[pct-l] Whippet/iceaxe

[shawmanford at yahoo.com (Shaw Manford)]

I would like more clearly state my position on the Whippet / ice axe issue:

 

To begin with, Strider is correct in the sense that if you need to self arrest, there is nothing better than a death grip on a real ice axe. 

 

In defense of the Whippet, in my reading of the 2002 and earlier journals, I did not see mention of anyone needing to self arrest. Many of the hikers did not even carry an ice axe.

 

The Whippet seemed like a good compromise between no ice axe and a real ice axe. I spent several hours of testing it in a ice chute favored by sleders in the Cascade Mountains last winter. The Whippet held my weight (about 175 lbs then) and brought me to a quick stop every time. I found that it needed to be handled differently because the length of the pole could get tangled up with my feet and holding the second trekking pole could prevent that hand from grabbing the Whippet pole.

 

As it turned out, no one I knew of or heard about on the 2003 hike needed their ice axe in the area they carried it for which was the High Sierra. Ironically, the only time anyone in the group I fell in with ever needed an ice axe was in the Goat Rocks Wilderness in Washington State on a ice sheet that covered the trail for about 100 feet across a very steep hill side. A fall there would lead to long slide into a very cold lake. I was the only one with an ice axe of any kind and it was very dull from digging cat holes. Still, we all got across.

 

All that being said, I would recommend the Whippet to anyone who will learn to use it, and more importantly, learn how to behave in dangerous situations.

 
Chance


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