Screw placements

I'm going to agree with " just solo "and war bonnet on this one . Your not in a gym , your not on some sport or trad route ether . You are a human blender ! Ruining the rest of my short season by becoming injured is not my idea of fun . I place em when I know I've climbed high enough irregardless of the conditions and I'm still here so that's good enough for me .

A good strategy is to place 'em when you can, and not when you need 'em (or have that feeling…)

Reasoning is that when you can place 'em it means there is a good spot for it, or doing it…
And when you need 'em there may not be a spot of good ice for 'em, or it is a hard stance to do it at…

(I know that doesn't always work like that, but it can be a good rule of thumb.)

(Sorry, was jet lagged from India when I wrote the last, unreadable post...corrected).

Ben, agree with you completely -- I hate the spider work of doubles & managing a lot of rope at the belay end (unless it's difficult mixed climbing in which you have to do it anyway.). I prefer the new ultra skinnies (and just one) rope, esp. the triple rated Mammut Serenity. However, some people climb on two skinnies & clip both to the same biner. Super bad juju cuz if you fall (skinny rope or not -- the size doesn't matter), the load on the rope/screw/biner is X times harder than if two ropes (running side by side) are clipped to two miners at the same point.

Or, clip ONE rope to a screw/biner, climb up even 3-4 feet, place a screw & biner & clip the second rope - reduces the fall factor. Problem is you have to take a lot of screws & miners.

So, you've increased the safety margin big time by using two ropes for alternating the clips and they are both in the same "line". Also you have two ropes to tie together for that lower rap (which I ALWAYS like, esp. at the end of the day).

In a pinch if you run out of biners, you can always place threads but takes longer & you'll want to put a rap ring biner thru the cord (meaning untying the rope, running it thru the ring & retie....no worries. Best to sacrifice a biner of course.

Placing screws when you can not when you want to... I've been doing just that on this early season ice in the NE. Sometimes I come up on some blue ice and think "better put a screw in!"