Introduction

 

In order to safely and without-supervision participate in multi-pitch activities at any UQ Mountain Club (UQMC) climbing event, you must obtain your “Black Tape”.

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First and foremost, UQMC promotes a “safety first culture that guides all our activities”. That means that whatever you are doing, you must make sure that your and others safety is the number one priority at any given time.

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This document will guide you towards successful completion of the assessment of your “Black Tape”. In order to get your “Black Tape” approved, there are four main steps:

1. Read and remember the knowledge displayed in this document,

2. Put all this knowledge in a correct manner into practice,

3. Get yourself assessed for new theoretical and practical material by 3 members of the executive team who will ask you theoretical questions and will assess your practical skills during one of the UQMC events.

4. The Executive team will vote upon the competency of the member in an Executive meeting based on the development of their “Red Tape” skills and their competency on new material. Note that climbing ability is not considered as a requirement for “Black Tape” and should not sway decision making. The “Black tape” can be awarded by the majority vote of the current Executive Team.

 

Please read the following instructions carefully.

 

NOTE: We do not endorse all the information by the content creators given below. However, we have checked the specific links and believe that they are great learning resources. These links do not replace learning practically from club members, but will be helpful to aid your learning.

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Description

Having “Black Tape” indicates that a member is a very competent multi-pitch climber and belayer, they are able to set up and use a top belay anchor, have extensive skills and knowledge in multi-pitch climbing.

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When a member has achieved their “Black Tape”, they are allowed to lead a climb that is longer than a single pitch during Club activities without supervision from executives or other experienced members with “Black Tape”.

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Prerequisites

You must be a member of UQMC to be tested for the “Black Tape” competency.

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You must have the Yellow Tape, Blue Tape, Green Tape, Orange Tape and Red Tape competency to be tested for the “Black Tape” competency.

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You must hold Red Tape for at least six months, though this period may be adjusted at the Executive team’s discretion based on prior experience. Within this period, the Red Tape holder must have at least participated in a number of UQMC Multi-Pitch climbing activities, consistently demonstrating their skills without compromising safety. Emphasis is placed on the member’s experience and commitment to safety.

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Testable material

The material testable to obtain the “Black Tape” competency can be broken down into the following categories:

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Practical

• The member must demonstrate exceptional rope management;

• Safely haul a climber up while safetied in on a hanging ledge by demonstrating effective assisted and unassisted hauls.

• Build a rope, sling and quad anchor;

• retrievable double strand rappel with two ropes;

• Setting up a rappel with different types of setups

  • How to set up a retrievable single-strand rappel;

  • Knowledge of knots when setting up a double stranded rappel with two ropes;

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Theoretical material

• How to perform a retrievable single strand rappel and why it’s not ideal;

• Rope management - understanding why rope management is important and how and when to correctly manage your rope whilst on the wall;

• The member must walk through how to climb a multi with a party of three;

• Walkthrough a comprehensive rescue scenario involving a stuck or cut rope, giving detailed step by step instructions;

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The better you understand all the following material, the safer you will be as a climber and the more likely you are to avoid a climbing accident. Having a “safety first” culture within UQMC is the highest priority when climbing.

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Reading for theoretical material

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Revision

In order to receive your Black Tape, you need to review your knowledge from your Green and Red Tape. This section is a very short outline of the most important points from those booklets:

• Lead belaying:

• Lead climbing:

  • Clipping;

  • Falling techniques;

  • Commands;

  • Cleaning a climb (2 PAS, figure-8, through rappel rings);

  • Rappelling (third hand);

• Bad Bolts;

• Ascending and descending on prusiks;

• Munter hitch;

• Anchor principals: equalisation, focal points, weights, redundancy, extension, angle of separation and dangers;

• Building a top belay anchor (3 methods: Rope, sling or quad anchor);

• Belaying from a top belay anchor;

• Ohm and stick clips;

• Crag ethics.

• The multi-pitching process

  • Safely lead belay from a multi-pitch anchor

  • Safely setting up anchors on a multi pitch

  • Purpose of a Jesus Draw

  • What to do if you drop quickdraws

  • What to do if you dropped your belay device

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Please go over your “Green Tape” and “Red Tape” booklet again if you have forgotten the theory or practise of these points.

Remember: Anchors must be SERENE

S - Solid: The anchor, which you are using (bolts, bollards, trees), is solid and you have inspected it.

E -  Equalisation: The tension on both stands is equal, meaning they are both taking the equal load.

R -  Redundant: there are no single points of failure.

E - Efficient: The anchor should be simple, so you can easily inspect it.

NE - No Extension: If a piece fails, the anchor will not shock load.

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What is multi-pitch climbing?

Multi-pitch climbing is climbing a route which has multiple anchors up the wall. So you basically climb from the ground, to the first anchor (called the first pitch), to the second anchor (second pitch) all the way to the top of the climb.

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Multi-pitch climbing can be tonnes of fun if you are climbing comfortably at the hardest grade on the route and if you have all the skills you need to keep yourself out of trouble. Self-rescue skills, anchor building skills, and rope management skills are essential when multi-pitch climbing as you cannot simply be lowered to the base of the cliff. Some multi-pitches can be 100+m!

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For some psych and visual aid in understanding multi-pitching, you can check out this video of a relatively normal (not elite) climb in the Blue Mountains (13 min).

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Preparation is key

Preparing for a multi-pitch is equally important than actually climbing the route. To make sure you will not get an “epic” (a multi-pitch where literally everything goes wrong), you must prepare your squad beforehand.

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Step 1: Time. A multi-pitch takes a lot of time. From getting to the crag, walking in, finding the climb, starting, climbing, finding where to rappel, rappelling, walking back out and driving home. Climbers often overlook the time it takes to actually get to the right spot to climb. So consider leaving early for your multi-pitch.

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Step 2: Check the grade and length of the route. When multi-pitching, you really do not want to be pushing your grade as this makes it more likely that you will get injured and turn the day into an epic. Therefore, choose a climbing grade you consistently onsight.

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Also, consider the length of the climb, the number of pitches and how long it will take you. It is also worth considering if you have the endurance to do a long route. For example, boulderers might get more tired than single pitch sport climbers.

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Step 3: Check that you have enough gear. It is highly recommended that you either put the necessary gear on your harness the night before or pack your bag with the necessary gear. This way, you do not forget anything when you rush off early in the morning.

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Depending on the route, there may be advice on how many draws and what type of draws you need. It is common for when doing a multi-pitch to use alpine draws to avoid rope drag, however, you can also just extend the draw with a sling.

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Harness Gear list

• 6 locking carabiner minimum;

• Anchor building material (e.g. slings or accessory cord to build a quad);

• 2 personal safeties or PASses;

• 3 prusiks (for self-rescue ascending and descending, and third hand on rappel);

• Prusik/sling/daisy chain to extend your belay device;

• Belay device - ATC and if preferred, a Grigri or other assisted belay device;

• Comfortable climbing shoes;

• Helmet.

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In your backpack

• Basic first aid equipment and medication (e.g. climbing tape, bandage, ibuprofen);

• Head torches;

• Water and food;

• Walkie talkies (not necessary but makes it so much easier);

• PLB and phone in case of an emergency;

• Comfortable walking shoes for walking down/back to the car.

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WHY? As you are climbing up, you cannot leave any gear or stuff behind on the ground. Pack light, smart and enough.

WHO CARRIES THE STUFF? The seconder carries the stuff as lead climbing with a bag can be a hassle.

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Step 4: Check that you and your partner have the necessary climbing, belaying, self-rescue, rappelling, anchor building setup and rope management skills. It is highly advised that you do not choose any random climber you found on Facebook and trust them as your climbing partner. It is important that you know that as a team, you have the skills to get yourself up or down safely if something goes wrong.

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Always practice your anchor building and rappelling skills the day before you plan on multi-pitching, so you are ready to go and confident in your/your partner’s abilities.

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Climbing with a party of three

Sometimes you will be multi-pitching with a party of three, which can be good if something happens, but can also cause more of a fuss as there are two people at the anchor.

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The sequence of climbing is the same as with a party of two. One person climbs up, and sets up an anchor. The second person climbs up and waits at the anchor. The third person climbs up and leads the next pitch.

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There are a few scenarios which can play out with a party of three. Depending if you are using one rope or two. However, you should always bring two ropes with you if you are with a party of three.

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One rope:

• Instead of tying in the end of the rope, the second climber ties in in the middle of the rope with an Alpine Butterfly knot. This way the top belayer does not have to remove all the slack in the rope, but can just start belaying the second person up.

• The third person will tie in at the end of the rope with the normal rethreaded figure-8 knot. Beware that there has to be enough rope for three people to climb the pitch!

• When the second person is tied in with an Alpine butterfly, this person will take off the quickdraws, but not all of them. Because you still want the rope in the correct place for the third person to go up, you will leave some of the quickdraws.

• The second person will climb up to the quickdraw, unclip themselves, go above it and reclip the quickdraw below their Alpine Butterfly knot. This way the third person can take the quickdraw off.

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Two ropes:

If there is not enough rope to climb the first pitch with three people, i.e. the first pitch is 30 meter. Then you should bring two ropes up. Again, there are two options for climbing with two ropes.

• The second person will be tied at the end of the first rope and the start of the second rope. The second person will also unclip the quickdraws, but again, reclip some of the quickdraws with the second rope when going up.

 

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Source

Beware to clip the bolts like this, otherwise the ropes will cause friction on each other and will cause damage to the rope or can even cut a rope.

 

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Source

• The first person is tied into both ropes and clips both ropes when going up. The second and third person are tied in in the first and second rope, respectively. The first climber will belay both climbers at the same time, but with the second climber a bit higher than the third climber, so they will not be in each other's way.

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For more information, you can watch this simple youtube video (3.5 min) where they explain both these methods and what happens when there is a traverse, or this video (3.5 min) on the errors to avoid when multi-pitching. Check this website on more information about climbing with a party of three.

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Dangers of multi-pitching

While multi-pitching is extremely cool, there are some things you have to look out for and be aware of. A multi-pitch can easily turn into an epic.

• During a multi-pitch, unexpected things can happen, such as you cannot get over the crux, you cannot find the climb, or you went down the wrong rappel station. These things are not unusual, so keep in mind that these take time. Do not plan a multi-pitch on a tight schedule. Take your time and plan in time for unexpected things to happen;

• The perfect weather for a multi-pitch is a dry but overcast day in summer or a sunny and semi-cold day in winter. However, Queensland weather is tricky. 

  • Beware that when you are climbing on a wall which is in the sun, dehydration, heat exhaustion and heat stroke are very likely. All of these can lead to dangerous situations;

  • The higher you get on a multi-pitch, the more windy it is. If you are in the shade as well, it can get chilly;

  • If it starts raining, make sure that you are safe. When you are sure that you are safe, assess the situation. Is it too wet to go up? Can you rappel down? Do not keep climbing when it is too wet. This can have disastrous consequences;

• Make sure that every climber has enough experience to confidently climb a multi-pitch, knows how to set up anchors and proven that they can rappel safely. Your group is as weak as the most inexperienced climber, so keep the pace of that climber.

• Climbing with a group of 2 can quickly turn into an epic. UQMC recommends going on multi-pitches with 2 groups of 2. As there are always other people to assist you whenever you encounter unexpected things, i.e. the rope gets stuck, someone drops their ATC or something else. Again, climbing with 2 groups of 2 will take more time, so plan accordingly.

• When possible, take two ropes up instead of one. This will increase your chances of a good outcome when something unexpected happens.

• It is possible that a member of your party gets injured. Assess the injury and perform basic first aid. Is the casualty in immediate danger? Call a helicopter. If not, assess the situation and decide how to get down safely and quickly (in that order). Can the casualty rappel down themselves? Should you rappel down together? How many ropes do you have? Where on the climb has the injury occured? High up, then multiple rappel stations are needed, is that possible? Lower down, try to get down as quickly as possible.  

• The rope might get stuck, as mentioned above. 

• You may not be able to find the multi-pitch climb, as the description might be too cryptic. Be aware of that. UQMC would recommend climbing with someone who either knows where the multi-pitch is or has done the multi-pitch before. 

Some less trafficked multi-pitches can be a bit chossy. So there might be more holds breaking off or rocks failing. Always wear a helmet when multi-pitching. We promise you will look cooler (and more alive) if you do.

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Crag Ethics

It is UQMC policy (and just common courtesy) to leave no trace whenever you are climbing. Access to crags is something UQMC wants to keep, so we all must be good environmental stewards at all times. Some crag ethics, therefore, are:

• Avoid making too much noise (music, load conversations, swearing etcetera);

• Do not leave tones of chalk on the climb or on the ground. Use your brush to brush it off the rocks;

• Pack out rubbish and food scraps;

• If you set up hammocks, be careful not to ring bark trees;

• Try and stick to the existing crag trails;

• Do not leave toilet paper EVER;

• Leave your pets at home whenever they are not allowed at the crag (e.g. National Parks). Otherwise keep them on a lead or at least in eye shot, so you can pick up after them. Also, make sure they are not attacking or hunting local wildlife and are not annoying (or scaring) other climbers or members of the public.

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Executive Assessment Process

The Black tape can be awarded during an Executive meeting by a majority vote. The member will have to demonstrate the practical competencies and be able to answer questions regarding the theoretical material without error. Note that climbing ability is not considered as a requirement for Black Tape and should not sway decision making. The Executives will complete a checklist, stating that they have witnessed the member completing the practical competencies, and that the questions regarding the theoretical material were answered without error.

 

Once the Executives have voted that the member is competent, their skill level will be updated on the Club database and their membership profile will be updated by the assessor to display a Black tape badge. If a member with Black tape is seen making errors, is unsure of their ability or is displaying an unsafe attitude, the Executives can suspend their climbing and vote on whether to rescind their tape.

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