StephenBecker Posted February 11, 2004 Posted February 11, 2004 My college has a small climbing wall in a gym. The athletic director has set it up with static 10mm ropes and claims, that because of insurance, all belayers must be clipped into a ground anchor. I think this sounds very dangerous, because there is nothing dynamic in the system. Even though it is only for top-roping, a small fall with slack in the system will result in a large force. I have never seen a commercial climbing gym require belayers to clip into the ground, nor have I seen static top ropes that often. Anyone else agree with me? Is this system safe? Quote
whirlwind Posted February 11, 2004 Posted February 11, 2004 static ropes are probly not a good idea, tell ur althetic director to go to a real climbing gym and get beta from them anchoring real only needs to be done when the climber out weights the belayer by quite abit Quote
Terminal_Gravity Posted February 11, 2004 Posted February 11, 2004 The value of clipping to the floor is arguable. Static lines are a bad idea. Quote
Mike_Palmer Posted February 14, 2004 Posted February 14, 2004 We require floor anchors here at Cascade Crags. It is for the 10% of the people that can't figure out that someone weighs 50# more than they do. We also use dynamic ropes on the top ropes. Partially to reduce impact but also in case someone grabs a top rope to lead on, there won't be a liability issue or a danger to the climber. Quote
RuMR Posted February 14, 2004 Posted February 14, 2004 I routinely climb w/ folks that weigh more than 50# of my weight...rarely do i see the need to anchor myself while in the gym... Pay attention, pull in loose slack as the climber peels...then pop into the hit...no one has ever decked on me while i've been belaying... Quote
sk Posted February 15, 2004 Posted February 15, 2004 I routinely climb w/ folks that weigh more than 50# of my weight...rarely do i see the need to anchor myself while in the gym... Pay attention, pull in loose slack as the climber peels...then pop into the hit...no one has ever decked on me while i've been belaying... I agree with rumr.. I climb with people who are bigger than me and I never clip to the floor inside. outdoors when some one is on lead is a diffrent story and I look for a good anchor for myself... but if there isn't one I know I will be okay because I have practice securing a fall and throwing my own weight arround. with out a bottom anchor it gives a nice dynamic belay. it doesn't make any sense to me to use a static rope for top roping...the fall would be painful. what a way to turn people off of climbing. Quote
cracked Posted February 15, 2004 Posted February 15, 2004 Muffy, if you belayed me anywhere you'd want an anchor. Then again, it is fun to go for a ride as a belayer.... Quote
arlen Posted February 15, 2004 Posted February 15, 2004 A couple gyms I can think of require that you belay directly off the floor anchor. They all used dynamic lines tho. Quote
goslow Posted February 16, 2004 Posted February 16, 2004 I don't think pure static is a good idea, and clipping into the ground is probably neither here nor there (if you're a gym employee, pick your battles...). They do make gym specific climbing ropes. Some of these are "semi-static," offering something like 3-5% elongation and a good amount of durability. Of course you can't lead on these, but they are much more durable than a lot of static line out there (from what I remember, many static's wear quickly depending on how it is woven), which'll save your gym money in the long run. They also market "gym specific" lead ropes, but I can't think of any reason these are better than just a normal dynamic lead rope. I can't think of any brands off hand, but a quick google would probably turn up something you could buy on a spool and cut for your needs. Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.