Ask the Master: Climbing Efficiently As a Team of Three
I was wondering if you had any tricks or techniques that allowed a group of three to climb quickly and efficiently.
Unlock this article and more benefits with 50% off.
Already have an Outside Account? Sign in
40% Off Outside+.
$4.99/month $2.99/month*
Get the one subscription to fuel all your adventures.
- Map your next adventure with our premium GPS apps: Gaia GPS Premium and Trailforks Pro.
- Read unlimited digital content from 15+ brands, including Outside Magazine, Triathlete, Ski, Trail Runner, and VeloNews.
- Watch 600+ hours of endurance challenges, cycling and skiing action, and travel documentaries.
- Learn from the pros with expert-led online courses.
*Outside memberships are billed annually. Print subscriptions available to U.S. residents only. You may cancel your membership at anytime, but no refunds will be issued for payments already made. Upon cancellation, you will have access to your membership through the end of your paid year. More Details
I have some partners that refuse to climb in a group of three because they say it slows them to a crawl, and I have other partners that swear that three people can climb just as fast as a pair. I’m sure the truth is somewhere in the middle and was wondering if you had any tricks or techniques that allowed a group of three to climb quickly and efficiently.
—Michael Parker
Hi there, and thank you for the question.
As a guide, you climb with two clients (as a team of three) quite often. If your anchor management is dialed, it can be almost as fast as climbing as a
pair. Anchor management (creating good anchor stances for the followers, good rope management and clear communication) can save a lot of precious time.
In a team of three, if the climbing is mostly steep fifth-class climbing, I generally climb with a two half ropes and belay from above with an auto-block
style belay device while the two followers climb about five meters apart, on separate ropes. If the climbing is pretty easy and has a lot of short
roping terrain, I often just use one single rope. Then the clients are tied into the rope as follows:
One person ties into the end and the other is tied into the rope about four meters or so above with long figure-eight on-a-bite with a little overhand
on-a-bite at very end. This person clips in with two lockers. We call this configuration “climbing on a V,” because the shape of the rope is an upside
down “V.” The two clients climb together, but it can be a bit annoying for the person on the figure-eight on-a-bite. It works fine for a good team,
however.
—Martin Volken