catbirdseat Posted March 31, 2004 Share Posted March 31, 2004 Gamesmanship is the use in a sport or game of aggressive, often dubious tactics, such as psychological intimidation or disruption of concentration, to gain an advantage over one's opponent. Now, ordinarily, one would not consider ones climbing partner to be an opponent, but sometimes you just get a partner who's starts flipping you shit, or maybe you just get in an ornery mood yourself. Your partner is starting to rack up for the first lead and you come out with, "yep, she sure looks kind of wet today, be sure to watch out for the sandy spots". Or, you might say, "this is the very pitch where old Harry bought the farm. Pulled three cams on the way down. Cratered right where you are standing". Got any stories? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lummox Posted March 31, 2004 Share Posted March 31, 2004 a barely audible whispering of 'sketchy' pronouncd with exaggeration post-crux will totally fuk with a leaders head. hehe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eerie Posted March 31, 2004 Share Posted March 31, 2004 I had a couple of climbing partners a while back that liked to say things like "Off Belay" or "Comp loop? Ok, here ya go" when you asked for them to watch you closely for a fall..... ahh those mental games. I also have had a climbing partner who would get freaked if I told him a route was "killer" after I got done climbing it and he was about to second. Of course I meant "killer" to mean it was an exhilirating route. He knew it and it still freaked him out. As for gamesmanship, I always hate the way my brother went about it. He'd look at a route not knowing anything about it, say it looked cool, then tell me I've gotta lead it..grrrrrrrr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catbirdseat Posted March 31, 2004 Author Share Posted March 31, 2004 Look up the route and offhandedly say to your partner who is about to lead it, "is that blood I see on the rock, there below the crux?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chucK Posted March 31, 2004 Share Posted March 31, 2004 There's always the classic, "How does this fucking [insert belay device here] work again? Damnit! I can never figure this out!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foraker Posted March 31, 2004 Share Posted March 31, 2004 Three words: "ARE YOU SAFE?" Save it for the crux. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Figger_Eight Posted March 31, 2004 Share Posted March 31, 2004 After they're above their first or second piece: "Hey...is that the new BD Bod harness you're wearing?" "Yeah...why?" "I think those were the ones they just recalled because they sent a batch out with bad stitching. I dunno though...it's probably not yours." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronco Posted March 31, 2004 Share Posted March 31, 2004 Trundle on your partner and put brown coils in their chalk bag. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott_harpell Posted March 31, 2004 Share Posted March 31, 2004 First time I climbed neat n' cool, some french guy told me that a guy died there two weeks earlier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Posted April 1, 2004 Share Posted April 1, 2004 We got so nonchalant at Smith one summer that we would say "oh, did you want a belay for that?" 3-4 bolts up. talked about the best way to psych out people recent with Brian Burdo, and he said the best way was just to repeat the leaders name as they were tackling the crux..."Brian! Brian! Brian!...." Gamesmanship, a CLASSIC at Pok-O-Moonshine, by the way! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EWolfe Posted April 1, 2004 Share Posted April 1, 2004 I say, Old Chap! Is It On, then? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erd Posted April 2, 2004 Share Posted April 2, 2004 Indeed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jake Posted April 2, 2004 Share Posted April 2, 2004 (edited) "I don't think this rope is gonna hold a fall now that you knocked that loose rock down on it." Edited April 2, 2004 by Jake Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catbirdseat Posted April 2, 2004 Author Share Posted April 2, 2004 I'm not sure that lying about gear qualifies. It sounds particularly dirty. You can play with a guy's head without having to lie. One of the standard techniques in mountaineering is getting ahead in brushy terrain where your partner can't see you and then stop to take a break. After 2 minutes he comes huffing up and says, "how long have you been waiting?". And you say, "it's been at least 15 minutes, and I am getting cold, let's go!". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpine_Tom Posted April 2, 2004 Share Posted April 2, 2004 Or, on the approach, "This doesn't really look the way Jim said it would. Oh well, we're probably on route..." A bit later... "Did we cross a stream back there, did you notice?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greg_W Posted April 2, 2004 Share Posted April 2, 2004 My favorite (to a leader well above his first or second piece): "Can I have all your shit if you crater and die?" hehehe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glacier Posted April 2, 2004 Share Posted April 2, 2004 Alright - the best, true story I have is of a friend (fellow occasional poster here) and my buddy Jesse going up to do Liberty Crack, essentially as their 1st climb together (other than a day at 32). They are a few pitches up, and as Jesse starts to lead out on the free cracks above the roof, my friend looks up and says, "Hey, you ever notice on the big 'biners if you turn this collar, the gate doesn't open?" Took him totally by surprise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MATT_B Posted April 2, 2004 Share Posted April 2, 2004 You just placed my favorite cam . . . . found it at the base of elcap Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thinker Posted April 3, 2004 Share Posted April 3, 2004 from the cc.com archives.... DUDE, you're the HAND! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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