Knots Can’t Be Taught, They Have to Be Learned
The Volunteers Corner
departments
The tying of knots is a skill that cannot be taught—it must be learned.
If you don’t believe that, try “teaching” a group of fire fighters how to tie four or five knots and hitches during a training session and then, a week later, ask the same men to tie the same knots. The few who pass the test either knew how to tie the knots before your training session or practiced tying those knots in their spare time.
It has been my experience that two conditions must be established before men can acquire skill in tying knots. First of all, the instructor should be realistic and tell the men that they should each get a length of rope so that they can practice tying knots daily until they can tie them blindfolded. In other words, after demonstration and guidance by the instructor, the men must learn by themselves.
A 1/4 -inch rope about 5 or 6 feet long is ideal for practicing tying knots. It’s not bulky, so it can be kept on a table or in a drawer near the chair where a man spends some of his leisure time. That makes it easy for him to practice tying knots while looking at TV, talking or just resting. A knot chart can be helpful in refreshing his memory of an unfamiliar knot.
One knot at a time: The second condition for learning knots concerns the instructor. Again, I have found through experience that when an instructor demonstrates more than one knot during a training session, the law of diminishing returns quickly takes over. Furthermore, every knot should be “taught” in relation to its use in the fire service. People like to see a reason for learning to do something new.
For example, the clove hitch is extremely useful in securing a rope to tools that are to be hauled up or lowered. Have a pike pole, ax and claw tool—or even an extinguisher— at hand and apply the clove hitch to these tools as you explain the way to make the hitch.
At this point, I’m going to weasel my way around my rule of never teaching two knots during the same training session. The other “knot” that must be taught at this time is the half hitch, so actually, you will be teaching two hitches—not two “knots.” Also, the half hitch is so simple to make that it really can’t be counted as a learning problem.
However, the half hitch is frequently used and in tying rope to hand tools, it is used in combination with the clove hitch. The clove hitch is tied at the bottom of the tool, or fire extinguisher, in the hauling position and the half hitch is made at the top of the tool. Therefore, both hitches must be taught during the same session so the students can raise and lower tools as an application of the use of the clove hitch.
Most useful knots: My nominations for the three most useful knots in the fire service are the clove hitch, half hitch and the bowline. If you become adept at applying these three knots—well, two hitches and a knot— then you can handle just about any problem that calls for the use of rope. It’s true that other knots are useful on the fireground and in rescue work, such as the bowline on a bight, fire hose hitch, sheet bend and chimney hitch, but the first three knots mentioned can be used to substitute for more specialized knots.
The bowline is more difficult to tie than the clove hitch, but it is a most useful knot. Demonstrate the bowline by using it to raise a ladder to a flat roof. Show that if you place the loop about a third of the way from the top of the ladder and keep the knot between the ladder and the building, the ladder tips will pitch out from the building and the spurs will touch the wall. This allows the ladder to freely pass windowsills, cornices, clapboards and other projections. In lowering the ladder, show how it will pass these same projections on the way down if the ladder is kept between the knot and the wall.
When you show a group how to tie a bowline, inevitably someone will ask you to tie it left-handed, so you should become adept at doing that. With a little practice, it’s not that difficult to do. It’s just that difficult to describe.
Avoid chafing rope: Fire fighters who are not accustomed to using ropes tend to overlook the abrasion problem when a rope is used to haul an object up to a roof. Hauling on a rope as it passes over the edge of a cornice or metal flashing is a quick way of damaging the rope by tearing the fibers. Whenever possible, a hose roller should be used to prevent abrasion of the rope. When you don’t have a hose roller, place an old, valueless salvage cover or piece of canvas—folded to be several layers thick—over the edge of the roof to prevent the hauling rope from chafing.
This is a good time to point out that when a hose roller or canvas is not available at a fire, the fire fighter at the edge of the roof—or window—should keep the rope clear of the roof edge as he hauls up tools or other materials. It’s more difficult this way, but it can be done.
As a rope is hauled in, either on a roof or on the ground, let the slack fall in a pile without touching it. If you avoid touching the pile as it is formed, the rope will come off it without tangling. No matter how unsightly the pile of rope looks, this “free fall” method works.
By showing not only how to tie a different knot but also how to use it at each drill, you will eventually develop an adequate knottying capability in your fire department.
