Austrailian style rappelling

Anyone ever done any Austrailian style rappelling? If so, how do you do it? Seems like it might be a bit... scary? unsafe? Any thoughts?

Are you referring to where you put your harness on backwards and you brake in the front or am I thinking about something else?

Our group does this all the time we just clip in on the back of the harness and go. it is scary the first couple of times but you get used to it. It is safe if done right. any other questions just ask.

I saw someone do that on one of those stupid "Caught on Tape" video shows on TV. He had a bunch of slack also to make it look reeeeeel good. Only he miscalculated the slack and he hit the ground face first from about 40 feet. He did live!

Having climbed for 38 years, I guess you might call me "old school".
Where I learned to climb in college (Minnesota Rovers), we had to demonstrate that we could rappel without any device or harness. Now if you want a thrill (and rope burns), give that a try.
Disclaimer: Not recommended.

None that I can tell but I guess it is the rush of doing something different and you can actually see where you are going.

It was developed by the military it is a tactical way of rappelling so you have one hand free. and its fun if you know what your doing.

A navy seal friend of mine (and climber) who had to do it out of helicopters described it as a great way to shoot your own people.

I guess I still don't get it - you put your device on the back of your harness and rap off that, or you put the rope through your harness and rap directly off your harness? And can you do it on all raps, or just on completely vertical/free raps?

jeremy put your harness on just like normal. Clip a large locking biner to the back of your harness belt right at the small of your back and then clip your belay/rappell device to this. Note now your holding the brake end of the rope out in front of you. sit on the edge of the cliff and lower your self (your now hanging facing the ground). This is how its done but general disclaimer and all if you kill your self. Might not be a bad idea to have a belayer at the bottom incase you pass out or somthing. A couple notes this is pretty much useless as a non military application (pretty much useless as military application for that matter) can be very unconfortable with all the pressure from the harness on your gut and is in general less safe. Have fun. Oh yea you can rap off of anything that you would normally rap off of such as overhanging or just slab.

That video was of a guy trying to get on Survivor.

It's a fun technique when you're hanging upside down in mid air, free rap style, but for climbing has no use. (Josh one of those Jar Head things!!LOL!!!)

Before i got into climbing in the late 80s i was into sport rappelling. really stupid in hindsight, but i got to see really cool areas of the RRG, before it got huge.

Back in the late seventies-early eighties I used to be able to get a magazine from the UK called Crags. One issue had one of my favorite climbing tales. Two guys out at their local crag, beginners I suppose, and they work their way up some route to a belay. The narrator says it " got dark like it does most nights" , so they planned to "ab off ". The narrator had followed the climb, and there was some disagreement about whether the rope, doubled, would reach the ground, with the leader insistent it would. Narrator goes first, ropes are about fifteen feet short and he plunges painfully to the talus. He is pissed at " Malcolm ", the leader, so rather than advise of the situation simply grits his teeth and calls up " I'm off ".

The next paragraph began " Now Malcolm always rappelled in the press up position..."