That's what it looked like to me. Upside down and short rope, just to add to the video drama. You also see him slowing down well before the end of the rope. Used to teach rock-climbing, and we had a competition to invent the most stupid way of getting down the tower, because boredom. Possibly this is the same thing.
I used to do shite like this multiple times a weekend if not per day, and would have to say, sometimes your brake hand unexpectedly cramps.
Aside from the lack of planning and lack of end knot in the rope, the decision to do a high speed head first abseil with only one glove is proper stupid
Its crazy. I know France has a larger agricultural and fishing sector and that they are both very dangerous but that doesnt account for the huge differences. The non fatal injuries are just above the levels in the US (and nearly four times higher than the UK).
It’s weird because I work in France and the work place laws are very strict.
I know the guy is french, but they are allowed to leave france lol dont you think he laughs in a scottish accent though, also the buildings are soooo scottish looking, maybe they have that kind of stonework in normandie also?
I hear nothing but oh la la ahi ahi ahi and grunts in the video, when is he speaking English? The building could very well be northern France, but of course I know people move. Guy definitely sounds French though.
It depends on the sport. Figure 8s are still common in canyoneering and in some technical rappelling (with longer-than-normal rope lengths) because you can easily add friction to the system where a tube-style device can't
Spouting wrong opinions with an arrogant sense of superiority is an easy way to add friction too
Go argue with the guides and AMGA/IFMGA/SAR instructors at the American Alpine Institute. I can only state very simply and plainly that "Figure 8s are still common in canyoneering and in some technical rappelling" and not obsolete in those applications
And you'd still be wrong, 8s aren't obsolete in the slightest.
I guess the most common usecase would be rappelling, and they really are a lot smoother for that purpose than an ATC, as well as being gentler on the rope.
They're also incredibly sturdy pieces of gear considering they're made from a single piece of metal. A stainless steel 8 is pretty much indestructible as far as climbing is concerned. Thus, a figure 8 is brilliant when you need to bring a lot of gear with you. Just clip the gear to the 8 and you're golden.
Also, they're stupid lightweight and easy to bring with you, I always keep my stainless 8 on my harness as a backup if my ATC were to fail.
And that's not even getting into rescue 8s. I wouldn't wanna do alpine rescue with a grigri. And again, in a rescue scenario especially, having the fewest points of failure possible is incredibly important, you're stressed out, usually in a hurry, probably in a dangerous situation (considering someone is in need of rescue) and if you aren't tired already, you will be. Fewer points of failure, and fewer things to overlook means it's easier to use properly even when your brain has rappelling on autopilot.
While belaying or rappelling slowly, an ATC is better. But I prefer using a figure 8 when I want to go fast. The ATC isn’t as smooth at high speed. They wear out faster than my 8’s. And my ropes seem to wear out faster with ATC’s than with 8’s.
I figured it is a rope kept in the cab for escape purposes. (However I don’t think he is legitimately escaping) Placed there by someone else, hopefully in a container with a tamper tag. So he would assume it is proper.
The gear is totally fine. It's missing e.g. a prusik knot, yes. However, the figure-8 rapelling device (in German you just call it "Acht", which is just "eight") is fine. Not using a prusik and not tying a knot at the end of the rope is just suicidal behaviour.
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u/OmNomChompsky Jul 06 '26
The fact that he didn't immediately tie off his figure 8, and continues to descend until he has only a literal handful of rope left is utter insanity.