day blazin gear bags
heard mention of this in another thread, but forgot where.... November 8, 2001 A couple visiting Yosemite National Park this past Saturday made an urgent cell-phone call to park rangers to report that a BASE jumper had launched off the face off El Capitan and slammed into the 3, 400-foot wall twice before disappearing into trees near the East Buttress.
The call, made at about 3:30 on Saturday afternoon, sparked an immediate investigation by rangers, who discovered the jumper just before nightfall: a red climbing haul bag that was stuck on a ledge some 500 feet above the base of the wall.
Rangers then approached two climbers that had finished a descent of El Capitan and asked then about the bag. The climbers, an American and an Italian national, initially denied any knowledge of the bag but later confessed to throwing it from the top of the East ledges, the standard descent route down the wall. They had fashioned a parachute for the bag from a portaledge rainfly.
Rangers climbed up El Capitan the following day to seize bag for use as evidence in court
The Italian climber, Giovanni Groaz, pleaded guilty this week to illegal air delivery and had to pay a fine of $100 plus the cost of park rescue efforts. He was also given 12 months of probation. The American climber's name was not released as the case against him is still pending. -rockclimbing.com
my point is 100$ fine? is this standard? or does it vary? maybe someone w/firsthand elcap/bust experience could fill us in...
