What is the best way to place a sling on a rock spike so that it's prevented from lifting off?

Here are some ideas, with the usefulness depending on the terrain and rock quality and the terrain:

• Hold it down with an upside-down nut: Place a nut below the spike and clip it to the sling. The nut needs to pull down on the sling so that the sling won't move. The nut will only need to resist being pulled upwards slightly since its only purpose is to prevent the sling from moving.
• Tie it off: On some spikes, you might be able to tightly tie a knot in the sling, so that it is held firmly by some feature of the rock (e.g. a crack, or some kind of protrusion) which prevents it from slipping off. A simple overhand knot works well is many cases. Note: do not use a "self-tightening" knot such as a girth hitch to tie the sling around the spike. If there is no feature of the rock that prevents the sling from going up (such as protrusions or horizontal edges), these knots will tend to slide upwards and not down again and, thus, actually increase the chance of the sling sliding off!
• Weigh it down: Clip some heavy-ish equipment (e.g. carabiners, hexes) to the sling, so that its weight counters the movement from rope drag.
• Use fuzzier PA slings: Dyneema slings are often slippery. If all else fails, a slightly fuzzy (i.e. not brand-new) and wider PA sling will provide more friction with the rock and might better resist movement if the rock is somewhat rough.

posted about 6 years ago

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anderas‭

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