Rappelling
Abseiling is the process of descending a person from a mountain, rock or other hill with the help of a rope. Abseiling is required in sports for climbing , canyoning and caving , for certain professions (for example for assembly work on masts or for rescue and recovery) or in the military sector.
The Swiss mountain guide Alois Pollinger is the inventor of the modern abseiling technique with double rope. On a larger tour, Pollinger successfully used this technique for the first time on August 25 and 26, 1884, when descending the steep west ridge of the Dent Blanche ( 4,357 m above sea level ).
Over the decades, various abseiling techniques have been developed in mountaineering and climbing. At first, the rope was wrapped around the body in various forms, and since the 1970s, specially developed devices and snap hooks have increasingly been used. What all methods have in common, however, is that they use the frictional effect for braking that is created by single or multiple turns of the rope.
A differentiation from abseiling is lowering , in which another person takes over the braking and the rope runs along the length of the lowering section through a deflection point.
In the English-speaking world, abseiling has largely established itself as Germanism ; In contrast, US English tends to use rappelling (from the French rappel ).
technology
Fixed points
A reliable anchor point is necessary for abseiling . Frequently, therefore, several fixed points, z. B. used two hooks . Abseiling takes place using loops, ring hooks or carabiners. Accessory cords or ribbon slings are used for alpine and ice climbing ( ice hourglasses ), as no carabiner has to be left behind. However, this is only possible when abseiling as the rope does not move at the anchor point. Abseiling on pigtails is not recommended.
The draining is done, however, only a Topropehaken, an abseiling eyelet or a lobster. Lowering the rope over an accessory cord or rope sling produces heat due to the friction of the rope at the fixed point, which can cause the cord to tear through the melt and lead to a fall.
Descenders
The most common abseiling technique in climbing uses the figure eight . When using the rope in a double strand, both ropes are tied in through the larger opening of the abseil hole and then behind the smaller opening.
The half-mast protection system was made known by the Swiss Werner Munter . The friction of the rope over a carabiner is used to brake. If no figure eight is available, the HMS can also be used to abseil. However, the strong kinking of the rope is a problem.
Since the 1990s, further technical abseiling and braking devices have been developed, most of which have been optimized for specific purposes. Examples are the Tre Sirius, the Grigri , Reverso, or the ATC (the latter two belong to the group of Tube devices). The devices mentioned have now largely replaced the classic figure eight, as they are sometimes better suited for securing the partner.
execution
In addition to the figure eight or another abseiling device, the standard equipment includes a climbing rope , a climbing harness and snap hooks with locking device . When abseiling, the rope is usually hung in a double strand at a fixed point . It is important to ensure that both ends of the rope reach to the ground or to the next stand . With a rope of 50 meters in length, a maximum of 25 meters can be abseiled as a double strand. Before casting out the rope, the ends of the rope should be knotted with an end eight to prevent accidents caused by abseiling beyond the end of the rope. Alternatively, you can also abseil on the single rope, which is attached to a ring or eyelet or natural securing points using knots and carabiners. If the rope is fastened with a clamping loop, one strand of the rope can be abseiled and the rope can then be pulled off the other after abseiling.
The rope is inserted into the descender in a double or single strand. This is then attached to the climbing harness with a karabiner, preferably an HMS karabiner (HMS = half-mast protection, see below). In any case, another securing device in the form of a Prusik sling or a tape sling with FB cross clamp should be used; these are placed around the double strand of the rope below the descender and attached to the leg loop of the hip belt with a carabiner. The Prusik loop or FB cross clamp should not be too long, otherwise there is a risk that they will be pulled into the descender. (Only) during canyoning there is no rappelling or back-securing with an additional clamping knot.
Historical development
The first alpinists abseiled down using the friction of the rope on their bodies. Initially, the so-called climbing closure was used.
"[...] you run the rope on the inside of one knee, then on the calf, along the outside of the ankle and over the span of the same leg; one bends the foot strongly upwards. Then you step on it with the other foot where it runs over the foot span. The attached foot must push the rope towards the span of the other foot (away from the toes). "
A further development was the Dülfersitz , in which the rope runs around one thigh and over the shoulder. Since the invention of the descender, these methods are no longer in use.
The carabiner seat, in contrast to the dulfer seat, is still used today - although rarely - if no figure eight or another belay device suitable for abseiling is available. Dülfersitz and Karabineritz are methods that were used before the advent of seat belts or full harnesses.
See also
- Chest band
- Seat sling
- Belay device
- Lead climbing - descending
- Abseiling - lowering
literature
- Chris Semmel: Down - but sure. Avoid typical accident patterns when abseiling . In: DAV Panorama . No. 3 , 2008, p. 75-77 ( alpenverein.de [PDF; 358 kB ]).
- Christoph Hummel: Abseiling / The Method - The Right Setup . In: German Alpine Association (ed.): Panorama magazine DAV . No. 4 , July 2020, p. 60–61 ( [1] [accessed July 25, 2020]).
Web links
- Rappel-Devices (overview of abseiling accessories by Garry Storrick, English)
- Against blackouts when abseiling (PDF file; 667 kB) In: Bergundstieg 3/2006.
- Abseiling (PDF file; 4.5 MB) In: Bergundstieg 3/2012.
- Proper abseiling in the mountains, that's how it works
- Put on the figure figure eight with Prusik - video instructions on Kletterlaune.de
Individual evidence
- ↑ Christian Imboden: Mountains: Profession, Vocation, Fate . Rotten Verlag , Visp 2013, ISBN 3-907624-48-3 . Pages 120 and 85: Inventor of modern abseiling technology
- ↑ a b Lowering and abseiling - a huge difference. (PDF) In: Panorama 3/1999, p. 70 f.
- ↑ Beware of abseiling on the "pig tail"! Retrieved April 9, 2015 .
- ^ Robert Renzler: The 12 (climbing) commandments - The climbing rules of the Alpine Club . In: ÖAV , DAV (ed.): Bergundstieg . Part 2, No. 2 . Innsbruck 2000, p. 11 ( bergundstieg.at [PDF; accessed on February 17, 2009]).
- ↑ Gerald Krug: Witches and Exes. Geoquest Verlag, Halle / Saale, 2nd edition 2011, ISBN 978-3-00-020535-4 , p. 221.