Rock Climber's Self Rescue Weekend at Castle Rock

September 25-26, 2010

Register for this trip here!

Your partner needs "a boost" to get through a move that is too difficult for him. What do you do?
Your friend's hair gets caught in his rappel device. What do you do?
Your partner has led more than half the rope and needs to be lowered to the ground. What do you do?
Your partner is hit with a rock and is unresponsive, 100' above (or below) you. What do you do?

These are some of the scenarios that every climber should be prepared to deal with. The skills taught in our Self-Rescue Weekend course will provide the tools to deal with just about any situation you encounter.

Whether you climb the occasional toprope route, want to someday climb a remote, multi-day big wall, or anything in between, you owe it to yourself and your climbing partners to accumulate self-rescue skills. Climbers with some general climbing experience in addition to top-rope anchoring experience (such as the OAC Gear and Anchor Class) will learn a variety of skills and tricks to handle emergencies ranging from simple to rather complicated. You will be surprised how often you can use these "emergency" rescue techniques in rather routine situations, too.

Over the course of this two day class your AMGA trained Outdoor Adventure Club guide will teach you skills and then present scenarios in which to implement the skills. On Saturday you will learn to manage a belay from above, create hauling systems, how to escape a belay, arrange safe and efficient rappels, ascend ropes, and improvise variations of all these systems. With the skills in place, we will have plenty of time to practice various "real-world" situations on the rock on Sunday.

This class is very much hands-on. You will be tying the knots, building the systems, raising, lowering, ascending and rappelling. This class is great if you've read self rescue books but are confused by all the seemingly complicated knots and systems. Having a professional guide teaching you and giving you feedback will make learning these skills much easier.

Prerequisites:
General climbing experience, ideally including lead belays, bottom managed belays, top managed belays and rappelling. You don't need to be an expert, but coming to the class with a little knowledge helps.

Experience building top-rope anchors is a big plus, too. The OAC Gear and Anchor Class is the perfect way to gather anchor skills and experience.

Skills taught:

• Review of anchoring
• Top managed belay techniques, including munter hitches, using a Cinch or Grigri, and Reverso style belay devices
• Belay escapes
• Load blocking and transfers- Munter Mule Knot, Mariner, etc.
• Raising systems
• Improvised ascent systems
• Counter-balance, and multi-person rappel systems

Where is this trip?
Here's a Google Map to the general area:

Specific driving directions for the trip will come with your confirmed reservation.

Includes:
• Two full days of instruction and supervised practice sessions with an instructor trained by the American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA).
• A low climber to guide ratio (4:1) to provide personal attention and oversight
• All the gear and equipment necessary for the class. You are welcome to bring your own gear as well.

Pricing:
OAC Member: $249
Non-member: $299

Sounds fun- Sign me up!!

Trip Cancellation Policy