AAC Universal Belay Standard - Belaying a Leader

The American Alpine Club has produced a handful of educational videos. The following video -- concerning lead belays -- is a follow up to their video on toprope belays. This video does an excellent job of going through all of the nuances of each of the following aspects of belaying a leader:

1. Positioning the belay to avoid a clash of bodies.
2. Consciously managing the slack.
3. Securing a leader who is resting on the rope.
4. Arresting falls with a solid, yet "soft" catch, or stopping the leader cold if obstacles are in the fall line.
5. Hoisting a fallen leader back to their high point as needed.

This nine minute video is a must-watch for new belayers, as well as for those who have been belaying leaders for a long time. There is a tremendous amount of information within each chapter of the video.

--Jason D. Martin