FT/CS1 | Intro and Gear
Course Intro, Types of Climbing, Gear Overview, Knots
Field Trip/Classroom Session Logistics
Date: 1/14
Time: 8am
Meeting Location: Tacoma Clubhouse
Learning Objectives:
Students will be able to:
Meet their instructors and fellow students
See different types of gear for different trips
Identify climbing knots and tie some with prompting
Demonstrate how to coil a climbing rope, with support from an instructor.
Rough Agenda:
Introduction and course overview (120 minutes)
Knots and Gear Stations (60 minutes)
Rope Care Discussion and Coiling Demo (15 minutes)
Debrief (15 minutes)
Field Trip / Classroom Session 1: KEY POINTS, OBJECTIVES AND MENTOR MOMENT
Key points:
Critical skills and essential skills: know what they are and why something is considered a critical versus essential skill.
Gear: what specific considerations are unique to mountaineering gear? To the clothing and sleep systems you will use? To the impact of gear weight/bulk on a climb?
Safety: contributing factors to mountaineering accidents; rock and glacier climbing specific hazards; prevent incidents; do safety check of anchor, yourself, and your partner
10 Essentials: know what they are and how to use them
“Mentor Moment”
This course is physically, mentally, and emotionally demanding. It is designed to provide you with the basic information and skills to become a competent and safe beginning Mountaineer—this course is not intended to prepare students to become climb leaders; rather, you are expected to gain the skills to contribute to safety and success as a member of a climbing team. Leading climbs is a skill in focus in the Mountaineers Intermediate Alpine Climbing Course. Standards must exist to ensure the safety of all the participants.
Material Covered:
The first lecture includes an introduction to the course, important equipment considerations, and provides some space for general questions and answers.
Gear Construction
Please bring the following to the field trip:
1 x 10 ft. of 1" tubular webbing (for chest harness)
2 x 4 ft. of 5-6mm perlon (for 2 auto-blocks/prusiks)
Note: 5, 5.5 or 6mm perlon is okay. Pretty much any shop with a decent range of climbing gear will have perlon and webbing of various dimensions on spools for the shop employee to cut to size to meet your needs. Examples of where to purchase:
Edgeworks Climbing gym also sells perlon (inquire at front desk)
Feathered Friends has great perlon for those who can travel to Seattle
Or you can order online
Presentation Materials:
What is Alpine Climbing?
(6-8 minutes, article link from image on left)
Alpine climbing is a multi-disciplinary sport. In order to successfully climb in the “alpine,” which is generally defined as the region of a mountain above the treeline, climbers need to be able to climb rock and ice faces, hike long distances with heavy packs, and navigate glaciated terrain. Some alpine climbs will only require one of these disciplines, while others require all three to accomplish the objective. (The Dyrt, 2019)
Types of Mountaineers Climbs You Will Encounter
Note: climbing disciplines are fluid in definition; those listed here are not representative of universally agreed-upon definitions-- they are specific to The Mountaineers.
Basic Alpine (BA): A Basic Alpine Climb must travel over a significant amount of class 3, class 4 or low 5th class rock (see article Climbing Grades, 3-5 minutes), or equivalently exposed, steep or hard snow, snow slopes. Roped travel on rock is to be no more than one pitch. Roped travel on crevassed glaciers is to be less than one hour (during the ascent). Off-trail travel will require significant use of hands or ice axe for safe travel
Basic Rock Climb (BR): A Basic Rock Climb will include one or more pitches of class 4 to low 5th class rock. The route will not exceed four pitches or a rating higher than 5.6. A rock climb will include at least one rappel, one belay, and the cleaning of protection on at least one rock pitch by the student.
Basic Glacier Climbs (BG): A Basic Glacier Climb will include at least one hour of roped travel on a crevassed glacier on the ascent.
List of Basic climbs offered by The Mountaineers (links to a Mountaineers routes/places search result)
What to Wear Mountaineering
What to Bring Mountaineering
Where Should I Buy Gear?
There are LOTS of resources to pick up gear at new, used, and reduced prices. Here are some good options:
Backcountry: great selection of equipment, frequent sales, discount for Mountaineers members
Moosejaw: frequent discounts, membership points program
REI: no description needed! Your member dividend is going to be ridiculous the year after this course ends. Generous return policy. (The Garage Sale corner at the Tacoma shop currently has some like-new mountaineering boots at decent prices! Check it out.)
Goodwill: often has a surprising variety of woolen goods on the cheap. A long-sleeve wool shirt is a long-sleeve wool shirt, regardless of whether it's made by an outdoor company or not.
Local consignment shops: Playback Sports in Tacoma can yield some gems!
Ascent Outdoors (formerly Second Ascent): great Seattle shop with new and used climbing and outdoors goods
Feathered Friends: another strong Seattle Shop. Focus is on high quality down apparel, but they have some excellent accessory cord/perlon (Edelweiss brand) that is hard to find elsewhere, and other good climbing selections.
Mountaineers Gear Swaps: check local branches for dates!
Cheap, or Lightweight?
The chart below is adapted from a gear essay by Bruce Sanchez. Please note that these are not to be construed as suggestions on what gear to buy; the chart is simply intended to illustrate the difference that many small decisions can make. Ounces make pounds!
Overnight rock climb sample loadouts:
CLOTHING AND EQUIPMENT
CLOTHING
No single garment or fabric is ideal for all climbers or all situations. You can optimize the effectiveness of your clothing system by applying a layering system. Layering allows for easy adjustments to fluctuating backcountry conditions, and your own internal heat and moisture management.
Used clothing and gear works fine and saves money. Cotton clothing is not appropriate and is not permitted on climbs or field trips.
EQUIPMENT
Caution: While it is OK to buy inexpensive equipment (e.g., sale or used items, or items without “bells and whistles”), avoid cheap equipment. It will fail at the worst possible time! It is also important that you purchase new items that are critical to your safety (harnesses, webbing) to avoid costly mistakes. Ask experienced members of the club for advice and recommendations on equipment. It may be prudent to spend a little more on the “right” piece of equipment rather than spending twice to replace the “wrong” pieces.
Mountaineering Boots: Do not economize here. Boots will be one of your most important equipment purchases. Go to the store and find a properly fit boot and spend time wearing the boots in the store and at home to ensure a good fit. Buy your boots early and break them in soon. Hiking boots cannot be used for this class. Link to a good, short (5-7 minutes) article from REI about mountaineering boots. You don't need plastic boots for this course. 3-season boots are fine; 4-season boots are a good consideration if your feet get particularly cold, or if you're planning on continuing climbing in shoulder season and winter conditions.
Gaiters: You should be able to put them on without removing your boots. Knee high gaiters are preferred. Gaiters should be sturdy and intended for use with crampons.
Pack: Look for a well-fitting and comfortable pack. Have your torso measured and pack fit by a knowledgeable person to ensure a comfortable fit. Ensure you know how to adjust the pack. You will need a day pack on all the field trips and one-day climbs. A day pack should be at least 30-45 liters, and capable of carrying up to 40lbs. A pack for two-three days should be ~50 liters and be capable of carrying up to 50 pounds. Instead of two separate packs you may use a multi-day pack, that can be compressed for field trips and day climbs. External frame packs are not suitable for climbing because they increase the difficulty of self-arresting a fall on snow and the tendency for them to hang up on branches and rock edges.
Helmet: A UIAA approved climbing helmet is required for all field trips, rock and glacier climbs.
Ice Axe: A general mountaineering ice axe is required. Size: You will need 2-3 inches of clearance from the end of the spike to the top of the boot, while standing in an upright position holding on to the axe between the adze and the spike.
Crampons – A 10 or 12-point set of general or technical mountaineering crampons are required for the course. Make sure the crampons are compatible with and properly fit your boots.
Seat Harness: Must be UIAA approved. Gear loops are desirable for carrying carabiners and other gear. Make sure there are no pinches while hanging and walking around in it. Waist belt strap must have 2 to 3 inches sticking out after threaded through the buckle following the manufacturers’ recommendations. Study the instructions provided by the manufacturers and always follow their recommendation for using the harness.
Belay Device: The only approved belay devices for the basic course are the tubular type (Black Diamond ATC, ATC-XP, Petzl Reverso, etc.). Tubular device with friction grooves is recommended. Figure 8 and Grigri (or equivalent) devices are NOT acceptable for this course.
Large Pear-Shaped Locking Carabiner: Either screw lock or auto-locking are acceptable.
Layering is a challenging aspect of cold-weather, high-exertion outdoor activities. Cody Townsend speaks to that challenge in this ~11 minute video.
(Note: Although the video says "for backcountry skiing," you can replace that with "cold-weather climbing" or any other high-exertion outdoor activity and the advice is just as good!)
Knots & Hitches:
Knot-tying is an inherent part of roped climbing, and you and your partner’s safety depend on your ability to tie appropriate knots correctly, and to recognize correctly tied knots. The following knots are required for the Basic Alpine Climbing Course.
Used to attach a sling to another sling. Ex. pack sling.
Used to tie nylon webbing into a closed loop.
Figure 8 loop (Figure 8 on a bight)
Creates an attachment point in a rope.
Rewoven Figure 8 (Figure 8 Follow Through)
Most common knot for climbers tying in to either end of a rope.
Convenient knot for anchoring the rope to something, or tying a loop around a fixed point to haul a load. Sometimes used in Europe to tie into the rope, but not often in the US.
Double Fisherman’s knot (Double Fisherman’s bend; Grapevine knot)
Used to tie perlon into a closed loop.
Connects a cord to a rope with friction. Somewhat outdated as slower to tie than klemheist and requires fine attention to detail on dressing.
Used to secure a climber to an anchor. Can replace or supplement a PAS.
We use this most frequently for a backup belay/rappel.
Provides a tie in point in the middle of a rope. Used for glacier travel.
A knot that can be released while under load. Used for rescue scenarios.
You will use this to tie off your device to go hands free in a rescue scenario.
Flat Overhand Bend (aka EDK)
Provides a way to attach two ropes together. Ex. double rope rappel.
Provides a safety backup while rappelling.
A friction hitch that is fast to tie and provides friction best in one direction.
You will need to demonstrate proficiency at tying each of these knots at FT 3 and as a requirement to participate in FT 4. You will be expected to tie all of these knots under the close scrutiny of your instructor on all field trips. Your knots will be inspected for good dressing. You will also need to be able to tell how and why each of the knots is used.
Visit AnimatedKnots.com for picture walkthroughs of each of the knots. Additionally, you can click or tap on each of the knot names in the list to be taken to a YouTube video demonstrating how to tie and dress that knot.
Learn to coil your rope properly!
LIVE CS 1 Case Studies.docxCase Studies
We will have case study discussions beginning with the second classroom session.