OH MY LORD!

RuMR · April 7, 2004

jeezus--fucked up rappel 400 feet off the deck and LIVED!!! PUSH ME

scott_harpell · April 7, 2004

shiat! WTF!?!

Chad_A · April 7, 2004

Damn, glad to hear of an okay outcome. That person should play the lottery...

EWolfe · April 7, 2004

Pretty amazing story. Thanks for the link Rudy.

catbirdseat · April 7, 2004

I've seen far too many people who completely forget to eat enough. They get so absorbed in the climbing, they forget to maintain their bodies.

sk · April 7, 2004

HOLY FUCKING SHIT I sobbbed while I read this for alot of reasons. If not for the grace of god. I spent alot of my climbing over estimating myslef. I have spent the last year realizing all I don't know. Climbing is not a gift for me. I struggle to learn. It is one of lifes truest lesons to LOVE that wich I am not gifted at. perhaps I am an over casious climber. maybe I could push and climbe harder do more. But no matter how much I love to climb for myself, My children and their need for a mother is ALWAYS at the back of my mind. and just now having read that, I am very very glad.

I wish amber well and hope she makes a ful recovery.

sobo · April 7, 2004

jeezus--fucked up rappel 400 feet off the deck and LIVED!!! PUSH ME

link not working

rbw1966 · April 7, 2004

Works for me.

sobo · April 7, 2004

Still not working. Even hard-keying in the address, complete with the http// prefix doesn't get it. If it's not too big of an article or too much of a PITA, could someone please copy-paste it to this thread? TIA

Criminy, even rockclimbing.com isn't up.

willstrickland · April 7, 2004

THE ARTICLE: (cut/paste job from RC.com)

preface: i am the climber to whom flamer's cryptic post was referring, and this is the fall that shook him up so much. it is a girlie, feel-good account of my first wall with gory details of a horrendously stupid fall. for beta on the actual route, check out the rdb. also, i'm not posting this to be told how stupid i was - falling 160' taught me that lesson in ways that words can never express.

...

after having to bail from the top of p3 on moonlight buttress, my partner and i talked about ways to improve our efficiency and make a second attempt of the route. after comparing schedules, we decided to go for it on the monday following the red rocks rendezvous. we both planned on being at the event and could just follow each other out to zion, rack up, and get to camp for an early night's rest.

late sunday afternoon, we set out for zion, had some pizza, racked up in a well-lit parking lot and went to the park for some camping. we set our alarms for 4am, and then i cuddled up in the backseat of my corolla - the handiest tent i've found so far. it seems like i had barely fallen asleep when my partner taps on my window, "are you sure it's 4am already? your watch isnt on pacific time is it?" (sigh) i get out of the car to take care of my morning rituals then we both hop into my car to head for angel's landing - our big adventure, and my first wall - what a kickass birthday present to give yourself.

after some morning coffee and other minor delays, we're at the infamous cold-ass river. we take off the shoes, grab some walking sticks and laugh about geo's signature, "i bet it's warm in maui!" we cross the river and hike up to where the cactus start growing before stopping to put on our shoes again, mostly for fear of stepping on a prickly pear with bare feet - *ouch* (sidenote: your feet dont hurt from the cold nearly as much if you leave your shoes off for a while.)

we get to the base of the route, slide off our packs, return our morning coffee to the earth, rehydrate, then setup for climbing. it's about 6a, making good time. tim sends the first pitch as i complain about my base layer getting wet from the river. i unfold the bottom layer and zip off the lower part of my pants to facilitate air drying my pants. tim calls off belay, i recycle my water, rehydrate, and suck down some powergel while tying my shoes. "belay on" .. "climbing" i get up the lower half easily enough, but the pieces protecting the traverse are placed too high for me to reach. dammit, i can barely touch the sling on the top piece and certainly can get to it enough to clean it. i reach up to the second piece and clip my aiders into it. "what's going on down there? everything okay" .. "yeah, i'm too f---ing short to clean the gear, so i'm aiding up to it" .. i clean the top piece from my aiders, then clip my aiders into the bottom piece to clean the second, and i'm good to go - but have wasted some serious time in the process. i get to the traverse and cant find an easy way across from where i am. "take!" i decide to do a mini penji (if it can even be called that - 2-3' at the most) over to the ledge. tim holds me while i slide ever-so-ungracefully over and then start climbing again. i get to the top, we trade gear, reorganize ourselves, and tim is off again.

at this point, it's late morning and i'm basking in the morning sun, i stare out at the walls before me, in awe of their beauty and grandeur. "this is the life." as the sun begins to warm the wall, i roll up my shirt and pull up the legs of my pants to sunbathe dirtbag style. i grab a luna bar from my pack and have lunch as i enjoy the warmth and beauty of the sun smiling on the route. "this is effin rad, things couldnt possibly be any better."

tim calls down, he's short-fixing. i switch over from belay mode to jugging, exchange a few quick words with the team below us, and i'm off. after struggling for quite some time with a nut or a small cam, cant remember now, i radio up to tim, "i'm sorry but i cant clean this - i'll buy you a new one to save time." "f---, dont worry about it, guess you didnt hear me, it's fixed, it was on the route before i got there." "s---" i leave the piece and continue on my way. later, i come to an over-cammed loweball which is tim's. i yanked and yarded and stapped with the nut tool to no avail. i finally get to the anchors and put tim back on belay. after radioing up, i get the rope bag and reorganize the ropes and probably have a smoke. for sure, i had another luna bar and some more water - being hungry sucks.

tim hits the top of rocker blocker, sets me up, and off i go again. cleaning the traversing bolts sucks, but i'm better at it than last time. about half way up, tim radios down, there's another team jugging to the top of rocker blocker, they plan to free the pitch so we've given the nod to be passed - they'll likely be out of our way by the time we've switched leads and reorganized anyways. i finally get to the base of rocker blocker itself and decide to hang out there since three bodies are already sharing not much space. i organize the gear that i've cleaned and reflake the ropes ever so neatly. we chat, i eat more and then tim sends down the gear that he has left so that i can organize it with the rest of the gear that's already hanging off my waist. the free climbers get up the pitch, i jug the few feet to tim, we switch everything off, and it's my lead. hell yeah, what a rad bday present.

being short presents its fair share of dilemmas in the climbing world. though, i generally see them as fun puzzles to be solved. to get me started, i slap my left foot into the slings, and tim gives me a butt-boost - everything's game in aid climbing, right?? i make it to the first bolt, but getting into the crack requires more weird free moves that are difficult to make when you're short, weak, and have about half your body weight in gear hanging off you. i slip a few times but finally make the move, yeehaw. once i'm into the crack, it's wonderful. yellow aliens the whole way, with a few pieces being left here and there in the off chance that i should fall somehow. this is perfect. beautiful weather, awesome route. i get into the groove of setting gear and walking up the aiders, nothing exists but me and the small crack, perfect hands for someone as tiny as i am. (dreamy sigh) god save me, i'm in heaven. about two-thirds up, i start to slow down, losing juice. i keep pushing, tim radios up, "how are things going up there" .. "i'm okay, just getting tired .. not much further though" we talk about bailing. tim isnt sure if leading p5 in the dark is a good idea, he asks if the free climbers are fixing or bailing. i dont know but call up to ask - they're bailing. we exchange a few friendly words as they rap past me. they're from the boulder area as well so i promise to stop by the gym and say hello one day. (i still need to do that).

i finally get to the anchors and radio down to tim. we talk for a bit and i decide that i'd rather clean on rappel than fix lines and then both of us rappel. too much wasted time. as i'm hanging at the anchors, i start to feel myself bonking. i take off the camelbak and dig around for sweet snacks. "is everything okay up there" .. "yeah, i just need some sugar and water" i suck down a honey snack and another powergel then drink some water. i begin the process of setting up my rappel and notice that i'm having to think very deliberately about things. maybe i should radio tim and ask him to double check me or walk me through. i deliberate some more. no, that's retarded, i've set up countless rappels. i check that i'm attached to the anchor in at least two separate ways. i pull up some slack, tie a fig8 on a bite and clip it into the anchor. i untie my knot and begin threading the lead line through the rap rings. not expecting me to make such an egregious error as to attempt a 180' rappel with 100' of rope, my partner sees the haul line and lead line are even and calls up "both ends are down" .. "are you sure" .. "yep - i'm looking at them" .. wow, that felt fast for lowering 100' of rope, but maybe i just zoned out or something. again, the thought crosses my mind to radio down and say that i dont feel like i'm thinking clearly, something doesnt feel right, but decide to get a drink of water and head down instead of wasting more time.

the sun has set, darkness is beginning to creep over the earth. the brilliantly colored walls that i'd admired earlier in the day become looming shadows mocking me, both in stature and skill. "how are things going up there" .. "fine, i'm just tired and cranky - i want to eat and smoke" (tim laughs) "well, we've got to get you down here safely first" .. "i know" ... *f---* .. "what happened, is everything okay" .. "yeah, i keep getting my hand caught in the ATC and it hurts" .. i get to the first cam, i should have put a longer sling on it, i cant really clean it. i radio to tim and beg to leave it, i'm wasting energy and can barely think straight. he finally concedes that it's costing more time than its worth. he also asks about the headlamp that i'd borrowed. it should be in one of my pockets. i get a lecture about not considering time on lead vs amount of daylight. i know, i know. i'm sorry. the guys at rocker blocker offer to let me borrow one of theirs. i bring it up on the haul line and put it on, it goes dead shortly thereafter. we consider the possibility of me jugging back up to the anchors and just fixing the lines. i'm so tired that i cant setup the jugs appropriately. f--- it, i just want down, i'll buy you a new f---ing cam. i'm barely able to unclip the cam but finally get it done. i clean several pieces and am in a mindless trance at this point.

something is wrong, something is dead wrong. the rappel doesnt feel right, i look down, and see the very tip of the rope barely protruding from my hand. i scream to tim, my voice full of panic, "i'm at the end of the rope" .. "what!?!? how did you do that?" .. "i dont know" i cry in horror. panic sets in, i'm not supposed to die like this. i put the rope in my teeth and try pulling the rope above the ATC down with my left hand while pulling out with my right hand below the ATC, i'm not ready to die yet, but a dark terror tells me that it's inevitable. i take the rope out of my teeth "what do i f---ing do" .. "ties knots in your god damn ropes" .. "i know that .. i thought i had one in there .. help me .. please ... i dont want to die." terror and helpless take over, i give in to panic and eventually lose the rope. i cant remember if i screamed, i dont think i did. i thought about the jug dangling from my waist, all i had to do up there was grab the jug. panic and terror give way to peace as i come to terms with my own death. there were no prayers for life-saving miracles, i didnt deserve one, i f--- up and am paying the price. the fall itself was timeless and peaceful. i thought of my son and my soul ached, i thought of someone who i had loved and unwittingly hurt, i wanted to apologize for the mistakes i'd made, i wanted that person to know that i was sorry, i never understood what i did to cause him pain, but i knew that i had and regreted it to the core of my being. i thought of the countless ways in which i had messed up the rappel. it was dark, i could see nothing and felt only the peace of a place where time doesnt dwell. in some weird way, i communicated with the essence of life itself, in a berth where words dont exist and never will. my life didnt flash before my eyes, and my thoughts werent articulated in pictures or words - they were raw emotion. the gravity of my ambition and naivete set in, my life was over.

my arm hurts, i hear the guys yelling from below, the fall had stopped, and i'm alive. i'm dangling precariously by a mess of webbing, aiders, and rope wrapped around my right arm, somewhere near 400' off the deck and about 20' above my partner. i yell down, "i'm okay, i'm alive, i'm hanging by my arm, i need to do something about it though, i'm afraid that i'm going to lose my arm." i notice a perfect red alien by my left hip. it's a few inches away, i consider the options. i'm not sure how tenuous the stuff around my arm is, but it's obviously my life line right now. "i see a red alien, i'm gonna try to clip into it" i move slowly towards the alien and daisy into it then pull the daisy tight. "i need to untangle my arm." "are you sure that you're clipped in" "i think so - is it okay if i untangle my arm" "we cant tell you that. just make sure that you're clipped in to a solid piece." i put my hand on the harness, find the girthhitch and follow the daisy to the piece. i do it again, and call down to the guys as i do so, narrating my every motion to make sure that i'm not missing anything. "okay, i'm going to untangle my arm." i hold my breath and loosen the clusterfck on my arm. as i free it, nothing is left dangling above me. i dont consider it, i'm just happy to have movement in my fingers and to be safely attached to the wall again.

memories of conversations came flooding back, conversations where i had talked with glee about my ticklist and been told that i'm not ready for it, that i need to stay on easy routes and train more. conversations that i recalled vividly and painfully, it's never easy to admit when you're wrong - but from the depths of my soul, i wished that i had listened more. i had almost killed myself by listening to the voice of ego over the voice of reason. i took the advice that i wanted to hear instead of that which i needed to hear. i wanted to cry about what i'd done - or almost done - but didnt have the time or energy. doug calls up, "do you have enough gear to build an anchor" .. "what" .. "build an anchor and equalize everything" .. i stuck my hand into the crack to feel its size and then mechanically plucked gear from my harness and sank it into the crack. i found a sling and equalized everything. i tried pulling the lead line, but regardless of how much i tugged on it, it wouldnt come lose. f---, the rope is stuck. i talked with tim about it, and we decided to promote my haul line to my belay loop so that he could lower me. i slowly ease my weight from the alien to the anchor and then unclip. when i arrive at the belay, tim and doug help me put on warmer clothes and check me for basic neuro damage. we talked a bit to make sure that i'm alert and aware, then i quietly cry for damn near depriving my son of his mommy. tim pulls the rope with ease and sets up our rappels so that we're on independent ropes but are attached to each other via a sling girth hitched to my harness and clipped into his. we talk about doing an assisted rappel but then decide that going down on independent ropes would be more pragmatic. i agree that using my grigri for the rappel would be best as i have a full thickness burn across the palm of my left hand from clinging to the rope for dear life, it's crumpled and useless. my right arm hurts from second degree burns that wrap from my shoulder to the wrist, but the hand will work.

when we get to solid ground, we talk more about what had arrested the fall. "webbing and aiders wrapped around my arm" .. "i know, but the aiders and webbing had to have caught on the wall somehow to arrest the fall" .. "i know" .. "so what did they catch on" .. "i dont know, there wasnt anything up there."

...

major mistakes:

- overestimated my skill level and ability to safely function on autopilot,

- underestimated the amount of work necessary for the climb,

- didnt consider time to complete the pitch vs amount of daylight,

- overestimated ability to think clearly when hypoglycemic,

- didnt consider rope length vs pitch length when setting up rappel (should have joined the two ropes and was only rapping on lead line folded in half),

- used improper knots at bottom of rope (overhand will push itself out when up against an ATC, better to use a barrel knot/fishermans with plenty of tail),

- ineffective communication with my climbing partner,

- didnt stop to periodically check amount of rope left as i was rappeling,

- had no back system for rap,

- panicked at go time.

Squid · April 7, 2004

Here's the post from rc.com

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