Weekend Whipper: Sloppy Foot + Lightweight Belayer = Big Whip

Readers, please send your Weekend Whipper videos, information, and any lessons learned to Anthony Walsh, awalsh@outsideinc.com.

This wasn’t climber Mitch Kelly’s first rodeo on DNA (7a/5.11d) in the Grande Grotta area of Kalymnos, Greece. But it was his first whip on the pumpy route.

As he worked his way up the steep limestone, Kelly says he was “being a bit sloppy” with his foot placement. He had one high foot, with his other foot flagging, but the high foot placement was quite polished. In this precarious position, Kelly pulled up slack, biting the rope to pull up more. Right as he was about to clip, his foot on the polished placement “popped.”

Unfortunately, Kelly’s belayer was also much lighter than him. Furthermore, Kelly explains that the base of the crag is on a gradient. “She wasn’t belaying directly below the route,” Kelly says, “but a few meters to the side.” This combined with all the slack he’d taken for the clip led to a big fall, where Kelly met his partner in the air and close to the ground. “It was a mixture of poor outcomes,” Kelly says. “Luckily everything worked out okay.”

To prevent a whip of this magnitude, it’s always a good idea to set up a ground anchor for a belayer who’s significantly lighter than you—especially if you think there’s a chance you’ll fall. Here’s another Weekend Whipper case in point that drives home that lesson.

Happy Friday, and be safe out there this weekend.

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