BODY RECOVERY AT VANTAGE

[MntnrMichael]

The part where it became “humorous” escaped me as well.

 

I am with you SEF!

[slaphappy]

Allison (and others)- The way this whole thing has unfolded is not humorous. Although had someone made the dummy look a bit more fake, no 911 call was ever placed, and no one got hurt "investigating" I do find the concept behind the prank humorous. I have participated in a rescue where the climber did not live, I assure you I find no humor in rescues. Had things turned out differently, are you so uptight that you can't recognize any humor in it? Geez lighten up.

 

A number of years back while wandering around late night under a full moon, I sat on top of Sunshine Wall, and with my feet rocked Herm's Tower back and forth a few inches. We joked about toppling it down, and how someday it would fall over on it's own, hopefully without a passenger. I never climbed Positive Vibrations and warned my friends of it's precarious state.

 

One thing that puzzles me (why, I don't know) is if someone pryed or used a car jack to trundle it from the top, why didn't just the top 10 feet or so topple off? The columns at Frenchman's are just a bunch of huge detached blocks balanced atop one another. If they jacked it from the bottom, well, they have a death wish. Or was gravity the culprit?

 

On a lighter note, JY says there is a pretty awesome crack where the chimney route used to be, anyone climb it yet?

Edited December 13, 2002 by slaphappy

[fern]

just wait. the whole sequence will show up in some teenagers' homemade Jackass movie soon enough.

[chucK]

Bolt Clipper

Bolt clipper wrote:

I apologize for all I have offended. I tried to make the point that Iain did, and fucked it up.

 

Bolt Clipper (and others),

If you really do regret something you wrote, you can edit it away using the "edit" button. You can replace your former message with the apology.

 

[fleblebleb]

Hayshaker, not all climbers are ignorant and thankless. I was at Vantage during one of the four accidents you mention and my climbing partner made the 911 call. I remember the firefighters and EMTs that showed up as being competent and entirely in control of the situation, and myself as being neither.

 

And Bolt Clipper, that was an extremely stupid post, apology notwithstanding. Pissing over the usual suspects on this board is an accepted pastime and all in good fun but WTF? Pissing over the people that drag our asses from the crags when we screw up and get injured? Learn some respect.

[hayshaker100]

We have been been hauling climbers out of that area for several years now. Untill this past year there have been no known fatalities. Now that the area has become so popular I believe this could change. I am happy to report that most people are willing to do anything to help with a rescue. For this we appreciate the help. Good information relayed to the 911 dispatch center is the best way to start a rescue. With this information we can call for specialized help. Sometimes this can be most important in saving lives. Time is critical in any trauma situation.

 

Thanks for your thoughts fleblebleb.

 

 

[deadguy]

Post deleted by gapertimmy

[erden]

You didn't get to me in time!

 

This post by deadguy is the kind of tasteless juvenile banter that turns off people from contributing to this site. I look at the profile of deadguy and there is no email, no name, no accountability for the posts. Hayshaker and his crew along with the army helicopter rescue crew have delivered countless emergency services and this is not the way that our community should pay back. This is just plain wrong and no amount of spray will keep me from voicing this opinion.

 

By not requiring accountability, CascadeClimbers.com has given implicit permission for this kind of behavior and the resulting culture is one of many lurkers and few loudmouths that hijack any conversation. It is a choice that can always be reversed.

 

 

Erden.

[allthumbs]

Erden, mountain rescue is a fine and noble thing. The folks involved in such efforts should be applauded and revered. Deadguy's post was in bad taste...with that I agree.

 

But, as to accountability on this board, if that direction is taken, cc.com will quickly become as dry and boring as the myriad other climbing forums on the net. Search around, there's hundreds of sites. This site is unique, and fun, and interesting. Yes, there is a bit of irreverence here, and bad taste sometimes runs amuck (re: deadguy), but all in all my vote is for cc.com to remain the "Mad Magazine" of climbing forums.

 

trask

[gapertimmy]

I'm all for spray, and for the 'mad magazine' aspect of the boards, but some avatars are simply pointless, much like deadguy. many of us have been personally affected by the recent accidents at vantage, and really, a climbing accident that results in serious injury or death should never be a joking matter.

 

That being said, I rarely delete posts, but dg's got pulled. DG, whomever you might be, if you have concerns, you know how to get a hold of me.

 

tim

[sk]

thanks timm@y, as much as I hate being moderated myself, I was hoping that that post would be removed. I think as climbers we need to realize that those people who may pull us out when we get in over our heads are our allies in our indevers, and treat them as such.

 

 

for all the people who put themselves at risk saving and protecting the rest of us.

Edited December 15, 2002 by Muffy_The_Wanker_Sprayer

[pindude]

This thread rears its ugly head again. It turns out the 911 caller wasn't peering down from the top of Sunshine Wall, but instead was on the ground and got to within 20' of the dummy. More info as provided in Rich Landers' S-R outdoor column (a column is a venue whereby opinion is normally provided, folks): http://www.spokesmanreview.com/news-story.asp?date=121902&ID=s1274562

 

Too bad they were too squeamish to check it out more closely. If I was a victim in just such a situation (and not just the regular dummy I am), I would hope whoever was checking me out would have the werewithal to come closer and render assistance if it was needed. To the 911 callers: get over your squeamishness, and take a WOFA or MOFA class.

 

--Steve Reynolds

[Paul_detrick]

Pinhead, those were people who I belive would not just call unless it looked real. You where not in there shoes.

[pindude]

Paul,

I'm not going to resort to name-calling, Christmas or not. True, I wasn't there, and I wasn't in their shoes--doesn't change my opinion. Please tell me: how real do clothes, stuffed with newspapers, look?

[Bad[lasma]

heard a new one today in regardes to the "body" at vantage--there is a conservation group that would love to shut down the climbing area--they want the Department of Wildlife to shut the place down--they think that if enough people get hurt climbing then the DFW will have to step in and do something about it--block the the road--the conservation group wants the road block at the turn off--Of course I dont see how putting a dummy down there is going to help them out--

[catbirdseat]

I don't imagine too many people can claim to have happened upon a dead body. It happened to me in the late 1970's. My brother were launching our 14 ft sailboat with the intention of racing that day. There had been a tremendous storm the previous night. The water was full of all sorts of debris: foam floats from docks, wood, trees and branches, junk- you name it. I looked under the pier on which the hoist was mounted and saw what looked like a body floating in the water. All I could see was the back and shoulders, but I could make out dark hairs. I told my brother and he wouldn't believe me. He thought it was just styrofoam. I said, "okay, smart guy, go touch it with a pole and see". He did and knew right away by the feel of it. He was pretty freaked out and didn't want to go sailing. We called the yacht club's dock master and he called the coast guard. We didn't stick around to watch the body recovery and sailed away to our race. We think the victim was a swimmer at the nearby State beach. We think he drowned off shore and came into the harbor with the tide.

 

The point of the preceding is that at least we took a moment to investigate a bit and confirm what we thought we saw.

[spew]

I heard that the dummy was quite elaborate(the police don't want details leaked out till they bust the creeps) and that the couple who found the body were experienced mountaineers and climbers. The reason they didn't get close to the body was to preserve the area for the police investigation, hey it had been a week since the tower was pushed over, think the climber would still be alive The police told the couple they handled the situation appropriately.

With the events of the past few years at Vantage it's obvious that a few assholes are going to fuk up a good thing for the rest of us.

[catbirdseat]

JY heard that Herm's Tower had been toppled. He went over to confirm this and to recover some of his hangers from Positive Vibrations if it was in fact true. (it is) While heading down the scree he saw what looked like a body under some rubble, immediately called 911 and waited for them to respond. After they showed up and discovered the dummy, they now want to talk to the individuals responsible for the hoax/trundle. They told JY he did the right thing by calling 911 before approaching the "body". One of the officers who responded apparently twisted his ankle in the scree.

 

I doubt the individuals responsible for the prank would have wanted it to go this far, it's a shame that it did, it's really quite humerous.

So to this day, no one ever figured out who the culprits were?

[EWolfe]

This wasn't them striking again, was it?