Quote Originally Posted by Toolmaker51 View Post
Nope. Ship ladders beat all.
Simply because when superiors aren't watching most bridge crew hold the handrails and slide. Can descend 9 or 10 decks in way less than a minute, I reckon about 40 seconds. The next ladder is about 7' away; most of it you're still holding the lower end loop and make a turn like a roping pony.
Unless you are too tall, and bean yourself on the hatchway.

I recall only one Lapereyre stair, at TESLA in Reno. Going up was fine, a lot like walking, despite a very fast rise angle. That made descending not so hot, instead of toes in the stepwell,you barely had heels going the other way.
That was because you needed to learn to step straight down just lean your elbows against the railings and you could carry objects down them as easily as walking on a level floor carrying them up the stairs is a little different as you need to lean into the climb. It is always tricky carrying anything up or down any stair though. you can go down a Lapereyre just like sliding down a ships ladder, another reason why with some drilling companies they gained popularity if the gas alarm went off grab the rails hook your feet and drop start running as soon as your feet hit the ground, they also took up a lot less space around the mud tanks than conventional stairs, not much more than a slanted ladder