Haul Bag escape on Uncle Bens: Explained.
Haul Bag escape on Uncle Bens: Explained.
UNCLE BENS, AUG 8TH, 2005, 3PM
HAUL BAG ESCAPE EXPLAINED
You may have witnessed or heard of a haul bag and porta-ledge crashing down to the base of the Grand Wall on Monday afternoon. This load WAS NOT INTENTIONALLY JETTISONED DOWN THE WALL. I cannot stress this strongly enough, no sane climber would ever consider this option in such a location. Simply put we had an accident causing the bag to escape.
CAUSE: In order to share our error in an effort to provide an explanation, and a learning tool, I will briefly outline the series of events.
The load was lowered from the bivi atop pitch #4, to the station atop pitch #2, bypassing one station. When the bags reached that station, my partner secured the bags to the anchors above the roof with an “L.R. hitch” (load release hitch), which was subsequently proven to be incorrectly tied off with an inadequate stopper knot.
Also the bag was not backed up with a leash. A critical error, secondary to the L.R. hitch error.
I dismantled the upper lowering system, and station, and proceeded down the rappel lines to the station where the bags had been delivered. I tied in to the station with two leashes, remaining on rappel while getting comfortable at the station. Once settled I looked at the L.R. hitch and commented that it looked suspicious. Placing one foot on top of the haul bag in order to examine the L.R. hitch, was the trigger that caused the L.R. hitch to come undone. The haul bag disappeared like an atom bomb from a B-52, falling a full 70m (we were using a 70m haul line) down the wall. The end of the rope was tied tag-line style to my tag loop behind me, in an effort to allow my partner to collect and lap coil it as I rappelled with the excess rope. Needless to say the resulting shock load on my harness, and the entire system was MASSIVE.
We were forced to cut the bags free immediately from my tag line loop as they were essentially squashing me in my harness. My partner did so, and that is what you may have witnessed or heard about.
We apologize to the climbing and hiking community for the danger this posed to passing climbers and hikers.
Accidents can happen, errors can occur.
Stay safe.
Sincerely
Aaron Clements.
HAUL BAG ESCAPE EXPLAINED
You may have witnessed or heard of a haul bag and porta-ledge crashing down to the base of the Grand Wall on Monday afternoon. This load WAS NOT INTENTIONALLY JETTISONED DOWN THE WALL. I cannot stress this strongly enough, no sane climber would ever consider this option in such a location. Simply put we had an accident causing the bag to escape.
CAUSE: In order to share our error in an effort to provide an explanation, and a learning tool, I will briefly outline the series of events.
The load was lowered from the bivi atop pitch #4, to the station atop pitch #2, bypassing one station. When the bags reached that station, my partner secured the bags to the anchors above the roof with an “L.R. hitch” (load release hitch), which was subsequently proven to be incorrectly tied off with an inadequate stopper knot.
Also the bag was not backed up with a leash. A critical error, secondary to the L.R. hitch error.
I dismantled the upper lowering system, and station, and proceeded down the rappel lines to the station where the bags had been delivered. I tied in to the station with two leashes, remaining on rappel while getting comfortable at the station. Once settled I looked at the L.R. hitch and commented that it looked suspicious. Placing one foot on top of the haul bag in order to examine the L.R. hitch, was the trigger that caused the L.R. hitch to come undone. The haul bag disappeared like an atom bomb from a B-52, falling a full 70m (we were using a 70m haul line) down the wall. The end of the rope was tied tag-line style to my tag loop behind me, in an effort to allow my partner to collect and lap coil it as I rappelled with the excess rope. Needless to say the resulting shock load on my harness, and the entire system was MASSIVE.
We were forced to cut the bags free immediately from my tag line loop as they were essentially squashing me in my harness. My partner did so, and that is what you may have witnessed or heard about.
We apologize to the climbing and hiking community for the danger this posed to passing climbers and hikers.
Accidents can happen, errors can occur.
Stay safe.
Sincerely
Aaron Clements.
Yes, thanks for asking.
After we had time to mull it all over, a number of very bad outcomes (which didnt happen) occured to us.
Luckily all the rope was lap coiled on a sling that was attached to the bag as a temporary place to easily collect it as we readied for the next lower. When the bag blasted off down the wall, it took all of the rope with it, and fed out of the lap coil as it dropped, only when it had all payed out, did the tail then come tight on my tag line loop.
Shocking to say the least, the force exerted was staggering.
Now if the rope had been feeding out of a lap coil at the station, and needed to pass over one of us, who knows, leashes could have been easily sliced clean through, or rope injurys could have been sustained.
I'm just trying to foreget about it all for now.
aaronc
After we had time to mull it all over, a number of very bad outcomes (which didnt happen) occured to us.
Luckily all the rope was lap coiled on a sling that was attached to the bag as a temporary place to easily collect it as we readied for the next lower. When the bag blasted off down the wall, it took all of the rope with it, and fed out of the lap coil as it dropped, only when it had all payed out, did the tail then come tight on my tag line loop.
Shocking to say the least, the force exerted was staggering.
Now if the rope had been feeding out of a lap coil at the station, and needed to pass over one of us, who knows, leashes could have been easily sliced clean through, or rope injurys could have been sustained.
I'm just trying to foreget about it all for now.
aaronc
Not bad, earlier this week I was not myself, couldnt get it outta my minds eye, if you know what I mean.
Unbeleivably the haul bag contents seemed fine, the sleeping pads and soft goods were all packed around the outside, with the rack and things like that on the inside.
As for anchor bolts, a total of four must have taken the hit, the two we were attached to with our personal slings, and the ones from above which were still in the system as I was on rappel. None of them would have suffered any damage as they all shared the hit, and have those oversized hangers.
Also my twin ropes going up to the last rap station acted as giant shock absorbers. Phew........
One thing to note, I have a big wall harness, which is over-engineered by free climbing standards, and the real savior may have been the super beefy buckle system, which took all of the initial shock coming up the static line.
aaronc
Unbeleivably the haul bag contents seemed fine, the sleeping pads and soft goods were all packed around the outside, with the rack and things like that on the inside.
As for anchor bolts, a total of four must have taken the hit, the two we were attached to with our personal slings, and the ones from above which were still in the system as I was on rappel. None of them would have suffered any damage as they all shared the hit, and have those oversized hangers.
Also my twin ropes going up to the last rap station acted as giant shock absorbers. Phew........
One thing to note, I have a big wall harness, which is over-engineered by free climbing standards, and the real savior may have been the super beefy buckle system, which took all of the initial shock coming up the static line.
aaronc
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