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10b4me
Trad climber
Hell A
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May 17, 2007 - 11:51pm PT
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Thanks for the update Tom. Hope the guy has a good recovery.
A big shoutout to YOSAR once again.
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T2
climber
Cardiff by the sea
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May 18, 2007 - 12:02am PT
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Tom I am really enjoying your El Cap reports.
I hope the fallen climber recovers to climb another day.
Thanks
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WBraun
climber
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May 18, 2007 - 12:36am PT
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150 footer head first all the way. Femur bone stickin out. Smashed his helmet in half, etc etc. ....
It was gruesome, how he lived is a miracle and some bad ass flying by California's finest, the CHP. Without them it would have been the usual cave man style rescue.
Props go to Keith and Jack, for their heroic effort in those scary winds and chopper blades too close to the wall for comfort.
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john hansen
climber
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May 18, 2007 - 12:55am PT
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WB,, I take it this guy was not leading,, How can you fall 150 feet? Some kind of error at the belay, or hauling ,or something besides a leader fall I would think?
Maybe thought he was tied in short and leaned back? Only takes one time... great work by YOSAR and the helicoptor boys.
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WBraun
climber
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May 18, 2007 - 12:56am PT
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He was leading leap frogging pieces. One ripped out and then ......
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healyje
Trad climber
Portland, Oregon
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May 18, 2007 - 12:58am PT
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"the usual cave man style rescue."
Little windows like this is what I love about ST...
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Fluoride
Trad climber
Hollywood, CA
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May 18, 2007 - 12:59am PT
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Damn Tom, what a day! That must have been pretty compelling to watch unfold. Glad to hear the guy is going to be okay.
Also glad to hear a proud sista of Team FISH is up there sending. Go Kate!!
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Matt
Trad climber
places you shouldn't talk about in polite company
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May 18, 2007 - 01:11am PT
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pretty good time to have some guy w/ a big zoom lens (and a cel phone) in the meadow!
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nick d
Trad climber
nm
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May 18, 2007 - 01:12am PT
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So, was he leapfrogging the pieces after the pendulum in order to keep his buddy safe when he followed? I am thinking that since he blasted onto the ledge that he was trying to safeguard his buddy and got carried away, both figuratively and literally. I hope he can make a good recovery.
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Karl Baba
Trad climber
Yosemite, Ca
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May 18, 2007 - 01:14am PT
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Thanks and Respect to the whole rescue crew. Can't be easy to be going about your day one minute and then dangling out of a chopper a wind gust away from disaster a hour or two later.
I usually fully back clean that corner after the king swing to avoid rope drap and make it easy for my partner. Maybe I'll have to consider a new strategy
peace
Karl
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Matt
Trad climber
places you shouldn't talk about in polite company
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May 18, 2007 - 01:20am PT
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any pics?
of, um, el cap...?
(today?)
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nick d
Trad climber
nm
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May 18, 2007 - 01:28am PT
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Karl, why not leave a little more gear to safeguard yourself and trail another rope for the second to come across on? Just curious if there is something wrong with this idea, cause I don't want this to happen to me. You could really runner a couple of pieces down a little lower in the pitch, probably not generate too much extra drag. Thoughts?
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Clint Cummins
Trad climber
SF Bay area, CA
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May 18, 2007 - 02:03am PT
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Wow, lucky to have survived that fall and also very fortunate to get plucked off by air before losing too much blood. [Nice job, Tom, on calling it in - fortunate for them that you were watching.]
Backcleaning is recommended on some topos for the crack going up after the King Swing pendulum pitch, but it is possible to leave a couple of pieces clipped. It does not really change the way the pitch is followed, assuming you stop at the belay level with the top of Boot Flake. If you are going for speed, I guess you backclean fully and belay higher, so your partner can swing over instead of lowering down by much?
The way I usually follow the King Swing is to tie the bag in short, haul/lower it across, then the leader unties the bag from the haul line. I pull the extra haul line rope back across and thread it through the chain at Boot. Then I rap on it, with my jugs on the lead line. There is enough to get me all the way over below the leader. Then I let go of the haul line and the leader pulls it back through the chain and over to the belay.
You can backclean fully but more safely (and somewhat slowly) if you work with 3 pieces clipped instead of 2. I.e. place the 3rd and clip it, then self-lower down slightly to clean the first. That way there are always 2 pieces in the rock. So the one you are on could blow and the next one could still stop you. I like this better than leaving one piece in halfway up a section and working with only 2 pieces that fit. On this particular pitch, many pieces fit. So I am thinking more of backcleaning with 3 pieces for 3.5" cracks like the last pitch of Stovelegs, the pitch above Peanut Ledge on Zodiac, and pitch 8? of Lurking Fear. [also that long arch pitch on Hockey Night]
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crusher
climber
Santa Monica, CA
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May 18, 2007 - 02:12am PT
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Tom,
Thanks for the reporting and thank goodness for such a great rescue crew. Hope that guy is going to be ok...
By the way, that's Mo up there with Eric. Glad to hear everyone else is safe and sound - please post up if you've got some climbing pics!
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Lambone
Ice climber
Ashland, Or
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May 18, 2007 - 02:15am PT
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YIKES! Holy cow...one moment it's business as usual on El Cap, the next someone is on a ledge dying. Makes me feel very fortunate that wasn't me, as we all know it could easily be any of us up there...
Mad props to the rescuers, and his partners for keeping him alive. True heros!
So I asume this was the leader of the Boot Flake pitch, backcleaning up to the belay level with the boot? Or above?
Last week on the NA my partner was using Clint's 3 piece backcleaning tecnique, allways moving up the third piece up for pro. I criticized him for being slow and overly cautious...now I realize that I'm the one who should just s_t_f_u_ .
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Karl Baba
Trad climber
Yosemite, Ca
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May 18, 2007 - 03:16am PT
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I'm pretty much with Clint regarding the leading methods and following methods. The pitch is pretty bomber if you're careful (to have a minimum of two pieces clipped at a time.
I guess we'll have to wait to see what really happened.
When you start climbing after the swing, the consequences of a fall aren't so great cause you have a more or less top rope. Even a bit up, it's hard to imagine smashing your helmet or falling 150 feet and breaking your femur. Let's get the whole story.
Peace
karl
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BASE104
climber
An Oil Field
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May 18, 2007 - 08:41am PT
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Whoa. I am not worrying so much as how he got hurt...I have leapfrogged gear like crazy, like most people. I am amazed that they got him out of there so fast. Those blades have to be so close to the wall. If he fell from the pitch after the King Swing above eagle ledge, which for the Nose is probably the crappiest rock on the route.
Did they shoot a line to his partner WB?
Whatever, it sounds like a hell of a piece of work, and heads up to Tom. Sounds like he would have been toast if everyone hadn't been on the ball.
I knew a guy who compounded both femurs jumping a building and having a malfunction. The scars looked like he was bitten by a great white..but that ain't half way up El Cap.
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Peter Haan
Trad climber
San Francisco, CA
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May 18, 2007 - 09:40am PT
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Amazing rescue that sounds storybook ideal and fantastic. This is how non-climbers always thought our rescues were done! Instead of the usual “caveman” style WB refers to, that we have always had to employ.
BTW, a high percentage of femur breaks do involve severing the femoral artery. It is massive and one of the most dangerous vessels to damage. These guys surely went through some very horrible hours of terror, agony and regret...Gee. But as everyone is saying, they were awfully awfully lucky, too. Are their names known?
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yo
climber
The Eye of the Snail
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May 18, 2007 - 10:14am PT
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Crikey. Get well, dude.
So did he swing over and backclean up? Or were they both on Eagle and he came straight down?
I wouldn't mind some Ansel Evans-style rescue photos either, if that's cool.
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nature
climber
Flagstaff, AZ
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May 18, 2007 - 11:38am PT
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Wow, crazy rescue story. I'm glad that guy is going to be OK.
Radical (Riley) is probably one of the parties on the lower pitches of Zodiac.
I sent him a sushi flag and some cookies to general delivery in the valley. I hope he got it. Tom, any chance you saw him flying the black flag with the fish on it? if you do please let me know, ehh?
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