Opinion • Peaks and Lines

11 posts tagged with "Opinion"

Close up image of the ever popular DMM Highball bouldering mat. — © Phil Geng

To spot or not?

by Phil on 5 Apr '14

Does spotting make a difference or are we spotting just to look as if we care about our climbers? Are spotting and belaying more similar than many people think ...

Picture showing the DMM Highball bouldering/soloing mat, chalkbag, La Sportiva Mythos climbing shoes and the all important multi-purpose bar towel. — © Phil Geng

(Un)justifiable risk?

by Phil on 6 Apr '14

Love it or hate it, soloing is a popular climbing activity amongst climbers of all ages and many abilities. But can we justify the inherent risk of climbing unroped on otherwise roped routes ...

Picture of a retied figure of eight with a correctly tied double fisherman — © Phil Geng

Stopper knot or not?

by Phil on 2 Feb '15

Is a stopper knot in climbing strictly necessary? Are we distracting from a much bigger problem by insisting on it being tied ...

Some people may wish for a portaloo in the wild, but thankfully they are a rare sight.

For poop sake

by Phil on 6 Sep '15

Sanitation and personal hygiene is an important topic in the outdoor environment many people are too shy to talk about or simply ignore. While the reasons are understandable the subject is important ...

Close up image of a curious raccoon inspecting the camera with a friendly face.

It's OK - I'm an instructor

by Phil on 30 Oct '15

As with any industry ours has its fair share of black sheep. While most instructors are eager to learn and accept that life is an ongoing training and assessment, others seem to think that a ...

Image showing a bowline and figure of eight - both without a stopper knot. — © Phil Geng

Best practice vs Common practice

by Phil on 18 Dec '15

"Best Practice" - a phrase often thrown around when trying to end an argument in the outdoors. Why do we tie a stopper knot on a figure of eight? "Because it's best practice." ...

Time to raise the bar

by Phil on 20 Nov '15

Fresh from the first Good Practice Safety Management Conference run by the Mountain Training Association (MTA) in Lancaster last weekend I can't help but conclude that it is time to raise the ...

Image of the Llanberis Mountain Rescue Team Landrovers parked up outside of their base in Nant Peris.

When luck runs out

by Phil on 15 Jan '16

Our experience is the overarching defense against most incidents in the outdoors. In fact if we reflect on our own incidents and near misses over the years, chances are we have learned from them and ...

Image of a variety of tube belay devices as used by many climbers in the UK.

A dangerous sport

by Phil on 8 Apr '16

“The BMC recognises that climbing, hill walking and mountaineering are activities with a danger of personal injury or death. Participants in these activities should be aware of and accept these ...

Image showing a 1:25000 OS map with a phone showing What 3 Words beside it, faded with a location symbol.

Location.location.location

by Phil on 20 Aug '19

If you're remotely interested in navigation, watch the news or generally haven't been living under a rock you will have likely come across What 3 Words. Let me be clear from the outset - if ...