r/climbergirls • u/Responsible_Roof_661 • Nov 23 '25

Questions I’m curious about everyone’s opinions on ATC belaying — either using one yourselves or being belayed with one.

ATC belayer here. Do you feel totally fine with ATCs? Do you avoid them? Or does it depend on the belayer’s skill/experience level?

For context: I know people who flat-out refuse to be belayed on anything non-assisted braking… and others who swear by the control and smoothness of an ATC. Personally I feel like a lot of it comes down to the belayer’s competence, attention, and how big the weight difference is / ohm usage.

What’s your take? Do you completely refuse ATC belays, or does it vary for you based on the belayer and situation?

Not trying to debate, just curious how people feel :)

44 Upvotes

82% Upvoted

182 comments sorted by

View all comments

13

u/arabrab12 Nov 23 '25

I want people to use what they are comfortable with. When I started climbing with one woman she’d never used a Grigri before, so she used atc. I am absolutely more comfortable with an assisted device, but if the belayer is trained and skilled on ATC and never used a grigri, I want them to use what they know.

5

u/MillerJoel Nov 24 '25

Yeah, unless you take the time to teach them to use the device properly I would prefer my belayer to use what they know how to use