520 Bridge Alt Kills UW rock - Comment due Oct 31

[tvashtarkatena]

but even you found the section showing the huge sound wall by it.

...huge attractive sound wall. You know, with leaves and salmon on it and stuff.

[JayB]

Hell - if we really get organized maybe we could lobby them to make the sound wall a climbable structure on the side that faces the UW wall.

 

If they're going with the conventional tilt-up construction all that they'd have to differently is lay down a bunch of small stones before they poured the slabs. Just imagine the mega-traverse you could develop on that sucker.

[mountainmatt]

The question here is who is looking out for the UW rock? I assure the DOT could give a shit, and I bet UW doesn't really care about it either. They have the indoor facility that they can regulate the entry to. The outdoor wall is easily accessed by anyone at anytime. I am sure UW would like to get rid of this liability nightmare. That raises the question again, who is looking out for the UW rock?

[counterfeitfake]

Well let's keep in mind the current setting- an 8 foot tall concrete barrier might not be as nice as a view of undisturbed wilderness, but what is there right now is a parking lot and then a giant football stadium.

 

It would be reassuring to see the rock accounted for in the plans. It looks like they have explicitly included all the structures that need to be torn down or disturbed, if it's not there I think it's safe. Trying to get clarification on this is a fine idea.

 

I do think we could have a decent chance of carving out some budget for some extra trees or some other kind of visual barrier around the rock. This is a great time to make your voice heard. I think the best results are possible when it's a well-informed, non-panicky voice.

[JayB]

That's a good question. I'd think that at the very minimum the UW climbing club and the Mountaineers and the Washington Climber's Coalition - and perhaps even the Access Fund - could submit statements on behalf of the rock. I think that a well-constructed letter from an organization would go a long way towards enhancing the legitimacy of the arguments put forward by individual citizens. This is something that could be done fairly quickly as a first stage, and then perhaps we - in the royal sense - could get an advisory comittee together to stay on top of the project and provide input.

 

I realize that I am pretty much volunteering other people for this, but there's not much I can do in person seeing as I am only halfway through the three-year sentence that I'm serving on the East Coast.

 

Even if the organizations don't get involved in this one, it seems as though there's enough concerned folks chiming in on this thread to get some kind of a group together to tackle this. I'll send some money and write some letters.

 

 

If anyone has a copy of Erik Wolfe's guide to UW rock, there's some good historical information in the intro that could be integrated into a statement that explains the rock's significance and why it should be formally addressed in the off-ramp planning and construction.

 

 

T

[slothrop]

I'm absolutely willing to trade the amazing views I now get at the UW Rock--of Husky Stadium and the tailgating fratboys and lingering trash from football games--for a concrete noise barrier and an effective transit interchange and replacement for an aging bridge. I'm all for keeping the Rock where it is, or moving it out of the way, but build the damn bridge.

 

You can see in the photos how the 6-lane interchange connects directly with the light rail station. Transit, including bikes, coming over the lake can connect to the most efficient form of in-city public transportation. That is HUGE.

 

If there's a land-use issue to really fight for these days, it's I-933, the most blatant anti-democratic blackmail to come out of the initiative process in a while.

[JayB]

Dang. When you said anti-democratic I was hoping that someone finally put an initiative on the ballot that would eliminate the opportunity for the population to draft policy via direct popular vote.

 

Anyhow - speaking of policy, even though the extent to which the proposed ramp will affect the UW rock is unclear, I still think that it's worthwhile for people who care about the rock to register their concerns via informed letters so that, at a minimum, the folks who are doing the planning will take steps to mitigate the project's impact on what a few of us consider to be a valuable resource within the city.

[ashw_justin]

But will the 8-foot barrier have crimps and jibs?!! Can they make it 30 degrees overhanging??? Will they notice the holds bolted onto the freeway pillars?

 

I wouldn't mind seeing a new UW rock. Unpolished holds, better cracks... Nice freeway overpass overhead to keep it dry during the rainy season...

[Geek_the_Greek]

It's kind of funny how people scream and moan to protest the tiniest of changes, but then accept it and move on when much larger changes are inevitable.

 

Just a few years ago, the UW climbing club got a friendly offer from a friendly maintenance guy to power-wash the UW rock. It changed things immeasurably little, and yet, I shit you not, we got all sorts of grief from numerous vocal UW rock users.

 

And now, as a massive structure is about to descend on this happy, humble little spot, and all are writing it off in the name of progress....(and I agree!). I suspect some sort of unified voice amongst climbers, asking merely for consideration of the thousands of annual users at the UW rock site (perhaps a slightly larger sound barrier for 50 yards adjacent?), would be the only thing likely to change any opinions.

 

I don't live in Seattle anymore, so it's not my battle, but I do think fondly on many sunny afternoons spent there.

[Mos_Chillin]

Man, that would suck. I cut my teeth at that place.

[tradclimbguy]

I wouldn't mind seeing a new UW rock. Unpolished holds, better cracks...

 

Oh no he di'nt.

 

I'll stick to my slick holds and apparently crappy cracks and hopefully without a big overpass sending hundreds of cars honking and blasting past the wall. Still the best training location I've ever found in the city for climbing.

 

Its by far an under-rated training ground, but then again it's nice that most of the plastic pullers stick to their gym even on nice sunny days.

[chucK]

Just a few years ago, the UW climbing club got a friendly offer from a friendly maintenance guy to power-wash the UW rock. It changed things immeasurably little, and yet, I shit you not, we got all sorts of grief from numerous vocal UW rock users.

 

I remember that guy. He was really jazzed about helping us out. He said he was doing the power-washing during his break! He was great.

 

I was a little bummed that he picked the one sunny window among 10 rainy days to do his work, but I sure as hell didn't give anybody grief about that.

 

I thought that power-washing made a totally measurable positive difference. It really improved the texture especially (though now it has returned to its natural state )

 

As for climbers complaining, are you sure you're not thinking of the time that they replaced the gravel with a bunch of golfball-sized rocks? That made all falls ankle-breakers. Totally killed the climbing and created a massive danger to unobservant users. Someone bitched about that for sure, and it got fixed REAL quick.

 

 

Oh yeah, as for people who bitch about the cracks being lousy. Consider this a training area. Those cracks are excellent training for the real world. If you can get up those things you are well-prepared for many difficult cracks in the real world.

 

If your highest goal in climbing is to ascend Klahanie Crack or the Outer Space shield pitches, then maybe the UW Rock is a bit of overkill. If you want to be able to get up cracks that have actual cruxes (places where the crack gets shallow or pinches down, basically is not perfect the whole way up) then UW Rock will prepare you well.

[JayB]

Wow - when was that?

[chucK]

I dunno five years ago maybe? It was back when they renovated the parking lot to accomodate the Seahawks at Husky Stadium when they were between stadiums.

 

Coach had brought a shovel down and was enlisting people to take shifts digging up the golf balls and replacing with with some of the hardpan gravel that was remaining below the new stuff.

[JosephH]

I climbed on it a bunch shortly after it was built when I [briefly] lived in Seattle long ago. I personally have a hard time seeing what the fuss is all about. If it comes down to it, just ove move the damn thing or build a better one nearby - hell, it's a chunk of concrete, not the Eliminator...

[catbirdseat]

If you want to be able to get up cracks that have actual cruxes (places where the crack gets shallow or pinches down, basically is not perfect the whole way up) then UW Rock will prepare you well.

You can say that again. All UW Rock cracks are all shallow. I wish I were good enough to climb them.

[RuMR]

big frickin' deal...lose the dumb rock...sitting on 520 at any time of day just friggin' blows...

 

who cares anyway? Just build it (dumb rock) someplace else...

 

a few climbers think some dumb sculpture is worht f-ing everyone else sitting in traffic...i love it...

[catbirdseat]

I agree with you Rudy. This is a huge regional issue. The congestion costs our economy millions of dollars. And, as you say, getting stuck in traffic blows. I sure hope NIMBY politics doesn't get the best of us this time.

 

I'm sure we can get the rock moved if it comes to that. I'm not worried.

[Carp]

I wouldn't mind seeing a new UW rock. Unpolished holds, better cracks... Nice freeway overpass overhead to keep it dry during the rainy season...

I can't help but agree with this, at least a little.

However, the polished nature of the holds and the funky cracks just make it more "interesting". The climbing is harder than when I was a kid (due to 20 years of polishing), but I'm climbing harder too. I suspect many (most?) climbers are in a similar situation. The only people really losing out are rookies and today's generation of sneaker wearing kids.

 

No doubt the millions of people who've used the UW rock far exceeded the original expectations (and maybe even intentions). Also, the centerpiece "highball of death" is lightly used at best. The UW rock is cool, but a lot of lessons were learned from it that went into Marymoore Park. Schurman Rock, the true OG training rock, is still totally visionary and other than size is better than basically every climbing structure that has been built in the last 80 years. I would like to see the original preserved as much as possible, but maybe this is a good time to talk about an expansion of the facility. However, in defense of the UW rock: it has a far better singles scene than any other local climbing rock.

 

-Carp

[ashw_justin]

I should have clarified that I wouldn't mind a new UW Rock, assuming that the old one was history.

Yes, the UW Rock is historically significant and a great training ground. Which is why if they were to knock it down, we'd hopefully expect to get a new one, replete with some good cracks.

 

I wonder though, like mountainmatt, whether in this day age the university would ever allow another one (or even an expansion) to be built.

 

Anyway, what is the latest status on the fate of the UW Rock? Does anyone know? I have a bad feeling that if they are going to tear it down, then they will hide that fact from us for as long as possible.

Edited April 24, 2007 by ashw_justin

[Ron Mexico]

It will also negatively impact tailgating. Climbers should link up with Husky fans.

[MisterMo]

I haven't been there in like forever but isn't the UW rock a conglomeration of precast pieces and if so wouldn't it be a relatively small (compared to reconstruction) task to move it?