Best Resources for Learning SRT?

TINYHULK

Treehouser
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Now that I’m with a new company that doesn’t inhibit my pace of learning, plus knowing that I’ll be climbing almost every day this spring/summer. I want to begin learning the most efficient and quickest forms of tree access and work. Pretty much all of my work with the old company was ddrt (hitch climber/Blake’s) and prunings. While spurs were only used for chunking down the spar. I’m learning quickly that this company has different demands of me. With our humid 100 degree plus summers I know hip thrusting every prune job is going to kill me by the end of the week. So any recommended learning resources and equipment to get started would be greatly appreciated
 
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Rope walking is definitely the first ascent version of srt that I want to work on. My current shopping list is the:
Haas velox knee ascender
CT quick roll hand ascender
16ft ART snake anchor
Rope wrench w/stiff tether

a already have two different chest harnesses and a foot ascender. I tend to go over board when I get in to spending money on things but I love quality and efficiency. Please direct me in to better options as y’all see fit
 
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Also my main reason for asking is that it always seems most learning resources are based on safety, not efficiency. While I want to learn all the safety, I would like some resources that will get in depth with canopy work and the little nuances for srt work
 
Low and slow is best for learning any new technique.
But the rope walker method is really nice. The hitchhiker with a foot and knee ascender is the bees knees.
 
Lol the whole point of climbing is safety, every single action you take up there determines if you go home in one piece. Sometimes the most insignificant detail is the one that can bite you, this isn't a game. This is a skill set that takes time to learn correctly, and then the speed comes if at all. Slow, calculated, and methodical is the trick to productivity in any field, especially dangerous ones. Working in factories when i was younger really shows that to you, by making every single movement count and eliminating mistakes is how you go super fast with as little effort as possible, and safely too.
 
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I’ve seen a lot of people on here praise the hitch hiker but I’m confused how it acts differently between srt and drt because both use the “dog bone” which would increase friction on the rope, is rope walking harder with the HH?
 
The idea is it creates friction in descent mode which takes stress off the hitch and allows it to move more smoothly. Keeps the hitch from locking up tight. Friction added in ascent mode is negligible.
 
Well the guy who made it and invented it hangs out here, as did the guy who made the rope runner and rope wrench (hopefully he comes back soon). I've used the wrench and runner only, but I'm sure the hitchhiker works beautifully. Rope walking moves the work to your larger muscle groups, making climbing dramatically easier on the body. Knowing how to use redirects and multiple tie in points is what can turn stuff that normally is a strugglefest into sitting back lazily floating exactly in the right spot.
 
No walking is smooth as glass with the HH you just need a means of tending the HH as you advance up the line. I use my lanyard over my shoulder instead of a separate chest harness, less stuff aloft. And drt with a HH is very simple almost fool proof.
 
I’ve seen a lot of people on here praise the hitch hiker but I’m confused how it acts differently between srt and drt because both use the “dog bone” which would increase friction on the rope, is rope walking harder with the HH?


I rock it.

No drag.

No change from SRT to DdRT.



Input force directly leads to the grab force in both SRT and DdRT. More weight, more dogbone and carabiner loading, leaving the hitch to see a lottt less than 100% body weight.

The dogbone and biner don't drag on ascent. The tighter the hitch, the more the drag, the more secure. The looser the hitch, the less secure, the less drag.
 
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No walking is smooth as glass with the HH you just need a means of tending the HH as you advance up the line. I use my lanyard over my shoulder instead of a separate chest harness, less stuff aloft. And drt with a HH is very simple almost fool proof.

Tbf, rope walking in any device that is correctly setup should have zero drag.

I never understand the comment you made, Lanyard over the shoulder as there is less stuff aloft.

Question: what do you do when you have ropewalked to a specific point, angles are awkward or it is particularly sketchy positioning, you need a lanyard to secure your self. What do you use?

The addition of a light weight chest harness hardly clutters things up and can make it infinitely safer in the scenario I mentioned above.

Don’t mean to single you out. I have seen a number of people make the same comments in forums and on climbing groups on Facebook over the years and always thought it was not the smartest idea.

Maybe people don’t climb as rough as I do LOL, but the one or two times I forgot the chest harness I tried the LOTS technique and instantly regretted it.
 
Some of the neck tethers with a magnetic break away look interesting to tend a device.
Knee jerk reaction is “ cord on neck = bad” but given a little thought into the design makes it seem pretty unlikely one would get choked.
I’m happy enough with the bra though ;)
 
I am with you there. I used to use a neck tether years ago when I used srt with a microfrog system I spliced up. It was fine to tend to the croll, but I removed it and hung it on the access line with the rest of the hardware.

The I started work positioning with srt and though the increased movement and having something around my neck was a risk of strangulation. Mine was also elastic with a small, non rated bina. If that puppy had of come out or snapped, at best it would be a visit to the dentist.

Chest harness all the way. I used to use tape slings but then Paul Didier sent me one from Barbados after I helped him out with a lot of stuff when he moved to the Uk and now I am not my second 4Srt Chester.
 
Tbf, rope walking in any device that is correctly setup should have zero drag.

I never understand the comment you made, Lanyard over the shoulder as there is less stuff aloft.

Question: what do you do when you have ropewalked to a specific point, angles are awkward or it is particularly sketchy positioning, you need a lanyard to secure your self. What do you use?

The addition of a light weight chest harness hardly clutters things up and can make it infinitely safer in the scenario I mentioned above.

Don’t mean to single you out. I have seen a number of people make the same comments in forums and on climbing groups on Facebook over the years and always thought it was not the smartest idea.

Maybe people don’t climb as rough as I do LOL, but the one or two times I forgot the chest harness I tried the LOTS technique and instantly regretted it.


Chest harnesses don't work for me, so far. Too binding. Extra stuff to get grabbed. I have 2. Lanyard over the shoulder comes off when I'm ready to tie-in-twice, or finished ascending.
 
I am with you there. I used to use a neck tether years ago when I used srt with a microfrog system I spliced up. It was fine to tend to the croll, but I removed it and hung it on the access line with the rest of the hardware.

The I started work positioning with srt and though the increased movement and having something around my neck was a risk of strangulation. Mine was also elastic with a small, non rated bina. If that puppy had of come out or snapped, at best it would be a visit to the dentist.

Chest harness all the way. I used to use tape slings but then Paul Didier sent me one from Barbados after I helped him out with a lot of stuff when he moved to the Uk and now I am not my second 4Srt Chester.
I got one of Paul’s Chesties, Wesspur was selling them too, it’s nice.
 
Best Tender for me is a webbing loop carefully measured and tied to fit. Half twist In the loop gives you two arm holes(figure 8 shape with the cross on your back) regular locking carabiner to connect the two loops on front and tend from there . Then you have a Third tie in option with you at all times, or a foot loop for awkward Positions.
 
The Swing Chestie is well regarded. Just doesn't fit me well.

An easy choice is a bungee that connects to the back of the harness, over the shoulder, or extended with a sling from the harness to the end of the bungee (part of my home-made Petzl handled ascender, turned rope walking floating ascender).
 
 
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