/4th pitch of Lucky Streaks. The rope seemed to wander off route (5.9 variation?) and when I got to the belay I was horrified to see him hanging from 2 opposed RP's under a vague, knobby flake-like feature. I stood there for a few seconds trying comprehend how it was holding his weight.

I had cleaned the pitch and trailed a rope to my brother and another friend. Without much explanation I told the folks below to tie off the trail rope
( for all the good that would have done), demanded the rest of the rack from my bewildered belayer and yelled down I was leading the next pitch. This brought on a lot of quuestions that I had no time or patience to answer.

I did manage to get back on route and finish the next pitch, anchoring mister funky belay so he could bring up the rest of our merry band. When my brother got to the lower belay I could hear him laughing hysterically.

Scole

Trad climber

Zapopan

Feb 28, 2018 - 09:15am PT

Long ago I was climbing at the Pie Shop near Tahoe with a well known hard-core climber. My girlfriend was with us. Lydia had an impressive body, and was wearing a v neck t-shirt.

While top roping a very thin, insecure crack, I looked down and noticed that my belayer's eyes were fixed on Lydia's cleavage, and not on me. I whipped, and hit the slab hard, dropped to the ground. It felt like I had been split in half like a ripe peach.

I can understand being distracted by beauty, but not dropping my partner because I was staring at his girlfriends tits. Never climbed with the guy again.

L Kap

climber

Mar 15, 2018 - 02:19pm PT

Here's a True Life cautionary tale that happened to me. It was a weird convergence of circumstances, but definitely a situation I'll be alert to in the future. Spoiler, I didn't die, but not for lack of potential.

My partner led the 2nd pitch of a stout-for-me climb in Eldorado Canyon CO. After he went over a roof and around a corner, no communication was possible between us. When he set up his belay, he expected to need to haul in some slack, based on the beta in the book about the length of the pitch. In reality, he'd gone further than he thought and was just about exactly at rope's end.

Me at the bottom of the pitch, I am oblivious to my partner's calculations. I just keep belaying until I'm out of rope, shouting up to my leader (which I don't know he can't hear) as he's getting close to the end. I am relieved when the rope stops moving and I assume my partner has made an anchor. I feel my partner start tugging the rope at regular intervals, as one does when belaying up a follower. I take him off belay and wait about 5 minutes to let him know he's got all the slack he's going to get. Then I unbuild the anchor as I scramble up a foot. He takes in the slack. Another foot, and the rope moves with me. So I start climbing, with the slack disappearing very reassuringly. I vividly remember having trouble at the roof about 20 feet off the deck and consider sitting back, but I decide to go for it and am rather pleased with myself for firing up the move.

My smiling face pops over the roof, my partner nearly has a heart attack, and he finally puts me on belay. He had thought I was slowly working out a knot or something back at the anchor and that he was still pulling in the initial slack. He was also a bit distracted, talking to another climber on a nearby ledge.

We did a post-mortem on the incident once we were safely on the ground. We had only done a few outdoor climbs together prior to this, but both of us had climbed a ton with other partners. He had assumed that if we couldn't communicate, I'd do 3 long slow tugs on the rope to indicate "belay off" and "climbing". I have never had much faith in relying on rope tugs (too easily missed if there is rope drag, too much chance of pulling your leader down if they're not yet anchored, too easy to get confused about whether you're seeing communication tugs or a climber who is backing down and trying a dynamic move a couple of times, etc) and my previous partners had always taken a precautionary approach to feeding slack through the belay if there was uncertainty.

We both agreed to be more attentive in the future, at least try rope tugs if appropriate, and when in doubt, err on the side of keeping your partner on belay. Better tired arms than splattered partner.

L Kap

climber

Mar 15, 2018 - 02:27pm PT

Shorter story, this one secondhand. A friend of mine saw a man die from a combination of bad belaying and poor leader judgement. It was a strong climber on a single-pitch sport route. His belayer was a lot lighter, not anchored, standing too far back from the base of the climb, with too much slack out. The climber clipped the last bolt, wandered off route, couldn't find the anchor, and peeled off high above the last bolt. His belayer had no chance. Climber hit the deck. Didn't make it. RIP.

brinton

Trad climber

pasadena, ca

Mar 15, 2018 - 03:11pm PT

Wanted to do laps on a short climbing wall at a YMCA in Hazleton, PA.
"You must be belayed by trained YMCA (for a small fee)"
Fine. The trained staff member secured me with a Grigri
Did a few laps. Near the top I asked to be lowered.
Dropped me like a stone to the floor. Oops. No damage.
?

Braunini

Big Wall climber

cupertino

Mar 15, 2018 - 03:56pm PT

Mixed climb in Estes Park in the 80's, I take the first lead, flared crack in questionable rock, super shallow pro, so I throw in a lot. Fairly new partner, but we had done some stuff before. I peel on the the last move of the pitch, and as I'm watching the rock go by I'm thinking, "dude's a pro, gonna be a nice soft catch". At which point the rope instantly goes tight and and pieces start zippering out. At least I'm slowing down, kinda. I end up about 3 feet off the ground right next to the belay and my partner is completely white and his eyes are REAL wide. I look at his belay device and the rope is kinked around his thumb somehow and his thumb is jammed up tight against the sticht plate. Wasn't paying attention, made no conscious effort to catch me. We figure I went about 70 feet. Quiet hike out.

Trad climber

Calgary

Mar 15, 2018 - 05:03pm PT

I went climbing on the Squamish Apron with a guy I had just met in the lot.
He leads the first pitch, I climb up to the belay.
Yes there were 2 bolts but he had looped a single biner over the chain connecting the bolts and this was his only tie in.
I fix and say "I'm doing all the leading from here".

Lorenzo

Trad climber

Portland Oregon

Mar 15, 2018 - 05:44pm PT

Was there evidence he was better at belaying?

Tarbuster

climber

right here, right now

Mar 15, 2018 - 08:30pm PT

Mt. Watkins approach slabs. Pack strap came loose, #5 stopper went wiggling on down the rope ...
But E had my back (to his back)

Leader however, never laybacks & never falls. All good & Dude: that's totally pipe !!!

climber

Boulder, CO

Mar 16, 2018 - 12:51pm PT

Noted earlier re: ambiguous thread title. It should be Bad Belayers, belaying badly, rather than bad (read poor, insubstantial) belay anchors.

That said, once watched a group of ROTC guys showing their girlfriends how to rock climb on easy fourth class terrain about fifty feet high. They were taking turns rappelling, when one young woman got stuck halfway down. They were using GI tactics like the belay where one on the ground simply pulls on the rap rope, increasing tension and slowing or stopping the rappeller even if they let go. Also, they used the single carabiner wrap technique, just spiralling the rope one whole turn into the biner for friction. As I watched I realized she was stuck because the gate had been flipped, so the wrap was wedged halfway unclipping itself from the biner - as the person on the ground was about to pull even harder, which could have popped the rope free to let her drop the last thirty feet to the ground!
Fortunately she was at a ledge and another in the group soloed up and corrected the issue before she was lost - but I got the hell out of there as soon as I knew she was safe for the time being.

Tarbuster

climber

right here, right now

Mar 16, 2018 - 12:55pm PT

I've also heard that technique referred to as the fireman's belay.

Flip Flop

climber

Earth Planet, Universe

Mar 19, 2018 - 06:47pm PT

This guy, Floyd, stands by his ATC direct from the anchor belay (7:20) Has belayed and lowered 100's this way. Also has a nice hand-wrap technique(7:50)He's not budging on his expertise and safety. 7:51 we hear his son " I trust my dad. He's not going to lie to me and send me down the wrong path." I'm not liking Floyd right now.

[Click to View YouTube Video]

I think I made them pull the video