The Two Methods Of Controlling The Rope When Holding A Fall

Following on from my first article on belaying. The two methods of controlling the rope when holding a fall are the static belay and the dynamic belay.

The static belay does not allow the rope to run.It is used when a climber falls from a position below the belayer. When using this method, the belayer should bring their brake hand across his body immediately after the fall. Firmly holding the rope so that no rope runs through their hands. The belayer must prevent any slack between themselves and the climber if the static belay is to be effective. The energy produced by the fall is absorbed by the rope. This results in high impact forces, even in short falls.

The dynamic belay allows the rope to run if a fall occurs. It is used to keep the force of a severe fall within acceptable limits on the climber, belayer, climbing rope, and belay chain. This belay is also used in hauling lines and suspension traverse. The rope is only allowed to run enough to accomplish the task. Dynamic belays should be used whenever a climber falls from a position other than directly below the belayer, such as traversing, when located above the belayer, or belaying through pitons.

When the climber is moving away from the belayer, there should always be a slight amount of slack in the rope between them. The belayer must avoid pulling the climber off balance by holding the rope too tightly. If a fall does occur, the belayer must relax their guide hand and, squeezing with their brake hand, bring the rope slowly across their body to gradually stop the fall. If the belayer cannot withsatnd the force of the fall, they allow the rope to run whilst reinforcing their position. Gloves should always be worn when using a dynamic belay.

If the rope slips during impact, part of the energy generated is turned into heat by the friction of the rope running through snaplinks, over edges, etc. All dynamic belays have a controlled slippage of the rope over a braking element. The friction on the braking element dissipates part of the fall energy. Effectively sparing the climber and the belay system from the high impact force. Of course, the slipping of the rope increases the length of the fall.

That deals with the two methods of controlling the rope when holding a fall. In the next article we shall be looking at the two ways of managing the rope when belaying.