Mountain Project Logo

Building rescue/first aid skills

Original Post
a Ball · · Denver, CO · Joined Jul 2013 · Points: 35

I've started to tick the classics in my neck of the woods and I feel pretty confident in my systems when they go according to plan. But, I realized today that I have very little knowledge of what to do if shit hits the proverbial fan.

So, I am curious if the hive has suggestions for what skills should be at the top of my list. Time and money are limited so I want to be smart about what I pursue first. I am guessing that the best bang for my buck will be in basic first aid skills but other than that, I am not sure.

Suggestions? Type of knowledge (WFR/WFA/rope rescue) as well as source will be much appreciated.

TDoyle · · Milford, MA · Joined Mar 2012 · Points: 140

a couple weeks ago there was thread about WFA vs WFR vs WEMT etc...

for rescues, start simple and practice. (a pack with some weight in it makes for a good "injured climber"). Belay escape is a good place to start. Knowing the Munter Mule Overhand really well will go a long way.

There is a Falcon Guide book titled "Self Rescue" by David Fasulo that covers all sorts of rescue skills.

Matt Z · · Bozeman, MT · Joined Mar 2012 · Points: 161

Although it's more expensive and a bigger time commitment, I'd strongly suggest a WFR course over a WFA. The WFR is much more in depth about patient care and improvisation which I think is vastly more important in many climbing rescue scenarios where you might be in RMNP and have to care for your partner for hours before help gets there. The most well-known organization is WMI, but there are certainly others, Desert Mountain Medicine and SOLO are both excellent as well.

I also think taking a multipitch rock rescue course with someone like Colorado Mountain School is hugely beneficial. If you can swing it, a private course will be better since you can work with the guide to tailor the course to your needs rather than a more generalized (though still very useful) curriculum.

The most critical thing with both first aid and rescue skills is to continue to practice them beyond just the course, otherwise they'll float out of your brain pretty quick. My partners and I will occasionally take afternoons to just practice and stay fresh.

David Coley · · UK · Joined Oct 2013 · Points: 70

Hi,

A course is a very good idea, and if a group clubs together very cheap per person. But to get the most out of the instructor you want them to be improving your approach and correcting your mistakes and misunderstandings, not teaching you the basics.

I would suggest you read this

people.bath.ac.uk/dac33/hig…

then practice with a friend, and when you think you have it just about ok, hire an instructor between you.

djh860 · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Dec 2014 · Points: 110

Escaping the belay. Raising and lowering injured partners

wivanoff · · Northeast, USA · Joined Mar 2012 · Points: 674

Dave Fasulo's "Self Rescue" second edition is a good resource, too.

William Kramer · · Kemmerer, WY · Joined Jun 2013 · Points: 935

Join a volunteer SAR team. Many pay for their people to go through WFR and other classes. I have a friend who joined her local SAR a year ago, and they are sending her down to Ouray for a week for technical rope rescue training. Not all provide such classes, but you should ask around, maybe one around you does.

a Ball · · Denver, CO · Joined Jul 2013 · Points: 35

Thanks everyone. Good stuff to get started on.

Highlander · · Ouray, CO · Joined Apr 2008 · Points: 256
William Kramer wrote:Join a volunteer SAR team. Many pay for their people to go through WFR and other classes. I have a friend who joined her local SAR a year ago, and they are sending her down to Ouray for a week for technical rope rescue training. Not all provide such classes, but you should ask around, maybe one around you does.
The technical rope rescue skills learned with a SAR team are nice but are not the same rescue skills needed for companion or self rescue.
Scott O · · Anchorage · Joined Mar 2010 · Points: 70
Highlander wrote: The technical rope rescue skills learned with a SAR team are nice but are not the same rescue skills needed for companion or self rescue.
Not the same, but very helpful.

Learn to aid climb. You're rescuing the pig on every pitch.
tenpins · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jan 2007 · Points: 30
Scott O wrote: Not the same, but very helpful.
i disagree. "rescue" systems and techniques are burly cumbersome and _require_ a small team to operate safely. And thats for a traditional team that is based off traditional mountaineers. Talk about that crazy fire rescue oriented 'rigging for rescue' shit and you need a full squad to operate it.

Add in that almost all rescue systems incorporate ridiculous redundancies, rules and equipment requirements like steel biners (even though they are used as single point failures) and the "SAR experience" seems less and less relevant. speak from experience as a climber/mountaineer who was on an MRA team for 9 years. It was basically a whole new system to me. My team prohibited water knots being tied 'in the field' because they couldnt be properly weighted....but used a single point failure on all of their systems. Because it was steel. I traveled the region and evaluated all the teams who had similar oddities and quirks. anyway...

To the OP - start small. Weight a pack. Escape the belay. Then again. and again and again. Munter mule overhand next. Then add to that with something else. Then another brick. Dont think a single one on one with a guide or instructor makes you competent. You have to start a base of knowledge and actually build on that. There's no quick way, you have to put in serious time.
Scott O · · Anchorage · Joined Mar 2010 · Points: 70
tenpins wrote: i disagree. "rescue" systems and techniques are burly cumbersome and _require_ a small team to operate safely. And thats for a traditional team that is based off traditional mountaineers. Talk about that crazy fire rescue oriented 'rigging for rescue' shit and you need a full squad to operate it. Add in that almost all rescue systems incorporate ridiculous redundancies, rules and equipment requirements like steel biners (even though they are used as single point failures) and the "SAR experience" seems less and less relevant. speak from experience as a climber/mountaineer who was on an MRA team for 9 years. It was basically a whole new system to me. My team prohibited water knots being tied 'in the field' because they couldnt be properly weighted....but used a single point failure on all of their systems. Because it was steel. I traveled the region and evaluated all the teams who had similar oddities and quirks. anyway... To the OP - start small. Weight a pack. Escape the belay. Then again. and again and again. Munter mule overhand next. Then add to that with something else. Then another brick. Dont think a single one on one with a guide or instructor makes you competent. You have to start a base of knowledge and actually build on that. There's no quick way, you have to put in serious time.
I did fire-rescue based rope rescue for seven years. I know how different it is. Just belaying is a two man job at minimum. I didn't say it was the most efficient way to learn climbing self rescue. It is, however, very helpful to think about systems in a different context, to learn about a multitude of options for hauling and lowering, and to consider your own self rescue from the perspective of an outside rescuer. Yeah, things are needlessly redundant and overbuilt, but climbing self rescue is mostly a pared down version of very similar systems. I learned quite a bit from my time doing rope rescue.
Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

General Climbing
Post a Reply to "Building rescue/first aid skills"

Log In to Reply

Join the Community

Create your FREE account today!
Already have an account? Login to close this notice.

Get Started.