minor injury on birds of prey

[jefffski]

i was involved in a minor but troubling accident on saturday and would like some advice. here are all the details.

 

th question is:

 

is there a place to put pro between the top of the crack and the corner at the end of the traverse on the 10b pitch of birds of prey on the squaw in squamish?

 

here are the details:

 

my partner and i went to climb birds of prey on the squaw saturday. he led the first pitches (we combined it to one long pitch), and i led the 10b. i struggled in the crack but made it to the ramp without falling or resting.

 

i didn't know where to go at first, so i walked along the ramp, placed a large cam, then, with some beta from the party following us, downclimbed the ramp to the top of the crack, did the 5.9 step then traversed around the corner. At the corner i finally placed a piece to protect my second. i belayed from the tree.

 

i don't remember any other place to put pro and the rope drag was already so bad from the cam up the ramp anyway.

 

my second came up,removed the cam on the ramp and fell as he was getting up to the traverse.

 

i heard a shout and the rope went tight as i saw him hit the vertical wall above the tree belay at the bottom of the pitch. he had fallen and taken a big pendulum swing. a moment passed and we were able to communicate. i ended up lowering him to the tree belay where i joined him a few minutes later.

 

we rapped off, hiked out and went to the hospital.

 

his injuries consisted of an injured hand and some minor scrapes.

 

this morning he was x-rayed and the results were a broken scaphoid (small bone in the hand), requiring 8 weeks in a cast!

 

so, if you're familiar with the route, you may know the answer. my memory is that there is a shallow crack that is reachable from the ramp,but that putting pro there would eliminate a handhold and that even if i had placed a piece there (if there is such a place) he would have removed it before making the move, and he would have pendulumed anyway.

 

comments appreciated.

 

 

[fern]

I think once you the leader get to the belay you can go up and right a bit and back-clip a bolt on Frayed Ends of Sanity ... or maybe it's a bush? Fuzzy memory. There is something up there that improves the situation slightly, but it is not on the route per se.

 

It's a tricky spot for sure. The topo guide calls it a "5.9 improbable traverse". Best to not fall.

[dberdinka]

It's been a while but I'm sure there is a small TCU placement just after you bust the hard move off the ramp that will protect the second as they do the same.

 

With that said one of my most terrifying memories from my "formative" years of rock climbing is having to follow that pitch without any pro off the ramp. That's a big swing your buddy took, I think he should be happy that he broke only one bone in his hand.

[Dru]

i was on optimus prime at the time and heard the fall the funny gooshing noise was a water bottle getting dropped all the way to the base right -if it was a person it would have screamed more

[layton]

I remember that traverse! I found a placement for the 2nd. As I recall it was way low near my feet on the traverse (a green jr?). Anyway that was 4 years ago and it caused a SHITLOAD of ropedrag. I was scared.

 

Tell your buddy to come over and I'll open picklejars for him if he'll push my ass on the wheelchair.

[Cpt.Caveman]

fern said:

It's a tricky spot for sure. The topo guide calls it a "5.9 improbable traverse". Best to not fall.

 

AHA!!!! I caught you looking at topos Shame on you

[fern]

Cpt.Caveman said:

AHA!!!! I caught you looking at topos Shame on you

 

you are such a weirdo