FOOTLOCKING.

There must be either a secret technique I'm not following here, OR I am just footlock retarded. Either way, I'm not quite ready to throw in the towel yet.But do other people have the same deficiency? It doesn't LOOK that hard!

Hang in there and you'll get it !! It's definitely easier with some rope weight. I use my arms as much as possible to get up 15-20 ft. if I can, before I even start to foot lock. I find it very hard and cumbersome to try it right off the ground. I can only imagine it's a LOT easier using a foot ascender to start at ground level.

Dan

I'm not much of a footlocker, probably because I had a lot of trouble with it the first few years. Then I reversed the way the down rope ran over my foot and it started working pretty good.

Most people have the rope coming down into their instep, loop around the foot and continue to the ground from the instep side. I had to go the opposite way with the rope coming down to the outside of my foot, loop around the other way, and continue on to the ground from the outside of the foot. Don't know if this'll work for you, but maybe you can experiment with the different configurations and ideas from other climbiners until something works.

Most of the time I wimp out and use a Petzl ascender with an adjustable foot strap that Hunabku gave me; works very well for me and I can pretty much fly up the rope. I save the footlocking for those moments when I'm only going up two or three feet or so.

I've had a lot of trouble getting the single footlock to hold well enough. The way it works for me is wrapping around my foot twice, instead of once. It works pretty smoothly for me that way.

Need to define terms:

1. Secured footlocking
Trad arborist entry technique, doubled rope, static system, prussik backup
Comments: Easiest to get a good lock with your feet on a doubled rope

2. Footlocking the tail with two feet
DRT hitch climbing, locking the tail with both feet
Comments: More difficult to get a good lock on one rope (the tail), shoes make a big difference, big space in front of the heel, tough to grab the rope, flatter sole, much easier.

3. Footlocking the tail with one foot
DRT hitch climbing, locking the tail with one foot
Comments: Make sure the rope path around your foot is correct to create a lock, toe up to release and move your foot up, toe down to lock and stand on the tail. Requires hand tending until there's enough rope weight below you.

-AJ

Getting off the ground DRT footlocking

It works pretty well to footlock the tail with both feet for 3 or 4 pushes then switch over to single foot when there's enough rope under you. Some climbers put a weight on the rope but that can lead to complications later, especially solo climbing.
-AJ

Good point there Moss ! I guess we could all be talking about a different method. I personally only ever use the Footlocking the tail with one foot. I sometimes hold the tail with one hand after it's wrapped around my foot to get off the ground, but still find that very unnatural.

Dan

True - there's footlocking and there's footlocking. I simply cannot do secured footlocking. I've tried and tried.

Single footlocking on DRT was difficult at first, then I think I learned the secret. Raise the foot for a stroke and point the toes downward to get a better lock. I've used this method successfully on ropes from 9mm PMI to PI.

Moss: Thanks for the clarification. Now I can say that I suck at all three instead of just one.

With my pantin, I'm not sure why I feel the need to learn, just something I want to get a grip on just in case.

Good skills to have, you might leave your Pantin at home one day.
-AJ

I have to have about 10-15 feet of line below me before single footlocking works. Once there though I like it a lot. My 11 year old son is pretty good at it, but I spot him for some rope weight until he's up a ways. It's shoe-sensitive; some shoes I wear climbing grab the rope the wrong way for the way I set it up. Maybe I should try WildBill's reverse positioning for that.

I never did get along with the pantin, partly because I don't like to wear boots unless climbing in the winter.

Good skills to have, you might leave your Pantin at home one day.

You're right and that's why I'm determined to get it down.

But for now, if I left my Pantin at home, I'd pull out my prussic cord. And if I forgot both of them, then that's a sign I'm too mentally unbalanced to climb today.

Mark: That's odd, I absolutely love my Pantin. I don't even know its on until I need it. I can loop my long lanyard around a limb and climb it DRT without even thinking.

Keith, I just wanted to throw in something here. This may or may not help but I wanted to share my infantile newbie mistakes to maybe help someone. As I said, I was having difficulty with the single footlock too. I read all the technique threads and it all made sense but it just never worked right for me. I knew all about the correct lay of the rope on your foot and about lifting your toes skyward when advancing your foot up to a new position, then pointing your toes downward to get a bite on the rope, but it just wouldn't hold most of the time. I tried different shoes, different heel types, etc. Eventually, I got frustrated and resorted to using two wraps. Obviously, that got old quick. And I didn't want to rely on more gear or cords. So, after reading this thread, I was recommitted to figuring out why the simple single foot lock wasn't working so easily for me.

Well, I figured it out. It was a simple detail. As soon as I was aware, Bam, no more problem. I know all of you seasoned folks already knew this, but these are the little nuances that people like me can miss out on when not getting pro instruction face to face. My problem was: as I was getting a new higher foot position, I would raise my foot up the rope and my knee was bent and falling away to the side so my foot was tilted outward to allow me to see where it was going to grab. When I went to lock it in and stand up, I still had my knee away from the down rope a bit and my foot tilted very slightly to the side. My leg was not parallel with the down rope as I stood, so my foot wasn't pressing against the locking point very well, leaving it open to slippage. Pointing my toes down even more wasn't helping, of course, because the locking point was not getting much pressure.

When I finally noticed my lower leg and foot position, I just brought my knee close to the rope and turned my foot inward more, so it was straight, it worked great! Duh! I know this is a lot of words for one simple thing, but hey, I lived and learned. Just sayin'!

Peace!

Good work figuring that out. Keeping your knee position in gives you correct knee and hip joint alignment to greatly lessen the chance of injury over time, so it's a win-win.
-AJ