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GriGri+ mishap….Viewer discretion advised

Quite a few people have noted before that the grigri+ can slip down the rope when it goes slack. I never really experienced it until last weekend. I was climbing and leaning back into my linemans but noticed the saddle wasn’t catching my weight. I saw the GriGri had slipped down the rope 6-8 inches (had my linesman on so not a problem). The only time my GriGri+ has slack is when one stick climbing, but I have my linemans rope on when climbing (something I think everyone 1-sticking should do). Before I take off my linesman rope I sit into my saddle to make sure the device is engaged. The other time slack is introduced is when i stand up on my platform to adjust my tether or something. But once I get to hunting height I backup my device so slack has never been an issue for me.

I usually always pull the slack out before I lean back into my saddle and take the weight off my linemans so it’s probably happened before but never really noticed it.
 
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25ftup said:
The only time my GriGri+ has slack is when one stick climbing, but I have my linemans rope on when climbing (something I think everyone 1-sticking should do). Before I take off my linesman rope I sit into my saddle to make sure the device is engaged.
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I waffle on this - will a linesman really catch you if you fall? I have gone to using a second tether instead. But I’ve wondered about this. A linesman is slightly easier than second tether. Also one-sticking.
 
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mschultz373 said:
I waffle on this - will a linesman really catch you if you fall? I have gone to using a second tether instead. But I’ve wondered about this. A linesman is slightly easier than second tether. Also one-sticking.
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Slams you into the tree if used properly preventing you from falling, is what I hear. Haven’t had to find out yet and would prefer to keep it that way lol

Was more or less saying in that scenario that: I lean into my saddle while letting rope out of my linesman rope. When my GriGri slipped down I noticed my saddle was never getting tension but my linesman rope was tight the entire time so it was not an issue. Just tightened my linesman rope back up, pulled slack out of GriGri and repeated the process.
 
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I am imagining a scenario where stick falls/fails… and I see myself falling down the tree with my linesman looped around the trunk!

I do use a harken cam cleat on my stick, which I imagine is unlikely to fail.
 
mschultz373 said:
I am imagining a scenario where stick falls/fails… and I see myself falling down the tree with my linesman looped around the trunk!

I do use a harken cam cleat on my stick, which I imagine is unlikely to fail.
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I assume that is going to be the first thing that will fail on me. Unless I didn’t catch your sarcasm
 
I remember the first time I leaned back in my saddle, realized I had too much slack, and tried to grab my rope to slow me down but grabbed my prussik know instead. The tighter I squeezed it the faster I went to the ground. Luckily I was only a couple feet up practicing and the rope burn to my hand was the worst of it. Anytime you change something using it at ground level and running it through every scenario you can imagine is a good idea.
 
EricS said:
I remember the first time I leaned back in my saddle, realized I had too much slack, and tried to grab my rope to slow me down but grabbed my prussik know instead. The tighter I squeezed it the faster I went to the ground. Luckily I was only a couple feet up practicing and the rope burn to my hand was the worst of it. Anytime you change something using it at ground level and running it through every scenario you can imagine is a good idea.
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That phenomenon is sometimes called a Suislide. It's also a nickname for the Tautline hitch. When we are falling and shouldn't be, our brain tells us to hold on.... but if we have our hand on a friction hitch, we're just going to fall faster. And it happens in a split second.

To the earlier question about a Lineman's belt and whether it will stop a fall, the answer is maybe, and that's not good enough. If anyone disagrees, then show me a video where anyone is at hunting height with only a LB and they step off their stick or platform a dozen times in different directions. Sound crazy? Cuz it is. I created a playlist dedicated to safety and that point is discussed in both the 10 Rules and the 10 Misconceptions.


JrbTreeClimbing.com, affiliated with RockNArbor.com
 
Our brains tell us to do the wrong thing often. The way to get a linesman belt to grab the tree and stop a fall it to lean back and away from the tree. It’s not full proof but much more likely to grab than trying to lean forward and grab at the tree.
 
I guess I think through it this way:

- what is likelihood that stick fails?
- how much slack is on main tether line, and how likely is it to fail if your stick fails? Or the likelihood you won’t sustain serious injury if you fall here.
- in the event that you are free-falling until your tether slack is taut, would you trust a linesman to slow/stop your fall?
 
SNIPERBBB said:
Cant put slack on grigri or madrocks without having em backed up. They will slip down the rope till you get weight on them again
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I have used both and have had the GriGri slip, not a lot, but 4-5 inches, enough for a scare. Never hade a Madrock slip in over 100 climbs.
 
Yeah can confirm the madrock does not slip even if slacked. Only way it moves is if brake lever is activated
 
elk yinzer said:
This is good one to help understand how these devices work.

It's frustrating that every time a discussion on mechanical devices comes up a certain crowd has to weigh in on friction hitches as if they have no downsides. Apples to apples, I don't believe friction hitches are inherently superior in any way, actually I believe them inferior, but on the orange side, I do acknowledge they generally require the end user to somewhat more deeply understand how and why they work, which is more than can be said of mechanical devices. The plug-and-play nature of mechanicals leads to most of the problems I see, nothing inherent in the device itself.
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Thanks for posting this! I love this guys videos and just got a grigri+. Just playing with it I had it slipping and was like what the hades!?! I understand the device so much better now so THANK YOU!
. I keep a hitch below my ATC and will do the same with this. I don’t understand putting it above a device. When you do, it is the holding mechanism. If it’s below, it’s the brake hand and making the device do what it’s supposed to.
 
EricS said:
Our brains tell us to do the wrong thing often. The way to get a linesman belt to grab the tree and stop a fall it to lean back and away from the tree. It’s not full proof but much more likely to grab than trying to lean forward and grab at the tree.
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If you lean forward to grab the tree, your belt might fall to your feet…..good point! lean back!
 
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