Dave7 Posted December 20, 2011 Posted December 20, 2011 http://climbinglife.com/rock-leading-and-rappelling-systems-advanced/how-to-solo-aid-climb-13-34.html Anyone use this system? Anyone have any advice to make this system more efficient? Quote
stevetimetravlr Posted December 20, 2011 Posted December 20, 2011 Use a Silent Partner instead of a clove hitch. Quote
corvallisclimb Posted December 20, 2011 Posted December 20, 2011 Anyone have any advice to make this system more efficient? Like Steve said putting that clove hitch on a silent partner would be a start Quote
pink Posted December 21, 2011 Posted December 21, 2011 "free aid" is an oxymoron free_aid/off-white same_as/ same_as Quote
Drederek Posted December 21, 2011 Posted December 21, 2011 I certainly hope you're not paying for aid. Quote
stevetimetravlr Posted December 21, 2011 Posted December 21, 2011 Anyone have any advice to make this system more efficient? Like Steve said putting that clove hitch on a silent partner would be a start Good catch, I didn't state that very well. Quote
Dave7 Posted December 21, 2011 Author Posted December 21, 2011 thanks everyone for their input, looking forward to testing it out soon. The silent partner looks sweet. Wish it wasn't so expensive. Quote
mmeyers Posted December 21, 2011 Posted December 21, 2011 (edited) to make the system more efficient, or the climbing more efficient? all said, that system seems straightforward, and it would work. I prefer to use a silent partner, so i don't have to adjust a clove hitch every move. however, with a silent partner, rope management becomes more of an issue, and you should read up on that. maybe this is unrequested advice, b/c you didn't ask specifically about making the climbing more efficient, but in my experience there are a lot of tricks in aid climbing that make things much faster (and therefore efficient) that he's not doing: top stepping, not hanging on fifi each move, leapfrogging, etc. BTW, if you don't have a lot of exp with solo aid, look for andy kirkpatrick's website, and read the tips section on solo climbing. he lays it out better than anyone else I've read, imo. Matt Edited December 21, 2011 by mmeyers Quote
Dave7 Posted December 21, 2011 Author Posted December 21, 2011 Matt - Thanks for the andy kirkpatrick heads up, looks like his website has a vast wealth of knowledge. Quote
LowLife Posted December 21, 2011 Posted December 21, 2011 Kirkpatrick has a great site (anyone ever look through his book about pins? I've always been curious). I think Chris McNamara's online guide is also extremely helpful, at least it has been for me: How To Big Wall Climb I haven't used a silent partner (would like to, i'm usually just too much of a broke ass), but a gri-gri seems to work just fine, and is cheaper too. Quote
Love2Climb322 Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 I have a Silent Partner and I agree, very expensive but well worth the investment. It's the only solo device that will catch a head first fall. It's a bit on the bulkey side but you also do not need a chest harness, so that cuts a little cost. It's simple to use and built for leading. Quote
JosephH Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 Some of the notable Valley aid soloers - Ammon, Pete, Kate - all just use an unmodified grigri and call it good. The more cautiously inclined go for the SP, but I think it really has more utility free climbing even if it works fine for aid. Quote
luvshaker Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 Finding the right diameter of rope has been key for me when using the gri-gri on solos. To fat, and it's almost as bad as manipulating a clove hitch. To skinny, and you might have some air time. Quote
JosephH Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 Finding the right diameter of rope has been key for me when using the gri-gri on solos. To fat, and it's almost as bad as manipulating a clove hitch. To skinny, and you might have some air time. No doubt. I stick with my Mammut 10.2 Supersafe and rebelay as necessary. Quote
Buckaroo Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 The main mistake this guy is making is not using slider aiders. Step aiders are a thing of the past. Sliders are quicker, lighter, and allow you to get higher each piece, plus with the slider system you can eliminate the daisies which cuts down on the clutter and speeds things up. Comparing costs you break even, Sliders are more but you don't need daisies. It takes me 20 pieces to climb City Park with step aiders and only 18 with sliders. The reason being is the higher step. Step aiders are fixed length, sometimes the top step is too high and the next lower step is not as high as possible for the piece. With step aiders the highest step is a compromise because it's set to a height that works with a vertical piece. If it's just off vertical it physically possible to step higher. With sliders they are fully adjustable so you can get the highest step on each piece. The clove hitch is pretty good for aid, you don't move the knot every piece, only every other piece. Another thing you can do to increase safety is tie a backup knot, about 2-3 of them per pitch depending. I rope solo free climb with an aid soloist, I know it doesn't protect upside down but I figure if you climb like a cat and use backup knots you'll be okay. I've done a couple of 6 pitch routes, you have to go at the summer solstice cuz it takes all day. My best climb to date was Davis Holland Lovin Arms. I fell at the 10c crux on a .75 DMM Wallnut, it gave me confidence in the system. The trickiest thing is rope management. Depending on the situation I will stack it at the belay, rope bucket at the belay, or rope bucket at my waist. I have a really light homemade rope bucket, a sleeping bag stuff sack with a wire velcro'd to the rim. No one makes a light weight rope bucket. The Silent Partner might be good but I don't like the fact it forces you to use 2 lockers and the cost. I just haven't got around to getting one. Quote
billcoe Posted March 21, 2012 Posted March 21, 2012 The main mistake this guy is making is not using slider aiders. Step aiders are a thing of the past. Sliders are quicker, lighter, and allow you to get higher each piece, plus with the slider system you can eliminate the daisies which cuts down on the clutter and speeds things up. Whats a slider aider? Like a Metolius Easy Aider ? Quote
JosephH Posted March 21, 2012 Posted March 21, 2012 (edited) I rope solo free climb with an aid soloist, I know it doesn't protect upside down but I figure if you climb like a cat and use backup knots you'll be okay. It also doesn't hold falls when you're just horizontal, but then again, the Canadian who rope soloed Astroman used one. It really comes down to what you sort out for yourself and have confidence in. Beat me to it, what's a slide aider? Edited March 21, 2012 by JosephH 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.