The Rope Awareness workshop with Tim Read started off with an unfortunate incident. As we were about to head out for a short walk to the abseil site, a motorcycle accident occurred very close to us. 2 men on a bike fell while turning out of a junction. We went to aid the patients. Tim was quick enough to grab his first aid kit. One of the patient had a torn upper lip, which we applied pressure to, and the other, had minor abrasions and lacerations. We took them to the nearest clinic. We both agreed that it was an interesting way to start a program!
At the abseil site, we turned down a notch, and went back to basics. At the bottom of the cliff, we started with some gear talk and knots for travelling on 3rd and 4th class terrain. Once at the top, at the abseil site, we discussed and practice techniques for safety at heights. Tim was pretty comfortable being on the edge of the cliff, and so, pretty soon, he was helping me setup the abseil site. Tim then did a couple of practice abseils. It came so natural to him, that we needed to move on to learn new stuff after a couple of descents. Soon he was prusiking (ascending a rope), and abseiling with all sorts of combinations!
The following day, Tim was already learning anchor building. We practised many scenarios on anchor setups on the ground. Once he understood the principles, he rigged up his very own abseil site. Soon, we were moving on to some rescue skills, which wasn’t much of a challenge for Tim either. Tim would definitely ace this field ,if he were to pursue it further!
Tim Read