POLL - Biggest fears while vertical caving?

Discuss vertical caving, equipment, & techniques. Also visit the NSS Vertical Section.

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WHAT ARE YOUR BIGGEST FEARS WHILE VERTICAL CAVING? Choose 1 or 2 items.

Poll ended at Nov 22, 2012 5:34 pm

Line breaking while ascending/descending.
18
28%
When off line, someone stealing/cutting my rope (leaving me stranded).
8
13%
Equipment failure (other than line).
8
13%
A rock, bag or tool falling from above.
15
23%
Coming to end of the line and finding it too short (misjudged line length to depth of pit).
1
2%
Having to do a changeover while ascending or descending.
0
No votes
Making it over an extreme lip while ascending.
6
9%
Headlamp going dead.
0
No votes
Encountering stranded animal or snake in pit.
3
5%
I HAVE NO FEARS WHEN VERTICAL CAVING!
5
8%
 
Total votes : 64

Re: POLL - Biggest fears while vertical caving?

Postby Amazingracer » Nov 21, 2012 1:23 pm

In addition to the rope breaking in Ellisons near the warm up pit, there was also an incident at Megawell in 1997.

Three cavers were using a Polish caving rope, which was cut by rockfall. Unfortunately causing one of the cavers to fall to his death. The rope was tested afterward and despite being 10mm, was about half the strength of PMI 10mm. It was also subject to high elongation for a static rope. The caver that died was heavier set and was frogging, causing sever elongation on the rope, which lead to being easily cut by a falling rock.

(The popular version of the story I have been told numerous times is that the rope was cut at the edge, while it may have been a contributing factor, the investigation afterward suggested rock fall.)

Read more on these incidents in the ACA archive (login is NSS number & zip code):
https://secure.caves.org/nss-business/p ... ndex.shtml
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Re: POLL - Biggest fears while vertical caving?

Postby Patrick Wilson » Nov 27, 2012 12:12 am

Clarification for anyone looking for the Megawall incident listed in the ACA, it was 1991.
Patrick Wilson
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