A great dive that went bad really quickly

[TONY CHANEY]

The stages were dropped along the main line. I just had 120's with me. Hopefully though I will be needing a stage in there soon.

Sorry for the mistake I read it wrong. So, what would have been the best thing for Zorro to do? 1) Stay until he could not stay any longer, put a cookie on the like saying, "I am out," with a backup light attached for you to see? 2) Deploy a reel and try to find you until "absolute must leave gas pressure" is reached? 3) Run a reel and tie into the line and leave? Other suggestions?

I am glad that all went well.

[bent]

Ok, at first I didn't get the part were the line was cut when you were still swimming with it. Doesn't that mean that the line was somewhat slack when you did the first tie-off? Do you think you would have noticed the cut, if you had pulled on the line harder at the first tie-off?

[Garth]

I heard a buddy describe getting to the end of the line, deploying a reel to continue and the previously laid line endpoint just crumbled away. This guy had to repair the end of the line before tying into it but if he had been tied into it and already moving the connection might have been disrupted. Has that ever happened to anyone following this thread? I feel like it would leave you in the same situation.. A gap between the new line and old line.


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[Kelly Jessop]

I heard a buddy describe getting to the end of the line, deploying a reel to continue and the previously laid line endpoint just crumbled away. This guy had to repair the end of the line before tying into it but if he had been tied into it and already moving the connection might have been disrupted. Has that ever happened to anyone following this thread? I feel like it would leave you in the same situation.. A gap between the new line and old line.


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I have had old twisted #18 that I tied into break. This puts all the line in doubt, which makes you replace old line, and resurvey it.

[FW]

I heard a buddy describe getting to the end of the line, deploying a reel to continue and the previously laid line endpoint just crumbled away. This guy had to repair the end of the line before tying into it but if he had been tied into it and already moving the connection might have been disrupted. Has that ever happened to anyone following this thread? I feel like it would leave you in the same situation.. A gap between the new line and old line.


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If you tie in properly, and the tie-off crumbles, you will still have a continuous line. Check the last tie-off first. If it was done right, there should be a knot, not just a wrap. If you do a standard tie off, like you do on a jump, the tie point can crumble, but the slip knot won't go past the knot in the original line. Most tie-offs at the end of the line have the loose end tied around the line before the wrap, leaving a good solid loop. I usually tie into the loop, so there is no way the line can separate.

[ARY]

In many offbeaten path caves I've seen line runs in parallel one survey one safety I guess. Perhaps make sense for caves under exploration.

[Garth]

I was wondering if people used an arrow then tied into the arrow.
I like the idea of tying into the loop.


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[Webmaster]

Having your line on the reel with a loop on the end already makes it really quick to switch. And leaving a loop when you tie off at the end makes it quick to pick back up when you come back to continue.

There are caves you can tie off to something seemingly solid, which then disintegrates or the line cuts right through when tensioned. Or you swim around with stuff breaking off in your hand. That's when it helps to have plenty of stakes.

We rigged our rope to a jug handle to drop a pit once and when someone got their full weight on it the rope broke through a crust we thought was solid and sliced through about a foot of mud underneath, dropping the person on rope a couple of feet rather suddenly. That was a drawer changer.

[apitkin]

I have had old twisted #18 that I tied into break. This puts all the line in doubt, which makes you replace old line, and resurvey it.

I would also add that pulling the line as tight as piano wire when you are laying it (like my instructor taught me) is wrong, in my opinion. Not only does it mean the line is more likely to break subsequently, but if/when it does, or someone cuts it by accident (both have happened to me), there will be a longer gap as the two ends recoil away from each other. The length of that gap directly determines the amount of psychological stress you will feel if you are unlucky enough to be on the wrong side of it.

I am not advocating clouds of line floating around in the passage, just less tension during the original line placement. It gives you more options to work with the line subsequently.

Andy

[FW]

I would also add that pulling the line as tight as piano wire when you are laying it (like my instructor taught me) is wrong, in my opinion. Not only does it mean the line is more likely to break subsequently, but if/when it does, or someone cuts it by accident (both have happened to me), there will be a longer gap as the two ends recoil away from each other. The length of that gap directly determines the amount of psychological stress you will feel if you are unlucky enough to be on the wrong side of it.

I am not advocating clouds of line floating around in the passage, just less tension during the original line placement. It gives you more options to work with the line subsequently.

Andy

Sheck Exley taught to leave a little slack in the line, so it could be pulled out of line traps.. He was also against using too many wraps, because if the tie-off point broke, there would be a bunch of loose line.