My climbing line got a nasty core shot from a bad limb walk last Tuesday.

I was about 60 feet up in a pin oak, moving out on a dead limb that looked solid, and my rope rubbed against a sharp stub I missed. I had to switch to my backup line to finish the job and get down. What's your go-to method for checking a line after a close call like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

hayes.jake1mo ago

Man, that sound you hear is your heart dropping, right? I had a close call last year where my line got pinched in a crack during a big wind gust. Now I lay the whole thing out in my driveway and run every inch through my hands with a bright headlamp on, even in daylight. I'm looking for any change in texture, not just obvious cuts. If my fingers catch on anything, that section gets marked and retired. It takes forever but it beats the what-ifs later.

wyattrobinson1mo ago

Run every inch through my hands" is my method too, though my version is less careful. I just sort of hold it up and squint at it. If I don't see a clean break, I call it good. My gear check is basically just giving the rope a suspicious look.

mila_perry131mo ago

That "change in texture" thing is so real. I found a tiny, gritty spot in my rope last month that I never would have seen, just felt. It was like a single grain of sand was stuck in the fibers. Freaked me out so bad I ended up cutting ten feet off. Now I'm paranoid about feeling for anything weird, not just looking.