"Because it's there."

Peregrinator said:
This isn't communicating much to me.

Yeah, that's what I've been thinking about "because it's there."

Can any climbers come up with a real answer or is that it?

I mean, I could see climbing a mountain before anyone else has done it, but going up there in teams the same route hundreds of others have climbed successfully? Where's the fun in that? Yeah sure, it's kinda dangerous and I guess you could die, but what do you accomplish, besides suffocating millions of brain cells, which ironically leaves you with even fewer faculties than when you first decided to go up?
 
Stuponfucious said:
Yeah, that's what I've been thinking about "because it's there."

Can any climbers come up with a real answer or is that it?

I mean, I could see climbing a mountain before anyone else has done it, but going up there in teams the same route hundreds of others have climbed successfully? Where's the fun in that? Yeah sure, it's kinda dangerous and I guess you could die, but what do you accomplish, besides suffocating millions of brain cells, which ironically leaves you with even fewer faculties than when you first decided to go up?

At least I understand the question now. Actually, when Mallory said that, he was planning to be the first up Everest. Um...dies in the attempt as well, so I guess we can each use him as an example, huh?

For me there's the joy of experiencing the scenery, the feeling of openness, the views. I agree with part of your question; I'm not wild about crowded routes on popular mountains. It's why if I went back to Alaska I'd choose a different route on Denali, and why I'm really unlikely ever to go to Everest. It's also, as an aside, why I don't care much for downhill skiing any more, the crowds, the machines.

As far as what you accomplish, I think I already answered this, but the answer is nothing, really.

You're essentially talking about mountaineering, which for many climbers is a different sport from rock climbing or sport climbing. Folks who climb difficult steep terrain get the same sense of accomplishment that a martial artist gets; joy of movement, the perfection of technique, the gradual overcoming of obstacles of ability. Probably the most distilled essence of this is bouldering, in which very hard moves are practiced on very short routes so no rope is necessary. Some folks specialize in bouldering and can do amazing things:

hueco_roof.jpg
 
I have a question: How come tall climbers can reach higher holds more easily, but don't claim to have an advantage?

(Socratic irony).

Think I'll get the grigri out and do some roped soloing this weekend. Yup.
 
crazybbwgirl said:
OMG - my daughter better not be doing anything like what's in those pictures!!!!!

It's pretty unlikely. Those are pics of some famous places, and not easy stuff at all.

Porn for climbers.
 
atmas said:
I have a question: How come tall climbers can reach higher holds more easily, but don't claim to have an advantage?

(Socratic irony).

Think I'll get the grigri out and do some roped soloing this weekend. Yup.

hehe. Beth Rodden is 5'1". phtfthftfhtfththfthfhthfht.

Good idea. Maybe I'll get off the couch or something.
 
Peregrinator said:
It's a way of challenging yourself. When Reinhold Messner first climbed E without gas, he opened the eyes of the entire climbing world to a new kind of challenge, what he called "climbing by fair means," or not leveling the playing field with technology instead of personal ability and courage. The folks who climb without oxygen are of an elite class of athletes similar to tour de France riders or Olympic endurance athletes.

Once you've climbed something of a certain level of challenge and succeeded, you tend to want to try the next harder thing.

I read "In to Thin Air".

Is that the philosophy that prevents everybody from having radios & Gps units up there in case of emergency, or has that changed now as a result of the tragedy?
 
mountain climbing books are cool ... "touching the void" (i read it before the film) gives a good sense of why people climb

i'm just starting to read "the white spider" quite an old fashioned climbing book
 
patient1 said:
I read "In to Thin Air".

Is that the philosophy that prevents everybody from having radios & Gps units up there in case of emergency, or has that changed now as a result of the tragedy?

Most climbers have radio contact with base camp, at least a radio for every two or three climbers, on the really huge mountains. GPS is increasingly common as well, I believe. We had several on my last trip, and a bunch of those little "walkabout" type frs radios.

There are several problems with them and cell phones in places where there's service. One is that they don't always work; variable coverage/terrain/weather can cause serious wierdness with all of them. Another is batteries; we had two solar panels and I couldn't keep my camera charged. It's cold in them thar hills.

Probably the biggest is the illusion of safety; if the climbers on the South Col had had radios--and some of them did, I think--so what? No one can climb hard and fast enough to rescue someone in a place like that. In fact, that's why Rob Hall died while talking with friends on the radio. They had amazing technology; they were able to patch him through to his wife in New Zealand, but no one was able to go get him. Some of the folks who were out in the storm may have benefitted from GPS units to get back to the tents, probably, but that's kind of like saying once the Titanic went down, the lifeboats would be improved by stocks of food. It kind of misses the larger issue of mismanagement of the entire climb, ignoring the weather, etc. The '96 "debacle" is seen by most climbers as evidence of overcrowding and pushing too hard, amateurs out of their league.

In the end, they're useful tools, but knowing your gps coordinates and being able to talk to someone on the radio aren't always going to help. Self-reliance is incredibly important in the mountains.
 
sexy-girl said:
mountain climbing books are cool ... "touching the void" (i read it before the film) gives a good sense of why people climb

i'm just starting to read "the white spider" quite an old fashioned climbing book

Great books; Touching is an incredible story, a true testament to unbelievable grit and unwillingness to give up.

I haven't read Spider, but it's one of the great classics. The North Face of the Eiger is a truly awe-inspiring climb. You may want to read and then see Seven Years In Tibet.
 
patient1 said:
I read "In to Thin Air".

Is that the philosophy that prevents everybody from having radios & Gps units up there in case of emergency, or has that changed now as a result of the tragedy?

I just reread my answer and realised it doesn't directly address your question.

I don't know that there's a direct link between "climbing by fair means" and not using radios or GPS. The philosophy refers more to climbers using things that aid them artificially in progressing upwards. Messner may or may not have used a radio then (GPS was unavailable to civilians at the time), but his statement would have remained the same either way; a guy and an ice ax climbed a mountain without an army of porters and fixed ropes and oxygen and...whatever.

There's a school of thought in climbing that the lighter and faster you climb, the safer you are. It places more of the hazards in your control, and shortens your time exposed to hazards you can't control, like weather. The more weight you're carrying, the slower you move, so the more likely you are to still be at the top of the Hillary Step when the weather goes to shit. Recall from Into Thin Air that Krakauer, a sensible and experienced mountaineer, got his ass up and down on schedule and was worried about the weather. Hence, he was in his sleeping bag and sucking oxygen while people were dying who were slower or less experienced.
 
Kids love climbing...no fear, and they move naturally. It's amazing to see what they can do.


RockClimbing1HOCJune2004092.jpg
 
Some lines just scream to be climbed, like this buttress at Smith Rock State Park in central Oregon:


201_0148.jpg
 
Back
Top