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Belaying has been around as long as ropes
have been used, albeit in a different form to the modern systems.
It seems ludicrous the way the pioneers climbed. They simply tied
some rope round their waist and simple hooked it over nodules in
the rock as protection. Belays consisted of a ledge, or crack
that allowed the belayer to relax without holding onto the rock.
They did not use any form of gear to link them with the rock. I
have evidence of this lunacy in an ancient climbing guide to
Buchille Etive Mor. If a climber fell off, unless the belay was
unusually sound, both of them would hurtle downwards. This was
often avoided by the easy angle of the climbs, allowing the
leader to catch himself. The actual method of belaying was either
a waist belay or shoulder belay. Both being painful, but the
shoulder belay is potentially harmful. On southern sandstone
crags not much has changed for some. A few people climb with a
rope loosely tied round the waist, and using a waist belay.
I think that the waist belay is still a
useful technique to have. To waist belay you hold the live rope
in your weaker hand, and pass the dead end round your waist. Wrap
your stronger arm round the rope once or twice. To lock off you
simple bring your stronger arm across your body, thus increasing
friction. I suggest a thick jumper is worn to reduce the pressure
from the rope.
The direct belay has always been used, and
will probably continue to be used. It is simply when the rope is
wrapped round a block or spike, and the friction is generated by
the rope rubbing on the rock. The major consideration is that the
block is solid, also that the rope will not flick out if the
direction of pull changes. I find this technique particularly
useful in long easy climbs, when there are a lot of pitches to
cover and time is of the essence. This technique allows you to
move a lot quicker than if belays were set up at every stop.
Italian
Hitch
The Italian Hitch was the first proper
device used for belaying. It is a personal favourite, that I use
quite often. It is especially useful as a direct belay system,
when it is tied directly to an anchor. This is good as it allows
all the force of a fall, to be transferred direct to the anchors.
The knot works well as it is locked off in front of the knot, not
behind. This makes a less jumbled belay. The hitch has to be used
with an HMS krab so the knot can rotate freely. The HMS krab was
designed for the knot and stands for Halb Mastwurf Sicherung,
which roughly translates as half securing knot. One problem with
the knot is that it has a tendency to twist and kink the rope.
Also it generates friction by rubbing the rope against itself.
Which could ware the rope out, but I have had no such problem.
Camp Sticht Plate : 64g, 9-11mm (Below left)
Salewa invented the principles behind most
modern day belay devices in the early 70's, with the original
sticht plate. This had a tendency to jam, so a spring was added,
thus relieving the problem. The sticht plate is still very good,
but there are more refined devices around. Although I find it a
useful piece of kit, as it works well and is fairly cheap. The
only slight problem comes when the device is used as a descender,
as there is not much metal, it gets quite hot. Actually it gets
too hot to hold, if you descend quickly.
Camp Tuber : 50g, 9-11mm
(Above
Right)
(Equipment Problems)
This was the first device to appear that
did not use the plate design, although the actual process was the
same. It is an offset tube with a bar across its middle, thus
coping for twin ropes. Also the sides are ribbed, which help
dissipate heat very well. I find is a very good device, as it
seems to have a lot of holding power. Recently I have lost a
little faith in the device. This is due to the design of the
centre bar. The bar is hollow so the device can be threaded and
tied to the krab, thus stopping the device moving up the rope. As
the device gets used more, grooves are worn into the bar, when
these ware through, razor sharp edges appear which can cut the
rope in an instance. But it does take a long time for this sort
of thing to happen. Also a HMS krab should be used, as it does
not disappear up into the device, so maximum friction is
generated.
| DMM Bug :58g, 9-11mm I used to own one of these but Alan accidentally
dropped it off Middle Fell Buttress in Langdale, when I
was first showing him how to lead. The bug now seems to
be his favourite device. I find it to be very smooth and
locks very nicely. It is essentially an extruded sticht
plate. The spring is simply replaced with a solid tube
that keeps the krab away from the slots. But similarly to
the Tuber, a HMS krab works best.
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| Wild Country Variable
Controller : 63g,
8-11mm This is very similar
to the sticht plate, minus the spring. The main
difference being that the cross section is a wedge shape.
This makes an enormous difference and provides a very
smooth operation. The orientation of the device varies
the amount of friction and holding power. I think it
works very well, but there is not really anything
outstanding about it. The Bug seems to be that little bit
smoother, maybe a little bit too smooth.
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Clog Figure Of
Eight :
80g, 9-11mm
(Equipment Problems)
This was the original device designer
solely for abseiling. It works exceptionally well as a
descender, but also can be used as a belay device. Abseiling on
double ropes is fine but belaying double ropes is almost
impossible. This is because it is very hard to take in one rope
at a time. Some people find it belays a single rope best by using
the krab hole as a typical plate. There is enough metal to
dissipate the heat from a long fast abseil. But buying a device
specifically for abseiling is a bit extravagant, as most belay
plates will work almost as well.
DMM Cardiac
Arrester :
100g, 8.2-12mm
Basically the same as the figure of eight,
except a slightly tweaked shape. The krab hole has been stretched
to work better as a belay device. Also the main hole has been
bent, to reduce the chance of larks footing the device. This is
when the rope round the neck flicks up and locks the device
solid. There is not quite enough room to use double ropes easily.
But it does work very well with a single rope. Due to the
limitations I see no reason for this device as a sticht plate
design does it all, and more.
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