TECH TIPS WINTER 2007 — 2008

"LEASHES? WE DON'T NEED NO STINKIN' LEASHES"!

When leashless first come onto the scene over five years ago I thought that the idea was fun and novel but would never become popular because the designs of that time were still abit primitive and rudimentary. Yes, the new style was fun and yes, I did feel less encumbered with the absence of a cord from my wrist to my axe. But did I thing the style would ever go mainstream and change the way people climbed ice? Hmmmmm. No.

Well, I'm wrong. The latest crop of tools designed especially for leashless style is very sophisticated and has made climbing "Sans Dragonnes" more fun and secure than ever before.

Climbing without leashes is so much better, so much more fun, so much safer and so much easier that I go leashless all the time. What convinced me was an ascent of the Fang in Vail that I did three years ago. That year it had formed early and was solid WI6+.

Thin as can be without collapsing under its own weight with an umbrella for an overhang at the top and drop-dead vertical for over 100 feet. Initially I was terrified to ascend it so early in the season but as I climbed higher and higher using my Petzl Nomics as the only contact between me and the ice I began to realize that I wasn't getting pumped because I could drop my hands at will and shake out quickly. I also realized that my movements felt more natural without being attached to my tools and that I could climb vertical ice in a more relaxed fashion. Before I realized it I was two-thirds of the way up it, just below the crux and I hadn't even begun to freak out yet, which I thought was pretty astounding!

Without leashes I could climb faster, easier, protect quicker and feel less cluttered. This all added to my confidence and I climbed over the fragile curtain at the top and confidently clipped the anchors.

Many people are taking this style into the mountains and going leashless there also on some pretty hard stuff. The option of having a leash is a good way to play it safe in this arena and having a set of tools with clip on/off leashes makes it easier to practice this style when you are far away from home and loosing a tool would have more disastrous consequences than in your local ice park.

So, practice going leashless when climbing below your limit and then switch back when you feel in extremis. Chances are as you climb more and more without leashes you'll find that very soon your standard becomes higher, your confidence gets better and you'll be having more fun. And remember, "the best climber is the one having the most fun".