Oct 11, Takatori(鷹取山) ropework excersise [CANCELED]

[Deleted User 1528]

EVENT CANCELED
According to the weather forecast there are chances for rain even in the afternoon which means one of the main goals of this exercise, safety, can not be maintained. There might be a reprisal of the event, but not sure when because of my schedule.

Updates
Because of the approaching typhoon there might be some rain which could make rocks slippery. In that case this event will be canceled for the safety reasons. I will confirm it during the Saturday.

Participants (so far):
1. Masa
2. Gordon (pending)
3. Tamara
4. M. Lee

There is no participant limit for this event.




As a person who is involved in technical mountaineering I would like to organize ropework workshop/exercise at Mt. Takatori in Yokosuka. It is a site of old quarry which makes it perfect for this kind of training. Many mountaineering clubs from Tokyo and Kanagawa area use this site for their training because it is really close and easy to access by the public transportation. I used it as well countless times for training purposes. That was also the place where I did my certification test for mountain rescue. I had some knowledge prior to the certification, but practicing with certified mountain guides simply can't be substituted by Youtube videos.

As long time lurker here after reading some threads I noticed that it would be beneficial for some people to do some training on the rope in controlled environment which makes much easier transition to real life scenarios in the mountains.
Also, there is a selfish reason as well and that is to practice some techniques in order not to forget them I am still not sure when my team is going to continue with the rescue training so in the meantime I am willing to share my knowledge.

Idea here is to do demonstrations of some basic concepts and hands on practices.
Hands on practices would be divided into two parts:
- ground level practice: interacting with the equipment on the ground, no danger what so ever involved
- vertical practice: rope rappelling, self rescue etc.

So, for ground level practice and just watching you don't need any special equipment. Any comfortable clothes with some water and snacks should be enough and anyone is free to participate.
For vertical practices, it is a different story. It contains some elements of danger, but don't worry, plan is to use backup rope so in the case of slippage etc. I would be on the other end of the backup rope and make sure that no harm is done. Safety would be carried as per AGSJ training recommendations. Also, for this kind of exercise additional equipment is required:

Helmet (must)
Gloves - ideally proper belaying gloves, but those cheap white working ones should work as well
Climbing harness
ATC and/or figure 8 with locking carabiner
PAS (personal anchor system) or similar with locking carabiner, if there is no PAS 60cm or 120cm dyneema sling with locking carabiner
Prusik loop (will be explained below) + additional locking carabiner (recommended)


If you don't have one, you can bring 3m of 6mm rope so we can make it on site. It will be sufficient for 2 prusik loops. You can buy this kind of rope per meter at any mountaineering store including Montbell.

Because of COVID-19 it is generally not recommended to share equipment between users, however, as far as I am concerned, if you are willing to share your personal equipment with people that you trust I have no objections.

I plan to bring my own equipment for the demonstration including ropes. My ropes would be shared, but because of the previously mentioned reason I am unable to share any other piece of gear. (not counting gear used for anchors etc.) If you have some extra gear that you think that could be useful (including more ropes), feel free to bring it with you.

So far I am free for the weekend of 10-11 only this month and there is an event on 10th I decided to use 11th as a provisional date.


Meeting would be at Oppama station (追浜駅) on the Keikyu main line at 08:20 at the terrace of the station, you can't miss it. There is a bus which leaves at 08:30 so please try to come on time.

If you have any questions please let me know. In the case of bad weather this event will be canceled.

[masa]

Hello Nika

My name is Masa and interested in this event. I have very limited experience in bouldering and have climbing shoes only. Could let me know if I can join you with minimum equipments?

Helmet: I have a bicycle helmet.
Harness: No.
ATC: No.
PAS: No.
Prusik loop: No. I’m thinking of buying a 3m of 6mm rope at mont-bell.

Best regards,

Masa

[Deleted User 1528]

Hi Masa,

For this event climbing shoes are not needed. Yes, you can still join the event, but when it would not be possible for you to do on rope exercises like rappelling etc. so during that time you are free to spectate. Also in your case bicycle helmet is not required.


Regarding the helmets in general. Bicycle helmets are designed to protect against blunt force trauma like falls. Rock climbing helmets are designed to deflect falling rocks and provide better coverage of the head. Eg. construction site helmets or earthquake safety helmets are better suited for climbing than bicycle helmets because they are also designed to protect the wearer from the falling objects but they are much heavier than climbing helmets.
Bicycle helmets are still better than nothing, but my suggestion for everyone here is to invest into a proper climbing helmet if planning to do any of the activities where rock fall can occur because only one rock fall can lead to the unwanted life changing consequences.

[masa]

Hi niksa

Thank you for your explanation. I’ll see what I can do.

[Deleted User 1528]

Idea of this event is that everyone can participate one way or another. Also, another idea is to showcase the equipment and demonstrate the basic usage of it in order to develop some sort of the understanding what user really needs. Just going to the carabiner types can be overwhelming for people without prior knowledge. This is not the "no equipment no participation" event and I believe that I can explain in the simple language and demonstrate in the simple way the basics for someone that has zero to little experience as well as explain and demonstrate more advanced techniques for more experienced participants.

Basic moto, everyone is welcome to participate regardless of the equipment or experience.

[Justink]

Hi Niksa. Thanks so much for putting up this event. I’m interested in joining but need to confirm my availability for Sunday.
Importance of practicing skills in real world can’t be understated. I’ve done a very small amount of rope work and self rescue. Will bring along my gear including ropes (static for abseiling)... assuming I can make it

[Gordon]

Hi Niksa,

I also have to check my availability but interested in joining.
I fancy a refresh. i got all my own gear and practiced here before.

Regards

Gordon

[Deleted User 1528]

Hi Gordon and Justin, sure thing. More people the merrier it is.

In general I would like to know if there will be at least single confirmed participant by Saturday afternoon.

[Justink]

Absolutely. I’ll let you know my plans tomorrow

[Deleted User 1528]

There is a typhoon approaching so if there will be rain even during Saturday evening this event will be canceled. Risk of the slipping injuries is much higher than during the normal hike so it is better not to risk.

[Justink]

Apologies Niksa but I am not available on Sunday and won’t be joining you

[Deleted User 1528]

Apologies Niksa but I am not available on Sunday and won’t be joining you

Hi Justin, noted. No worries

[Tamara]

Hi Niksa,

Thank you for organizing these events, I'm looking forward to this.
It's time to brush up my rock climbing skills and bouldering. I have that equipment you need, so Count me In.

Ladies let's go for this.

[Gordon]

Hi Niksa,

well the typhoon i think has put a damper on things.
it would get pretty slippy (and miserable) with the weather on Sunday even.

So will do a rain check (no pun intentded) untill next time.

[Andy OCJ]

We have climbed there many times, and after rain. I think it will be ok. It is gritstone so provides excellent grip, and the forecast is for sunshine later in the morning after typhoon passes. If you go at lunchtime I think it will be dried out anyway by then with sun and breeze.

Update
Forecast has changed quite a bit - first to rain and now cloudy Sunday. Maybe afternoon is possible.

[Deleted User 1528]

Hi Tamara, welcome to the team.

Anyhow, I will make the decision tomorrow so please stay put until then.

Although rock there is indeed gripping, when training for eg. rappelling one is supposed to climb small cliff (basically without protection or minimal protection depending on the place) in order to reach the rope anchor and can easily slip if wet. Good thing is that rocks there can dry quite fast. Once I went there during the morning and the rocks were damp and 2 hours later they were completely dry.

[M. Lee]

Hello. This is my first time joining the event in this group.
I'm a beginner for the climbing, only had some indoor bouldering experiences a long time ago.
My friend Tamara invited me and she'll borrow her equipment.
Will you count me in?

[Deleted User 1528]

Hello. This is my first time joining the event in this group.
I'm a beginner for the climbing, only had some indoor bouldering experiences a long time ago.
My friend Tamara invited me and she'll borrow her equipment.
Will you count me in?

Sure thing. Just please watch here for the confirmation of the event because of the typhoon.