Grand Couloir Mont Blanc - Near accident

This guy was trying to cross the Grand Couloir with a much to short sling attached to a crossing wire, causing him to be pulled up and finally slip. Luckily for him there came no rocks or ice blocks down the couloir while he was hanging there, and his friend managed to go out and attach a rope to his harness and we pulled him back in. He turned around and went down...

Category:

Sports

Tags:

• France
• Chamonix
• Climbing
• Harness
• Crampons
• action
• extreme
• track
• field
• winter
• sports
• Goûter

[Leutwein]

IMPORTANT QUESTION -->

How long must the sling be, that something like this can't happen? I want to climb the MB also... Thanks for any answers!! :)

[oysteintveit]

The length of the sling depends on how much snow there is. You have to estimate it when you're there. My sling was 1.7m. If your sling is too short you will notice it as you start crossing and you should turn around. I guess the sling can't bee too long.....

[adharwood]

Would even a longer sling have been suitable here? Surely a rope or cow-tails?

Hooking in with a longer sling and he would'nt have been left hanging, but he may well have fallen more than the fall factor 1 needed to snap some slings in two!!!!

[oysteintveit]

@adharwood The wire is a bit flexible, and also you don't fall freely, but sliding down the snowy slope. I wouldn't worry about my sling being too long...

[erikkire94]

Hadde dere guide da dere besteg Mont Blanc? Hvor utfordrende og farlig er turen?

[oysteintveit]

@erikkire94 Ingen guide. Turen er ikke veldig farlig, men alt er jo relativt. Det hender jo at det dør folk der, men denne ruta er ikke den mest utsatte. Bør ha gått på bre og i tau før. Selv om det er sommer og varmt nede i Chamonix kan det bli som en kall norsk vinterstorm på toppen.

[k0sinka]

@Leutwein at the Grand Couloir is an image, how to cross it (we took it solo, without ropes and slings) but you have to have rope about 5 meters and go with your climbing partner, just with rope joined by HMS to steel rope.

[chanctonbury63]

Cue rockfall.

[Cocaine2600]

@oysteintveit

c'mon guys.. its only 20-30 meters of passage .. you dont need a roap at all. this guy had an ice axe and probably cramps. its completely enough to pass trought. for safety he could tie one end of rope to himself

[bornedformx]

hahaha, you probably schould have used a longer piece og rope :p

[erikkire94]

@erikkire94 Ok. Jeg har tatt brekurs og vært på en del breturer etter det, i tillegg til at jeg har vært mye i fjellet, og er i generelt god form. Bør en 17-åring klare denne turen, eller krever den lengre erfaring fra fjellet? Ble høydesyke et problem for dere?

[jamescooper68]

@pyramidcapitol what makes you think being British is relevant to this situation?