The WAC Way
The WAC Way is a set of standards for the Basic Class. Safety is the main objective.
Freedom of the Hills, 9th edition (FOTH) is our standard for skills and techniques unless otherwise noted.
If there are any questions, please contact a co-chair for clarification.
Equipment
Harness
Buckle up, tie-in, belay, and rappel using the manufacturer’s recommendations.
When in doubt, ask to see the instructions.
Harness is snug enough around waist that it won’t come off during an upside down fall.
Appropriate buckles doubled-back, with approximately a 3-inch tail on the waist band after doubling-back.
Note: Some modern harnesses are “pre-doubled" with speed buckles.
All gear on harness is racked neatly, tightly, and hangs no lower than mid-thigh.
Harnesses without belay loops will require the use of a locking carabiner to attach the leg loops and the waist loop in the front.
Always double check each other’s harnesses before climber leaves the ground or after tying in for glacier travel.
Belay Device
Black Diamond ATC Guide, Petzl Reverso or similar tube type belay device.
One HMS-type (large, pear shaped, stamped with "H" in circle) carabiner for use with the Munter hitch for belay and rappel.
Smaller locking carabiners are not suitable for this application.
Personal Anchor
We use the Metolius Personal Anchor (PAS, Alpine PAS, Dynamic PAS) or similar (Sterling Reactor) "chain style" personal anchor as our device to secure the climber to anchors.
The personal anchor is girth hitched to the harness through the tie-in points (through leg loop and waist loop, not through the belay loop).
No daisy chains.
Helmet
A UIAA/CE certified climbing helmet is required.
No hockey, bicycle, motorcycle, or construction helmets.
Helmets are worn by all students and instructors when there is hazard from fall, rock-fall, or other flying objects.
All climbers, belayers, rappelers, and observers in the climbing area are to wear helmets.
Helmet is buckled securely and forward enough to provide forehead protection.
Rock Climbing
Set-up for Rock Climbing
Tie the climbing rope into the harness waist and leg loops (ie: the "hard points" - not the belay loop), with a rewoven figure-eight knot. The rope is not clipped into a carabiner.
Dress and cinch the figure-eight knot.
Dressed means that the parallel strands don't cross each other.
Cinched means you've yanked all 4 exiting strands hard.
Tie the tail into a backup overhand or double-fisherman's.
The tail needs to be 5-8" long. If you can't tie the tail into an overhand, it's too short.
All students (and instructors) climb with a personal anchor girth hitched on their harness in the tie-in points and fitted with a locking carabiner at the end of the anchor.
The personal anchor is used for anchoring at the top of a climb, setting up for a rappel, and for belaying.
Cleaning Sport Anchors - Thread and Lower
We use the AMGA / American Alpine Club recommended process for cleaning sport anchors.
The process is as follows:
Climb to the anchor. Secure yourself directly to your anchor using your personal anchor system (PAS) and weight to test/verify.
Ask for slack from your belayer. (You’ll need 8-10ft - approx. 3-4 arm lengths)
Pull a bight of rope through both chain links. Tie a figure-8 on this bight and clip the bight to your belay loop with a locking carabiner.
Untie your rewoven figure-8 and pull the excess tail back through the chains (let the tail dangle or secure it to your harness).
Visually inspect your system. The rope should go from you up through the chains and down to your belayer.
Ask your belayer to "take" and test your system. Your weight should be on the rope held by the belayer and your PAS should be loose.
Remove anchor material and PAS and get lowered.
If the chains aren't big enough to thread a bight through, the process is altered slightly:
Climb to the anchor. Secure yourself to your anchor using your personal anchor system (PAS) and weight to test/verify.
Ask for slack from your belayer, and pull this slack through the anchor.(You’ll need 6-10ft)
Tie a clove hitch in this slack, between yourself and the anchor, and attach it to your belay loop with a locking carabiner. This ensures you don’t drop the rope, and it ensures you’ll stay on belay through the next step.
Untie your original rewoven figure-8 from your harness.
Thread the rope behind the anchor and through both chain links.. Tie back to your harness with a figure-8 on a bight with a locker to your belay loop.
Untie the clove hitch and visually inspect your system. The rope should go from you up through the chains and down to your belayer.
Ask your belayer to "take" and test your system. Your weight should be on the rope held by the belayer and your PAS should be loose.
Remove anchor material and PAS and get lowered.
Glacier Travel
Set-up for Roped Glacier Travel
For harnesses with a belay loop, two large locking carabiners on the harness belay loop.
For harnesses without a belay loop:
Two large locking carabiners on the harness through the tie-in points (leg and waist loops).
Gates down and out for most efficient use.
All climbers, regardless of place on the rope (middle or ends of rope) tie into the rope by clipping into a locking carabiner on their harness using a figure-eight on a bight, and locking the carabiner.
The Texas prusik waist loop is attached to the rope (towards the middle of the rope for the climbers in the middle) with a prusik knot and clipped through one of the two locking carabiners. Carabiner is then locked.
The Texas prusik foot loops are carried (neatly stowed) on the harness.
Personal anchor or other similar leash is attached to the climber’s pack (girth hitched onto pack's haul loop) and equipped with a carabiner to allow attaching the pack to an anchor or the climbing rope as necessary. In crevasse, attach the pack to belay loop or haul loop (back of harness) or research your harness to know what is strong enough to hold the weight of the pack.
In crevasse rescue (z-pulley), carabiner on carabiner connection is used in the z-pulley to connect to the anchor. Locking carabiners must be used.
Crevasse Self-Rescue
If a climber who has fallen into a crevasse is capable of self-rescue, he/she is to ascend the rope with the Texas prusik system after a secure anchor has been built (FOTH(9th Ed), page 404).
When ascending (or descending) a rope using a Texas prusik system (or similar), the climber will tie a clove hitch on a locking carabiner in the slack rope below the friction hitches and connect that carabiner to the climber’s belay loop.
The clove hitch will be adjusted (loosen the knot and slide the carabiner along the rope) to manage slack in the system. The carabiner is not unlocked in the process.
Belaying
Set-up for Belay
The belayer must be firmly anchored (using the personal anchor).
The anchor is on the brake hand side (for both belaying with a belay device as well as with a Munter). This keeps you from unwinding out of the brake position in a hard fall.
Once attached to the anchor, ensure that the personal anchor has little slack. This is especially important if the belayer is significantly lighter than the climber.
Pass the rope through the belay device and belay carabiner and lock it.
Verify that the belay carabiner is NOT cross-loaded.
All students will be given an inline belay backup by an instructor until belay competency is demonstrated.
Clear climbing signals with names are used (“Mary, on belay?” “John, belay on.”).
Belaying Technique with Belay Device
The belay technique that is used with a belay device and Munter is the PBUS (Pull-Brake-Under-Slide):
Pull up rope (with brake hand), other hand guides rope through belay device by pulling down.
Brake the rope by bringing brake hand down towards hip, below belay device.
Guide hand grabs rope under the brake hand.
Slide brake hand back up towards belay device.
Note:
Your brake hand NEVER opens or leaves the rope; it just slides.
When not taking in (or letting out) rope, the brake hand is in the brake position, BELOW belay device.
The brake hand is "palm down."
Belaying Technique with Munter Hitch
Same as belaying with Belay Device (PBUS, palm down).
Rappelling
We use a rappel technique where the rappel device is extended away from the harness using the PAS. All rappels are backed up with an autoblock knot tied using a Sterling HollowBlock (13.5" long, 6.8mm diameter size).
Students should demonstrate use of both hands and both techniques (device and munter hitch).
Set-up for an Extended Rappel with Belay Device
Gear needed:
harness
PAS (with locker)
hollowblock (with locker)
belay device (with locker)
Setup:
The climber is secured to the anchor with a locking carabiner at the end of the PAS.
The climber uses the hollowblock cord to tie an autoblock knot around the climbing rope and attaches the hollowblock to the belay loop with a locking carabiner.
The climber uses a locking carabiner in the first loop of the PAS to attach the belay device and the two strands of the climbing rope.
Pass both rope strands through the belay device in the rappel position and lock the carabiner.
Set-up for Rappel with Munter Hitch
Gear needed:
harness
PAS (with locker)
hollowblock (with locker)
HMS type locking carabiner
Setup:
The climber is secured to the anchor with a locking carabiner at the end of the PAS.
The climber uses the hollowblock cord to tie an autoblock knot around the climbing rope and attaches the hollowblock to the leg loop with a locking carabiner. Attach to the leg loop in a manner where the carabiner will not open the leg loop buckles on the harness.
The climber, using an HMS carabiner attached to the belay loop, ties a munter hitch with both strands, and locks the carabiner.
Rappelling Technique
Always, before throwing the rope, knot the ends separately and cinch the knots hard, using double-fisherman's knots. The tails should be at least 6” long.
We always rappel with an autoblock. The autoblock is a backup and should not be used as a replacement for the brake hand. Never let go of the rope with the brake hand! Hold it in brake position whenever you are not moving. If you tie a "leg wrap" with the rope below you, you may let go of the rope with the brake hand.
After the autoblock is engaged as part of testing the system, it must be released. To demonstrate that the autoblock is no longer engaged, the climber should show that the hitch is loose and floppy with their free hand.
Climbing Communication
Refer to FOTH (9th Ed.), page 197-198, for the standard voice commands.
Always use names with the voice commands.
Traveling as a Group
Climbing class parties travel as a group. For all-class outings (Mt. Si, Snow 1, Snow 2), “the group” is “the whole class”. For the alpine climbs, “the group” is the specific climb group (Tooth, Kendall, etc.).
No one from a group leaves base camp or the trailhead until the whole group is back.
We are the first line of help in case of an accident. We are prepared in equipment, training, and planning for the trip at hand.
All students and all instructors check in at the beginning of the trip and check out at the end of the trip.
A trip is over when all participants (students and instructors) have checked out at the trailhead.
Trip Planning and Leadership
Before any outings, the trip leader verifies the party is ready with the following checklist:
pack checks
radios (if appropriate – FRS channel 5.10)
club In-Reach PLB device if appropriate for the trip.
maps
emergency contact information, local hospital information, and appropriate emergency services contact information (SAR, etc.)
avalanche conditions and forecast, weather forecast
trip parameters:
planned itinerary
turnaround time
medical issues for all party members (any injuries, illness?)
party capabilities:
who has appropriate first aid training and what level?
who has avalanche assessment training and what level?