Gobright was best known for free soloing, or climbing without any safety gear, but at the time the two were rappelling, a technique using ropes. Climbers descend a rock face by using a doubled rope coiled around the body but the method is described by experts as one of the most common causes of deaths in the sport. "We started rapping," Mr Jacobson told the Outside website. "I was a bit above him. I was on the left. He was on the right. Then all of a sudden, I felt a pop, and we started dropping."