RRC Archives

If this is an issue with new climbers, putting something in the guidebook about fixed gear might help alleviate the problem. I think a large part of it is people just not knowing any better until someone tells them otherwise. However, I think it is also due to a lack of consideration from more experienced climbers.
For example, one time this fall at Drive-By I was sitting under a route that had my draws on it putting on my shoes, and these guys from Colorado came up, dropped their rope under it, and started climbing it without saying a word to me. It's these types of people who take fixed gear without thinking of the people around them. I would think visiting climbers are much more likely to steal because they think they won't have to deal with the ramifications of their actions, whether it's being called out by the community or not having that gear available the next time they climb that route.
If there is something in the guidebook about this, whether it's in the beginning of the book, or on every page, it will make it much harder for people to say "oh, I didn't know".

Perhaps an experiment? Try using screw links instead of biners to attach equipment to hangers. This would make it obvious to a gumby or other moron that the gear is not abandoned. And if it still gets taken then we are dealing with a calculating thief.....

You guys need to jack off all over the links when you put them up, and then we can run around miguels with a black light and figure out who took them.

michaelarmand wrote:Perhaps an experiment? Try using screw links instead of biners to attach equipment to hangers. This would make it obvious to a gumby or other moron that the gear is not abandoned. And if it still gets taken then we are dealing with a calculating thief.....

Unless I misunderstand you, most of what we are talking about here is exactly equipment being attached by quicklinks (what you are calling screwlinks, I assume). For example, on one of my routes I included four quicklinks (two off of each bolt hanger) at the anchor, and they were taken along with my project draws I left on the route.

If you are going to call someone out in a public forum, I'm thinking you're going to want to make damn sure you have the right person and some witnesses to back you up.

I'm pretty sure it was an ohitian

I really do think that it is people who don't know any better taking this stuff, instead of malicious thiefs.

Doesn't make it any better, I suppose...

I had this conversation with someone recently-- and this is a person who has been climbing for 10 years!!!-- but she usually doesn't climb overhanging stuff. Well, she was about to belay me on TROCS, and there was a cleaning'biner on the second bolt above the roof. She pointed at it, and said:"Hey, look, there is a booty 'biner, you get to take it, lucky you." I explained that it was there to avoid a bigger swing into the tree, if cleaning the route after leading, instead of cleaning it on TR. She was honestly surprized... We left the 'biner where it was. But 2 weeks later when I came back, it wasn't there-- so probably someone else thought it was a booty, too...

And I remember a route at Curbside -- the .11c next to Wildfire. It has a permadraw right above the no-hands-rest, very helpful for cleaning. I was there in July, I think, when someone took the 'biner off of it, thinking it was booty, too. I asked them to give it to me, explained what it was for, and put that 'biner back. Who knows if it is still there...

Well, maybe that could be a new niche market for gear manufactures - carabiners and draws with markings that scream "Do not Take". "Permanent Protection". Then, if stolen, they wouldn't blend in with anyone's collection.

moonbeam wrote:Well, maybe that could be a new niche market for gear manufactures - carabiners and draws with markings that scream "Do not Take". "Permanent Protection". Then, if stolen, they wouldn't blend in with anyone's collection.

that actually isn't a bad idea.

looking at anohter thread, maybe using those plastic tie threads is the way to go...they'd need something sharp to cut them, and if those get taken, we know we have a thief.