Discussion Topic |
|
This thread has been locked |
| Messages 1 - 4 of total 4 in this topic |
john hansen
climber
|
|
|
Topic Author's Original Post - Jul 24, 2008 - 01:20am PT
|
In the old days they used to pull up tension on the rope to hold you in place.
I remember aid climbing with a short piece of webbing with a carbiner.
How did the fifi hook evolve? and who used this concept first?
|
|
Tom
Big Wall climber
San Luis Obispo CA
|
|
|
Jul 24, 2008 - 01:48am PT
|
Gaston Rebuffat, in his seminal On Ice and Snow and Rock, showed the use of the fifi hook for aid climbing.
Gaston Rébuffat (7 May 1921, Marseille – 31 May 1985, Paris) was a well-known French alpinist and mountain guide. The climbing technique, to gaston, was named after him. He was a recipient of France's prestigious Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur in 1984.
Wikipedia says this: On Ice and Snow and Rock Nicholas Kaye Ltd 1963 translated from the 1959 French Edition published by EGI.
I'm pretty durn sure that my copy of his book (in storage) presents at least one photo, depicting the use of the fifi hook for upward progress.
That said, there is still the issue of the top-stepping technique, wherein the leader stands and Gerb-UMPHS (my word) against the fifi clipped to the belt/harness, which is pulled down against the feet in stirrups, creating a tetrahedral tension truss to create a stable platform for further progress; the fifi is loaded in the downward direction, since the piece is, ideally, below the level of the belt. The aiders and fifi loop provide three sides of the tetrahedron; the leader's legs (with toe-friction and muscle control) provide the remaining triangle to ensure a stable truss, way out there, in space.
The first time I saw that technique was on the LA Direct, the bathook headwall above the Second Error. I knew, right then, that there were things going on that I didn't know, but I had to learn, by watching. Gerb umphed and stood tall, and went right up that steep headwall.
EDIT: the Kong adjustable fifi allows you to pull in the cord, and tighten up the setup, sorta like a sailor trimming the sheet. You will want that fifi to be tied in as low as possible (i.e. leg loop, and not waist loop) to ensure you can stand, on the fifi, as high as possible. The adjustable Kong fifi then allows you to hump - quick - the rock and pull in a valuable length of cord to shorten that leg of the tetrahedron. When you then gerb-umph (e.g. make the move from hanging to standing), the tension in the structural system is created, you'll be standing tall, and your sense of balance is the only wildcard issue.
Edit++: the Gerb-Oomph tetrahedral top-step move causes a strong outward pull on the piece, something to be considered, especially with "fixed" gear, "fixed" meaning, for the most part, a dream world that may or may not correspond with reality.
I've seen/experienced it:
Suddenly unfixing a bad/rotten fixed piece, while standing tall on the Gerb Umph, and zippering until a rubbery stop at the end of a good rope, and not the worst way to experience an ascent of El Capitan.
|
|
Toker Villain
Big Wall climber
Toquerville, Utah
|
|
|
Jul 24, 2008 - 02:04am PT
|
I believe they were touted for obviating etrier recovery.
Get my video, Clean Walls, no truss needed to step high.
|
|
Tom
Big Wall climber
San Luis Obispo CA
|
|
|
Jul 24, 2008 - 03:32am PT
|
The Fifi hook, with a cord to pull it up, was, indeed the original use of the implement. After making an aid move, the leader could move up to a good spot, and then use a string to pull an etrier free of the carabiner, and bring it up to where he could use it later.
Some Fifi hooks still have a small hole, near the top, for that purpose.
But, the real, modern fifi technology, is to enable a rare master, an athlete, to fifi-cord pull tight and stand tall. He will set a piece, adjust his fifi, and then gerb-oomph above his piece, a move that sets him apart. It's a wild, rare move, a dicey piece of rockwork, cinch and all, that has the belayer praying that he succeeds.
|
|
| Messages 1 - 4 of total 4 in this topic |
|
SuperTopo on the Web
|
Let us know!