catbirdseat Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 I think I have a pretty good idea of the meaning of the word "sick" in the context of hard climbing routes, but is there an exact definition? Is a sick route just very technically difficult, or is it also dangerous, committed all all three? My question would be best answered by citing examples of actual climbs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slothrop Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 It's a chestbeating term to me: a sick route is whatever route you just did and want to brag about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eric8 Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 http://www.gravsports.com/Ice%20Pages%20Folder/Route%20Descriptions/howse_of_cards_1100m.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catbirdseat Posted March 13, 2003 Author Share Posted March 13, 2003 Okay, now that's sick. I always think if it as something someone else who is better, braver, or stupider would do, but which I would never do myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomcat Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 Wowsers .. that face looks pretty darned scary. Scary sick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayB Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 The Bachar-Yerian route sounds pretty sick to me. Something like 3 bolts on 120' of dead vertical knobs. Â Another route that brings the word sick to mind: Trip Master Monkeya 12b offwidth at Vedauwoo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sexual_chocolate Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 That three move boulder sickness was pure sick, man. Especially the second move; That was way fucking sick! Â That 12b rp seam was so sick I puked. Fuck doing that again. Â 3 bolts on a 100 foot sustained 11b? That's pretty sick, but not as sick as I am of the word "sick". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glassgowkiss Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 (edited) "3 bolts on a 100 foot sustained 11b? That's pretty sick" any kid in Elbsanstein can do it tosser Edited March 13, 2003 by glassgowkiss Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayB Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 sexual_chocolate said: That three move boulder sickness was pure sick, man. Especially the second move; That was way fucking sick! Â That 12b rp seam was so sick I puked. Fuck doing that again. Â 3 bolts on a 100 foot sustained 11b? That's pretty sick, but not as sick as I am of the word "sick". Â That was some totally sick usage of the word sick, yo. Â What about Trip Master %$#ing Monkey?! Has anyone even bothered to look at the damned photo? I'm telling you, that sucker is soooooo sick........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayB Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 glassgowkiss said: "3 bolts on a 100 foot sustained 11b? That's pretty sick" any kid in Elbsanstein can do it tosser  Next time you log in bring back the "Smoke Crack and Worship Satan Autosig," Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dwayner Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 (edited) The term "sick" is another inane piece of climbing slang that was once considered clever but now is vastly overused. Actually, I thought it was kind of lame the first time I heard it and I wasn't sure if it meant something was good, bad, hard or otherwise. Like back in the day when the word "cool" was standard, then the term "hot" was coined to mean really good in a similar way. Polar opposites yet approximate. I personally put the term "sick" in the same rubbish bin as "take!" and other worn out shoes, but as long as we retain an inkling of what the users of such words mean, we can still communicate regardless.  - Dwayner  And by the way, Cocoa-Breath, I think it would be a real stretch to apply the word "sick" (as I understand it) to a boulder problem, unless you intend the word to mean "get a life". Edited March 13, 2003 by Dwayner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cracked Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 Â Chris had better get a life, then. This ain't sick! Why, it isn't even climbing! Never mind that only about 7 out of several billion people on the planet can get up the thing, it's not sick! C'mon Dwayner, let's spar a little. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Szyjakowski Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 cracked said: Â Chris had better get a life, then. This ain't sick! Why, it isn't even climbing! Never mind that only about 7 out of several billion people on the planet can get up the thing, it's not sick! C'mon Dwayner, let's spar a little. Read the Subject line...."sick" climbing "route"....not boulder problem.....sheesh ps. Dreamtime is definitely "sick" moves for a bp....saw a vid on climbxmedia.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iain Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 cracked said: 7 out of several billion people on the planet can get up the thing I bet thousands, dare I say, millions could get up the thing. Not everyone in the world is blessed with the time and resources to bum around Switzerland climbing boulders in the forest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
COL._Von_Spanker Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 Silly old codgers. You all really date yourselve for even asking (not age but attituce). The simpsons made fun of this. Â Don't you know that slang terms don't have anything to do with their actual meaning when used in the slang context. Â Stoked Pumped Sick Dope Bad Cool Diet (Erik loves this one when sandbagging a routed for you) Â Â The fact that you even asked precludes you from ever using it in a sentence for anything other that discussing illness. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshK Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 cracked said:Â Chris had better get a life, then. This ain't sick! Why, it isn't even climbing! Never mind that only about 7 out of several billion people on the planet can get up the thing, it's not sick! C'mon Dwayner, let's spar a little. Â Dude, see above...Howse of Cards...that's "sick". It's an amazing, impressive piece of climbing in an amazing place. The penalty for failing is great. Chris wanking on some oversized rock in the forest is not sick, no matter how hard you try to say it is. Well, I suppose if he fell, he could sprain an ankle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivan Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 sick climb = anything milosh wouldn't even dream of climbing (or alternately, anything for which milosh would have to swap sneakers for climbing shoes) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MATT_B Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 If you look at a route and the thought of going up makes you want to vomit that is "sick". If you go up anyway, that is something else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Szyjakowski Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 SnailEye said: If you look at a route and the thought of going up makes you want to vomit that is "sick". If you go up anyway, that is something else. Â so, that means if you have vertigo....everything is "sick"... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lummox Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 A sick route is one whats makes Daisy squeal with delight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stefan Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 sick climbing route = extremely hazardous sick climbing route = something I gape at sick climbing route = something beyond my capability or confidence level  must meet all three criteria above Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specialed Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 Sick is subjective Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allthumbs Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lummox Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 During the winter of 1990, after way too much to drink and smoke in the burbs of Pasadena, only sometime-climbing-partner Tony would continue onward to Joshua Tree with me. Tony was literally green from his hangover, and I didn't feel any better. We opted for something easy, so we climbed Walk on the Wildside which I had never done before. No smiling that day. The hangovers only seemed to get worse. We topped out then bailed the monument for some Edchadas and hair of the dog. That was a sick route. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie Posted March 13, 2003 Share Posted March 13, 2003 Actually, 'Sick' began as a snowboarding term- "dude that line was sick..." It then made its way into the bouldering scene... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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