UKC

Following reliable-sounding advice, I have invested in a rope bag. It seems pretty straightforward: put rope in bag, add sundry bits of clobber until full, close, take to crag etc. It also has a fold-out tarp or ground sheet which is very handy for keeping your rope out of the clarts while climbing.

One thing I don't quite understand is the two tape loops sewn in to opposite sides of the tarp, near the outer corners. One is black, the other is red. Can anyone shed any light on what these are supposed to be for?

In reply to Martin W:

dunno what they are supposed to be for but i use them to tie in the "dead" end of the rope so i know which is the "live" end. Also stops you feeding it through your belay device.

Maybe theres 4 for double ropes and colours to help ?

In reply to Martin W:

Hi Martin, the loops are to tie the ends of the rope to so there are easier to find!! Seriously tieing in the dead end does have a safety factor in that it helps to stop you lowering people off the end of the rope on pitches longer than 25 - 30m. Most people tie the dead end into the red loop.......... red equals DANGER!!! Hope this helps.

In reply to Richard: Good point about making the rope ends easy to find, I hadn't thought of that. I guess it makes packing up easy as well: tie each end of the rope in to a tape loop, pile the rope on the tarp, fold it up in a parcel and stuff it in the rope bag. Job done.

I'm not so sure about the lowering-off risk, as I would normally expect the person lowering me to be tied on to the other end of the rope anyway. However, I am not going to belittle it because it was been brought home to me forcefully the other day when a friend of mine came back unexpectedly soon from a trip to Spain having fallen about 4m to the bottom of a crag that turned out to be 2m higher than half the rope length. She landed on her head but her helmet did its job and she survived with severe concussion and a gashed elbow (but a totalled helmet). She's not allowed to climb until the dizzy spells have stopped. Remember, kids: wear a helmet and make sure the end of the rope is secured *somehow*.

In reply to Martin W:

youn onwt be tied in te other end for sportys routes and down the wall where one you just lower off and pull the rope down.

Also you tie one end into the tape (dead), then put the rope in so that the live end is uppermost and wont kink when it comes out and you dont have to tun the rope through. Rope stays on tarp all the time (well thats the theory dont work always

In reply to Martin W:

i use it get to the ends of the rope easier. also to swap ends each time at the wall, one session i use the red loop and the next the white loop on the tarp. This means i dont end up wearing out one end of the rope on this bloody sharp indoor walls..