Silent Partner

Goddamn I love top rope soloing.

As a member of an internet climbing forum I frequent often quips, there are two types of partners – the loud and silent. His witticism is especially, well, witty, because it refers, in particular, to the device branded by Wren Industries as the “Silent Partner™”. The device is Wren Industries’ particular interpretation of a solo climbing device but, when left un-capitalized, ‘silent partner’ provides a more generic and all encompassing view of the act of solo climbing. The ‘loud partner’, on the other hand, is the one with two hands, two feet, a mouth, and a whole lot to say.

I always have and always will prefer to climb with a partner. However, there is a unique sort of joy and sense of self-sufficiency to be derived from climbing alone. First, as someone that loves to get inventive, establishing a manageable and safe solo top roping system can be an enjoyable challenge in and of itself if approached with the right attitude. I am constantly refining and perfecting my own system but, as it stands, it’s a pretty foolproof system, although I always strive for a greater form of elegance and simplicity in its construction.

The joys of its engineering aside, the top rope solo system presents a versatility that is uncommon (if not totally non-existent) in a ‘loud partner’. You’ll never find a top rope solo system that has to work late, is sick with the flu, or is going to their sister’s birthday party. In fact, most times I leave mine in the car all day without water and food and yet still find it just as eager to climb as when I left it there in the morning. It seems to generally agree with me when I pick a climb and (while it certainly never encourages me past a thin crux or a sketchy roof), it also doesn’t have a laugh at my expense when I grease off of a 5.easy. It doesn’t get bummed when there is a long approach but, then again, I tend to be doing most of the schlepping. Most importantly, I get to spend most of my time out at the cliffs actually ON the cliff and never have I found myself queued up on a climb when out with the ‘silent partner’.

Since perfecting my setup I’ve been able to get out on the vertical at least 50% more often that I have been, and I think as I continually improve my schedule and setup this number is bound to improve. Relying on my own system has made me a better climber – both more at home on the rock in addition to bolstering faith in systems of my own design.

I still love you ‘loud partners’, but you’ll have to pry my ‘silent partner’ from my cold, dead hands.