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jaybird2
Jan 16, 2005, 8:11 PM
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Lost trad gear in the Meadows, Wichita Wildlife Refuge
Trad gear was lost Saturady, the 8th of January when loose rock lead to having to take a climber to the hospital. The guy is okay, concussion and a little beat up, but still alive. Anyway, when I went back for my gear it was gone. Due to the nature and timing of the accident I couldn't get back there until the next Saturday. I couldn't believe that anyone else went out there in January, let alone that week. I mean, during these months I am surprised if I even see another set of climbers out there. Like this weekend. No one else in the Narrows, but someone went out to the Meadows the week before?! Amazes me at how unlucky I can be.
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okiebuds
Jan 16, 2005, 10:24 PM
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hey, i was just about to start a thred for you about your gear but you beat me to the punch....this is rob wagner, i will keep my ears open, i think eric forney and i will be in the w.m. next weekend....i will ask around.
later, mabee at the gym......
rob
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jaybird2
Jan 17, 2005, 3:33 PM
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Thanks Rob, I definitely appreciate it. I also forgot to mention that the route that it happened on was Atomic Cafe.
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jackscoldsweat
Jan 17, 2005, 3:45 PM
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bump....
yea yea.
it was me.
but i have an excuse...
I don't remember a damn thing...
"is this arm broken?"
"did i deck?"
"i decked on a gay ass 5.8 didn't i??"
"where are we?"
"Jay, i really don't know you that well so....lets try and keep the jokes at a minimum!!"
"ohhhh...my head...my frickin head." (done in the voice of Carl on ATHF)
6 seconds later!!!
"did i break my arm?"
"i decked didn't i?"
"where are we?"
"i fell on a GAY ASS 5.8!?!"
repeat these same questions every 6 seconds...FOR 6 HOURS!!
I AM JACKS HEAD TRAUMA
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berkly
Jan 26, 2005, 10:44 PM
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So what are the details? Did a hold break, gear pull????
Inquiring minds want to know...
Jay how was potrero?
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johnson6102002
Jan 26, 2005, 11:43 PM
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In reply to: So what are the details? Did a hold break, gear pull???? Inquiring minds want to know
I AM JACKS HEAD TRAUMA... fight club
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jaybird2
Jan 27, 2005, 3:36 PM
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I think that berkley's question actually raises an interesting point, which I will address after the fall description.
It was a cold, wet-ish day on a North-facing wall. Maybe it was a bad call to climb there that day, but it was well within our abilities and the rock looked clean (from water and ice). Anyway, as the leader went up on trad he was placing gear fine. The pieces passed the tug tests and he was climbing like an other day, now 20 feet off the deck. Then without the usual warning - there was no "watch me" or "this part looks weird" - his foot slipped off and he was shooting off of the rock. Once again, all the pro was well spaced and all looked like another 5.8 trad warmup. Anyway, I see him falling and take in the slack and push the brake hand down. The next thing I see is a #2 Camalot flying out of the rock (the lobes were probably a good 2 to 3 inches in the crack) along with two handfuls of gravel. The rock broke, no BLEW APART, and let loose the cam. At this point I let go the brake hand and double fist the rope as high as I can reach and pull in what I can to shorten what I could only imagine what was going to be a ride. The next piece was probably 15 feet off of the deck, it held. So as the rope begin to take tension again (he was probably 7 feet off of the deck by now) a green alien and a #8 stopper (first two pieces) blow because of the traversing nature of the route. They were actually just placed right off the deck to protect the bouldery start. So that lets out just enough rope so that the leader decks. The rope was slowing him down though, which leaned him back and caused him to land, upper-back first, followed by his head. It is hard to say how much of his fall the rope caught, but if it hadn't caught any he would have probably snapped his spine. He wound up with a mild concussion and a hurt arm (caught some of the fall). It was one of the most circumstancial series of events that I have seen climbing. (I know that people have seen worse) He happened to slip, the rock happened to break at the cam placement, and then the rope happened to pull out two pieces. I honestly do not believe that we made any critical errors besides climbing on a cold, wet (belay station was a mud puddle) day when there were other routes with dry starts, in the sun.
This brings up the idea of protecting from decking. If he would have placed another piece, on backup, he probably would have been fine. If I would had pulled those first two pieces once he was a few pieces past them, he might have not decked. I mean, how often have people seen pieces blow, when the placements were good, because of bad rock? From now on when I am in that 15 foot zone (below is just a highball bouldering scenario, but above you have enough pieces where they will catch you if one blows) I am going to consider my placement if a piece were to blow. I mean, if you have a sketchy placement in this zone, it better be backed up. I guess I never thought about the "just-in-case decking zone". And I am not talking about anything that has to do with the climber's ability or the quirks (or low crux locations) of a route which will warrant how many peices you place. I am talking about backing up gear in case of unknowns such as feet slipping on easy stuff or gear blowing. Well, I guess it only matters if gear blows. Anyway, just something to think about on your next trad lead.
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cyberclimber
Jan 27, 2005, 4:25 PM
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Hey jaybird,
Sorry to hear about the injury and the lost gear. There are climbers in the TA's most every weekend when the weather isn't really bad, but two groups at the Meadows in January with marginal weather is fairly unlikely. Could be that hikers, campers from Doris or lost fisherman found your gear, rather than other climbers. Have you checked with the rangers to see if anyone has turned your stuff in? Unlikely, but worth a shot.
Thanks for the details on the accident. The Meadows don't see nearly as much traffic as Mt. Scott and the Narrows and there is still some chossy rock that will eventually get broken off and the routes should clean up eventually. I haven't had any gear blow but I've had some holds break, could be what caused the fall in the first place.
What kind of gear is missing? Post a description and we'll keep our eyes open for you. Glad the climber is OK and hope you get your stuff back.
Editted cuz eye kant spel sew gud.
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berkly
Jan 27, 2005, 8:03 PM
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Scary. Glad to hear the guys doing alright, nice reactions on the belay
Ive had a hold bust on me before too. That whole cliff is pretty shattered come to think of it.
You might try posting a message on the discussion board over on wichitamountains.org
chris
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themeanieokc
Jan 27, 2005, 9:16 PM
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Was it Atomic Cafe? I heard of another person taking a 40 whipper on that climb after a piece pulled.
Sorry to hear about the injurys and everything works out well.
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fracture
Jan 27, 2005, 10:25 PM
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In reply to: At this point I let go the brake hand and double fist the rope as high as I can reach and pull in what I can to shorten what I could only imagine what was going to be a ride.
No offense, but this seems like an extraordinarily bad idea. Could you not have run backwards?
(Not trying to be overly critical here---I know in the instant it's hard to think of what to do---but I'd hope anyone belaying me never lets go of the belay just because a piece pulled).
Did you get rope-burn on your hands, btw?
In reply to: I honestly do not believe that we made any critical errors besides climbing on a cold, wet (belay station was a mud puddle) day when there were other routes with dry starts, in the sun.
I'm curious why the lower alien pulled instead of re-orienting in the crack to face the new direction of pull. If that is a predictable issue here for some reason (maybe the way it traverses?), then failure to make sure the first pieces were multidirectional so they didn't backward zipper like this would probably qualify as a "critical error". Was the alien or the stopper the first piece?
If you don't know why it didn't rotate in the crack or if it seems like it should've, perhaps the wetness of the crack was an issue (i.e. decreased the friction)? There's a discussion about this here. In which case using opposed passive gear as the first placement might have prevented the accident (assuming you had held onto the belay!).
In reply to: This brings up the idea of protecting from decking. If he would have placed another piece, on backup, he probably would have been fine.
It sounds to me like he did have another piece that would've protected him, had the first few pieces not backward-zippered. But I agree with you---this is a good thing to be thinking about. :)
Glad your friend wasn't more seriously injured.
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okieterry
Jan 27, 2005, 11:01 PM
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K Man, I hated to read about your accident. :cry: That sucks! Your belayer did a fine job and may have helped you from completely decking. Moral of the story for me is......DONT FALL!!!!! Also, pay attention to where you place gear in the wichitas. I've taught several people how to lead climb in the wichitas and every one of them failed to recognize that many of the cracks here look good on the outside but are rotten inside. You've got to look!!! :shock:
Also, from now on, please call me (405) 820-5510 and let me help you with your trip planning. The Meadows are a terible place to go on a sunny winter day. On Elk Mtn that day I was climbing with no shirt in the sunshine!!
As far as your lost equipment goes, I'm surprised someone would try to keep it. Put a message on the new WMCC message board and the OKC Rocks board. List every piece of gear. If someone doesn't own up to finding it, maybe someone else might recognize it.
I'm thinking that it was probably hikers that took the gear. Was the gear left on the cliff?
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cordata
Jan 27, 2005, 11:07 PM
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What's the "new" WMCC bulletin board? The old one does not seem to be working???
Dave
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jackscoldsweat
Jan 29, 2005, 4:59 AM
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I think the fact that I can not remember the actual fall is a good thing. As I do not need any more to think about when picking up the sharp end.
And for those picking the scenario to death, the moral of the story is...
It doens't matter what grade the route is....Rock Climbing is Dangerous.
"He who never fell never climbed." — Unknown.
JCS
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furrymurry
Jan 29, 2005, 6:58 PM
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Wow, I've not lead Atomic yet but I remember thinking "this rock looks nasty" while leading adjacent routes. Good to know and glad I didn't end up testing my gear on what was a very similar sounding day earlier in the winter. I agree with Terry, I climbed at Elk last weekend and up on the rock the weather was great.
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jaybird2
Feb 1, 2005, 2:34 AM
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Fracture:
My letting go of the rope and pulling it in with my hands may have saved the guy from a broken neck. If you don't feel comfortable doing it yourself, that is fine. Some people can react and take drastic action in drastic times. It was my call and it was a good one. I have no reservations about the accident. It has not detered me in any way from climbing or trusting my ability and judgements or my partners. The alien was in a shallow crack. When it rotated a lobe may have slipped out. At that point there was a Hell-of-alotta force on the piece as well. We didn't place multiple pieces at the start to pull in multiple directions, but who does as common practice on a warm-up route. Be honest people. Not that it is a bad thing, just not practiced commonly. If the last piece wouldn't have blown it wouldn't have mattered. And no, I couldn't run anywhere. Even if I could have, I still would have taken in the extra slack.
Okieterry:
Thanks for the offer man. I had the fortune of meeting you at Quartz over the last Gathering I would definitely take your advice anytime that you gave it. We knew that there were nicer places to climb that day. We also new that Thunderdome was North-facing. Sometimes we just like to climb when our fingers are freezing and you contemplate leaving the down on. After the freeze/thaw proceding that weekend, anyplace in the wichitas could have had some nascent choss. Mt. Scott had one inch verglass icing it that morning. It was pretty cool. I just can't believe that someone went out there that next day climbing. I guess hikers of fisherman could have snagged it if they had climbing gear with them to rappel down to get it. But then they would have been climbers. UNLESS.... THOSE DAMN SPORT RAPPELLERS!!! I have seen the signs on the way to the Narrows... HA!
It is like walking down the street and tripping on a crack. If you were looking out for the crack, you wouldn't have tripped. But if you had to watch every single step, walking would really be a pain in the butt and you wouldn't do it. Anyway, that was our error.
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