Where to get a sand bag for lead belayer

Hello,

I recently changed gyms, and my new gym does not have sand bags for anchoring my lead belayer. (65 lb. weight difference)

I've tried the Edelrid Ohm and I really dislike it. (Maybe I'm just bad, but I found it to add massively to rope drag and had one or two terrifying incidents where it locked the rope while I was in the middle of a move.)

Does anyone know where to get the sand bags that climbing gyms have? I'm really reluctant to buy one unless I know it won't rip apart and my Google-fu is apparently too weak. Thank you!

Sandbag? I've heard Chuck Pratt could be a good resource. Look him up!

A couple options:

https://asanaclimbing.com/products/floor-anchor-bag

https://www.flashed.com/shop/product/turtle-belay-weight/

I cannot vouch for either option.  I have had no complaints about my Asana crash pad.

Perhaps you can call one of your previous gyms and ask them where they got their sandbags.

Joseph Charles wrote:

I've tried the Edelrid Ohm and I really dislike it. (Maybe I'm just bad, but I found it to add massively to rope drag and had one or two terrifying incidents where it locked the rope while I was in the middle of a move.)

Learn to use gear you have. Ohm has a learning curve, your belayer needs to modify his or her technique

Does the gym have a free weight area? Perhaps they would not be averse to you borrowing a 45lb plate for this purpose.

Well...one of you will never have to worry about soft catches. As for the other, learn good belaying technique, pay close attention and jump to avoid punting your partner. 

Learn to use the Ohm correctly. When it locked up on you, your belayer was probably standing too far back or keeping the rope too tight.

some gyms frown on rigging your partner up with sand bags. at least i have seen them removed for that reason locally. seems like with a little practice the ohm would be a better option than dragging around a 25 pound sand bomb  

petzl logic wrote:

some gyms frown on rigging your partner up with sand bags. at least i have seen them removed for that reason locally. seems like with a little practice the ohm would be a better option than dragging around a 25 pound sand bomb  

I thought the sandbags were a default preferred gym thing, at least in the gyms I’ve been to. It’s the Ohm that usually gets extra scrutiny from the gym staff (less now, thankfully!)

The Asana bags that were linked earlier are very common, I have seen them in multiple gyms. 

OP, if you can get the gym to buy those bags, that would make the most sense. Can’t imagine lugging a personal sandbag to and from the gym for every climbing session! And I’m sure you aren’t the only climbing partners with large weight difference.

But, in a pinch, if you have an extra rope in a rope bag, it works as an impromptu sandbag, too. In many gyms you lead in gym ropes, so you could bring your own rope to act as a sandbag. Ultimately, if you are also climbing outside, putting in time and effort to learn the Ohm will pay off, but...

Joseph Charles wrote:

65 lb. weight difference

My thoughts:

-My partner and I have a 50-60 pound weight difference (depending on how our weights fluctuate) and have never considered using an Ohm.  How experienced are you and your belayer?  That doesn't seem like a totally unmanageable weight difference.  My partner sits back if I'm taking a bigger fall and it works fine.  I also find it helpful to think of weight differences as a percentage rather than a number.  In other words, if your partner was 65 pounds, and you were 130, that's a 200% weight difference.  If your partner weighs 140, and you're 205, that's not as severe.  I weigh 165-170, and my partner is 115-20.  

-An Ohm can be properly workable after some practice.  I know a lot of couples who use it, and once you get used to it, they all say it's fine.  Maybe it's worth some extra practice, particularly if you can find a third person to toprope belay you while you drag a lead rope and your partner lead belays.

-If you decide to use a sandbag, search for workout equipment brands.  They make durable sandbags that are designed to be thrown.  Rogue brand, for instance.  If the sandbag has a handle, I wouldn't tether the belayer to that.  I'd get a long sling or some cordalette and wrap the whole bag.  I imagine a big fall might rip the handle.

My climbing partner and I have a 75-80lb weight difference (I'm around ~105lbs and he's ~185lbs) and we have an 11" height difference. We've had no problems on falls on both indoor lead and outdoor (sport/trad). I've never used a sandbag or an ohm and I don't really plan on it. Outside, I'm sometimes anchored to something if the belay area is spicy. On a bigger fall, I'll usually fly 1/2 to 2/3s to the first clip but I haven't hit the clip yet.

I combat our difference by basically having no slack in the system, pay especially close attention when he's about to clip so I can throw out rope rapidly, and have good communication ("watch me", "clipping!", "falling", general screaming...). On his end, he has a little extra slack out and does that little jump so I don't slam into the wall. We both also constantly take whips all over the gym so we have a lot of experience catching each other. 

Maybe, intentionally take falls and learn to catch each other to see what is comfortable?

Ry C wrote:

On a bigger fall, I'll usually fly 1/2 to 2/3s to the first clip

My partner and I have a similar weight difference, but I am the heavier one. From my perspective when leading, it does not always seem appropriate to fall an extra 5-10ft (e.g. when it would increase deck/ledge potential) nor does it always seem appropriate to pull my partner several feet past their belay (e.g. hanging/semi hanging belays, routes that have blocky and/or low angle starts that keep the belay stance back from the first piece of protection where a fall might cause the belayer to be pulled off balance and forward into some junk).

For these reasons I think you should always bring one or two good size sandbags if multi-pitching or headed into the mountains.

Get your sand here

Tim Hawkins wrote:

My partner and I have a similar weight difference, but I am the heavier one. From my perspective when leading, it does not always seem appropriate to fall an extra 5-10ft (e.g. when it would increase deck/ledge potential) nor does it always seem appropriate to pull my partner several feet past their belay (e.g. hanging/semi hanging belays, routes that have blocky and/or low angle starts that keep the belay stance back from the first piece of protection where a fall might cause the belayer to be pulled off balance and forward into some junk).

For these reasons I think you should always bring one or two good size sandbags if multi-pitching or headed into the mountains.

That’s just in the gym, where the risk is much lower...we intentionally take big falls/victory whips because there’s no ledge potential and chances of decking are smaller.

Outside, yes it’s another can of worms and I’m aware of the risks. I’m not sure if you’re being serious about hauling a couple of sandbags up a multipitch route...

Ry C wrote:

I’m not sure if you’re being serious about hauling a couple of sandbags up a multipitch route...

I hope you're not suggesting they should pre-place the sandbags. 

That's cheating

Tim Hawkins wrote:

My partner and I have a similar weight difference, but I am the heavier one. From my perspective when leading, it does not always seem appropriate to fall an extra 5-10ft (e.g. when it would increase deck/ledge potential) nor does it always seem appropriate to pull my partner several feet past their belay (e.g. hanging/semi hanging belays, routes that have blocky and/or low angle starts that keep the belay stance back from the first piece of protection where a fall might cause the belayer to be pulled off balance and forward into some junk).

For these reasons I think you should always bring one or two good size sandbags if multi-pitching or headed into the mountains.

It's not really for me. I'm not worried about a ground fall. It's that we've come terrifyingly close to my feet giving her a concussion on a few occasions as she rips up to the first clip and I come down 2/3 clips.

With apologies to you, Joseph Charles, who apparently posted a totally legit question, I gotta say when I saw a post in the “new climbers” section of the forums that was titled “where to get a sandbag for lead climbing,” I instantly thought back to those stupid tricks the Boy Scouts used to enjoy playing on the new guy by sending him around the camp asking to borrow a left-handed smoke shifter or some dehydrated water pills.  I was worried you got punk’d, Joseph.  Then again, maybe you are just giving a master class in how to punk all the rest of us.  Carry on.

Maybe have your partner wear a weight vest if your gym won’t allow you to use sandbags. Easy to find a 50lb vest

If you do find that the best solution is to bring the weight to the gym with you, A heavy duty water bladder might be better than a sand bag, as you could fill it up/empty it at the gym instead of carrying the weight with you all the time.

I am about the same weight difference and have had good experience with the Ohm. It occasionally grabs, but my usual belayer is good at noticing when it does and shaking it loose. 

Make sure you and your belay really understand how the Ohm works, when its locked up, and how to unlock it when needed. It took us about 10 pitches to get really seamless with using it, but now I rarely notice it when I'm leading.

Josh wrote:

With apologies to you, Joseph Charles, who apparently posted a totally legit question, I gotta say when I saw a post in the “new climbers” section of the forums that was titled “where to get a sandbag for lead climbing,” I instantly thought back to those stupid tricks the Boy Scouts used to enjoy playing on the new guy by sending him around the camp asking to borrow a left-handed smoke shifter or some dehydrated water pills.  I was worried you got punk’d, Joseph.  Then again, maybe you are just giving a master class in how to punk all the rest of us.  Carry on.

I'm afraid I'm not nearly clever enough to punk like that. I was just genuinely unable to find the durable sandbags. I can definitely see where you got the idea from, though!