Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by kansface 29 days ago
3 10mm bolts failing simultaneously after two decades (on direct it seems) is unexpected! If it were an installation problem, I can’t imagine it would take that long and that they’d all go at the same time. Ditto for corrosion… people take victory whips all the time.
1 comments

All three bolts at critical level. A massive strain happens along. They pop: one, two, three!

It's not that unexpected.

It is absolutely unexpected in climbing. Even a single bolt failing is highly unusual.

Additionally, the rope length extends quite a bit of an anchor fails (and it partially recovers it’s elasticity before the other anchors engage). Later anchors would not get forces exceeding a normal ‘healthy’ bolts limits.

So there is some systemic failure involved in this scenario.