Rappelling Lessons

[rcwild]

The majority of students who participate in the ACA courses I teach come with some previous rappelling experience. The course curriculum hasn't been geared toward students with no rappelling experience. Quite a few of the discussions taking place here on our forums and elsewhere on the internet seem to be geared toward people who are struggling to learn how to rappel and perhaps shouldn't be confused by things like anchors and rigging.

So let's take a giant step back to talk about learning how to rappel and some tips about teaching others to rappel.

Ground School
Beginners do need to know some basics about gear – the importance of locking back their harness buckles, differenes between static and dynamic rope, pros and cons of different rope fibers, proper loading of carabiners, pros and cons of various rappel devices, the importance of wearing a helmet, the importance of tying back long hair, avoiding baggy clothing and loose straps, proper commands (on belay?, belay on, on rappel, off rappel), whistle signals, etc.

PRACTICE BUDDY CHECKS!


Some Basics:

1. NEVER let go with your brake hand. Stop position is brake hand in the small of your back. Go position is hand out, lateral to your hip. Keep brake hand the proper distance away from rappel device so it can move quickly into brake position.

2. Lean back. Lower body perpendicular to the rock. The rope is creating a force that pulls you in toward the rock. Your legs need to create an appropriate counter force for stability. If you fail to create the counter force and slip, you will likely do a "dynamic face plant".

3. Feet shoulder width apart and laterally opposed. If they get too close together or vertically opposed and you lose your balance, you will swing like a barn door. With your feet the proper distance apart, it is usually very easy to catch yourself and recover.

4. What to do with your non-brake hand. I like to have students put their non-brake hand on their hip. They need to learn to trust their brake hand for all of their control. I've seen many beginners with their hand on the rope above the rappel device who lose balance, grip tight with their non-brake hand and let go with their brake hand to grab the rock.

Learn and practice these basics in a low-risk environment. Low angle slab. Even horizontal. It's all about muscle memory. Lean back. Walk backwards. Stop. Lean back hard. Feel secure with your ability to stop yourself. Now go again. Take turns providing bottom belays and practice all of the commands. Pretend you lose control and let your belayer stop you. Practice belaying your partner, too. All of this in a low-risk environment.

REMEMBER THE BUDDY CHECKS!


Go Vertical
Once you feel comfortable with the basics, go vertical. Something not-too tall. 10-20 feet. Get a top rope belay or a bottom belay. Wear well-fitting gloves and a helmet. Practice on double strands and single strand. Try rigging your rappel device in different ways to get a feel for the amount of friction provided. When you feel comfortable, try it again without the gloves, but still on belay. Are you rigging enough friction? If not, make adjustments in the way you rig your device until you get it right.

REMEMBER THE BUDDY CHECKS!


Locking Off and Clearing Stuck Gear
It's important for everyone to learn how to lock off mid-rappel and how to clear stuck gear. How to lock off your rappel device depends on what type of device you're using and in what mode it is rigged. Better for a beginner to learn the leg wrap first. Clearing stuck gear (baggy t-shirt, pack strap, long hair) is quite simple. Lock off, rig a foot loop on the rope above your rappel device, step up in the foot loop to unweight your rappel device, clear whatever is stuck, come back down to rest on your rap device, remove the foot loop, unlock, continue rappel.

REMEMBER THE BUDDY CHECKS!


Add Variables
Your first vertical rappel station provides good practice for the techniques you need to learn, but will not totally prepare you for the myriad of situations you will encounter canyoneering. Sooner or later, you need to practice on different angles of rock, including overhangs, and different rappel lengths. Extra long rappels present a problem because the amount of friction you need will vary as you descend the rope. Having just the right amount at the top might mean you don't have nearly enough as you near the bottom.

Practice somewhere besides in a canyon. Once you are comfortable doing 30-40 foot rappels, go do some canyons with 30-40 foot rappels. Don't go do canyons with 100, 200 or 300 foot rappels until you are very comfortable doing that length rappel in a lower risk environment.

REMEMBER THE BUDDY CHECKS!
REMEMBER THE BUDDY CHECKS!
REMEMBER THE BUDDY CHECKS!
REMEMBER THE BUDDY CHECKS!
REMEMBER THE BUDDY CHECKS!

[rcwild]

Belaying a Rappeller
There are basically three types of belays for rappelling:

1. Top rope belay
2. Bottom belay (aka fireman belay or military belay)
3. Pseudo or self belay (i.e. prusik, autoblock)

The intent of a belay is to provide redundancy. Depending on the belaying method chosen, you can provide redundancy for the rappeller's brake hand, redundancy for the rope and/or reduandancy for the anchor. Only a top rope belay can provide redundancy for all three. The other two types only provide redundancy for the rappeller's brake hand.

Top Rope Belay
A top rope belay requires two ropes; one as the rappel rope and one as the belay rope. Rappellers descend the rappel rope just as they normally would, under their own control. One end of the belay rope is connected (tied) to the rappeller's harness. A belay system (device, munter) is rigged on the anchor. As the rappeller descends, the belayer feeds out rope. If the rappeller loses control, the belayer locks his brake at the top and holds until the rappeller regains control.

A top rope belay provides an extra sense of security for a beginner. It can also be used to solve common problems quickly. Example: Rappeller gets a baggy shirt caught in his rappel device. The belayer can lift up on the belay rope to take tension off the rappel device so the rappeller can free the stuck gear.

There are a couple downsides. A top rope belay can be a little complicated to set up, but well worth it for most beginners. Additionally, it is almost impossible to provide a top rope belay without creating some additional friction. The rappeller will not learn to provide an appropriate amount of friction on their own if they are receiving a top rope belay every time. Recommend moving from a top rope belay to a bottom belay once the rappeller is comfortable with the basics – controlling with their brake hand, braking, proper body position, etc.

REMEMBER THE BUDDY CHECKS!

Bottom Belay
Bottom belays are the simplest to set up. A person at the bottom of the rappel simply holds the rope. If the rappeller loses control, the belay pulls down on the rope, in essence acting like an extension of the rappeller's brake hand. It's simple, but there are some very important things to consider. First, and most important, the belayer needs to pay attention. When the rappeller asks, "On belay?", if you respond with "Belay's on!" you are saying, "I am paying attention and am prepared to stop you if you need me." Don't take that responsibility lightly.

If the belayer holds the rope with too much tension, the rappeller will not be able to descend. If he holds the rope with too much slack, the time it takes him to react and pull enough tension on the rope to stop the rappeller may be inadequate. It takes practice to learn just the right amount of slack to allow. My suggestion: start with a little too much tension and communicate with the rappeller. If he can't move, give him a little more slack. Still can't move? A little more slack. And so on.

It is not necessary for a belayer to rig the rope through a belay device. It is, however, important for the belayer to maintain control of the rope. Personally, I like to wrap the rope a half-turn around my forearm, then make sure fingers and thumb wrap around the rope. Another suggestion: rig a prusik on the rope and clip the prusik to your harness. If you lose your grip on the rope, it will be easier to regain control.

REMEMBER THE BUDDY CHECKS!

Autoblocks
Not for beginners. Consider them an intermediate skill. Beginners already have enough on their minds without one more thing to control. In my experience, the people who are most likely to lose control of their rappel are those who learned to be dependent on an autoblock. There will be times when an autoblock creates a tremendous amout of risk, such as when rappelling in or landing in strong current.

When using a top rope belay or bottom belay, it is easy to get someone down who has lost control and incapable of continuing. With an autoblock, they will be stuck on the rope. Other members of the group will have a rescue situation on their hands.

REMEMBER THE BUDDY CHECKS!

[rambler-joe]

Stop position is brake hand in the small of your back.:confused:
Rich.
Great words, well put together. I would like your permission to to use them in our course handouts. Yes, we are teaching raw beginners.

I do have one query however. We teach "thumb in bum" as the brake position and actively discourage people from lifting their hand up to the small of the back.
Our rationale is:
1) that to go from the "go" position, same as yours, to "stop" does not require you to bend your arm. In other words If you hold your arm straight out to go, you can swing it into your bum without bending the arm or having to let rope pass through your hand.

2) you gain quite a bit of friction from the rope passing over your thigh and buttock so the pressure needed to be applied by the hand is less.

3) by bringing the brake arm down to achieve "thumb in bum" you keep a tighter bend in the rope as it exits the descender and again add to the braking effect.

Photo here. http://picasaweb.google.com/EJSharples/Abseiling

I would appreciate your comments.:)
John Sharples (Rambler-joe)

[rcwild]

Rich.
Great words, well put together. I would like your permission to to use them in our course handouts. Yes, we are teaching raw beginners.

You have it.


I do have one query however. We teach "thumb in bum" as the brake position ...

I like it.

[rudy118]

I recently received as a gift a Petzl GriGri. I was planning to exchange it because all the ropes I have are less than 10 mm in diameter. As an experiment I tied 9mm static rope to a chinning bar and with the 8' of play I had rapped/stopped several times. I hung on the rope for a couple of minutes and never slipped. My brake hand never releasing the rope. I understand the self-braking feature has been negated by the smaller diameter rope. My question is can one safely use it for rappeling if one treats it like any non self braking decender?

[tj_wetherell]

Rudy,

The GriGri is very neat and versatile device, but I really would not recommend it as a rappelling device, especially on small diameter static lines. Although it seems easy to control on your short test drops, when you use smaller lines it becomes very difficult to rappel smoothly - it requires a good amount of strength and control. When you increase the rope diameter to 10.5+ it is much easier.

If you use the device with ropes smaller than the rated range you *MUST* realize that slight changes in the handling characteristics of the rope are going to determine if the GriGri will lock - meaning I would never trust it, even on a rope I previously used without difficulty. Some climbers use smaller than rater lines to give a "softer" belay (understanding that it may not lock).

The GriGri does have many uses though and I like it for belaying a climber 'working' a route (sport only), top belaying, and as part of a ascend/descend system when taking photographs. However, if your sole use is canyoneering I would exchange it for a better rappel device and spend the extra 50$ on other gear.

-tom(w)

[rudy118]

Kinda figured as much. I was just surprised it worked at all. Thank you. I will be exchanging it.

[polvalt]

Should newbies learn to rappel double strand? I'm talking about those people who have no experience rappelling. Or would it be good to learn right from the get-go (with fireman's belay) on single?

I know it takes more time to rappel double, but with newbies you probably are not going to start with a canyon that requires a lot of time to get through. (correct me if I'm wrong here)

I know I learned double, but I come from a climbing background. Now I rappel mostly single, unless I'm LAMAR... then it depends...

[Rocketman]

Rudy,

You should look at devices that you can easily add friction with during a rappel and one that the friction can be easily adjusted for different set ups (e.g. single 9mm, double 9mm, single 8mm and double 8mm). The most common one is the Petzl Pirana. Another one that is becoming more popular is the Totem. Several stores sell the Pirana but the Totem is only available from Rich. I like my GriGri for top roping but found it awkward to rappel with when I tried it. Figure 8s and ATCs are also popular but are more limited.

Keith

[Rocketman]

Newbies should really know how to do both single and double using both 8 mm and 9 mm ropes. It would be possible for them to see all 4 setups on one trip. Start them off on double 9mm then go to double 8 mm. Then move to single ropes (9mm then 8mm). Always with a firemans belay. This technique has worked well during the Canyoneering Basics workshops. Pick a practice area where they can do lots of laps.

Keith

[polvalt]

Sounds good, thanks for the advice...

[dancrev]

How much of a concern is difference in rope diameter when rappelling double strand on two ropes tied together? Let's say an extreme 'ish case of 8mm tied to 11mm. Will there tend to be some creep in the system as the 11mm side provides more of the friction than the 8mm side? so that if the ropes were equal length to the ground, as you rappel the 8mm will move up and the 11mm will move down, creating a danger of rappelling off of the 8mm part. All that needs to be done is put the joining knot (or a separate block) on the smaller diameter side of the anchor, so that it blocks this action. I'm just wondering if this is an issue at all and, if so, what difference in diameters does it start to become a concern.

[Rocketman]

It depends....
I've done it with a used 9.2mm DS and a used 8mm DS with little slipping. Same 9.2 DS with a 8mm Imlay slipped more. Mixing a 9mm and an 8mm is probably the most common. You won't see many 10mm or 11mm ropes.

I have actually done this on purpose more times than by "accident." Often the last person down will want to move the knot over the edge to prevent it from getting stuck. Feed the longest of the two ropes through the rapide and then tie the ropes together. You can block it and go single strand on the side without the knot. Last one down undoes the block and goes double strand. Add more friction to the rope on the knot side (Totem, double 8 or Pirana works well for this) and let the other rope slide through the system (rap device + rapide) until the knot is over the edge or the long rope is just touching the ground. Then go on both strands as usual. A good skill to practice.

Keith

[moab mark]

It depends....
I've done it with a used 9.2mm DS and a used 8mm DS with little slipping. Same 9.2 DS with a 8mm Imlay slipped more. Mixing a 9mm and an 8mm is probably the most common. You won't see many 10mm or 11mm ropes.

I have actually done this on purpose more times than by "accident." Often the last person down will want to move the knot over the edge to prevent it from getting stuck. Feed the longest of the two ropes through the rapide and then tie the ropes together. You can block it and go single strand on the side without the knot. Last one down undoes the block and goes double strand. Add more friction to the rope on the knot side (Totem, double 8 or Pirana works well for this) and let the other rope slide through the system (rap device + rapide) until the knot is over the edge or the long rope is just touching the ground. Then go on both strands as usual. A good skill to practice.

Keith

Under this scenario wouldn't it just be easier to have one of your buddies on the ground be your meat on the strand with the knot in it? Then just rappel single. If the edge is iffy for catching the knot it would also probably be a little rough on the rope rubbing up over the edge and thru the rapide?

Mark

[Rocketman]

That would work too. It does double the load on the anchor, each strand and the knot though.

[rcwild]

In some situations, the thicker rope will create more drag through the rappel device so it actually pulls the thinner rope as it slips through the device at a faster rate. For this reason, it is usually best to feed the thicker rope through the rappel ring, then tie the ropes together.

If you move the knot down over the edge, the knot can creep back up to the ring.

Sometimes. Not always. YMMV. Yeah, it depends.

[karlito]

Autoblocks
Not for beginners. Consider them an intermediate skill. Beginners already have enough on their minds without one more thing to control. In my experience, the people who are most likely to lose control of their rappel are those who learned to be dependent on an autoblock. There will be times when an autoblock creates a tremendous amout of risk, such as when rappelling in or landing in strong current.

When using a top rope belay or bottom belay, it is easy to get someone down who has lost control and incapable of continuing. With an autoblock, they will be stuck on the rope. Other members of the group will have a rescue situation on their hands.

Rich, you stated that if your autoblock becomes weighted while rappeling you will be in a rescue situation. I've read on other sites that it is much easier to release the autoblock or prusik when rigged below the belay device. This makes no sense to me. Also, what about rigging a mechanical prusik? How difficult are these to release underload? Impossible?

Craven

[mountain man]

Rich, you stated that if your autoblock becomes weighted while rappeling you will be in a rescue situation. I've read on other sites that it is much easier to release the autoblock or prusik when rigged below the belay device. This makes no sense to me.

You are correct an autoblock friction hitch below the device is easier to release than a friction hitch above the device. A hitch above the device has to hold your entire weight. A hitch below the device has to replace the load your hand would need to stop the rappel. You may still need to ascend some to unweight your hitch, much more so with it above your device. A noob may not know how to do this; may be difficult or time consuming for others with more experience. You now have a rescue situation. If you rigged a contingency anchor instead of a block you can lower this individual to the ground.

Now an important question is why would you need a friction hitch? Usually is pointless for anyone coming down after the first person is down. The first person can give a bottom or fireman's belay. Also had you done a top rope belay instead of a friction hitch you can still get the person down. Personally I would prefer, when more practical, to use the other two methods of belay before sending someone down with a friction hitch. If sending someone down with a friction hitch belay I would rig a contingency lower just in case. A friction hitch is an important tool in your tool box to know and use when appropriate. Also important to know how to self rescue when things go wrong with this method.

This has also been talked about in the senario thread
http://www.canyoneering.net/forums/showthread.php?t=2693

Hope this has answered some or your questions

[ewestesen]

Seems like this would be an appropriate place for my question....

Ledge's and overhangs are always tricky to get around. I've tried different things: getting on my knees and sliding sideways a little to get over the ledge, keeping my feet on the ledge and lowering my self down enough to step down... sometimes these work sometimes they don't.

Last weekend I was working my way over a ledge and made the stupid mistake of holding the rope above me with my non-break hand (I know I know... I thought I was past that... :spank:) and then I kind of rolled the rope across it. Not deadly, just a little painful on my arm. I leaned the opposite direction and got the rope off of my arm, cursed my stupidity, and then got my arm away from the rope the way it should be.

Anyway, thought it wouldn't be a bad idea to hear some ideas and methods that worked in other experiences. Thanks in advance!

[Fire Rescue]

One thing that really helps, but can't always be done is set you anchor as high as you can. For example, if there is a tree and a rock near by choose the thickest(and highest) limbs of the tree, not the rock. Setting your anchor high can also prevent the rope from rubbing on the ledge and make it easier for you to maneuver those pesky edges.

Again, this can't always be done, but when it can it sure as hell helps a lot.

[rcwild]

Ditto re Fire Rescue's comments.

... and ... when you are not able to set your anchor high, like when the chockstone you are standing on IS the anchor ...

Instead of starting on your knees, try starting on your butt. Sit with both legs dangling over the edge. If you are right handed, have the rope running to your left side or over your left shoulder. Scoot your butt over the edge and roll into it to your left (counter-clockwise), while using your left hand on the rock -- taking care not to get it caught under the rope.

It takes a little bit of practice, but makes those low starts much easier.

[ewestesen]

Oh cool, I need to practice the butt scoot more. Thanks!

[rudy118]

I've been reading these post and I think it's much ado about nothing. I may be wrong , I have limited experience and knowledge.I live in N.Y. and every rappel we have done is with a low anchor, either a 100' or 200' free air rap, and we all did it standing up. are we doing something wrong? I really want to know.

[rcwild]

I've been reading these post and I think it's much ado about nothing. I may be wrong , I have limited experience and knowledge.I live in N.Y. and every rappel we have done is with a low anchor, either a 100' or 200' free air rap, and we all did it standing up. are we doing something wrong? I really want to know.

Hey Rudy,

Whatever gets you over the edge safely. It's all good.

But there is another very important reason for learning the low butt slide start. When anchors are marginal, get low as you slide over the edge to employ as much friction as possible between webbing and/or rope and the rock. The friction will bear some of the load so the anchor doesn't have to.

[rudy118]

Yes of course, I wasn't thinking of marginal anchors. We always use the biggest tree we can find.