Several summers ago, I went climbing at Maple Canyon, Utah, with a Quebecois named Sue. After a morning of climbing, I had picked up her Canadian colloquialisms. By three in the afternoon we were spent, so I asked, “Do you want to see the Pipe Dream Cave, eh?” She replied, “Yah sure, eh, that sounds good.” We hiked up to the cave and watched a few climbers attempting the vicious ceiling routes. As one of the climbers pulled over the roof, I noticed he had clipped a 24-inch draw to the bolt just under the overhang. I thought about the physics, but before I remembered why I hated math, Sue pointed at the long draw, “Smart, eh, so he won’t hit his head on the roof.” I took the note to heart. As sport climbers, we deal with draws that are usually between four-inches and six-inches long. A sportie using a long trad draw is considered old school. However, it’s the smart sportie who carries at least two longer draws, and has two draws equipped with lockers, to compensate for odd rock formations, poor bolting, and large roofs. There are several other circumstances that also suggest going old school:

The wandering bolt line. One of the biggest reasons to use a longer draw is off-route bolting, which can cause rope drag. Some bolts are drilled off to the side, or situated in a recessed area, due to poor rock quality or just plain bad drilling. Rope drag isn’t fun for a leader pulling sketchy moves, and her discomfort may in turn affect her belayer in the form of accusations about poor belaying skills. A longer draw can re-orient the rope so that it parallels the route’s natural line, and lessens the friction between everyone.
Anchors. Often you can’t see your anchor scenario until you reach the chains. Sometimes they’re not set 12 inches apart and drilled into pristine limestone. One bolt might be 10 inches higher than the other, or set wide apart from its companion. Having the ability to equalize the points with a longer draw will make you breath easier on the descent.
Roofs and caves. A longer draw placed under a roof can decrease rope drag by moving the rope further from the wall and lessening the angle in which it passes by the lip of the roof. On long ceilings when short draws are employed and you attempt the roof and fail, the little draw can stop you short, causing an unpleasant roof-to-head merger. Pairing longer draws on the roof section, with a dynamic belay will give you clearance time and no bell ringing.
Working a project. Another place to use a longer draw is when you’re working a route. Perhaps there’s a particular bolt that’s just a little too far above its predessor, and is disturbing your peace of mind. By extending the draw, you can clip from a lower stance, and climb on with confidence.
Safety first. If you’re working a route with horns, pockets, or edges that could open or break the rope biner, employing a longer draw is a sure-fire trad solution.
Trad up your sport rack. For trad climbers, 24-inch slings are treasured jewels, and are preferably made out of Dyneema or Spectra. “Trick-triple” a sling, and you have an eight-inch draw; double loop it for a 12-inch runner. To trick triple, pass Biner A through Biner B, and then clip Biner A to all the strands of webbing between the two biners. To double loop, simply clip both ends of a runner to the same biner, and clip the second biner to either of the same two strands. It’s simple to do, and a trick-triple can easily be concealed in your sport rack as a normal, but way smarter, draw.
Carrying a couple of locking draws is an excellent safety bonus. These draws can be used on the first clip for extra security. Locking draws are also perfect at the anchors to assure safety, especially when setting up a top rope. A final note on anchors: Make sure that the rope biners are opposed, with their gates facing outwards. You can never be too careful, eh?