ONE SPOT LEFT FOR JAY SMITH’S JUNE ROPES COURSE!
Posted on 06/02/09 4:08 PM| by Osprey
Primal Quest Ropes Course Training
One of highlights of the Primal Quest Expedition Adventure Race is its ropes course; big, exposed, airy and difficult. In the 2006 Utah race, the course consisted of 6 miles of rope at 5 separate locations, involving ascending, rappelling and traversing thousands of feet of vertical rock walls, canyons and desert towers. This was without a doubt, the world’s largest ropes course ever constructed. Only 24 teams completed the entire ropes section. Many called it the best part of the race while others called it the scariest thing they had ever done!
The 2008 ropes course in Montana presented new challenges with 5.7 free climbing and wild, via ferrata type ridge ascents up slender spires in a wild setting. Top teams proclaimed this was the most varied and awesome ropes course ever constructed, thus with this encouragement future races will take these trends to new heights, demanding greater skill levels and including more free climbing. The folks at Primal Quest want to help prepare you for these challenges.
Jay Smith, Primal Quest’s ropes course director, in conjunction with Moab Desert Adventures, is offering an upcoming training session in Moab, Utah. This 2-day program will teach you all the necessary skills required to be safe and efficient while climbing hundreds of feet off the ground. We will show you the latest and lightest equipment, how to rig your systems and safe efficient techniques to ascend, traverse, rappel and free climb any terrain that you could possibly encounter not only in adventure racing, but in any vertical environment.
We will have a “real”, spectacular and exciting multi-pitch ropes course set up, complete with a highline on which to practice and refine your skills. Through individual attention we can help dial in a system that works for you on any angle of terrain, including “overhanging” with a pack. These are proven techniques that are the most versatile and efficient used by climbers the world over and adapted to the sport of adventure racing.
I have seen numerous types of systems used in my 18 years of involvement with AR and without a doubt our systems out perform all others in energy saving, speed, weight, versatility and safety. In 2008 there was a 9 – 10 hour difference between the fastest and slowest teams. It is our opinion that even the fastest team could shave hours off their time with proper techniques and practice. How much training time have you devoted to your rope skills? As much as paddling? Half as much as mountain biking? One whole day? We are the experts designing the ropes course and testing the competitors. We know exactly what will be required of you.
Get that competitive edge and save valuable time and energy. Be safe and fast, and be winners! Get the training you need with the best qualified instructors in the nation. This ain’t no party. This ain’t no disco. Were not just playing games. This is Primal Quest, the World’s Most Challenging Human Endurance Competition! Get with the program and be the first on the summit!
- Jay Smith
Primal Quest Ropes Course Director
Two-Day Program (full days)
- Instruction includes: -Equipment selection, and set up.
- Ascending fixed ropes with ascenders and use of Croll with chest harness option.
- Use of the Absorbaca and Basic Ascender
- Vertical, overhanging and low angle.
- Knot passing.
- Buddy system rappels with various devices.
- Highline and handline traverses
- Via ferrata type climbing
- Mini Traction free climbing
Program is offered:
June 6 – 7, 2009
Prices:
Two-Day program – Team price $1000 or $125/person/day
Please contact Jay Smith and High and Wild Mountain Guides:
highandwild@earthlink.net or call (435) 259-4271.
You can also book through Moab Desert Adventures:
dave@moabdesertadventures.com or call (435) 260-2774.
Photo by Wouter Kingma
