Zip Line fail video, Thailand edition: American traveler hangs on for life when something goes wrong

[xeni]

[Read the post]

[darknerd42]

And this, Ladies and Gentleman, is why we learn about climbing equipment safety before trusting the equipment of a some random company in another country. Glad it all turned out alright and they got some laughs from it!

[Flashman]

Looks like his pulley popped off the cable, but he;s still clipped into a safety line. He’s not actually hanging from his arms/ ‘hanging on for life’ - he could let go and he’d be hanging from his harness. So the ‘climbing gear’ didn’t fail (it never does, unless its ratty & ancient), a pulley did or whatever is supposed to keep that pulley on the cable; the climbing gear did its job as a backup safety line.

[FunkDaddy]

?? someone forgot to clip a carabiner, that happens occasionally no matter what country you’re in. US zipline industry is replete with deaths from this very error. That’s human error not equipment failure btw.

And this, Ladies and Gentlemen, is why we don’t assume we’re better than others based on national origin.

[Wig]

1. Human error, not equipment failure.
2. Could have happenend anywhere.
3. Backup was installed and working

Probably a combination of a tourist and a reporter that both know next to nothing about climbing gear, failsafes and backups.

But a story with a headline like “Human error while using zip line, American tourist scared but never really in danger” probably would not be clicked as often…

[AbeL]

B------!!! take your hands off that camera and pull may a$$ up.

[WearySky]

Seriously. A lot of checking to make sure she was still getting a good shot there.

[darknerd42]

It very much looked like he only had a single, non-locking carabiner, that bent open. And either both tourists didn’t understand how a safety line works or it didn’t actually exist, since he was clinging to the rope and the guy’s leg.

I didn’t mean to imply that it was BECAUSE it was another country, but the language barrier that was pretty evident makes it extremely difficult to be sure of their competency and safety measures. If they could have communicated fully, they might have been able to ask the right questions about the equipment they were using. I apologize for implying that I somehow thought less of the Thai people’s ability to run a safe excursion.

Thanks for keeping things cordial! It’s really refreshing.

[samsa]

Assholes can’t even have a real life crisis without the urge to whip out a stupid camera and film themselves.

[mkanoap]

The camera was already filming before the crisis happened, they were filming their zipline ride. One could say “Assholes can’t even have a real life crisis without the urge to STOPPING FILMING” if you want, but it’s simply not as you state.

[subextraordinaire]

And yet I’m still waiting for someone to chastise her for filming in portrait rather than landscape.

[winkybber]

Possible exception here. If she was expecting a long fall to a grisly death, portrait mode may have been excusable (just). But seriously, turn the camera. Vertical video hurts my eyes.

[Stephen_Dennis]

Friends don’t let friends film in portrait.

[subextraordinaire]

Yeah, portrait mode did nothing for me, either. But just like @WearySky wrote, it did seem as if she was “…checking to make sure she was still getting a good shot there.” Personally, I couldn’t make out anything until she finally pointed downward and then, hello–there’s a guy connected to her!