SRT V LADD In the previous news letter, Tipple exrlaines the modern and proper - techniques for lifelining cavers on ladders, lie stated thet the best advice for lifelining must be to "Lifaline is you would like to be Lifelined." I have tyo pisces of advice for those uho contemplate using lnddera: (Q) Only use then for getting off 2 rope at the head of aineshafts- (2) Stick them in the loft until th become obsolete and inevitably achieve collector item status. 1 would prefer to use SRT for all pitches, even those little diddy ones. I mke this decision ac 1 consider ERT to be an intrincically safer system than ladders and lifelines, Not only are s11 the SIT coaponents stronger thon bits of wire, but the individual eaver is in control of their ovn destiny at ell times and not dependent on someone who my not be xble to sec them, and who my also not be paying attention to the tosk in ond, i.e. - protectin; the climber. Consider the recent Penyghent trip. There vere three ladder pitehes and two rope pitches, for which everyone carried an SXT rig of one kind or another. Thus people were protected on the rope pitches und unprotected on the ladder: as there were no lifelines. Three lengths of rope would hmve been safer, especially considering that everyone had SRT gear. It seens unneceessary to use two methods of ascent/descent when one will suffice. But is it vorth carrying all that gear fer a 20ft viteh you my asl A Length of 1 inch tape makes a suitatle eit tarness and a length of } inch tape mkes a cracking chest harness. Two non-handled Janmers, a figure of 8, foot loops and safety cord, cows tails and a rapide or twa vould complete a rig vhich can be taken off with ease and will get you up pitches of any length. Thus places like Giants, Penyghent, County Pot or any systen with a lot of short pitches can be undertaken in safety, given proper pitch rigping, as the caver is protected against falling at all tines. Which rings another point to mind. Consider the effect of » full from the top of a ladder whilst attempting to step across to a place of caf’ if lifelined one may fall and then swing until the fall is arrested by the lifeliner. Unlifelined the fall may very well prove fatel., The head of a ladder pitch will often present avkward ond dangerous situations. Just think of the exposure on Garlands and Battleaxe pitch in Lost Johns. Both of vhich require the caver to make potentially dangerous noves to get on and off a ladder. How meny people use n lifeline on Garlands? On a properly rigged rope pitch you are protected by your traverse line. Traverse Linea also cone in handy over those wide, deeo holes you often find around the top of pitches. It seems a shane that people-often ignore such objective dangers and do not use a traverse line. Precumably they assume that because they are prepared to overcome hazards without protection, then the others in the party are willing to de so too. Even when there are apare lengths of rope lying around unused. Three further points:- (a) When rigging pitches uhich are close together, tie the end of the first rope inte the belay of the second zone, leaving a9 Little slack ae is hegeeasary, (Ses dlopras overien!.) (b) Any length of rere whictl is tnused “at the top of a piteh should be coiled and tied off, in order to ensure that no-one abseile off the wrong ro; by mistake. (This has happened.) At the very least, a large knot should be tied in the end of the smre rope. vadnys. When rigei nd (c) It shouldn't really need saying look for tvo belay points for the min i use them, Piteh rigging is o fairly simple ch requires t! Practise, Above all it requires Everyone has the right to expect members of ti from the people they go caving w How to mike a Sit Harness trom 1 ineh tape HIGUE OF EIGur SEAT How to make 1 Chest Harness from } ineh tape PARISIAN SAUD (4) OVER ERED ARM AND UNDER RTGHT ARM PIT eT BEND Frown views | FRONT VIEWS | I personally use a Dulfer Seat connected to a Parisian Saudrier as I consider this type of chest harness keope the chest asconder higher on the chest. Those of you who are interested vill find this informtion and other useful stuff in a book called Modern Rope Techniques in Mountaineering by Bill March. Ling. - . I'M NOT DEAD NA NA NA NA NA 2 F or how to disappoint the press and survive underground) A fall and brocken ankle deep inside a cave; # collapsed boulder choke; rising flood water; being totally lost - these are just some of the reasons why any one of us may find ourselves having to sit it out underground for several hours. So unpredictable are all of these events that if seems silly not to carry some basic survival aids and to know some survival practise. If you do have to sit it out anywhere then you should carefully choose your waiting place. Cold is the main eneuy to the caver - being out of draught is far wore important than cosfort. It's also helpful to find 2 spot large nough for everyone to sit huddled together. Huddling together conserves heat and the the group should huddle together right frou the very start es people will lose vital Wdy heat before actually complaining of being cold. Also,as a group, people should be careful to rotate positions every now and again ~ then members spend equal time on the colder outside ( and, of courses, next to the warmest people ! ). Survivel Bags and Survival Position A survival bag is the single uost important picee of safety equipant ‘to carry ~ it oan help greatly to stave off the cold IF USED Coak=cTLY, Before getting into the bag try to make a confortable, insulating seat ~ string cut any rope to make several seats. Tackle bags and SRT bags sake good insulation too. Stepping into the vag it should be brought OVER the head leaving the opening around the mouth (sce below). The heluet should then go on the head OVER the survival beg, trapping it close around ity Soue 50 of the heat loss from 2 well insulated body will be through the head so its probably well worth the minimm effort of carrying a seoond small plastic bag, just big enough to fit over the head and necl. This ‘plastic balacla should be put on underneath the survival bage HELMET one OP ao; : PUY THEE EAL. Lg TN ——“WRVWAL Bane - Tueweo uvoeh SMALLAVA 7 (Fe SELMET, oneawate (_ AP MOTH ROLE, TACKLE BAG ETC. It is very important to sit up in the survival position when in the bag. Knees are tucked up against the ohest and arms either fold around legs or are tucked inside against the chest. Eackechs will inevitedly ocour end be very uncomfortable but resist the temptation to lean against rocks/uud and aefinately do not lie down ~ the flocr/walls will sap body heat at an alarming rate. As a treat now and again it's nice to breath inside the bag although, obviously, this shouldn't be done for too long of a tine (unless of course you feel so bad that you want to end it all there end then J ). Finally, the psychological side is very important ~ human beings, in the right fram of mind, are great survivors - help WILL arrive. If you've read this fer then you might even be the one actually enjoying the next rescue - afterall they oould be your last few hours so you might as well | PS ‘The relative merits of pissing in a wetsuit to keep warm have been contested strongly by both sides - it clearly provides a few minutes of pleasure to the doer but, as a pleasant aftereffeot, provides hours of heated argument over the foul stench to those sitting around HER(yes, we still haven't forgiven you !). PPS A few people believe in carrying a 24 hour candle for ouergencies. This is kept 1it inside the survival bag for warath. A great idea but personally I think the chance of burning down your survival beg is too great. Anyway, Anagine the loss in credibility in staggering out before the press, from a eave 997 full of raging flood water with third degree burns! Credulous. HAMMER POT - 3/5/86 & 2/5/86 $ I expect ost of you have heard this story alrendy, I've written it for those of you who haven't. I remember vhen I first started caving and Brian used to Tt's too nice te go underground today lads" ; I never agrecd with nin ac I vas too keen dn those days, however, on this “urticular day T wouldn't have argued with him, We all lay outside the caravan suntatning in the hot enrly morning sun. I for one had no desire whatsoever te :o undersround tod-y. The Bath party had set. off early to rig the system ond our marty (ferek, Jane, Ant, Tipple, Paul Rich (UGC), Tave(BUCC), and myzelf), were to go underground at about 2pm and derig. At midday we valked ur to Inglesport for « wexther forecast as liammer can flood very easily, as ve were to find out! The forecnet for the afternoon was shovere so ve decided the trip vac on provided the water level wasn't too high in Sludge Crawl. On arrival at Fountaing Fell I proe to le ryene about the entrance and insisted that the eave ws over yet anoth point everyone turned round and went to look closer to the track 5 earlier, I carried on oblivious to their ehouts. Five minut of 4 mile past ab this cries of "Pau'"; they vere about 600 yards down the fell in reat the et Low gully rance who i decided de tale thon we exnected to be I ren down to them and found two Bs it vss too tight and Ind retired for the out by midnight at the very latest and if ve vern't out by 1 om to call ont C.R.O. The sky was clear and the sun shining (there ho? boon a shower five tes earlier) when ve finally set off underground 2t 3 pa. There is on avkwvard § bend about 50 ft in and Derek decided he didn't Like it and was going out, I told him dt was easy 4f tackled prorerly and he got through first pitch © né set off slowly through and free elinbed the second Fossible for the first time to stand arms outstretched vithout touching the wallst Ari next pitch (50ft) I foundthe lifeline tied on lndder sbout loft down as it vas obviously too short. T degided ib was better to fall loft if the ladder broke than 20 or 50, 60 I untfe "Ashe tied onto the min belay thus necissitating one to unclip nesr the totes of the ladter, We coon met the other party who told us they'd been into the itaster Cave, but hadn't managed to deacend the finil pitch of 50ft as tue lifeline yes teo short. 1 was disappointed as it was my third altenpt to bottom Hanmer. The fourth pitch was short but vet and consequently more enjoyable then the rest; Sludge Crawl led off from the bottom. ‘There vas flood debris on the roof as usual, which vas a little off putting, but the vater level vasn't too nigh. It seemed a long 400ft in the gritty cold water, but the roar of water ahead indicated the end was in sight. I passed the inlot into the eravl and emerged into somevhat disappointing master cave, only 10ft high end 8ft wide; I was expecting a streamvey of O.F.D. proportions. One feature curious to the cave were the many rock/stal bridges which one had to constantly get down and crawl underneath or stoop under, Derek, Tipple and I arrived ata 6ft cascade and ag there was rather a lot of ater going down it ve clisbed above and to the side to descend a rift into the streamway below. Everyone had by now caught up and we decided it wes time to get out as it vas 6.30pm. Tipple traversed out to look at the last pitch while Derek lifelined. I, fox some unknown reason, had decided I didn't particularly like the place and turned sround to head out. It seemed a struggle walking against the water, I tried in vain to uA catch the rest up who kept goin; "It's flooding", someone shouted, and I realised they were right. Everyone specded up and countless straws were broken from the roof in the frantic bid to get clear of the water. Sludge Crawl was spewing out water st 2 phenomenal rate. Paul Rich attempted to get into the crawl but was shot out like a cork froma bottle. le then became what 1 can only call hysterical, shouting "We're going to die" repeatedly, We eventually managed to calm hin down somewhat, and Jane assured us that we'd be O.K. if we climbed the mud tank she'd found behind her, as it vas about 20 ft high and appeared to be free of flood debris. My fears for the others were growing by the second so I decided to try and reach them by keeping out of the water. I progressed very carefully for about lUoft and then gave up 21 hope of reaching them as the water une alrendy too high. On returning, the level had risen sc much, I md to get in at one point and found it extrenely difficult forcing my vay through the waist deep uater. Helping hands reached dovn to pull se out and we all clinbed up as hich as possible on the slippery mud. ‘We'll have to sit it out, everything will be O.K." said Jane; I wasn't so sure. Out came the survival bugs, threc of then and four of us, Jane being without one. At thir stage I uae more verviod about the water level than keening warm so T rlid evrefully down to the waters edge and sat watching the water rise slowly for 1} hours. (onvinced we vere in very serious danger of drowning I returned to © told thes the nevs. Thoughts of being trapped for days were going through wy head, the whole situation didn't seen real. her nob faving a tustion; no one ring tha worst. to nay anything the The three of us huddled around Jane to try and ma survival vag. I suddenly realised the seriousness of had mentioned Dave, Tipple and Derek, everyone obviously fe I wondered what was going through Jane's nimi but decia to her. There vas one sefe place between us and the r rift next to the 6ft cascade; if they could: chance at all of survival. 2 up Time massed surprisingly quickly, ve hod storted to play 11 ovy! but civen in as everyone was dozing off. At lam we heard voics 2 safel Dave didn't seem at all bothered by the situstion, ated it all with an unreal calmness, Tiprle said that they'd watched the vater level rise by about’ 6ft — it then being within aft of thea! I v: iT hadn't been with them. I scon discovered why we had all been so céld. We had been lying down rather than sitting back to tack in the survival position, the difference wis amazing. The seven of us huddled together as tintly as poasible and tried te sleep, I had sone strange dreans about possible weans of escape ineluding one where we vere all asleep in Tipple's bedroom and ve just had to climb out of the windows Then I'd awake to the bitter reality. At dam, Dave went to check the unter level. It had dropped substontially since lam, but Sludge Crawl was still not mesable. During the night, Dave was to disappear a further three times up the crawl, until, at 8.30am ve heard the welcome sound of the C.R.0. We all cheered loudly ns they emerged from the crawl. "Is everyone 0.K.2" "Yes", we all replied, "Then let's get noving now," suid one of them. The thought of seeing daylight sgain stirred us all into setion; the crawl was still emitting a substantial amount of water but proved alright until ve reached the flat out section, There was 4-6 inches of nirsmee, but with everyone moying so fast 2 surfboard vouldn't have been out.of place!’ 1 heard Paul svallowing water and crying "Help" tut it was everynen for hinself, and I crawled on to emerge ina more confortable sized masare. Derek had dissppearedout the impetus to get out hadn't, ay speed increased until I stood up in the small chamber at the end of the crawl. fage.? — Blak pagefetlous . Continuodton of stony 15 iiss vag | pea _PROFESSSR_ (RRISTOFFERSON) ON THE ART OF THE EYLINDERS HELD ARDUNE ROPE BY HAND PRESSURE A FULL stor WASH” POSSIBLE oF USL DESIRABLE. LONGHORN AND LARIAT METHOD, OTHER METHOD CAME AND We St e MAIR pase Teo Da oF IF “RE HEMP AND Bop KAPPEL, A DEOP oF MORE ae Then chvers cenasy 8) Got REAL SMART AND EXPERIMENTED wean | | wit Suc amere'| | SNES ay ace fered THE “ne as RAPPEL SPogL/ WHEN GOLOLINE. BECAME POPULAR INTHE (60's SOME BRAVE SOULS EAPrIALIZED ON 175 AMAZING ELASTICITY THE YEEHA METHOD! CAise rolowst Me The OmiseD MeTHoD) “THE SUBTLE DRAWEACKS or THE YEEHA METHOD 7 LED To THE #VOLUTION oF THE 'BINER AND BRAKE BAK METHOD, STILL USED BY MANY (who ARE CLEVER ENOUGTA To -THREAD AME ROPE CORRECTLY)... “THEN -THERE vias i SQURE Lewis? FAMOUS CcoKe BOTTLE RAPPEL wore: setier Heat Ste With LoNoeR preHes RAPPEL DEVICES TENDED TO “ OVERHEAT. THEN. “ME WHALETAIL A BG ALUMiNOM, | HEAT sab\came ALONG ABouT - “THE SAME TIME ~ As THE RACK. \ Plow cLenues CA. 1967 __ ineTEaD oF EARASINER “THE wrALeTAL Lost out TO-THE eho i THE SES, SUT IS STL EMVORED 8y THE AUSsiEs, WHO, Livin “cous UNDER”, ASCEND, tT To POUsT.n “THE STANDARD RACK STILL TENDS TO OVERHEAT SOT OFFER A MODEST UMPROVEMENT WRISTOFFERSON'S WATER-CooLeD RACK! SS _tige-stwet SS a et te RUE cater ane TS 8S aoe PROSLEM Hur Use ansveReees Fos atmde caUING IN DESIGN.. | BUT, if caves: DUST PRAT ESO : go ASTRAL PRODECTION, . THE NEED “fo SOOLY Exeuokie prs Ano (Promen- ween sPisiTUAs HARD Hat aNG HGH? AOR RITUAL There vas a young climber called Tipple, And oh, how his muscles did ripple, On a 50ft wall, He took a bad fall, But bung on for an hour by his nipple. There was a daft caver called Pau', With an ineredibly large big toe, He worked out the knack, To use it as a rack, And vas lsst seen descending Knotlows Foor old Derek and Jane, Went caving one day, in the rain, But they ran out of luck, Got impossibly stuck, And nobody's seen them again. Ralph was a caver of note, lie knew all the caverns by quote, But it didn't help nuch, ‘Cos he talked double dutch, And no one could rend whnt he wrote. Moly, &s good a caver as any Went drinking one day with our Lenny, That night in his tent, Many sweet hours were srent, And she didn't even cost hin a penny! Two amourous lads, Cliff and Brian, Each pretty girl they'd have their eye on, But through those cold crawls, . They'd loose both their b---s, (boots?) AlL they'd get vas s shoulder to ery on. * There vas a young caver called Phil, And he gave all the girls quite a thrill, So Kev, his "best mate", Fixed him up 2 blind date, ~ Quite a "goer" - she's called Gaping Gill! A Nony Mouse. (2. The unusual request exme on an obhervise uneventful Snturday afternoon, sav Paul, Jane, Derek and Ralph in yn outhouse to on old farm tedly Sth Century) peering down a 9Oft deep well dug by monks about nd suposedly containing "lack Gas" (?) plus water. Sund (: 300 years azo Paul disproved the gas theory by absadling down to water level yet still remining fully conscious! Balanced on a pipe protriding froma borehole in the vell potton about 80 years ago, Paul directed operations. A punp fron the borehole was hauled up and dropped into the water in the well ~ the borehole was empty, the vell vas full. the water level hed dropped, but not enough for our intregid a: a dip, We departed for th Tuesday sav Hon snd Ralph on site having first instructed she fwrmer to leave the pump running fo’a courle of hours. The intention w te inspect the base f the pipe with a view to clearing blocked holes which were supposed to exist. vater was about chest deep on fion (1) and very cold. No holes could be felt. to drill heles was oxy- ion followed and at Lhe farmers request it was a: pipe. 240 V was out, due to tne wet conditions, and acetylene , due to ventdllation problems. Paul, Key and Ralph on ing. Paul had a minor = Site, removing x leg from the p dont here followed by a te spite warnings from Ron) but timt's another storyt | Paul, Relph and George arrived to drill j inch noles in the pipe vith 110 V drill. This took about an hour. £40 exctanged ands, » tentative rangement was mde to cl will be needed. ar silt from the bottom of t volunteer ao " Bul -— 3 3 % 2 dy Martin Pate Redacted MEETS AND FORTHCOMING EVENTS Moots 1986 Meets 1987 k Nov 13, - Dale Head Jan 10-12 Instructing youth leaders ,Yorks. Nov #2” - Lancaster eto. Feb 27 - Peak Cavern Dec 21 - Feak Cavern April 14 Penyghent Easter 1987 - STOP PRESS May 4 = ‘Yeshfold Pot July 4 - Gingling Cetober 4 Guping Gill ete Movember 14 Lost John's a week long trip to Ireland is being organised- anyone interested should see Paul Shenton. MARTYN FAR will be giving a slide show at the Biddulph Aras on Friday the 9 of Jans Subjects are to include expedition caving(Sarawak) and the Blue Holes expeditions. ‘Mckets £2 (te include buffet) from Paul S.