Naked Hands

It is easy to become complacent when working around rope. Gloves definitely hamper tying

knots. Good quality gloves that actually fit are expensive and wear out. But they can be critical

in protecting your hands. Here is a related story that happened to me. I hope it helps drive

home the importance of wearing gloves when working around moving rope. I trust you can

learn from my experience. One picture says it all.

Once upon a time I was rock climbing with best friend Pete. We finished a class five climb and

were starting to clean up gear. We were standing about 20 feet from each other. We were

talking while looking at each other. I had disconnected from our 11 mm dynamic rope. It was

laying on the ground. I was slowly coiling it while Pete began to untie from his harness. He

suddenly fell backwards over a rock, tumbling about 6 vertical feet. He quickly picked up a fair

amount of speed. I instinctively grabbed the moving rope. OUCH!!

It took quite a long time for the wounds to heal. I still have deep scar tissue that affects the

fingers. I learned an important lesson that day!