Rappelling has a long history in institutional climbing. Compared with climbing, rappelling is a passive activity. An individual slides down a rope and exercises enough control over a friction device to avoid exceeding a safe speed. There less opportunity for a struggle to succeed than while climbing. Rappelling can be a powerful tool for overcoming fear, taking the chance of trusting a system and belayer, etc.. This power is usually exhausted after the first couple of rappels, whereupon the exercise devolves into a thrill event. It can be presented as a necessary skill for participants to master for descents. Of course, anywhere that a participant can rappel, it is possible to simply lower them to the ground. (The preferred alternative for evacuations). Rappelling can be dome off of many cliffs, buildings, platforms, or other high object that might be unsuitable for climbing.

AMONG THE MANY POSSIBLE hazards of rappelling is the relatively common scenario of an object becoming entangled in the participant's figure eight descender. Shirts, beards, hair, body parts, etc. can be sucked into the device and jam it. When this happens and the instructor running the rappel is incompetent, knives come out to cut shirts or hair or to cut one line so as to load another line. A knife is a tool of last resort. It is inappropriate for everyday rappelling and everyday complications. Knife use can be avoided in all but the most serious, unpredictable disasters by using the methods in this manual in conjunction with other basic rescue techniques.

Rappels are often run by institutions in a manner that is not sufficiently conservative. There seems to be an unlimited supply of amusing anecdotes about unqualified instructors and rappelling accidents.

I am aware of an incident wherein an instructor rappelled down beside a participant whose hair was caught in her figure eight. He pulled out his knife to free her, but succeeded only in cutting his own rope and killing himself. Given his incompetence and the danger to which he exposed the participants, we might conclude that he deserved it. If however, he was hired by someone who failed to ascertain whether or not he was qualified and also failed to train him for the responsibilities he was given, we would have to conclude that the employer was responsible for the accident.

A friend told me that he heard an instructor with one of the larger adventure education programs instruct a participant whose hair was stuck in the descender to cut it out with her knife. A senior instructor from this same school said that if one of his participants got themselves stuck on a rappel, he would just pull them back up to the ledge, hand over hand. Such lack of familiarity with the realities of simple rescue is not as rare among instructors as might be hoped. The bigger institutions have had trouble hiring sufficient numbers of qualified staff.

BASIC PRINCIPLES FOR INSTITUTIONAL RAPPELLING

A) Every participant who rappels should be on an active belay from above. This belay should involve a separate rope and an independent anchor system. A belay from the bottom is not adequate with individuals who are learning to rappel.

B) Every rappel should be set up so that the load lines (the line or lines that the participant rappels on--not the belay line) can be released under load. These should always be backed up with a figure eight on a bight to insure that the lines do not release inadvertently. Pre-configuring the load lines for release under load allows the load to be taken and lowered on the belay line if necessary.

C) It is greatly preferable to belay the participant with a munter hitch off of an anchor, not off of the instructor's harness. This makes dealing with any mishaps much simpler. A hip belay is inappropriate as the belayer may need to lower the rappeller to the ground.

D) The participant's belay should be attached to their harness. It has been a practice in many programs to belay a rappeller with a bowline around the waist or a bowline on a coil around the waist. Lowering someone to the ground on either of these can be painful and cause injury. The belay line can be tied directly to the harness with a figure eight on a bight or clipped to the harness with a separate carabiner from the one that is attached to the descender.


RAPPEL SET UP #1: TREES AND A FRICTION WRAP

Where there are large trees, setting up a rappel is fairly simple. A friction wrap around the base of a large tree with three or more wraps, and backed up with a figure eight on a bight, will hold the load without coming tight on the figure eight on the bight. It can be released under load, the line tossed to the side, and the participant lowered on the belay.

Setting rappels for participants is made easier by setting single line rappels. The single line is strong enough for a single person, especially as it is backed up with a solid belay. But the single line makes for a rappel that is faster and more difficult to control than when two lines are used. Free hanging or long rappels are often best set up with double ropes in order to help slow people down.



RAPPEL SET UP #2: SINGLE LINE WITH LOAD RELEASING MULE HITCH

A load releasing hitch must be substituted when a load releasing friction wrap is impractical. The rappel line is attached to its anchor with a munter that is held fast by a backed up load releasing mule hitch. If there is a serious problem, the rappel line can be released and eased onto the belay. The rappel line can then be tossed to the side and the rappeller lowered to the ground on the belay. Obviously, the belay must not be compromised at any point in the procedure. load releasing mule hitch on a munter with an overhand and a figure eight on a bight clipped into the anchor

VARIATIONS ON THE RAPPEL LINE(S) SET UP

The rappel line set up depends upon your preference of load releasing hitches, single or double lines and whether or not you want to include a secondary lowering rope. The secondary lowering rope keeps the rappel line(s) from falling on the rappeller if they must be released. This can be important if you are doing a long vertical rappel with a pair of heavy static lines.

The illustration in the upper left on the previous page:
A single rappel line, tied to another line with a double eight bend. The secondary line is secured with a munter/mule hitch. The secondary line will serve as the lowering rope.

The illustration in the upper right on the previous page:
Double rappel lines, attached to a secondary lowering line with figure eights on bights and a pair of locking carabiners. The secondary lowering line is secured with a munter/mule hitch.

The illustration on the bottom of the previous page:
A single rappel line rigged with a Larson load releasing hitch which will hold the weight. The rappel line is clipped into the anchor with a figure eight on a bight as a back up. The use of two prusiks to hold the load will increase the security of the system. The prusiks must be tied to unequal lengths if they are to share the load. A second rappel line can be added easily. The prusiks can hold both lines.

WARNING: A secondary lowering rope is not a belay. The primary belay must not be compromised. The rappeller may not be securely attached to the rappel line. The secondary lowering rope only serves to keep the rappel lines from falling on the rappeller. The rappeller's weight should be lowered on the belay.

The variations above employ a mule hitch on a figure eight descender as the load releasing hitch for the rappel line(s). This may help to prevent the instructor from becoming confused between the rappel lines and the belay line which will be on a munter.

OVERVIEW OF THE RAPPEL RESCUE:

Step 1: Instructor escapes belay with a load releasing hitch, backed up with a figure eight on a bight.

Step 2: Instructor unties the figure eight on a bight back up on the rappel line(s), releases the load and eases it onto the belay. If a secondary lowering rope is built into the system, the load should still be eased onto the belay and lowered with the belay. The secondary lowering line only serves to keep the rappel lines from falling on the rappeller, it can be allowed to run unattended through its device or munter.

Step 3: Instructor unties figure eight backup on the belay, releases the load back onto the munter belay and lowers the participant to the ground with the belay.

ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON RAPPELLING

Prevention is better than rescue. Make sure that participants tuck in hair, clothing and helmet straps before rappelling. Always give each participant a full harness check before they are attached to any safety systems. Provide thorough instruction and a demonstration of proper rappelling technique. Be sure that a student's first rappel is appropriate. (An appropriate beginners rappel affords the instructor an unobstructed view of the student all the way to the ground, solid footing for the first few difficult steps, and is not so long as to make communication difficult.)

It is worthwhile to teach a participant how to rescue themselves. Participants can be taught a leg wrap, prusik or instructed to pull up on the load lines above the descender in order to unweight the tangle. Of course, if someone is painfully entangled, injured, or not especially strong, self rescue is improbable. Always be prepared to release the rappel lines and lower the rappeller on the belay.

Do not forget that many simple snags can be released with a simple haul on the belay line from above by the instructor.

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