> One climber calls this 'hitch hiking' and doesn't recommend it, preferring
>to free climb until reaching the desired working position, at which time he
>attaches his lanyard.
> 'Hitch hiking' feels safer to me, but it really slows down the ascension
>process. Descending is faster, but still slower. And, of course, you have to
>'dip' the guys as you go down (unhook the lanyard to cross one over the
>other). Bolts heads are a drag, too.
>
> What do you experienced climbers think about 'hitch hiking'?
Perhaps a more appropriate question might be what I think about free-falling
to the ground in case I lose my grip . . . Do I really have to explain this?
> My harness has a chest ring along with side positioning rings. I am using
>a carabiner from the chest ring to a cross brace for a latch while attaching
>the lanyard or 'dipping' guys. While this keeps me safe when dipping the
>lanyard, it can't be used when climbing up or down.
I have a short piece of 3/16" cable and a heavy snap clip attached to each
of my side rings for "dipping".
> It occurred to me that you could use two handheld hooks, similar to an S
>hook, but with a fat handgrip and a generous tang to hook on to the
>horizontal tower braces. If you had a short lanyard tied from each hook to
>the chest D Ring (or corresponding side D ring - less desirable), you could
>climb with your hooks, and be connected to the tower at all times without
>having to hitch hike with practically the same freedom and speed as free
>climbing. Once you got to your work point, you could engage the center
>carabiners or lanyard for a permanent hold.
I once followed up on a classified ad in the local newspaper offering such a
safety belt for sale. The seller said it was used for climbing towers too
large to get a lanyard around, such as large power line towers or huge
broadcast towers. I did not buy it, but I probably should have.
I'm not sure you would need a lanyard around the tower at all if you were
double-clipped to it with two short cables.
Stan w7ni@teleport.com
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