Caving

I'm game for most sports as I may have mentioned before - but caving has always set some kind of deep set fear in me.I'm not chlostraphobic or anything lets face it normal everyday things - you get stuck in them - you get cut out. Get stuck in a cave underground thats been rock solid for thousands of years you aint going nowhere!! Am I explaining myself well here?!
Well, for this article I could have gone caving, overcome the fear of a lifetime just to give my readers a better sense of the experience B O G O F F !!

ANd so - here is all the wonderful information on this hideous sport I could drum up.

Caving quite surprisingly enough is the exploration of caves and usually involves being part of a group (Mm LOTS of people stuck in your little hole as well - goody) You need a good few people to help each other through obstacles etc.
There are different types of caves - horizontal, vertical, horizontal and vertical flooded, dry, hot, cold, humid, drafty, muddy, sandy etc. UK caves are most of the above except of course hot or humid!

Its a good idea to get proper traing before attempting to go caving as there are obviousley many teqniques that you are unlikely to have come across. Training involves learning to treat the cave environment properly, with respect to conservation and can be obtained through caving with experienced cavers, caving clubs or through commercial centres.
If you plan to go caving whilst being a member of an organisation then you probably wont have to buy the equipment yourself but just in case heres a few things that its important to have.

If youre in a wet cave then a wet suit is used but for the usual just dark and damp caves the usual basics include some kind of oversuit made of a tough material (such as PVC). Then something warm and comfertable underneath. You can use padding if you want to protect the knees and elbows mainly. Boots or wellies are next, then a helmet, lighting system (eg petzl) and belt. Whatever you're wearing it is important to realise that you WILL get wet. Luckily most suits dry out quickly after getting wet and your underclothes should get you quite warm fairly quickly once youre moving.

There are apparently several techniques in caving. RT (Single Rope Technique) is a method for ascending and descending pitches in caves. This is a skill that most cavers use. The use of electron (wire) ladders is also employed but most people regard SRT as the favourite choice. Climbing and digging are often used to find new passages. Diving of course is sometimes needed for caves that are submerged in water. 'Sumps' is the practise of holding your breath under water whilst passing through short lengths of water. Full diving equipment is rarely used and only then by highly trained cavers.

All in the the risk and dangers of caving lie in the experience of the group/leader. Many cavers are members of rescue teams and relay that most call outs are from people that have got themselves lost or are too tired to carry on than people who have got themselves into real trouble or accidents.

The safest way to cave is to join a club. Caving clubs exist in many parts of the country, even where there are no local caves.

For information on caves in your area check out http://www.caving.uk.com