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ballpointpenner
Jun 27, 2012, 5:36 PM
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Registered: Nov 2, 2006
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Hi everybody, I've recently decided to incorporate pratice falls into my climbing routine so as to decrease my nervousness on lead.
My question is, how will this effect my rope's longevity?
I know most ropes have a fall rating of a certain number of falls for which they are supposed to be good for, but, if I remember correctly, that number usually isn't very high (~<10?).
To those of you who regularly practice falling, how long have you been doing it? Would you retire a rope once you've reached its prescribed limit of 'serious' falls? Also, how big does a fall have to be to really count towards that limit? Is it worthwhile to get a 2nd, cheap rope, specifically for this purpose?
Thanks!
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redlude97
Jun 27, 2012, 6:33 PM
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No fall that you survive will compromise the rope unless it gets cut, retire the rope when it looks worn out. It can take hundreds of whippers
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vinnie83
Jun 27, 2012, 7:41 PM
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Figure out how fall factor is calculated. That will give you an idea of what a 'serious fall' entails.
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acorneau
Jun 27, 2012, 8:58 PM
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ballpointpenner wrote: I know most ropes have a fall rating of a certain number of falls for which they are supposed to be good for, but, if I remember correctly, that number usually isn't very high (~<10?).
Look up "UIAA fall rating", it has (almost) no connection to how many times you can fall on a rope.
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granite_grrl
Jun 28, 2012, 1:38 PM
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The fall rating on a rope is not how many falls a rope can handle in a life time, but how many falls of a certain (severe) degree the rope can withstand in succession.
As for how long a rope will last: they can last a long time. My husband and I can go through up to one rope a year, but that's with heavy use (sport climbing, taking a lot of falls) and we aren't alternating rope use with our partners (because we usually climb with each other). I figure if we go through 1 rope in a year with heavy use, most people will have their's last at least twice as long.
IME it's usually elasticity that first suffers as a rope ages. We have old ropes we stopped using while trad climbing and finish trashing while sport climbing (giving a sporty belay to ensure we're still getting soft falls). Also, there is not problem to continue to top rope on these ropes.
Once the rope starts getting spongy and the sheath looks like shit we'll either cut it down or retire it.
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ballpointpenner
Jun 29, 2012, 2:20 PM
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Registered: Nov 2, 2006
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Thanks for the tips everyone!
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