UKC

As title.

Belay glasses look like some kind of weird 19th century contraption and there is no doubt that you look like a tool wearing them, which is why I probably haven't seen anyone using them at the crag.

Having said that, I do suffer from belayers neck and find that on long pitches it is difficult to maintain eyes on all the way. So are they really worth using?

Anyone swear by them? Anyone tried them and didn't like them? Do they provide adequate vision?

Cheers

In reply to radddogg:

Plenty of people use them at Ratho.

In reply to radddogg:

I use them to belay indoors, my lovely wife uses them when she belays me outdoors too. Once you get used to them (doesn't take long), they do seem to be very useful in avoiding ouchy neck. They'll never be a must-have fashion item, but there are an increasing number of us pushing the boundaries of style, so you won't be on your own.

In reply to radddogg:

I have, and will prolly end up gettin' a pair.

Really handy, if you're climbing a lot indoors or on overhanging sport crags.

Perhaps not that useful for slabby trad.

Took a bit of time to get used (5mins), but after that worked like a charm. Could easily see the climber and still also be aware of the surroundings. Was using the CU-ones. Cheaper ones might have too much plastic and thus block peripheral vision.

In reply to radddogg: Yeah my mate was using them at the weekend, and in general they seem quite popular.

In reply to radddogg:


Not sure I agree on either front. They look ok considering there's a job to do. I see lots of people using them, mostly abroad but also at home from time to time. Lots at the wall too.


My other half uses them a lot, solves her belayers neck and, yes, adequate vision. I use them occasionally; they're fine. Some people find they get something like motion sickness initially (moving your head a small way leads to bigger swings of field of vision) but this seems to be something you get used to.

In reply to radddogg:

Keep a good hand on the brake rope expecting a fall, and then just don't look.

In reply to radddogg:

I use them indoors all the time and sometimes outdoors on single pitch routes. Particularly useful when 14 year old son is training and I'm in for a monster belay session. I haven't used them on multi-pitch routes, and don't fancy that at all.

In reply to radddogg:

Swear by them, indoors and out, they are now an essential part of my kit.

In reply to radddogg:

I love mine. But then I do live on the continent, so do quite a lot of bolted sport climbing. I used a friend's pair of CU belay glasses, and then bought myself the Y&Y ones. Y&Y are cheaper and it seems to me they are slightly narrower, which is great - I can see the leader clearly and but have better peripheral vision that I did with CU. They also come in a handy case that can be clipped to a rucksack or harness. I found them disconcerting for maybe the first two routes, but after that they felt totally normal. I've had no problem with seeing the climber when lowering, or dodging when the leader drops a quickdraw by mistake. Maybe don't give them to a beginner belayer, but for anyone who knows what they are doing, I think the vision is plenty adequate.

They are reasonably common here in Spain, nobody is going round thinking 'oooh, what a pillock'. We are all too busy thinking 'YES!!! No more bloody neck ache while belaying!'

In reply to Dandan:

I have a friend who owns a pair and who I frequently see wearing them on stairs and escalators. I've no idea why.

In reply to radddogg:

Just use a grigri. Those things belay automatically, so you don't even have to look at the climber. Awesome!

In reply to radddogg:

You've clearly been going to the wrong crags. Go to Malham or Kilnsey and you'll see plenty of folk using them. Got a pair a few years ago after a two week trip to the Tarn where my partner and I both ended up with serious neck ache and they're a brilliant tool. Saves your neck and lets you watch your partner the whole time, instead of needing to look away and give your neck a break. Only really use them for sport but there was a pair using them on single pitch trad at the weekend and it did make me wonder why not, other than the faff of more stuff to carry to the crag.

In reply to radddogg:

Search on here, the subject has been done to death already.

In reply to radddogg:

I use them on sport. The CU ones are better for wearing over spectacles I find. There is also an added benefit. They tend to focus the belayers attention on the climber.

Al

In reply to radddogg:

Wear them upside-down for lying flat using a laptop in bed.

I thought that's what everyone uses them for.

In reply to Tomtom:

Well I use an Edelrid Mega Jul which works very similar to a GriGri so I can belay by feel when my neck gets sore but I prefer to be ready to take/pay before the rope tells me.

In reply to climbingpixie:


I'm in Lancashire

In reply to radddogg:

I do! Or suffer a shitty neck problem. I know which I prefer!!

In reply to radddogg:

They're definitely used indoors more than outdoors.

Possibly because you get more done more quickly, possibly because you get more ATGNI indoors.

Also indoors you don't get the trip hazards and death from above possibilites, which the spex make worse rather than better.

Rarely used for Trad, even though people claim they add safety to sport belaying and you'd think you'd want that increase in safety for trad too?

Someone on here did an excellent review of some chinese copies which were £13 a pair, cheap enough to try.

In reply to winhill:


You can't make sweeping statements like that which may in any case not be true. I don't see many at my local wall but if you go to Kalymnos there is hardly anyone without a pair.

Al

In reply to radddogg:

Even slabby trad can cause problems if you've already got a dodgy neck or shoulder. One of my regular climbing partners wears them for that reason.

In reply to Andy Morley:

I have a friend who owns a pair and who I frequently see wearing them on stairs and escalators. I've no idea why.

Being a perve and looking up skirts on the sly...

In reply to radddogg:

They are amazing. No neck pain, better belaying and you look 10 x sexier.

Belaggles are heavy - take time to get used to. Lighter cheaper ones are prob the best bet.

In reply to FactorXXX:



I think that was the whole point of the post i.e. It was a joke...

In reply to Skyfall:


Oh dear...

In reply to Skyfall:

I think that was the whole point of the post i.e. It was a joke...

I sort of got that after I posted my comment...
Slaps head and says 'Doh'!

In reply to Andy Morley:

Oh dear...

Yes darling, what can I do for you?

In reply to FactorXXX:



Autolobotomy?

In reply to Andy Morley:

Autolobotomy?

I'd rather a full bottle in front of me, than a full frontal lobotomy!

In reply to radddogg:

de rigeur at the grown ups' (shirts off) end of the Westway

In reply to radddogg:

I wonder which will happen first - will Steampunk discover belay-glasses, or will manufacturers bring out a steampunk-styled brand of glasses?

In reply to GridNorth:


Of course you can, that's the whole point of generalisations, they distil individual episodic experiences into meaningful observations about trends.

The question is always how accurate or not they are, single instances of counter examples don't make the generalisation less true, they just make them harder to spot.

I've never been to Kalymnos, preferring the fleshpots of continental europe but I've heard that the locals speak english with a cockney accent because of the number of southerners who journey there, even the restauranteurs greeting customers with the tradition 'Awl-wight mate, ows it anging? Table for four Squire?'

The shortage of local rock in the south of the UK meaning that even those who use their glasses outdoors at Kalymnos probably use them more indoors rather than outdoors on their 7 day 'outdoor climbing experience'.

In reply to winhill:

In that case the robustness of your statement and the use of the word "definitely" were inappropriate but it's not worth falling out over and we shall have to agree to disagree.

Al