So they say necessity is the mother of all inventions. Well, necessity drove me to pursue an idea.
I have found I prefer to use the thigh band. It makes me more stable as I move up the foot tether which enables me to relax. However I don’t like walking in with it on. For clarification I’m using the 2TC set from CGM (the new one with essentially 2 foot tethers). I’ve been toying with a way to modify the thigh loop so I can take it on and off easily at the base of the tree. Well, I went out Thursday and did some more practicing and since them I have apparently lost the thigh loop. As I was looking for it I happened to stumble across my backband, one I had bought a few years ago from a small maker, Bravo Company. That got the wheels to turning.
This back band works well other than it will sort of collapse on itself because of the design so I had previously added the three pieces of green stiff webbing to keep it open. They worked well. They also will hold a 1” webbing strap through them. I can then take and put this back band around my thigh inside/out and fasten that 1” web strap around my thigh to keep it in place while I climb. That puts the long running piece of webbing that would run through the bridge carabiner looped back behind my thigh and out of the way. I then just clipped into the loops each end of the actual back band and viola, dual purpose back band and thigh loop.
here’s a shot of it on my thigh and clipped into a daisy chain as a simulation.
The weight is not too bad either at 9.2 oz plus whatever carabiner and prussik I use. And it’s pretty small.
So now to get with Jerry and see if he has any better ideas to modify one of his back bands towards this purpose. His have the main support webbing running through the center so they should be more comfortable as a back band anyway.
I know this would not be life-supporting but I’m already securely tethered in to my saddle anyway, this just needs to support the weight of my leg.
Helped me to drop one piece of gear this way.