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Jumar
An ascender is a device (usually mechanical) used for directly ascending a rope, or for facilitating protection with a fixed rope when climbing on very steep mountain terrain. Ascenders can also be used as a braking component within a rope hauling system, often used in rescue situations. Use Ascenders are usually used in pairs, and offer similar functionality to friction knots, but are faster, safer and easier to use, albeit still with consequences in weight and in security (as ascenders can, even with a locking carabiner, come off the rope, and fail by shredding the rope at high loads, rather than slipping and fusing as with friction knots). A mechanical ascender employs a cam which allows the device to slide freely in the intended direction of movement, but provide a firm grip on the rope when pulled in the opposite direction. To prevent an ascender from accidentally coming off the rope, a locking mechanism or trigger is deployed. The ascender is first attached to the cl ...
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Climbing Equipment
A wide range of equipment is used during rock or any other type of climbing that includes equipment commonly used to protect a climber against the consequences of a fall. Rope, cord and webbing Climbing ropes are typically of kernmantle construction, consisting of a core (kern) of long twisted fibres and an outer sheath (mantle) of woven coloured fibres. The core provides about 70% of the tensile strength, while the sheath is a durable layer that protects the core and gives the rope desirable handling characteristics. Ropes used for climbing can be divided into two classes: dynamic ropes and low elongation ropes (sometimes called "static" ropes). Dynamic ropes are designed to absorb the energy of a falling climber, and are usually used as belaying ropes. When a climber falls, the rope stretches, reducing the maximum force experienced by the climber, their belayer, and equipment. Low elongation ropes stretch much less, and are usually used in anchoring systems. They are a ...
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Single-rope Technique
Single-rope technique (SRT) is a set of methods used to descend and ascend on the same single rope. Single-rope technique is used in caving, potholing, rock climbing, canyoning, roped access for building maintenance and by arborists for tree climbing, although to avoid confusion in the tree climbing community, many have taken to calling it "stationary" rope technique. Single-rope technique is used in contrast to double-rope technique (DRT), also known as moving-rope technique. Historical developments In the 1930s, as caving became increasingly popular in France, several clubs in the Alps made vertical cave exploration an outdoor sport. During World War II, a team composed of Pierre Chevalier, Fernand Petzl, Charles Petit-Didier and others explored the Dent de Crolles cave system near Grenoble, France, which became the deepest explored cave in the world (-658m) at that time. The lack of available equipment during the war forced Pierre Chevalier and the rest of the team to deve ...
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Caving
Caving – also known as spelunking in the United States and Canada and potholing in the United Kingdom and Ireland – is the recreational pastime of exploring wild cave systems (as distinguished from show caves). In contrast, speleology is the scientific study of caves and the cave environment.Caving in New Zealand
(from Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand, Accessed 2012-11.)
The challenges involved in caving vary according to the cave being visited; in addition to the total absence of light beyond the entrance, negotiating pitches, squeezes,
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1953 British Mount Everest Expedition
The 1953 British Mount Everest expedition was the ninth mountaineering expedition to attempt the first ascent of Mount Everest, and the first confirmed to have succeeded when Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary reached the summit on 29 May 1953. Led by Colonel John Hunt, it was organised and financed by the Joint Himalayan Committee. News of the expedition's success reached London in time to be released on the morning of Queen Elizabeth II's coronation, on 2 June that year. Background Identified as the highest mountain in the world during the 1850s, Everest became a subject of interest during the Golden age of alpinism, although its height made it questionable if it could ever be climbed. In 1885, Clinton Thomas Dent's ''Above the Snow Line'' suggested that an ascent might be possible. Practical considerations (and World War I) prevented significant approaches until the 1920s. George Mallory is quoted as having said he wanted to climb Everest "Because it's there", a phrase ...
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Caving Equipment
Caving equipment is equipment used by cavers and speleologists to aid and protect them while exploring caves. The term may also be used to refer to equipment used to document caves, such as photographic and surveying equipment. Originally, cave diving equipment was quite limited, but the increasing popularity of caving during the 20th century led to the creation of specialist caving equipment and companies. Due to the greatly varying conditions of caves throughout the world there is a multitude of different equipment types and categories. Cavers exploring a largely dry system may wear a fleece one-piece undersuit with a protective oversuit while cavers exploring a very wet cave may opt to use wetsuits. Cavers in large dry systems in the tropics and in desert climates may simply opt to wear shorts and a T-shirt. History The earliest cavers in Europe and North America were limited in their explorations by a lack of suitable equipment. Explorers of the early 1800s, when caving ...
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Petzl
Petzl is a French manufacturer of climbing gear, caving gear, work-at-height equipment, and headlamps based in Crolles (near Grenoble), France. The company was created by the cave explorer Fernand Petzl in the mid-1970s. Their three specialties are: *Vertical sports: equipment for mountaineering, climbing, caving, etc. *Work at height and rescue: solutions for progression and safety in difficult-access worksites and in technical rescue. *Headlamps/head torches that provide hands free lighting. History Fernand Petzl, born in 1912, began his caving career in the late 1920s and early 1930s. In 1936, Petzl was introduced to, then small-time caver, Pierre Chevalier. The two began work on improving the technology behind their sport. In 1943, Chevalier designed and tested the first nylon rope to replace caving ladders. This technology provided the foundation for nearly all vertical safety methods to come. Chevalier's innovation led to the first 1,000 meter cave descent when Petzl e ...
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Fernand Petzl
Fernand Petzl (April 7, 1913 – May 31, 2003) was a caver and manufacturer of outdoor equipment under the brand name Petzl. Petzl lived most of his life in the village of Saint-Ismier (near Grenoble), France at the foot of the mountain Dent De Crolles. He first went caving in Trou du Glaz in 1933, and was immediately captivated by the idea of exploring beyond the cave's known limits. Subsequent explorations there with Pierre Chevalier, Charles Petit-Didier and others culminated in connections to other caves in the massif, forming the Réseau de la Dent de Crolles which, in 1947, became the deepest cave in the world. Petzl also participated in explorations in the Gouffre Berger The Gouffre Berger is a French cave discovered on 24 May 1953 by Joseph Berger, Bouvet, Ruiz de Arcaute and Marc Jouffrey. From 1953 to 1963, it was regarded as the deepest cave in the world at , relinquishing this title to the previous contender, ..., which set a new world depth record in 1956 as the f ...
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Reichenbach Im Kandertal
Reichenbach im Kandertal is a village and municipality in the Frutigen-Niedersimmental administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. Until 1957 it was known as Reichenbach bei Frutigen. Besides the village of Reichenbach, the municipality includes several other settlements, including Aris, Faltsche, Griesalp, Kien, Kiental, Ramslauenen, Reudlen, Scharnachtal, Schwandi and Wengi. Additionally, the village of Mülenen is shared between Reichenbach and Aeschi bei Spiez municipalities. The area played a notable role in world history when the Kienthal Conference was held at Kiental (then known as Kienthal) in 1916. The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is ''Argent a Bear Paw issuant from a Mount of 3 Coupeaux Vert.'' History Reichenbach im Kandertal is first mentioned about 1320 as ''Richenbach''. During the Middle Ages, the village occupied a strategic location on the trade route into the Canton of Valais. Two castles, Mülenen Castle, with the Letzi Mülene ...
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Petzl Ascenders (On Rope)
Petzl is a French manufacturer of climbing gear, caving gear, work-at-height equipment, and headlamps based in Crolles (near Grenoble), France. The company was created by the cave explorer Fernand Petzl in the mid-1970s. Their three specialties are: *Vertical sports: equipment for mountaineering, climbing, caving, etc. *Work at height and rescue: solutions for progression and safety in difficult-access worksites and in technical rescue. *Headlamps/head torches that provide hands free lighting. History Fernand Petzl, born in 1912, began his caving career in the late 1920s and early 1930s. In 1936, Petzl was introduced to, then small-time caver, Pierre Chevalier. The two began work on improving the technology behind their sport. In 1943, Chevalier designed and tested the first nylon rope to replace caving ladders. This technology provided the foundation for nearly all vertical safety methods to come. Chevalier's innovation led to the first 1,000 meter cave descent when Petzl exp ...
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Prusik
A Prusik ( ) is a friction hitch or knot used to attach a loop of cord around a rope, applied in climbing, canyoneering, mountaineering, caving, rope rescue, ziplining, and by arborists. The term Prusik is a name for both the loops of cord used to tie the hitch and the hitch itself, and the verb is "to prusik" (using a Prusik to ascend). More casually, the term is used for any friction hitch or device that can grab a rope (see autoblock). Due to the pronunciation, the word is often misspelled Prussik, Prussick, or Prussic. The Prusik hitch is named after its putative inventor, Austrian mountaineer Karl Prusik. It was shown in a 1931 Austrian mountaineering manual for rope ascending. It was used on several mountaineering routes of the era to ascend the final summit, where a rope could be thrown over the top and anchored so that climbers could attain the summit by prusiking up the other side of the rope. A Prusik made from cord does little or no damage to the rope it is attache ...
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Belay
Belaying is a variety of techniques climbers use to create friction within a climbing system, particularly on a climbing rope, so that a falling climber does not fall very far. A climbing partner typically applies tension at the other end of the rope whenever the climber is not moving, and removes the tension from the rope whenever the climber needs more rope to continue climbing. The term "belay" also means the place where the belayer is anchored; this is typically the ground or a ledge, but may be a ''hanging belay'', where the belayer themself is suspended from an anchor in the rock. How it works Belaying is a critical part of the climbing system. A correct belaying method lets the belayer hold the entire weight of the climber with relatively little force, and easily arrest even a long fall. In its simplest form, a belay consists of merely a rope that runs from a climber to another person (the belayer) who can stop the climber's fall. In the modern day, most climbers u ...
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