No17. SRT re-directs with the Teufelberger Multi-sling
The Multi-Sling has many uses and a new one has popped up from a New Zealand climber and it is awesome!
Think about your re-directs like this.
1. Do you need to load share or load transfer?
Load share means that the climbers weight will draw the 2 points, apex and re-direct, together.
Sometimes this is fine but rope angles, tree strengths and job specification may mean that load transferring is a safer option. Load transferring moves 100% of the climber to the new point, in a sense the ‘re-direct’ becomes the main anchor.
2. Do you need retrievability?
Sometimes retrieving from the ground or within the tree can be a great way to save time and bother.
Setting up the Load Share
A - DMM Sentinel
B - DMM Revolver
C - Teufelberger Multisling
i) Pass the Sentinel over the crotch toward the main anchor and clip it to the line.
ii) Pass a bight of rope through the ring and clip the Revolver into the bight. Keep the Revolvers pullePass a bight of rope through the ring and clip the Revolver into the bight.
Keepy in the bight.
iii) Adjust the rope at the bight to balance the rope and then carefully transfer your weight into the redirect.
Load Transfer
iv) Re-adjust the bight so that there is slack between the apex and the re-direct.
v) Clip the Sentinel underneath the Anchor ring.
If the rope begins to run through at the bight then turn the Revolver around to increase the friction.
Notice that the Sentinel has been turned around so that the anchor ring presses against the thinnest opening of the karabiner.
To retrieve
vi) Attach the standing end of the line or a separate rope to the Revolver.
vii) Pull the bight toward you, un-clip the Revolver (or whatever equipment is
installed) and pull the bight through the ring to retrieve.
The Sentinel will run down the rope right back to you.
Bingo-Bango……the worlds best re-direct!
(If you want to get fancy turn it into a retrievable 3:1 system, see next chapter
‘Getting There’.)
Getting There
The great thing about the running aspect of 2:1 systems is that they help a lot when climbing up awkward shaped branches, the in-built 2:1 mechanical advantage can easily pull you into suitable positions and for many climbers it is great system for most aspects of tree work.
1:1 climbers can struggle with the big change in having no in-built mechanical advantage but there are simple techniques related to body movement and equipment application that help immensely Remember, a 2:1 system can be changed into a 1:1 system but not the other way around, the 1:1 system must
be converted to 3:1 when running mechanical advantage is needed.
1:1
Rather than assuming one must PULL ones own weight with shoulder and elbow
when changing position or slack tending the 1:1 climber benefits from a different
concept of movement.
1:1 movement usually begins with a slight withdraw of mass to the harness which transfers to the anchor point through the rope and a then manipulation of the climbers centre-of-gravity with harmonious leg and arm movement creates a leveraging MA.
In some cases the lanyard can be used to generate a pendulum like movement which creates a ‘moment’ that can be fed into the belay system.
2:1
The O-Rig allows the climber to benefit from the comfortable 2-handed body thrust but with automatic slack-tending and is adjustable to form a hitch climber hand-overhand system.
Notice the long eye-splice, when formed in close the splice neck shouldn’t be bent around the bridge ring.
The O-rig can be adjusted while the climbers weight is in the system.
A Wild Country Ropeman can be used to control and hold the ‘O’.
3:1
This 3:1 can be formed with a Revolver karabiner, midline knot and pinto pulley but here is a drawing of it formed through the Multi-sling re-direct.
You can see how the Multi-sling ‘bight’ means that the system is retrievable. When set-up with the aforementioned equipment on the 1:1 line it can be easily dismantled and turned back into a 1:1 at any distance from the midline knot, not retrievable but revertable.
This year (2015) Shop K and I will look at this and other interesting ideas and
techniques in the new SRT2 workshop, please contact K san for details and dates.