Terminal_Gravity Posted April 14, 2002 Share Posted April 14, 2002 To claim on-sight you clearly can never have laid hands on that particular piece of rock before. But, I have read definitions calling for "no prior knowledge". If taken literally that seems to me that if you have even heard that the climb exists you are no longer eligible to on-sight it. So, do you have to acctually be driving down the road or hiking down the trail and see something and say to yourself "gee!, I think I'll climb that" and do so? Or, can you know that it has been climbed? What if you are doing that and see chalk marks or moss stripped off? No more on-sight? Can you know the rating? Can you have read a guide book but never seen it before. Can you look at it from a distance and at a future date walk to the base and climb it after reading a publicly availible guide. Can you talk to some one that has climbed it and said it was fun but didn't tell you where the difficulties were or what pro to take? What happens if some one that you know happens to mention that they climbed it and you happen to know their approximate ability; are you then not able to claim on-sight status when you climb it? Maybe it sounds like I am just playing word games or being a geek or stroking my own ego. The fact is; I am very careful about making claims of my successes that are not true and it seems that if one follows the definition to the letter of an on-sight climb, it is virtually impossible to do so, unless you live in a cave (without internet access). Your opinions, words of wisdom or attacks of spray? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gimpy Posted April 14, 2002 Share Posted April 14, 2002 On-sight flashLeading a climb with no falls and no dogging and without any prior attempts, watching someone do it or beta on how to do the moves. (f) Enchaîner en tête à vue, (i) A vista, (e) A vista (Copied from the On-line Climbers dicionary @ http://home.tiscalinet.de/ockier/climbing_dict.html#alpinebutterfly ) I have always been under the impresion that if you have no knowlege of the moves on a climb other than general descriptions (ie: crack climb with lots of crimpy pockets to the left, gear 1/2 to 2 1/2 inches.) it is still an on-sight. I try not to get too hung up on what I can claim to have acomplished unless I'm just bored as hell. Once, while in a state of abject boredom I wondered what, after watching a friend make an attempt at leading half the route and then rigging a top rope to retrieve some gear upon which I climbed and flashed the route, should I claim for the ascent. (it was generaly decided that it would be a half-on-sight, half beta flash top rope) As you can imagine, you need to be really bored before you come up with that kind of question. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terminal_Gravity Posted April 14, 2002 Author Share Posted April 14, 2002 Thanks, Gimpy. And Yes, I am indeed very bored...see my "mother-in- law post" under the gear critic if you need proof. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dru Posted April 15, 2002 Share Posted April 15, 2002 You didnt see a video of it, a picture of it, you never watched anyone climb it, no one shouted advice up to you while you were on it, and you didnt rap down it or TR it first. IF ANY OF those happened it is "just" a flash if you climb it first lead try. If you TRed (the hell out of) it first it is not a flash - it is a Headpoint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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