FRIDAY GLEE!

[wpadmirer]

The Friday post of glee is where you get to tell us about your climbing-related happiness this week.

It can be a new achievement or adventure, or just that you climbed and had fun; it can be that your favourite climbing wall is expanding or that you bought new rock shoes or that you found a cool ice-climbing vid on YouTube. No glee is too small -- or too big. Members are encouraged to cheer each other on and share the squee.

N.B. Please feel free to post your glee on any day of the week; the Friday glee is just to get the ball rolling.

(I have no video link. I'm just getting the ball rolling for Friday Glee. If you've got a video link, share it!)

Comments

[wpadmirer]

I have no climbing glee this week. My climbing partner is sick.

I'm trying to work up to going in and learning how to use the auto-belay system at the rock gym.

Anyone ever used auto-belay? The idea is making me nervous.

[emperor]

I also have no climbing glee - my achilles tendon's a bit ouchie, so I decided I should rest it :-/

I've used auto-belayers at one wall (in Kinlochleven), and they do give me the Fear a bit. I think the real danger is not having someone to check your knot; it's hard to rest on them, because if you just lean gently on the rope, it lowers you slowly - you have jump/fall a bit to make the stop kick in.

[wpadmirer]

ARGH. Well, eventually I'll talk myself into trying it. I know there's a possibility of being dropped by a human, but at least then you have someone to yell at! (grin)

[rydra_wong]

Huh, the ones I've used (at the Westway in London) don't have a "stop" at all -- if you weight them, they slowly lower you.

Which is part of what seems to give everyone a moment of the Fear at the top, because you can't feel a belayer take you; you just have to let go and trust the machine not to drop you.

It's unnerving initially, but I found I adjusted rapidly. They're excellent for training endurance (at least if no-one else is queuing to use them, and if they are then that's someone else without a partner who might be willing to pair up ...).

Not being able to rest/lean on the rope is frustrating if you want to repeatedly work moves on something, but OTOH it does keep you honest and means you can't cheat too much. *g*

[wpadmirer]

All the information shared here about auto-belay is a big help. I'm working up the courage to try it, and I think I can now.

[rydra_wong]

Glad we could be helpful, and I hope it goes well. Most people seem to find them a little unnerving at first, but they're a very handy option to have.

Ooh, one other thing it might be of interest to know: you can down-climb on an auto-belay, if you want.

The mechanism works like a seat-belt, pretty much, so as long as the cable's reeling in or out relatively smoothly and your weight's not on it, it lets you get on with it. It's only when you weight it that it'll take over and lower you slowly back to the ground.

So if you want, you can do endurance stuff by down-climbing easy routes rather than lowering off between laps.

Or if you're not comfortable letting go at the very top initially, you can down-climb to where you feel better about it.

(If I'm having an anxious day, before I begin climbing properly I'll climb up a short distance and let go, just to confirm to my brain that the mechanism's working!)

[wpadmirer]

Thanks. All of this is terrific information!

[superborb]

Auto belays are nice, but you have to make sure that it's always tied into you or the ground -- I've seen several people forget and the auto belay just shoots right up.

[wpadmirer]

Okay, so I have reason to be a little reluctant. (grin)

[superborb]

Haha, but as long as you remember it'll be fine! And even if you do let it go, you'll just get ribbed a little.