UKC

My weirdest mishap yet ...

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 McHeath 04 Dec 2019

... was having one of the heel loops on my climbing shoe clip itself into a quickdraw while being lowered at speed on the climbing wall today. Result: stuck with a foot at chest height, and much mirth from below. Seriously considering taping the loops from now on! 

Anyone else experienced this?

Removed User 04 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

A pal of mine managed to get the heel loop on the bottom of one of the legs on his Ron Hills clipped into his runner when leading the top pitch of Mulatto wall. He managed to rip the loop off and finish the route otherwise it might have been embarrassing/nasty.

 bouldery bits 04 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

Managed to get my heel caught in the gear loop on my harness somehow once.

OP McHeath 04 Dec 2019
In reply to Removed User:

That's brilliant!

 bouldery bits 04 Dec 2019
In reply to Removed User:

> A pal of mine managed to get the heel loop on the bottom of one of the legs on his Ron Hills clipped into his runner when leading the top pitch of Mulatto wall. He managed to rip the loop off and finish the route otherwise it might have been embarrassing/nasty.

Crikey! That's terrifying. 

 pass and peak 04 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

Those annoying middle finger loops on winter climbing gloves have a habit of doing this, who designed these things?? I Cut them off now!

1
 TobyA 04 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

In the dark, on Monolith Grooves (IV 5) a long time a go. In a chimney, in an Egyptian type position I got the heel point of my crampon hooked in a hex handing off my harness gear loop. Total panic and in the days before leashless, a complete faff to get out of wrist loop, reach down, free it, so I could make my next moves up!

I remember nutkeys hooking Ron Hill stirrups was a standard thing in the 90s!

 gethin_allen 04 Dec 2019
In reply to Removed User:

I knew there was a good reason not to wear ronhills

1
 JimR 04 Dec 2019
In reply to gethin_allen:

I cut the loops off, 

Removed User 04 Dec 2019
In reply to JimR:

We did too after that.

In reply to bouldery bits:

> Crikey! That's terrifying.

Wearing Ron Hills? Certainly is...

1
 Dan Arkle 05 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

A friend of a friend got his nut key on his harness caught in his shoe heel loop at the top of a trad climb. He fell over, off the cliff and died. 

Overall, I thought that the loop wasn't the problem. Moving unroped, or without enough care was the bigger issue. Very unlucky. 

2
 tehmarks 05 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

I watched a friend velcro his foot to the sling on his last runner on Chequers Buttress last year. Very funny after the fact. At the time we were a bit concerned he would pull the runner out and subsequently deck.

I once managed to get my crampon front points hooked through the keeper loop of my belay device in the back of my harness on the Midi arete. Faceplanted in the snow straight ahead, very mindful of the yawning abyss to the left. I have no idea to this day how it happened, but suffice to say my belay device lives elsewhere now when crampons are worn.

 rgold 05 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

High-stepping on a 5.10 slab, a cam hooked under my pant cuff.  I didn't realize it until I tried to stand up and found myself trapped in a crouch with no handholds.  Tried to wiggle out, which was successful---a mere a 20 foot fall and the cam was no longer hooked.  Fortunately, things went better on the second try.

 Hat Dude 05 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

I once had a heel loop snag between a runner's bottom krab and the rope, fortunately I had another runner a bit above it which stopped me completely inverting

 Elsier 05 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

Yes I managed to get the heel loops caught in a quick draw whilst heel hooking on the roof section of the comp wall at ratho (quite a long horizontal section of wall) a few years ago. I was already quite pumped, but after panicking for a few seconds I managed to unclip the loop out of the quick draw. I cut the loops on my shoes for a while after that, but eventually stopped bothering, I think it was a fairly rare incident, and hopefully won't happen again! 

cb294 05 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

Pulling into an overhang above a ledge, I managed to catch the rope coming from below with a panic draw at the back of my harness. No way back, so I had to pull through against the pulley amplified rope drag.

CB

 nniff 05 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

I was climbing Comb Gully - nice conditions.  Both feet up and tried to stand up, which was disconcertingly hard.  Taking an axe out to move out also not possible.  Crouched back down again, no problem.  Stand up - disconcertingly hard.  And repeat.  After which the penny dropped that the gully wall was just behind me and a loop of elastic crampon-holding thingy on the back of my rucksack was caught under a downward pointing spike.  A bit of a tussle and normal service was resumed.  Don't use those elastic thingies any more

 GarethSL 05 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

In a similar situation to Toby, one of my alpine quickdraws hooked itself onto a crampon spike when I was keeling down doing up a boot. Cue a hilarious scene of hopping theatrics when trying to stand up afterwards.

Fortunately this was on relatively level ground but to have done such a thing at any kind of exposed position would have been considerably less funny!

ElArt 05 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

The cord loop on the belay plate caught on my finger as I was throwing it to my brother Jay at the top of Shivers Arete in Wilton 3(?). 

I was throwing it as hard as I could. No really hard!

I looked around quickly knowing I had no idea where it went when a belayer on Central Crack said “ow, who threw that”.

Luckily it bounced off a wall first. I apologised and ran it up to Jay. 

Sorry again (circa summer ‘87). 
 

Billy

 Dell 06 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

Have also had the nut key catch on the loop, trying to stand up from a crouchy move on willo the wisp, very disconcerting at the time. 

 johnmctighe 06 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

First time Scottish winter climbing. I was just after being dragged up Peter Pan on Ben udlaidh by a guide. I made very sloppy coils of the rope and slung it over my back. As we were descending I managed to hook my rear crampon points on one of the sloppy coils. 
Cue face plant into the snow and rapid descent face first down the slope towards the looming cliff face. At least I got to test my self arrest technique. The look on the guide’s face was pretty funny as I whooshed past him. 

 PaulJepson 06 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

Once when lowering, the rope managed to clip itself into the krab that attached my chalk bag to the back of my harness. I couldn't figure out for ages why I was being pulled away from the wall. 

 Dave Hewitt 07 Dec 2019
In reply to JimR:

> I cut the loops off, 

Snagging a foot (or, worse, a crampon) in the heel loop on a pair of Ronhills seems to be quite a common problem - it's also a summer issue if you wear studded things such as Mudclaws. I too cut off the loops (wear one pair in summer, two in winter) and I know of other people who do the same.

Potentially the worst crampon-snagging moment I've had came years ago on thankfully quite a flat bit of Stob Binnein. Managed to impale the rubberised shaft grip of a walking axe with a front point in a way that I don't think I could easily do again if I tried. Did this mid-stride and suddenly found myself hopping around on the other leg for a few seconds wondering what on earth had happened. The axe is still in use and has had duct tape covering the flappy bit of rubber from that day to this.

More seriously, I've seen someone catch a crampon on a stock fence while semi-vaulting it in a jaunty fashion. That resulted in red snow.

 johncook 07 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

Whilst on the hanging belay of a steep multi-pitch, my partner, at the limit of her ability shot past me. As she past me her nut key hooked into my nostril. Amidst cries of 'slack' 'don't move' 'reverse' 'come down' etc etc She finally realised that I was not short roping her, and was having difficulty shouting stop due to one nostril now being very much longer than the other. Fortunately no permanent damage was done (I must have a long flexible nose?) Made a good pub discussion point!

1
 Niall_H 07 Dec 2019
In reply to McHeath:

Mine was catching my nut-key (attached to my harness) on one of my crampons, whist kneeling down  to sort the ropes at a belay.  Because, of course, I clip my nut-key at the back of my harness, unengangling this mess - nut-keys, by their nature, being good at hooking onto things - took place with my hands behind my back. trying not to fall off an ice ledge.  After that, I remembered to clear the unnecessary stuff off my harness!

 Donotello 07 Dec 2019

I was belaying my friend, and another friend was climbing a sport route next to him in Avon Gorge. As my guy fell off a move one of the draws on his harness clipped onto the harness of the other guy as he fell past him and they were stuck together hanging off their last clips. Funny scenes. 

GoneFishing111 11 Dec 2019
In reply to johncook:

Now that is hilarious!


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