Pull the rope?
Take a moment and think back to when you first started climbing . . .
Isn't climbing an evolutionary process? We start out as infants, pulling ourselves up onto furniture, testing our balance and perfecting our form.
Then we evolve: We move outdoors and start climbing trees, jungle gyms, etc.
Then we evolve again: The opportunity to go someplace that has rock and we start climbing around on these things, not realizing what we are doing is something that "real" climbers call bouldering. Why are the kids doing this? To have fun!
The evolution continues: Once we were a little older, we started to check out what these other people were doing with all this climbing stuff. We say to ourselves, "Self, hey, that looks like fun, I think I'll check it out." We buy a harness, a rope if we're lucky and heck, we are now "climbers".
Early on, getting on the wall is exhilerating, exciting, challenging, fun, all the things that cause people to come back time and again. But we are starting out on TR. For many, they start out saying that this is exciting enough, I don't have an interest in leading.
Then we evolve: Leading becomes more attractive but we say "I'm not interested in trad."
Then we evolve again: we realize there is so much more available to us if we climb trad.
Don't knock others because of where they are in this evolutionary process. I'm certainly not going tell a proud parent who has just shared a story of their child climbing onto the chair for the first time that they weren't really climbing.
Enjoy where you are today and look forward with expectation/anticipation with what may be the interest of tomorrow.
GWG
Isn't climbing an evolutionary process? We start out as infants, pulling ourselves up onto furniture, testing our balance and perfecting our form.
Then we evolve: We move outdoors and start climbing trees, jungle gyms, etc.
Then we evolve again: The opportunity to go someplace that has rock and we start climbing around on these things, not realizing what we are doing is something that "real" climbers call bouldering. Why are the kids doing this? To have fun!
The evolution continues: Once we were a little older, we started to check out what these other people were doing with all this climbing stuff. We say to ourselves, "Self, hey, that looks like fun, I think I'll check it out." We buy a harness, a rope if we're lucky and heck, we are now "climbers".
Early on, getting on the wall is exhilerating, exciting, challenging, fun, all the things that cause people to come back time and again. But we are starting out on TR. For many, they start out saying that this is exciting enough, I don't have an interest in leading.
Then we evolve: Leading becomes more attractive but we say "I'm not interested in trad."
Then we evolve again: we realize there is so much more available to us if we climb trad.
Don't knock others because of where they are in this evolutionary process. I'm certainly not going tell a proud parent who has just shared a story of their child climbing onto the chair for the first time that they weren't really climbing.
Enjoy where you are today and look forward with expectation/anticipation with what may be the interest of tomorrow.
GWG
I just really got into climbing early last Spring when Sik and I hooked up for the first time (little hear and there prior, including meeting Wes in December). For 2 months or so I relied on Sik to hang all of my routes; I had no rope, or draws. The first couple weeks Sik and I climbed, I was ok with him being my rope gun, but then it started to bug me. I was bothered by the fact that I was completely reliant on Sik for me to climb ANYTHING. On top of my dependence, I was also asking SM to climb "my" routes twice (set and clean) on TOP of his climbs/projects, tripling his climbs for the day. Basically, leading was my path to independence and becoming a climbing PARTNER, not just more "baggage".
Now, Sik climbs well above my ability, so it's not like we are doing the same routes. I have no problem getting on a TR he's set for himself if I want to mess around or if, like Sunday, I've wasted all my damn energy being stupid and fighting my first climb for 25 minutes and I know I don't have the hand endurance left to cleanly finish anything near my limit.
So, along with the added challenge, risk (with great risk comes great reward) and pride of the climb while on lead, I also have my personal freedom.
Add all this mess together and what I get is attempted leads at, or very near my TR ability and, fall or flash, it's all on me.
If I haven't done it yet publicly, I'd like to thank Matt for being my climbing partner and helping me expand my limits with every climb. (Bud Light moment) "I love you, man".
Now, Sik climbs well above my ability, so it's not like we are doing the same routes. I have no problem getting on a TR he's set for himself if I want to mess around or if, like Sunday, I've wasted all my damn energy being stupid and fighting my first climb for 25 minutes and I know I don't have the hand endurance left to cleanly finish anything near my limit.
So, along with the added challenge, risk (with great risk comes great reward) and pride of the climb while on lead, I also have my personal freedom.
Add all this mess together and what I get is attempted leads at, or very near my TR ability and, fall or flash, it's all on me.
If I haven't done it yet publicly, I'd like to thank Matt for being my climbing partner and helping me expand my limits with every climb. (Bud Light moment) "I love you, man".
"I never saw a wild thing sorry for itself. A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough without ever having felt sorry for itself."
D. H. Lawrence
D. H. Lawrence
Spragster,GWG: I'm with you fellers.
You know While I was free soloing Epinephrine(you know the one Red Rocks, Nevada) at night during a wind storm I started to realize that this is what climbing is all about. It was clear to me that all you poor fools climbing using rope and little metal things just don't get it! You should all quit "climbing" and go back to your day jobs. Oh, and then there was the time on K2 when we had to climb without oxygenand the Pakistanis decided their air force should use us for gunnery practice........Now thats climbing...you poor little people, I weep for you.
You know While I was free soloing Epinephrine(you know the one Red Rocks, Nevada) at night during a wind storm I started to realize that this is what climbing is all about. It was clear to me that all you poor fools climbing using rope and little metal things just don't get it! You should all quit "climbing" and go back to your day jobs. Oh, and then there was the time on K2 when we had to climb without oxygenand the Pakistanis decided their air force should use us for gunnery practice........Now thats climbing...you poor little people, I weep for you.
I try to be a good man but all that comes
of trying is I feel more guilty.
Ikkyu
of trying is I feel more guilty.
Ikkyu
We are all in fact evolving in our own little world - and everything we do pertains to climbing – as long that it’s done:
1. On small rock (the red)
2. On big rock (alps)
3. On ice
4. On snow
5. On a tree
6. On the side of a house or building
7. Or anything else worth climbing
The mere fact that we are so self conscious about leading or top-ropping only goes to show that we are really close minded and pretty much thinking only of the Red. Looking at the bigger picture, there are so many places that do not have bolts, that do not have a way up to setup a TR, etc… etc…so yes, there are bigger and different things than the red, and different things than just leading, and different things than just TR.
It all boils right back down to what each and every one of us wants to do. I know where I stand, do you? I know what I need to do and where I would like to be headed, do you? I have a plan, I hope to deviate from it ONLY slightly, do you?
The truth is that with or without a plan, we are ALL climbing, and rules only apply to those we set to ourselves. Make fun of the French for leaving gear and coming back later to “step” on them, but we perhaps need to look deeper in the details. Perhaps it is the only way (for now) to make a really quick and complete ascent on something that Big.
Critique away, critique others, because that’s pretty much what most people love to do on this forum. Wow, so much energy spent on that… I sometimes wish they we would spend ½ of it on climbs – even on a TR.
1. On small rock (the red)
2. On big rock (alps)
3. On ice
4. On snow
5. On a tree
6. On the side of a house or building
7. Or anything else worth climbing
The mere fact that we are so self conscious about leading or top-ropping only goes to show that we are really close minded and pretty much thinking only of the Red. Looking at the bigger picture, there are so many places that do not have bolts, that do not have a way up to setup a TR, etc… etc…so yes, there are bigger and different things than the red, and different things than just leading, and different things than just TR.
It all boils right back down to what each and every one of us wants to do. I know where I stand, do you? I know what I need to do and where I would like to be headed, do you? I have a plan, I hope to deviate from it ONLY slightly, do you?
The truth is that with or without a plan, we are ALL climbing, and rules only apply to those we set to ourselves. Make fun of the French for leaving gear and coming back later to “step” on them, but we perhaps need to look deeper in the details. Perhaps it is the only way (for now) to make a really quick and complete ascent on something that Big.
Critique away, critique others, because that’s pretty much what most people love to do on this forum. Wow, so much energy spent on that… I sometimes wish they we would spend ½ of it on climbs – even on a TR.
! Enough with all that detestation ALREADY !
Smile & be thankful for what you have.
Smile & be thankful for what you have.
/Rant
Ok, lets put something that is very useless to bed:
"you should never put energy into anylizing someone else's acomplishments"
I've noticed this to be a prevelent attitude an this BBS, and others besides.
That idea has lots of advantages! for instance, you can relieve yourself of the burden of knowing that there a people out there that are better than you. This is not to say that it its purpose, or only result, but it sure is one of them.
Also, It allows you to diffuse ego oriented motivation. But, alas, ego is not an all consuming evil, it is simply one way to motivate yourself. When you say, 'man, I don't wanna pay this bill, but ya know, I also don't wanna be a person who always has the phone disconnected cause it make me look bad.
No matter what the situation, if people are actually meaning what they are saying (gasp!) you can come in with, 'Gee wilikers little abby, you know, nothing really matters. We are so small, and the universe is so big! we mean so little! our persuit is dumb! we must castrate our thoughts before others so that they too will join our persuit of meaninlessness.'
"you should never put energy into anylizing someone else's acomplishments"
Also, you see this thrown around alot, but did you eve notice no one says why?
Really, this idea drives me crazy, because the goal (philosophically) is this : never look up to anyone, or down on anyone, that way you escape your own judgement.
Is that what you really want?
/Rant
Ok, lets put something that is very useless to bed:
"you should never put energy into anylizing someone else's acomplishments"
I've noticed this to be a prevelent attitude an this BBS, and others besides.
That idea has lots of advantages! for instance, you can relieve yourself of the burden of knowing that there a people out there that are better than you. This is not to say that it its purpose, or only result, but it sure is one of them.
Also, It allows you to diffuse ego oriented motivation. But, alas, ego is not an all consuming evil, it is simply one way to motivate yourself. When you say, 'man, I don't wanna pay this bill, but ya know, I also don't wanna be a person who always has the phone disconnected cause it make me look bad.
No matter what the situation, if people are actually meaning what they are saying (gasp!) you can come in with, 'Gee wilikers little abby, you know, nothing really matters. We are so small, and the universe is so big! we mean so little! our persuit is dumb! we must castrate our thoughts before others so that they too will join our persuit of meaninlessness.'
"you should never put energy into anylizing someone else's acomplishments"
Also, you see this thrown around alot, but did you eve notice no one says why?
Really, this idea drives me crazy, because the goal (philosophically) is this : never look up to anyone, or down on anyone, that way you escape your own judgement.
Is that what you really want?
/Rant
"Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water."