Dyneema/Spectra... do NOT girth hitch!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qgygg8pzGI
SIET's video - note the Dyneema/Spectra sling girth hitched at the tie-in points!

Technical note:
A Dyneema/Spectra sling loses 50% of its strength when girth hitched!

http://www.alpinist.com/doc/ALP18/newswire-dyneema-broken-sling-report
http://blog.weighmyrack.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Mammut-Girth-Hitch-Report.pdf
https://rockandice.com/climb-safe/climb-safe-spectra-versus-nylon/
https://www.theclimbingguy.com/girth-hitch-a-sling-to-your-harness/
https://www.blackdiamondequipment.com/en_US/qc-lab-connecting-two-slings-together.html

Belay Loop Myths

There was once I was with a climbing guide, and he expressed some distrust in the patented Climbing Technology Multi Chain personal tether I was using. And that's while following the unique hitch that Climbing Technology advises using - because a girth hitch will cause Dyneema/Spectra to lose 50% of its strength!

"That basket hitch is going to wear your harness away," he said. "All the rubbing will wear away at your tie-in points."

"You're referring to Todd Skinner's death?" Apparently I had nailed it - although I might not be seen anytime soon as a climbing instructor, I was reading a bit too much perhaps due to my kiasee nature. Most recreational climbers have never heard of the incident, much less Todd Skinner's name.

After I got back to Singapore, I followed up and did copious amounts of reading if I could search for it.
Oct 29 2006 - https://www.snewsnet.com/news/remembering-todd-skinner-tragic-end-to-a-brilliant-life
15 Sep 2007 - http://www.jhnewsandguide.com/news/top_stories/no-contamination-on-skinner-s-harness/article_063110b5-d64b-5fd3-93af-74ada3319875.html

So it seems that Todd Skinner was using the Arc'teryx Targa harness - hey, it's an Arc'teryx that got him killed! Not the brand that killed him, it was his assumption that he'd be fine for one more climb... until it indeed was the last.

Some other links that also carried the same related news - I guess this is a compilation of stuff that most people wouldn't bother to read...

Jan 2016 - https://rockandice.com/climbing-gear-tips/belay-loop-myth/
11 May 2016 - https://mojagear.com/learn/2016/05/11/shouldnt-use-daisy-chain-personal-anchor/
7 Sep 2016 - http://www.blackdiamondequipment.com/en/experience-story?cid=qc-lab-strength-of-worn-belay-loops
11 Oct 2016 - https://rockandice.com/master-class-climbing-tips/ask-the-master-personal-anchors/
Feb 2017 - http://rockandice.com/climbing-gear-tips/whats-the-correct-way-to-girth-hitch-to-your-harness/
Nov 2017 - https://rockandice.com/demo/gear-guy/can-i-make-a-belay-loop-2/
14 Dec 2017 - https://www.blackdiamondequipment.com/en/experience-story?cid=qc-lab-personal-anchor-systems-explained

20 May 2018 - https://www.theclimbingguy.com/girth-hitch-a-sling-to-your-harness/

"Also, if you were to girth your tether to your belay loop, then really what you’ve done is limited its ability to rotate. This can result in excessive wear on the underside of the belay loop which is not easily visible. In the worst case, this could lead to an accident similar to what tragically happened to Todd Skinner many years ago when he had a daisy chain semi-permanently girth hitched to his belay loop which eventually wore through." - Kolin Powick, Black DiamondHave you gotten your reassurance yet? The forces required to break a belay loop is going to get us really injured or even dead - before it breaks.

Summary:
- NEVER use a daisy chain for personal tethering. That's for aid climbing.
- As far as possible - NEVER fall on your personal tether. It's not exactly dynamic enough...
- Use a quickdraw to link up one of the loops of your personal tether to the second bolt for redundancy.
- PAS is a trademark of Metolius. Call them "personal tether" to be brand-neutral.
- Dyneema/Spectra tethers are possibly more resistant to abrasion. But the material does NOT absorb shock like nylon.
- A girth hitch will cause Dyneema/Spectra to lose 50% of its strength, and expose one to high risk!
- Nylon personal tethers are made by Sterling Rope (Chain Reactor), I'm not sure which other brands make them in nylon.
- Always girth hitch your personal tether as soft goods (rope etc) around the tie-in points, NOT the belay loop!
- Belay loops - keep all your metal hardware here; the tie-in points are used only for soft goods (rope, slings, personal tethers etc)

SNCS L3/Multipitching All-Star Wishlist?

Over the last year and half I've been seeing via Facebook that an increasing number of friends have attended the SNCS L3 course with various course providers... and I have questions to be answered and wishlists to be fulfilled...

- Guide/Plaquette mode belaying becoming the new norm for multipitching

- lowering the follower while using Guide/Plaquette belay mode.

- clarification that the old practice of having multiple chained quickdraws is NOT the way to use as a backup personal tether

- more effort put into building anchors - especially Quad - although it is NOT infallible.

- clarifying how the counterbalance rappel can be done with a much heavier and/or unconscious casualty (since things tend to go wrong when outdoors, never during course-time)

- basics of hauling water and other gear up (this would probably take too much time and kill all surviving brain cells in the average candidate taking SNCS L3 though...)

- knowing that receiving that SNCS L3 card is only the START of endless learning... and forever striving to learn more

I've purchased/borrowed some of these books to learn more before I actually went outdoors...

Climbing Anchors 3rd Edition

- by John Long with Bob Gaines

- one of the earlier books to introduce the Quad anchor, as well as tests done with Sterling Rope's input/labs.

Climbing Self Rescue - Improvising Solutions for Serious Situations

- by Molly Loomis and Andy Tyson

- filled to the brim with techniques to get out of hell... although some I don't think I'll ever use at all. Also has many scenarios to test our thinking/comprehension.

Accidents in North American Climbing

- by American Alpine Club

- learn about what screwed up in various scenarios involving different SAR teams "out there"

I must note that the last title, Accidents in North American Climbing, is a rarely a hot read for most climbers... is it due to the fact that no one ever believes "an accident could happen to me"? I do admit that I am learning more about what to do IF things go wrong, but don't believe it would happen to myself anytime soon. This awareness that it could happen to us is probably the most important attitude to have when running through the scenarios, although fun is just as important!

Great references to read through as well...

Multipitchclimbing.com - A free resource of advanced climbing techniques - spreading good practice - exposing myths - opening minds

- by David Coley and Andy Kirkpatrick

Confessions of an Accidental Climber, Instructor

- by Adrian See

Rock Climbing Anchors - A Comprehensive Guide

- by Craig Luebben

Desired Attitudes of Candidates taking SNCS and SNAS L1, L2, L3

I am making my personal stand in this post while I am NOT an instructor licensed by any climbing association... so take it with a big pinch of salt.

I've started sport climbing in March 2015, and I've been reading fairly voraciously for a non-instructor... have been observing safety lapses and such... which leads me to pen down a fantasy creed that all newbies and old birds should adhere by...

I affirm that:

- upon attaining the course certificate/card, I will always endeavour to keep on striving to be the safest possible belayer and climber, for no one card will mean I am infallible.

- I will always strive to read up more, watch more and learn more techniques in rescue as well as self-rescue, for shit could always happen, just that no one knows when it would happen.

- I will learn from best practices of major associations (IFMGA, AMGA, ACMG etc) and apply where applicable their best practices in climbing, wherever I may climb, and always aim to improve my technical skill set.

- I will not assume that whatever practices I've learnt in the courses means I will not screw up when I use them in real life.

I cannot remember where I came across this line in one way or another - it's not about being able to fly the plane that's the most important.... but being able to make the best decisions given the situation when things DO go wrong... think of the emergency landing on the Hudson River in 2009...

So please DO take rescue and self-rescue very seriously.