WTF...self belaying with a grigri 2?!!

So today me and my wife were biking in St. George, saw a guy climbing and belaying himself at the same time. This was something I've never seen or heard about so we stopped, waited for him to rapp back down and asked him how he was doing this. He said he was using his grigri 2 and does this all the time. I'm not a super expierenced climber but my common sense told me this wasn't safe. When I asked him about the safety of it all he laughed and said its safe!

I still think he is crazy and has a death wish but was wondering if anyone has tried this and/or has any stories?

Look up Toprope solo

It's safe-ish, but Petzl no longer recommends the use of Grigris as a self belay device.

Here's the good word petzl.com/us/outdoor/produc…

Not for beginners, and not the safest practice, but not the worst either.

I haven't done it yet, but I got a microtraxion and microcender and will be starting this season if the partners aren't as psyched as I am.

Locker, Bearbreeder, and others do it often. The standard system seems to be two microtraxion on a fixed line or two separate fixed lines.

Yer gunna die.

Will

I assume the guy was toprope soloing. There are numerous threads on this subject. Some people like to use the Gri-Gri for TR soloing, but there are other devices that "feed" more freely over the rope (you don't have to stop and pull slack through the device like a Gri-Gri).

Do a search of TR solo and you will get a lot of hits.

I do it all the time when out exploring and cleaning new routes. As soon as you can it is good to put a knot in the rope below the GriGri to keep you from hitting the ground just in case the GriGri somehow slips, but I have never had that happen. (more likely on a slab since there is less force to make it grab. It is theoretically possible that the handle could get caught on something keeping it open too) I wouldn't use a real skinny rope. It is a little bit of a PTA pulling the slack through one handed while trying to not have too much slack while pulling the crux. It gives you a lead feeling sometimes when you haven't been able to pull the loop out, especially when working on a static cleaning rope! I consider it reasonably safe. Just be smart about it and don't allow too much slack to build up (especially on a static) I do use the GriGri 1 that I think is more rugged than the two, but that is mostly because I use thick ropes for cleaning.

Probably safer than leading with a new/unknown belayer if you're smart about it.

Seems like a lot of guys rope solo ice in NH since everyone there is burnt out on belaying.

Simple answer: it's not foolproof, it has failed, many people do it, it is a pain in the ass, there are better devices for the job.

M Sprague wrote:I do it all the time when out exploring and cleaning new routes. As soon as you can it is good to put a knot in the rope below the GriGri to keep you from hitting the ground just in case the GriGri somehow slips, but I have never had that happen. (more likely on a slab since there is less force to make it grab. It is theoretically possible that the handle could get caught on something keeping it open too) I wouldn't use a real skinny rope. It is a little bit of a PTA pulling the slack through one handed while trying to not have too much slack while pulling the crux. It gives you a lead feeling sometimes when you haven't been able to pull the loop out, especially when working on a static cleaning rope! I consider it reasonably safe. Just be smart about it and don't allow too much slack to build up (especially on a static) I do use the GriGri 1 that I think is more rugged than the two, but that is mostly because I use thick ropes for cleaning.

+1
I use this method quite often when working/cleaning new routes and that's about it. When I really want to climb I'll seek a belay partner. I haven't graduated to the mini-traxion setup yet.

Pretty standard. Not just for top rope soloing either, lots of people lead solo with the grigri, as long as you figure out a way to keep it upright.

I won't do it though

Christopher Gibson wrote:I guess it could be somewhat unsafe if your a 5.8 climber trying to tr solo a 5.10 route,

Please, explain how this changes the safety of said setup, in any way...

I do this when setting up routes in the gym. Since there's no buddy to check you, you have to take extra precautions and double, triple, and quadruple check your setup.

Please back up! I watched a friend slide down a Grigri 2 50' to the deck while cleaning new routes. Knock on wood, I've been hanging on a Grigri (1), even plenty of lead soloing, for 15 years without incident...

alleyehave wrote: Please, explain how this changes the safety of said setup, in any way...

It doesn't make the mechanical system itself safer, but does make the overall situation safer. Someone climbing above their limit will have much greater difficulty pulling slack through the gri gri between moves and in turn have more rope out when they inevitably fall.

how would the grigri hold up if you were to take a fall while climbing? lets so 5-10 feet...

Nate_801 wrote:how would the grigri hold up if you were to take a fall while climbing? lets so 5-10 feet...

As long as the locking mechanism isn't blocked, it'd likely hold up fine. I can't speak for the grigri2, but..as others have stated, grigris have been used routinely for a long time now while solo lead climbing. I have an original grigri(modified to pull through easier when climbing) for big wall soloing...

This isn't a new, off the wall or unsafe practice, given the person doing it knows the risks/complications and knows how to mitigate them...

Good grief! Make a friend already! Put an ad in the newspaper! Put a thread on MP! Go to climbing singles dot com or Ashley Madison dot com for all I care. STOP BELAYING YOURSELF WITH A GRIGRI! There is no excuse to go climbing without a partner.

put stopper knots in the rope where you can so if the gri gri fails to engage you at least hit the knot and not the deck. Its sucks for climbing shit thats at your limit but if your bored and everyone is busy its alot of fun.

Brent Larsen wrote:Good grief! Make a friend already! Put an ad in the newspaper! Put a thread on MP! Go to climbing singles dot com or Ashley Madison dot com for all I care. STOP BELAYING YOURSELF WITH A GRIGRI! There is no excuse to go climbing without a partner.

Sometimes it is really nice to go climbing by yourself. You can work out the moves on a project for as long as you want without making your belayer bored out of his mind, or you can run a lot of laps and get a great pump. If set up right, TR soloing is probably safer than trad leading and maybe sport leading.
Using a gri-gri is a pain though cause it's not self feeding. I tried it for a bit and now use a Trango Cinch and a Petzl Basic on 2 different strands of rope. Feeds great and is a redundant system, and I don't have to switch to a rappel device at the top.

gri gri 1 works ok. do your research and be aware. minitraxion feeds better but I worried about sheath ripping and stopping the cam/teeth from grabbing.

- the cam can get bumped
- the handle can get caught
- in certain circumstances a grigri 1 may not hold even if the above do not happen ... The "slow fall" scenario

Put backup knots as MPers have indicated ... All it takes is for one time for something to get caught or slip and ur decking (same with any ascender)

As noted the gri gri doesnt feed as cleanly as a microascender or other such as it causes a bend in the rope

The 50$ or so for a microascender is worth the price for a bit more safety and clean feeding IMO

;)

Plenty of good info above. Also please use a quick-link instead of a carabiner to attach the grigri in case of side-loading during a fall.