Once Goner started down the hole he held the slack out of the rope so that the guy could go down slowly. Even if it wasn't a very deep hole the rain in the mud was still going to make it slick going down and Gene knew no matter how much of an expert you are you can still get stuck in a mud slide just like everyone else. So they lowered him down carefully until he reached the bottom of the hole where Mel was. "Ok just hold that rope steady, we'll be bringing her up in no time." He said firmly to Michael.