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rgold
Trad climber
Poughkeepsie, NY
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What a terribly sad accident. I've gotten pretty paranoid about deteriorated slings with hidden sections after encountering one around a tree in the Gunks that looked ok until you pushed some branches away and looked at a a portion out of sight behind the tree. I had reflexively clipped this sling with a tether before inspecting it. Fortunately, I didn't lean back on the tether. The shots below show what I found:
Portion of sling visible in front of tree anchor:
Portion of sling hidden behind tree
As far as I can tell, the extreme fraying on the back portion of the sling was caused just by the inevitable small sling motions against some very rough bark.
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dougs510
Social climber
down south
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Condolences to family and friends. Sad news.
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rockermike
Mountain climber
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Too sad. My daughter is 18 and just starting to climb outdoors without her dad. Scary stuff although her friends seem to be safety minded.
Some of us old school guys still carry tied 1" web runners (about half my runners are tied) which means I got a bail sling for about one dollar vs an $8 dynamic sling. Makes is easy to be safe.
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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I chopped an anchor 2 weeks ago. decent looking newish looking webbing tied with a granny knott and tear marks in the back maby caused by a rodent or ice ax? Whipped out my knife and chopped it ASAP came back the next day and installed chains. 3/8th" logging chain or real ring anchors or metelious rap hangers Etc is the only way to go when equiping a bolt anchor.. Installing rings and slings on modern bolts is about as dumb as a garbage truck. The only time rings and slings are acceptable in the modern world is when a tree anchor or natural gear/pin anchor is the only option.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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rgold, I encountered a sling in similar condition at a rap station once -- the back side (behind
a tree) was shredded while the visible front side looked OK. My guess was that rodents had
gnawed on the back part. Another good reason to check the whole length of fixed slings.
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tom woods
Gym climber
Bishop, CA
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I can shed tears for strangers still. My sincere condolances to the freinds and family. I'll keep these two in my thoughts.
Tom
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luggi
Trad climber
atwater california
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my sincerest condolences to family and friends of them both....
it is always difficult to hear of such an event...bless them and their families.
and for those that still ascend as Largo would say "Inspect anchors as if your life depends on them because it most assurdely does".
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Ed Hartouni
Trad climber
Livermore, CA
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very sad news, more so because it is so avoidable.
Out on the "obscurity circuit" you pretty much know you're going to be replacing slings, those "white" slings are especially bad, but also obvious if you know what to look for. The first rule is really just to replace the slings, usually clear out the old tat and tie something in new.
This requires that you carry sling and rings with you. A lot of young climbers don't know about tied slings, they may never have had to tie a sling, may not know how. Unless someone is around to tell them about the exact danger that lead to these young ones' deaths, how would they know?
I am so sorry to hear that this happened. Be careful out there everyone.
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GhoulweJ
Trad climber
Sacramento, CA
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Too sad.
Condolences to the family.
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nita
climber
chica from chico, I don't claim to be a daisy
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Terrible news.. 18 years of age.
For the Family and friends of Ben & Laura, Our hearts go out to you in your time of sorrow.
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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hey there to clint and any family member...
my sincere and deep condolences... so many older folks here made it to there older years... i am very sad that these two never got that chance...
here is prayers and wishes that the family can get through the funeral somehow, by upholding each other in their special love and friendships...
and... may others not face this similar accident... thankfully to all that shared, all this will help others along the way, someday...
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daendil
Sport climber
Indianapolis, IN
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I knew Laura from our home gym Climb Time in Indy. I didn't know Ben personally but remember him from Miguel's. They were both beautiful young people. I hope that this serves to remind us climbers (experienced and inexperienced) how easily one bad decision can cost us our lives.
May they rest in peace. I know that both are dearly missed.
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ec
climber
ca
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Tragic and preventable.
Always have some new web with you.
rgold,
Those pics you posted are a good example of what happens to web that is not truely tubular (not to say that the real thing wouldn't wear similarly). However, that piece pictured appears to be the real stuff(?). Most web except true mil-spec tubular web is just flat web sewn into a tube. If the stitch is compromised, it merely 'explodes', new or old. Mil-spec (shuttle loom, 'bumpy') web normally won't blow-up. Blue Water tubular is a needle-loom flat web (smooth) uses a 'lock-stitch' to eliminate much of the mentioned problem. All others are suspect. The web in the pics is just plumb wore out from rubbing on the tree.
As far as weathering, it doesn't take much to degrade webbing. I retrieved an 'O.K.' looking piece of web once (it was bleached a little bit), however I could tear it in two like toilet paper. Seriously. I used to keep it at the shop I used to work at to scare the right mindset into those who would have used it.
 ec
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healyje
Trad climber
Portland, Oregon
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Incredibly sad. As the father of an 18 year old it makes my heart ache. Young climbers and an old anchor - clearly this was not a good combination.
Strange as it seems, I think it can be very difficult to explain that an anchor isn't necessarily an anchor just because it's an anchor. That the qualities that make fixed pro an 'anchor' at any given moment need to be re-evaluated each and every time one comes upon one. I fear this is not as common a perspective as it was for older generations of climbers.
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Bart Fay
Social climber
Redlands, CA
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This makes one consider becoming annoyingly evangelical at the crags.
...And makes me think that the dude that hammered us for TRing Insomnia through one
biner/sling was not such a nosy freak.
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AbeFrohman
Trad climber
new york, NY
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I just bought a new knife.
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guyman
Trad climber
Moorpark, CA.
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So sad. Just babies.
Never trust webbing, unless it is yours.
RIP
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Prod
Trad climber
A place w/o Avitars apparently
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That is a sad sad story.
Prod.
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jstan
climber
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Yes indeed. Very sad. Sufficiently sad as to cause one to speak to the facts.
With increasing regularity, of late, we see reports of accidents that should never have happened. Accidents we know how to prevent.
We are doing something wrong. WE.
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