Fernand Petzl
Encyclopedia
Fernand Petzl was a caver and manufacturer of outdoor equipment under the brand name Petzl
.
Petzl lived most of his life in the village of Saint-Ismier
(near Grenoble
), France
at the foot of the mountain Dent De Crolles
. He first went caving
in Trou du Glaz in 1933, and was immediately captivated by the idea of exploring beyond the cave
's known limits. Subsequent explorations there with Pierre Chevalier
, Charles Petit-Didier and others culminated in connections to other caves in the massif, forming the Réseau de la Dent de Crolles which, in 1947, became the deepest cave in the world. Petzl also participated in explorations in the Gouffre Berger
, which set a new world depth record in 1956 as the first cave deeper than 1000 metres (-1122m). Petzl was a proponent of cave explorations by small teams, an innovation at the time.
During this period, when there were no manufacturers of specialized caving equipment, cavers adapted equipment from other sources, or made their own. After 1933 Petzl began making rope ladders for his own use, developed a scaling-pole in 1940, and began testing the first nylon ropes in 1942. In 1968 Bruno Dressler asked Petzl, who worked as a metals machinist, to build a rope-ascending tool he had developed, and in the 1970s Petzl started a small caving equipment manufacturing company that bore his name. In subsequent years the Petzl brand was expanded to include climbing and ski-mountaineering gear, and continues today as one of the world’s best–known manufacturers of mountaineering equipment.
Petzl
Petzl is a world leading manufacturer of climbing gear, caving gear, work-at-height equipment, and headlamps based in Crolles , France. The company was created by the cave explorer Fernand Petzl in the mid-1970s...
.
Petzl lived most of his life in the village of Saint-Ismier
Saint-Ismier
Saint-Ismier is a commune in the Isère department in south-eastern France.-Twin towns:It is twinned with the English town of Stroud in Gloucestershire.-References:*...
(near Grenoble
Grenoble
Grenoble is a city in southeastern France, at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère...
), France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
at the foot of the mountain Dent De Crolles
Dent de Crolles
The Dent de Crolles is a karstic mountain of the Chartreuse Mountains range, 17 km north east from Grenoble, Isère . It has a characteristic "tooth-like" profile which is well-known sight of the Isère Valley seen from the Grenoble area...
. He first went caving
Caving
Caving—also occasionally known as spelunking in the United States and potholing in the United Kingdom—is the recreational pastime of exploring wild cave systems...
in Trou du Glaz in 1933, and was immediately captivated by the idea of exploring beyond the cave
Cave
A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...
's known limits. Subsequent explorations there with Pierre Chevalier
Pierre Chevalier
Pierre Chevalier was a well-known caver and mountaineer from France, with many alpine ascents and cave explorations to his credit. Chevalier is principally known for the exploration of the Dent de Crolles cave system over a twelve-year period , which became the deepest cave in the world...
, Charles Petit-Didier and others culminated in connections to other caves in the massif, forming the Réseau de la Dent de Crolles which, in 1947, became the deepest cave in the world. Petzl also participated in explorations in the Gouffre Berger
Gouffre Berger
The Gouffre Berger is a French cave discovered on 24 May 1953, by Joseph Berger, Bouvet, Ruiz de Arcaute and Marc Jouffray. From 1953 to 1963, it was regarded as the deepest cave in the world at , relinquishing this title to the previous contender, Pierre Saint Martin in 1964, after further...
, which set a new world depth record in 1956 as the first cave deeper than 1000 metres (-1122m). Petzl was a proponent of cave explorations by small teams, an innovation at the time.
During this period, when there were no manufacturers of specialized caving equipment, cavers adapted equipment from other sources, or made their own. After 1933 Petzl began making rope ladders for his own use, developed a scaling-pole in 1940, and began testing the first nylon ropes in 1942. In 1968 Bruno Dressler asked Petzl, who worked as a metals machinist, to build a rope-ascending tool he had developed, and in the 1970s Petzl started a small caving equipment manufacturing company that bore his name. In subsequent years the Petzl brand was expanded to include climbing and ski-mountaineering gear, and continues today as one of the world’s best–known manufacturers of mountaineering equipment.