nce. It was used by the three time French champion, the Belgian climber named Francois Dussenne. I had too much to do with myself to be able to take a closer look at him during this high level competition. I just noticed that a nice guy smoked everybody with his fancy hitch.One year later at the first European Championship in Lahnstein, Germany I did what I had missed the year before.. I took a closer look and thanks to Francois, also a better understanding about how much different climbing styles are related to different friction hitch. A smoother hitch- a smoother move. And because of the fact that I met Ken Palmer and Bob Weber the first time, I had to throw my old style and technique overboard anyway. I also sunk my split tail - Prusik technique - without a tear.This hitch, called the Machard or French Prusik, gave me a hard time in the beginning. It was not easy to adjust and find out what kind of materials liked each other. After the materials for the USA came to Europe, we had a multiple choice to find the wrong/right combination of techniques. Only the boom of international exchange brought light into the mental toolbox. So we found the right material melange for the Machard, a piece of 9mm dynamic rope and a 1/2 inch climbing rope. The length of the dynamic rope depends on the stretch and grip of itself and the real diameter and grip of the actual climbing rope. If the Machard is too short it has too much friction and sticks. If it is too long it starts sliding. Be careful , this is not a very big length difference.The way the Machard works is a little different than other friction hitches like the tautline or the Prusik. It is not "breaking" the climbing line to get the friction. It works more like a China finger trap and divides the friction through a longer part of the climbing line (about 10 inches).We used as break test machine. Most friction hitches break down between 1300kg and 1600kg. The Machard did not break, it start...
