I don't think Bob's consternation comes from the assertion that feminists find it valuable when a woman does a first woman ascent, its the concept espoused by Jennifer Jordan who somehow thinks women have a more difficult time being successfull in the mountains because they aren't excepted into the male dominated activity of climbing - that somehow the "playing field is not level."
That's what's bullshit. How can you have an unlevel playing field in an activity that is based on the concept of the individual, where the challenge lies in overcoming the adversity of the natural environment. Do gear shops not sell you gear if you're a woman? Or is the friction somehow less if you're a woman? Climbing is probably the one activity where the "playing field," so to speak, is the most level.