Proselytize & Fossilize

The arrested development state of canyoneering in the Colorado Plateau

(Originally published in Instructional Canyoneering Resource on 11/12/2023)

Every sport seems to have this tension between progression (gear and technique), versus regression (stopping this progression) and freezing the sport in a state of inertia.

Canyoneering not only is not immune to this tension, but probably its practice in the American Southwest is one of the most extreme and successful cases of Arrested Development in a sport.

People who enter the sport in the last couple of years probably are not familiar with the strident rigging and gear complaints like:

• "...that looks too complicated"

• "...that is not necessary"

• "...that is only for class C"

• "...I have been canyoneering for X years and never used that...."

The systems they complain about have been designed and refined for decades for canyoneering, and focus on:

• Contingency, rigging for ease of partner rescue

• Ease of self-rescue.

• Efficiency

Typically this reluctance to adopt rigging systems that have consequence-mitigation in mind have had 1 source in 2 modalities. The one source: Rock Climbers that perceive that their ropework is adequate for canyoneering. The 2 modalities:

• Rock climbers that have been canyoneering for years

• Rock climbers that are new to canyoneering

These 2 modalities feeding on each other have been the main source of Arrested Development of the sport. When a newcomer to the sport asks: Is it ok to use rock climbing gear and rigging for canyoneering? The rock climber that has been canyoneering for years answers: Yes! I have been doing it for years.

What the newcomer is not being told, is that the 'seasoned' canyoneers has been doing a very specific type of canyon where the static ropework has low consequences, and the series of accidents that could have been prevented if more adequate rigging and ropework was present.

Somehow rigging adoption becomes very subjective and contentions when adopted in a self-learning environment. It becomes a choice, a statement of your choices, and who you are. This is not a healthy way to make life supporting decisions.

The arch of rigging bends towards objectivity:

Recently, I came across a post and thread in a canyoneering group where a rock climber new to canyoneering asked the proverbial question: Is it ok to use rock climbing gear and rigging for canyoneering?

To my surprise, the responses were now more oriented towards advising to adopt SRT and practices that are closer to standard canyoneering practices, even from people that a couple of years ago were set into toss'n'go and binner blocks as the only systems you need to know. So, although progress has been slow, progress is progress, and that is a good thing.

The other ongoing and slow progress process stalled by the same vicious cycle of "Proselytize & Fossilize" is establishing Low Impact practices in canyoneering through educated bolting.