“Top to bottom” rappel safety check
For some people, long acronyms of important climbing procedures, such as SERENE for anchors, or BRAKES for rappelling, work great.
However, my brain doesn't do well with long acronyms, and many of my climbing friends seem to struggle with them too.
At a skills clinic I helped teach with (the late and great) IFMGA guide Rob Coppolillo, Rob shared a rappel safety check system that makes much more sense to me. He called it the “top to bottom” check.
If you’re pre-rigged with your partner, you check them and they check you before the first person goes down.
It's about what it sounds like: You start at the top of the rappel system, and check every component, all the way down to the bottom.
In most cases, the “top to bottom” rappel check looks like this.
Are all the anchor components solid?
For a single rope rappeI, is the middle of the rope at the anchor master point? Does the rope have a middle mark? If it doesn’t, did you flake both strands of the rope so you KNOW the middle is at the anchor? (Yo! mark your middle!)
If it's a double rope rappel, is the knot joining the ropes properly tied, dressed, and has an adequate tail?
Are both strands of the rope properly threaded through your (and your partner’s) rappel device?
Is the device properly clipped to your (and your partner’s) belay/rappel loop (or extension) with a locked carabiner?
If you're using a rappel extension, is the sling properly attached to your (and your partner’s) harness?
Does the first person down have a third hand back up properly installed? (It's optional for the second person, because they can get a firefighter belay from below.)
Do the rope ends have stopper knots in them?
Did you make a clean toss of the rope and it's hanging nicely below you, or is it hung up on something and needs attention on the way down?
Are there any cracks near the rappel anchor where the joining knot might get hung up, if you're doing a double rope rappel? (If yes, the second person down might want to deal with this before they descend.)
Do the rope ends reach either the ground or the next rappel station?