Chris leading pitch on Serpentine Arete
I picked this weight saving tip from Jim Nelson recently on our climb up the Serpentine Arete of Dragontail Peak. Our group wanted to climb the route in a day, which involves about 13-18 hours of effort, from trailhead to summit and back. So we wanted to go as light as possible on the route.
Usually I bring 12 draws on a typical climb, with two carabiners attached. I’ll just clip these ready-made draws to my harness and climb. Pretty typical of what you’ll see at the crag. You place a piece of protection, clip one end of the sling to the pro, and clip the other to your climbing rope right?
crag style
clip biner to pro
To shave weight, we took our 12 naked slings and slung them over our shoulder. Them clipped 12 biners directly to the harness. As we place pro, we attach our sling directly to the pro webbing with a girth hitch. Then clipped the other end to the climbing rope. Attaching the slings directly to the pro webbing with a hitch allowed us to drop 12 biners of weight, and over a full pound of weight from the crag-style approach.
alpine style
sling hitched directly to pro
The weight savings means you can bring a few extra slings with you. If you need extension, girth hitch multiple slings together to get the desired length. If you want to shorten your length, loop your sling through the pro sling and clip both ends with your biner.
loop sling to shorten
multiple hitches to lengthen
There are a number of reasons why this style worked well with Serpentine Arete. The route was mostly 4th and lower 5th class climbing. So our strategy was to simulclimb most of the route. There were a few short mid-5th class sections that had to be pitched out though. The advantage to the ready-made draw is that it allows you to clip your rope to your pro quickly. There was no hard climbing on Serpentine, so slinging the pro webbing directly was an easy option. I DON’T advocate girth hitching slings directly to nut or hex wires.
Educate yourself on the strengths and weaknesses of girth hitching vs. biners here before using this style:
http://www.blackdiamondequipment.com/en-us/journal/climb-qclab/qclab/qc-lab-connecting-two-slings-together/
http://www.climerware.com/knot.shtml
5 comments
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August 2, 2011 at 8:58 pm
The Serpentine Arete « Rock Never Melts
[...] gear, we went with thealpine-style setup mentioned in the last entry. We brought small gear to #3 Camalot (x2), with a couple of doubles in [...]
August 31, 2011 at 9:47 am
Kevin Piasecki
Hi Chris-
I was wondering if you had any thoughts on the research detailing loss of material strength when slings are girth-hitched together?
http://www.blackdiamondequipment.com/en-us/journal/climb-qclab/qclab/qc-lab-connecting-two-slings-together/
http://www.blackdiamondequipment.com/en-us/journal/climb-qclab/qclab/qc-lab-girth-hitching-a-stopper/
Whether or not this decrease in strength is significant probably depends on the situation (terrain, chance of falling, etc), equipment condition, and personal risk tolerance.
Just food for thought…
September 1, 2011 at 3:13 pm
Chris de Serres
Kevin,
Thanks for bringing attention to this. The 10mm dynex and 11/16 nylon testing corresponds to my current setup. The BD testing highlights a break in materials at 12kn (4 drops) and 11kn (3 drops). On easy, low-angle terrain that provides more than enough strength for a fall. I wouldn’t advise girth-hitching pro webbing on any section that could result in fall factor 2 potential, or even close to that.
This data is useful and I added it to the post so climbers can judge for themselves. I think when most of us read that testing shows a “50% reduction in strength” that sends off sirens in our head. But we have to look at the raw data, which shows a very reasonable 11kn of strength in my opinion. Also, what some people don’t understand is how difficult it is to generate 10kn of force in a climber fall.
One thing to keep in mind is that this style is flexible. If you encounter hard pitches you can simply reassemble your slings crag style for those pitches. Then go back to girth hitching on easier terrain. You’re not going to find me girth hitching pro on a crux section on steep terrain and high fall potential. I want to clip and go.
With all of these techniques there needs to be a healthy does of good judgment which comes with experience.
October 29, 2011 at 6:20 pm
Forest McBrian
I just noticed the abbreviated version of your girth-hitch tip in “The Mountaineer.” To be direct, in its abbreviated form this piece of writing is irresponsible.
Any technique–especially one that deviates from accepted standard practices–needs to be taught in the context of the limits of its application. The link to the testing on the BD site is absent from this print version, as is ANY suggestion that this technique would not be appropriate for steeper, pitched climbing which might result in higher forces. As it appears in this website, the complexities seem adequately portrayed. If it was an editor who trimmed out the discussion of strength reduction and the link to the BD site, then this is a case of very poor editing. Regardless of fault, I encourage you to have the Mountaineers print an addendum to this article.
Key is your own statement, “With all of these techniques there needs to be a healthy dose of good judgment which comes with experience.” True in climbing, but also true when it comes to dispensing advice regarding climbing.
Cheers,
Forest
October 31, 2011 at 10:13 am
Chris de Serres
Agreed. The article in “The Mountaineer” was a ball drop. The magazine asked to use my blog and presented the edited version to me, and I signed off on it a bit too quickly. They were supposed to revise the online version of the magazine, per my request. But haven’t as of yet. They are going to add an addendum on their next issue as well. The feedback is appreciated and understood that we all need to remain careful with what we are putting out there.