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WoodySt
Trad climber
Riverside
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Topic Author's Original Post - Jun 6, 2006 - 11:31am PT
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Dick Webster, and old and dear friend, was killed Sunday, in the La Sal Mountains of Utah, when a talus slope broke loose and avalanched. For those who are familiar with the early history of climbing in JT, Dick and his father were climbing there in the fifties; and Dick was on the KFFA's of such routes as the Double Cross, Dogleg, Flake etc. We climbed together for years from Alaska to Peru. He died in the mountains doing what he loved.
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can't say
Social climber
Pasadena CA
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Woody, this is very sad news and while I never met the man, I have heard nothing but good things about him. His name, along with yours, are the two people I most closely associate with early JT fun.
My sincere condolences to his family, you and his friends.
Pat Nay
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scuffy b
climber
Chalet Neva-Care
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So sorry to hear this.
There will be lots of glasses raised to his memory, I am sure.
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happiegrrrl
Trad climber
New York, NY
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oh, no. Though I never met the man, his name is one that I have seen so many times, when reading about the history of climbing. Thoughts and prayers are in my heart for his family and friends.
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SamRoberts
climber
Bay Area
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That's terrible news. I remember the photo of Dick pulling into the Waterchute in the old orange Josh guide. Another tragic loss...
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bleedr
climber
robber's roost
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holy sh#t. i just stuccoed his house a few weeks ago. damn...
dick was a bad ass old man
sad day
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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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I knew the name but not the man, unfortunately.
My condolences. RIP Dick
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looking sketchy there...
Social climber
Latitute 33
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Though I never met Dick, I did talk to him several times over the phone about climbing in the 1950s and 60s at Josh. These converstions helped sort out the tangled climbing history at JT and enriched the history section of the new guide.
I am sad to hear of Dick's passing. He seemed a real gentleman who maintained a keen interest in the outdoors. Here is some tidbits about Dick that I gleaned from my conversations with him.
Dick started climbing at a very young age and first visited the Monument when he was 11 years old in 1953, climbing with his father, Harold. “Most all of the climbing activity was on Intersection Rock. There was evidence of pitons on most of the obvious cracks,” activity dating from these early RCS outings. “We would go out and see maybe one or two cars drive by the entire weekend.” It was rarer still to see other climbers.
In 1957, Harold and son Dick established the JTree classic The Eye (5.3) on Cyclops Rock.
Later, in 1966, Dick joined the Riverside Mountain Rescue Unit (RMRU) and began climbing with other members including Woody Stark, Bill Briggs and Jim Foote.
Stark, Webster and Briggs were perhaps the most ambitious free climbers of the those who climbed regularly at Josh in the mid to late 1960s. In 1966, Foote, Stark and Webster established a hard to protect crack on the right side of Cyclops Rock. Initially rated 5.7, Leaders Fright (8, R) was perhaps the boldest lead of the 1960s. This fine route’s reputation for seriousness remains intact even to this day.
Without a doubt some of the most notable ascents of this time were the 1967 first free ascents of both Dogleg (9; Webster, Stark & Briggs) and Double Cross (7/8; Stark, Webster & Briggs).
Dogleg had been originally aided in 1965 by John Wolfe and his brother Rich. According to Webster, a “friendly rivalry” with the Desert Rats was part of the motivation for trying to climb it free. “And,” says Webster, “it looked like it should go free.” Stark recalls that “We spent several weekends working on it; getting higher with each effort.” Several falls were taken and the team traded leads a number of times before Webster finally lead Dogleg free to the top. “We rated it 5.7 initially because we couldn’t do 5.8s,” says Stark.
In contrast, Double Cross was “pretty straight forward. It was a great route,” states Webster. Even so, in recent years Double Cross has seen more than its share of accidents as inexperienced climbers are often lured into this hand to fist crack by its moderate rating.
Rest in Peace.
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ninjakait
Trad climber
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"All men dream, although not in the same way. The ones who dream by night in the dusty shelters of their minds, wake up the next day and discover that it was just vanity; but the ones who dream by day are dangerous men, because they can represent their dreams with the eyes open to make them possible."
Lawrence, T. E., 1922
"Nobody climbs mountains for scientific reasons. Science is used to raise money for the expeditions, but you really climb for the hell of it."
Edmund Hillary
His life was gentle; and the elements
So mixed in him, that nature might stand up,
And say to all the world,“This was a man.”
Julius Caesar, 5.5.1
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Thanks for opening some far out horizons for us Dick.
There is a lot of soul here...
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Largo
Sport climber
Venice, Ca
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All of the Stonemasters followed in Dick's footsteps; thanks for putting them down where we could see them, Dick.
JL
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TC
Social climber
No matter where you go, there you are.
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Anyone have photos of Dick Webster?
-Tony
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TC
Social climber
No matter where you go, there you are.
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The sky to east shows a hint of dawn
framing the far hills with rose.
flowers in the sand tint the Earth
delicate colors of Spring.
It is cold - The calmness of the air is
so intense I am hesitant to breath.
All existence awaits the coming day
in this remote High Desert place.
Consider one lone flower
in the vast pastel array;
Alone it goes unnoticed, a dot so small
I have to stoop to see its form.
Self stands as does this speck,
a single point in all infinity.
United with mankind
it forms beauty so intense
the viewer thrills in his small part.
He knows that all is well;
the Plan is good.
- Dick Webster
From A Climber's Guide to Joshua Tree National Monument
John Wolff and Bob Dominick; 1979 edition
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TC
Social climber
No matter where you go, there you are.
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Dick Webster making the entry move inot the Waterchute, Joshua Tree NP
Photo Bill Briggs
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guyman
Trad climber
Moorpark, CA.
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Dick Webster…. I looked in the guide, saw the picture and remembered the climbs.
Thanks for the great routes.
R.I.P
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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thanks tc,
for the reminder of dick's magnificent poem.
give thanks,
day by day.
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Eric Young
Mountain climber
Buena Vista, Colorado
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Jun 10, 2006 - 04:07pm PT
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For those of you that are interested a site has been posted in rememberence of our dear friend Dick. You can visit and post comments at: http://www.dickwebster.com/
A celebration of Dick’s life is planned in Moab, Utah on June 21st. The gathering will be held at the Moab Valley Inn, 711 South Main in Moab from 3 PM to 8 PM. Please RSVP to dick_websters_friends@hughes.net by Wednesday, June 14th.
If at all possible, please RSVP on email. However, if needed you can also leave a voicemail at 435-259-7287.
Collette asks us all to pass the invitation along to anyone who knew Dick.
EY
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Curt
Boulder climber
Gilbert, AZ
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Jun 12, 2006 - 02:49am PT
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My condolences to Dick's friends and family. Being a JT local, this hits pretty close to home.
Curt
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DocFrank
Trad climber
Palm Springs, CA
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Jul 10, 2006 - 07:34pm PT
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Godspeed Dick. Im sure you have both elbows jammed in the celestial waterchute as we speak. Climb on my brother...
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JamieFoote
Social climber
Sunnyvale, CA
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Jul 31, 2006 - 02:24pm PT
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Hi Woody,
I heard about this tragedy from my father. He was pretty broken up over it. I was really shocked and saddened to hear this news.
Jamie Foote
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