UKC

Noticed in logbooks today that someone doing Lead Vein thrombosis at deep rake had commented that it was way easier than before and thought it had been chipped. I live local so went and had a look, the rock here is soft so the backs of things can get eroded out and get deeper and things chage from first ascents etc.however a 4 finger right angled edge has been created on top of a chert band on the hardest move of the route to the left of the 2nd to last bolt. You could possibly blame erosion but it's got perfectly right angled sides to it and on its width.

Most ascentionists used to go to the right of this bolt via sketchy crimps then reached left to a positive crimp. One of the holds to the right of this bolt also looks messed with. Yes it's only a scruffy quarry but people need to behave! Pic on my profile of the chip

In reply to FBSF:

I would say try and fill it in if you can. Easier said than done of course. 

In reply to FBSF:

That looks well dodgy and I agree a good candidate for some glue

In reply to FBSF:

Went in on Wednesday and Ive repaired the blatent damage to the route and repaired as best I could and camouflaged it relatively well.  A friend did it yesterday and said its close to what it was before.  Please respect the rock, even when its a man made hole in the ground

In reply to FBSF:

Could have been a broken hold which left a good edge? It would be odd for someone to chip a 7a which was already soft for the grade, though you never know. I did the route in its new (?) state and didn’t think anything of it, as there’s a fair bit of glue holding the crag together and it seems not usual for holds to get broken (the hold at the end of the second crux on the 7c came off on the same day - think it’s waiting to be glued back on). I did the 7a a few years back and thought it was soft anyway but can’t remember how different it was. Don’t disagree with you filling in the hold but I do wonder if there’s a ‘natural’ explanation.  

In reply to Misha:

it had right angled edges and an incut base, look at the photo on my profile, no way is it naturally occuring.

In reply to FBSF:

I think you just have a poor grasp of how rock breaks...

it was clearly used as a foothold before given the rubber just above the current level of hold.

The light blue shows the seam between that whole bulge and the face behind it, then look at the difference in how compact the orange upper section and the lower purple section is. The orange upper is clearly crumbly and like to fail whereas the compact band below is likely to remain and leave a well defined edge of harder rock.

In reply to Nick1812P:

If that hasn't been chipped I'm Michelangelo.

In reply to Nick1812P: I think it's been enhanced above the harder rock , but it's hard to explain the flat shape to the damage as just natural damage,  The fact it's white, and appears fresh without any orange colour also suggests it's not a loose part that was only loosely attached before.  It could arguably be very vigorous cleaning enhancing the hold on top of the hard part, but it would indeed be very vigorous

In reply to Maggot:

A lot of helmets climbing in the Rake nowadays. 

In reply to Maggot:

I think it's pretty hard to say with any certainty whether it's chipped or not. The rock at deep rake is pretty soft in places, with intrusions of harder rock. You could imagine a small piece snapping off above the hard layer and then people using the hard part as a foothold and in the process eroding the softer rock above to leave something like the hold pictured.