Common Faux-Pas

This post will cover some of the mistakes that climbers make especially when headed outside. Greg and myself are guilty of having made a few of those over the years and I know many experienced climbers who still misstep. I won't lie, sometimes the situation you are in force you to make some of those boo-boos. 

More items will be added as we think of them. 

1. Reaching for your gear when falling 

It's instinctive to not want to whip and sometimes a fall can cause some serious injury. Your brain will trick you into survival mode and yell "Hold the draw!!" as your hands slip from the wall. Unfortunately, the risks associated in doing so involve:

• Getting your hand impaled by an opening gate

                                                      

                                   Picture this: You're falling, you try to grab the draw and this happens as you are going down

• Burning the skin off your hand while sliding down on webbing 

Left: Extendable Quickdraw with a Dyneema sling. 

Super thin and can cause serious burn/degloving when you slide on it.

Right: Fatter Quickdraw; much better if you want to hold on to

• Dislocating your shoulder/wrist from the static impact of falling

Don't do that!

• Climbing with jewelry  
• Degloving -I will not go into the gory details of this injury but in short; picture your skin being removed from your hand like a glove
• That being said, NEVER climb while wearing a ring!

Note: Pulling on gear for aid climbing is different than holding on it as you are falling. Using this technique is known as French Freeing. 

If you do end up needing to hold your draw, make sure to do so with caution and use draws with thicker sling and only hold on the the sling part.

If you have to hold your draw, hold the dogbone

A classic climber's 'I'm an idiot' moment; grabbing the rope on the bolt side while you are falling. Common consequences of this include rope burn or worse yet, your hand getting caught in the quickdraw as you are falling.

Red: Bolt side

Blue: Climber side

  2. Not Wearing a Helmet

What a nice day out. First day of climbing season. The sun is out, there's a nice breeze, you got your buddies and you just hit the crag with the aim to Send some Gnar and as you're climbing, a piece of rock just falls from above and now you're done for the season. All it took was wearing a damn helmet. 

There's nothing badass about a concussion.

True story, I once went climbing with a friend who wasn't very vocal and I didn't hear her yell "ROCK" as she pulled some pebbles from a hold. A piece of rock, no bigger than 3" wide hit me on the shoulder and I was unable to climb properly for about 2 months. Had this piece hit me on the head, I would probably be severely injured. 

  3.  Poor Communication

As you can tell from the example above, being yelling can help. Sometimes, you can't just yell things out though: high wind conditions, inability to see your partner etc. In those cases, you and your partner need to come up with a convention that you can easily understand. Greg and I have a rope signals for conditions like 'off belay', 'off rappel'. You and your partner need to have agreed on some sort of technique before.

Recently, there was an accident in Vermont where a girl fell to her death from the top of the pitch. Her partners expected her to rappel down as it was the last route of the day so they took her off belay when she got to the anchor. Instead of abseiling , she asked for a 'take' and as she weighed the rope with no tension from the belayer, she went straight down. 

Always discuss what you are going to do with your partner before climbing and have a backup plan if you cannot communicate.

 4. Bad Belaying

"Watch me!", "Dude, focus!", "Belay!"

When belaying your leader, it is crucial for you to be vigilant, regardless of his skill level (if you can comfortably free a 5.11, it doesn't mean you will fly up a 5.6 with no risk; sometimes you can't foresee a hold coming off in your hands.

Always have your climber in sight when belaying and if you can't, learn to read rope tension. This particular skill requires a lot of experience climbing with a particular person and doesn't translate to every partner equally. Below are a few key points when it comes to belaying:

1. Do not stand too far from the cliff; It is easy to get dragged against the rock when the leader falls. That being said, NEVER walk under a rope with a climber above.
2. Avoid a big loop dragging on the ground when you are belaying. soft catches are not always the right way to go; for example if the leader is about to engage a move above a ledge and if she falls on it, she may injure herself. A hard catch with minimal dynamism may save her ankles.
3. Belayer chit chat. Let's face it; it is easy to get distracted when you are in a group setting. try to focus on your climber and do not be scared to ask people to stop talking so that you can hear your climber.

 5. Being Loud at the Crag

"Take nothing but pictures, leave nothing but footprints, kill nothing but time" This famous quote has been used to much that I don't know the exact origin. In this day and age though, I believe we should add "Play nothing but silence". Don't be that person who brings boombox to the crag.

Even if you are sporting a 1976 Chevy Malibu, a boombox

at the crag is still not cool

Respect others. If you want music, bring your headphones. If you want to jam some guitar, make sure to ask the people around you if that's ok. 

Most people are too polite to say anything but remember that outside climbing is a little more delicate and every delicate move requires utmost concentration. 

Drones at the crag? Unless you have a super silent stealth drone, you run the risk of having a rock thrown at your precious flying camera and nobody around the crag will disagree with that move, except you. Be careful.

 6. Spraying Beta

Beta is jargon to designate information about a climb including the cruxes, length etc. Little history can be found here.

Some people like beta, most outdoor climbers want to have their own adventure. I am guilty of sometimes shouting beta. This is mostly due to the frustration on holding a partner on belay for a long time and having body parts squeezed. Regardless, try as much as you can to avoid spraying beta to the climber. Often times you notice a group outside constantly doing that and realize how annoying it can be. 

Tip: If you are taking someone out on a first date to climb outside, you will most likely be shouting beta. Set an expectation in the beginning that you are there to help the person get accustomed to outdoor climbing and route discovery is part of the adventure. Should people need beta they usually will ask for it.

 7. Forgetting your headlamp

August 3rd, 2017, South Wall, Acadia National Park, Maine

The time is approximately 17:30. Greg and I are on Chitlin's Corner, a 5.10 multi pitch route. After a long struggle up the second pitch, I am attempting to clean the gear. The sun is setting fast and after 20 minutes of struggling, Greg calls it. Time to go down. Darkness is slowly settling down and we don't have headlamps. The first rappel requires a long traverse to an anchor on a far left route. Route finding in the dark is tricky and we are being devoured by bugs. The second rappel is a straight line down that crosses through a few ledges. After about 45min to 1 hour of struggling, guided by faint moonlight and panicked iPhone flashlight manoeuvres, we make it down.

A mistake that will never be made again. 

Get yourself a headlamp similar to this as it has the red light function (useful to not blind your partner).

 8. Leaving Chalk Marks

Look, it is practical on a hard route to place a little mark on the route for yourself but just like nobody likes to hear unwanted beta, it is a common courtesy to clean your chalk marks on your way down.

 9. Dehydration and other related health hazards

Easily avoidable, dehydration is a common problem outside, whether in cold or warm weather. Same goes for hunger. Climbing and mountaineering are demanding activities. Pack enough water, drink a lot and stay hydrated. When concerned about weight, remember that carrying it in your belly is 'lighter' than carrying it on your back. Drink copious amounts before you head out and use less of your packed water on the approach. 

Some say to not bring too much water. While that may be true, the reality is that you should be ready for emergency situations. When in doubt, bring more or plan to purify some if required and available.

Back in the early days of big wall climbing in Yosemite, the standard was a gallon (~3.8L) per day but on a hot day you do end up drinking more so know your body. Personally I sweat a lot and need to hydrate more frequently.

A tip is to add apples and oranges to your pack; they hydrate and are nutritious too! 

10. Not Studying the Topo

I am guilty of this one. Recently more than before since I started trad climbing. I check out the topo once, think I got the route and end up the wrong way at some point and I'm out of rope, or need to down climb. Avoid such mistakes by reviewing the topo regularly. Personally I take pictures of it and carry my phone on the climb.

 11. No Emergency/First Aid Kit

Bring it, know what's in it and how to use it. I once sprained my ankle on the approach in Kamouraska, QC and I am glad that I had some bandage and Bengay!

I recommend this one. It contains an instruction manual on basic first aid. Also pack a small lighter and extra painkiller pills. As you go outside more frequently you'll start accumulating extra things you wish you had on your previous trip.

 12. Not Planning Ahead

Faux-Pas 10,11 and 12 tie to this common mistake which is not planning ahead. On a half day trip, I guess you don't have to worry so much about being caught in a bind and needing extra resources but I have been caught by surprise weather once. Study the maps, check the weather often and know how to spot drastic changes. 

Try to keep an emergency granola bar/instant oats in your pack.