Fall

Vertical caving terminology and methods > Pitches and potholes, general terms

Fall, freefall, plummet, plunge, peel off (a climb), thrown off (a climb), slide (down a climb), slip (off a climb), lost footing, lost grip, topple (off), tumble, come a cropper, bounced (off the ground), decked, cratered, come down hard, take a spill, leap off (a tall drop), swept off, swept over, knocked down, impact test, rapid descent, uncontrolled descent

Any mistake that causes someone to rapidly descend a pitch or climb without control, potentially resulting in severe injury. Most of the time, these are not caving-specific terms, and are just generic English slang, so this list of terms is not exhaustive. Some are climbing terms (bouncing, decking and cratering, which mean hitting the ground hard enough to cause a serious injury or death), and the subtle differences in meaning varies based on who is using them. Some of them relate to what caused the fall (slip, thrown off; not a literal statement, lost footing, lost grip, topple, swept off, swept over, knocked down). Some relate to the fall itself (fall, plummet, plunge, peel off, slide, take a spill, leap off, rapid descent). Some relate to whether there is something to reduce the impact or not (uncontrolled descent, freefall), where uncontrolled descent is the only one that might sometimes be specific to abseiling, as it means to lose control, and descend too fast. Some relate to the impact (come a cropper, come down hard, impact test). In all cases, the end result is the same; a rapid, uncontrolled descent, with a potentially serious impact, which could result in injury or death. One of the most severe hazards.

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