Rad
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Posts posted by Rad
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This is something all fathers on this board, and there are many, have wrestled with internally. Ultimately, each must make his own choices. For me, coming back in one piece is imperative, but what would be the point of climbing if all risk and uncertainty were removed?
Regarding some comments above, I disagree with the suggestion that 'hard' rock climbing is more dangerous than easy rock climbing. I would argue that the opposite is true.
Look at accidents over the past few years in the Northwest and you'll find that most cases involve inexperienced people getting badly hurt or killed on easy (4th-low-fifth class) terrain. Someone else can chime in with statistics, but accidents in North America and Yosemite almost always boil down to one of two things: bad judgment (e.g. rapped off rope end) and/or bad luck (e.g. rockfall or avalanche). In many cases, good judgment can reduce the 'bad luck' events as well (learn to read weather and alpine terrain, know how to retreat, know how to climb gingerly in the alpine, carry the right gear, and have experience getting out of jams).
I would suggest that 'hard' rock climbing (say 5.10 and up), including alpine trad, is usually quite safe. I suspect this is largely because these climbers are more experienced and make better decisions than newbies and the routes are steeper and may be less prone to rockfall.
Regarding trad vs sport, RUMR has suggested, and I agree, that well-placed trad gear on non-runout routes is pretty much as safe as bolts. In fact, trad leaders are more likely to think strategically about protecting themselves than those who blindly clip and go.
In sum, safety is born out of good judgment, which usually comes from extensive experience. That's my rationalization anyway...
OK, now back to work so I can get to the gym and then get the kids from daycare
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Fingerboard vs spring loaded gripper doodad: which do you favor and why?
Please post links to your favorite cuz Santa is coming!!!
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Trog,
Your retribution is still possible. Lead the climb on gear and skip the bolts. Style is a state of mind.
R
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Shotguns ok. Rifles not ok.
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I had a class 3 separation a few years back. PT definitely helped with Rehab. I could climb again pretty quickly but it was a year before I could do regular pushups. You should be back to 100% pretty quick with class 1.
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OK, I read the article. It is certainly cast in a negative light, which is what people like to read in the rags.
Climbers work with park staff to collect and remove tons of trash. A climbing ranger works to educate noobs about how to protect the environment while they climb. Climbing areas developing plans to protect their resources from overuse and abuse. Those sound like good things.
The quotes and story are just plain stupid. Not a quality piece.
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We used to shit in a paper bag, light it and throw it off the wall. Now we don't.
Actually, I was at the base of El Cap last weekend and came across a paper bag. Thinking it was just trash I looked inside. Poop. Yuck.
BTW, why are those guys putting on their harnesses at the trailhead?
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she can feel it thought it through the rope
Yep. Belaying is often like fishing. You should be able to feel what the leader is doing on the other end even if you are looking at the view or taking a swig of water.
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Remeber the KISS acronym?
I agree with MattP.
The standard I learned was:
Slack (let out rope).
Up-rope (take up rope).
Off/on belay.
One reason to stick with those is that in many circumstances you can't hear each other very well. Then the number of syllables tells you what to do: Blah! = slack, Blah blah! = up-rope. Blah Blah Blah = on/off belay (confirm before taking climber off belay).
If you can easily hear each other then do whatever you want, but talk about it beforehand to avoid confusion.
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Hormones: Make wasps angry. Make CC posters engage in mock battles over perceptions of their waning sexual prowess.
Move along...
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My best bee story, in short form: my dad and I were in Argentina moving a colony of killer bees (african race of the common honey bee Apis melifera). These bees are called 'killer bees' because they are very mean-tempered. They are no more poisonous than regular honey bees, but where 10-20 regular honey bees might sting you if you disturb their nest, 100-200 or more 'killer bees' will chase and sting you. It is the sheer volume of poison that gets you.
But, I digress - We were told by scientists in the University in Tucuman that they had carefully sealed up the hive the night before. We didn't really trust them so we donned head-to-toe suits just in case. After loading the hive into the back seat of our Ford Falcon, we drove down the main drag toward the mountains. Sure enough, bees started to come out of the hive, a few at first then more and more. Soon there was a cloud of angry bees in the car with us so we rolled down the windows. Usually, young boys would come up to try to sell you bags of oranges at every stoplight on the strip, but they didn't come near us - crazy gringos in space suits surrounded by a swarm of angry bees - who could blame them?! Twas quite a trip.
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My dad was an entomologist who studied bees. We learned a lot by osmosis and on collecting trips. Here's a few tidbits that may prove interesting or useful (Tvash can correct me if need be).
There are many different species of wasps, some live in colonies (e.g. yellow jackets, white-faced hornets, and paper wasps) while others are solitary. Ditto bees.
Bees and wasps do not bite, they sting you with a modified ovipositor (egg laying tube) coming out of their abdomens (butts). Most bees have barbs in their stingers that rip out a poison sack from their abdomen when the sting you. If you get stung by a bee you may be able to scrape the poison sack off without having its contents injected into you. After they sting you they will die. Not so with wasps. They can sting you multiple times and be fine.
Insects are unable to generate their own body heat and they can only fly when their wing muscles rise above certain temps. This is why you see bumblebees looking sluggish on the ground in the evening or on overcast days: they're too cold to fly. They may get stranded on flowers or elsewhere if the temps drop. You can use this to your advantage. For example, I found a large white-faced hornet's nest in a bush near our front door a few years back. It was too big and too deep to get with raid and was clearly going to cause problems later in the fall. So I waited until night and went out with a garbage bag. I gathered up the nest and its sleeping occupants inside the garbage bag, double-bagged for extra protection, and then put the whole thing in the freezer overnight. That killed them. Turned out there were over 80 wasps in the nest. Yikes!
I've been nailed by the cascade ground wasps multiple times on approaches, but always I've run down/up the trail so fast I never got a good look at my attackers. It sure hurts, though.
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June 1990, Swiss Cheese face (5.5-5.7?) on Goat Rock in Castle Rock State park (Skyline drive Bay Area, not by Shasta). I surprised the instructors by pulling off a 5.9ish stemming boulder problem. I was hooked from that very first day.
That summer I went on multiple camping and climbing trips with Outdoors Unlimited (out of UCSF) to the Tahoe area and Tuolumne. Great times.
Xmas 1990, I got a pink chalk bag from my cousin that I still use today.
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Nice outing and pics Trog.
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Seattle's a cool city, but WA as a state, and the residents, need to pull their heads out of their asses and lay the ground work now so they can keep it that way.
Amen. It floors me that people don't understand that you taxes to fund things like transit and schools. I would gladly pay income tax to improve a lot of things in this state, but the short-sightedness of voters and Tim Eyman's initiatives are a lethal combo.
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Seattle, because X38 and REI put it over the top!
Where else can you spray inane crapola on CC with wireless devices during business hours, leave your Microsoft cubicle early, pop in your SUV to sit in 405 traffic, and crawl on I90 to X38, all while sipping your double-skinny non-fat extra poontang $5 cup of joe.
At X38 you can climb ego-inflating sport routes and clip your shiny quickdraws onto bolts 3 ft apart on chossy rock. Is there more to life than that? Oh yeah, climbing the tower in the flagship REI!
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One down, eighty seven to go.
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No more monotonous than any other slab route. It's runout enough to keep your attention and has awesome views of Half Dome the entire way.
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This is it! Don't blink or you'll miss it.
Quick - go to Index and climb something awesome! I enjoy my work, but I wish I could heed the call of Index cracks and fall colors today...
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I think the article says a lot more.
It mentions some misinformation (withheld) during the search. It also mentions the poor working relationship w/ others during the search. That reflects on everyone involved.
It also mentions a greiving mother who somehow doesn't feel too connected w/ the company her daughter owned. That is supported and reflected by an absurb comment from the chairman of the board who actually said to the press about the entire affair, "Disappointment was born of expectation." What sensitivity!
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I agree with all your points. I expect that the press worked to ferret out any conflict and controversy to put in the article, so the portrait may be a little skewed. Peace and harmony just doesn't sell copy.
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What's actually going on over there? I found this in the Seattle Times. It doesn't seem very positive.
I disagree.
The article suggests the appraised value of the company was not as high as the inheritor wanted. The value of this business, like other service businesses, may lie primarily in its brand and/or the cache of its service providers. The younger a business, the more the value lies in its providers. If a key provider leaves or dies that will diminish the value of the enterprise. Older businesses, with more established track records and brand recognition, will take less of a hit when one or two key people leave.
These factors would be true of any guiding business, so I don't think it speaks to the quality of MM as a guide service.
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you don't get out much, do you? there's TONS of trad protected FACE climbing out there...and a lot of it isn't dangerous...
Yep, like most of the Gunks.
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Show is at 730pm. Neptune Theater.
Send Marylou a pm as she may have a ticket you can buy.
See you there (babysitter is confirmed!).
Rad
Which is more dangerous?
in Climber's Board
Posted
Well said Bill.
For me, it all comes down to consequences. A 50 footer on a slab at Darrington while wearing a helmet? I'll take that risk, whimpering, from time to time. Solo glacier travel where a crevasse fall means certain death? I won't take that risk.
Everyone finds their own balance point.