There was an accident a few weeks ago at the Red River Gorge where a climber fell going to the second bolt and the rope was cut completely through by the fixed draw's sharp-edged, rope-end biner at the first bolt.

If you recall the previous testing and commentary on this subject, I had stated that I'd only seen ropes getting "sheathed" by sharp-edged biners—usually mid-route—and subsequently learned of an accident in the Czech Republic (in a climbing gym) where the rope-grooved sharp biner (also at the first bolt) severed the rope completely, resulting in the climber hitting the ground.  Luckily in both cases, the climbers were not badly injured.

Which biners get badly grooved and why?

From my experience falling all over routes, all over the county, I've noticed three primary locations where fixed biners become badly grooved:

1)    First Bolt
Belayers typically stand too far away from the wall.  This results in a sharp angle in the rope from the belayer to the first biner and then up the route.  When lowering a climber, the rope, often dirty and gritty, slowly wears a groove in the biner.  Both incidents I've heard of where the rope was cut completely, it was the first bolt that was the culprit.
2)    Crux Bolt
Many climbers being lowered off the same biner (falling at the crux onto the same bolt).  This has the same effect as above.  The sharp angle of the rope wrapping around the biner and the weight of the climber being lowered is what is allowing the rope to slowly cut through the biner.
3)    Out of line bolts
Often if the bolt line isn't straight, an out-of-line biner can end up being grooved.  Once again, this is caused by the rope and its angle running over the biner surface.

SETUP

  • Sharp-edged biner (actual biner used in test shown directly above)
  • 80 kg mass
  • brand new 10.2 mm rope
  • One harsh, but realistic, drop
  • Static belay

RESULTS

  • Rope cut on the FIRST drop (see image below)
  • Max load reached - ~7 kN

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