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BLR
Trad climber
Lower Eastside
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Topic Author's Original Post - Nov 15, 2017 - 01:13pm PT
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Supertopoians:
I'm gathering "data" for a piece about climbing and the American folk idiom.
I'm interested in your take on climbing's folk heroes. Do we have any? If so, who are they and why do they qualify? W/respect to a taxonomy, use your own, but consider using these folks as models: Sports: Babe Ruth, Josh Gibson, Jim Thorpe, Billie Jean King, Muhammad Ali. American frontier: Davy Crockett, Daniel Boone, Billy the Kid. Modern: Abbey and Peacock. More than mere badassery, right?
Caveat: I may excerpt soundbites. If I'm interested in doing so I'll ping you for your permission and if you go by a screen handle, to request the name you use on your driver's license. If you have no interest in being quoted, stay your pixels.
As usual, let fly. Looking forward to viewing your thoughts - .gifs included. Many thanks in advance.
Brad Rassler
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Fritz
Social climber
Choss Creek, ID
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Nov 15, 2017 - 02:35pm PT
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Since it's a rainy afternoon in Choss Creek, I thought I might contribute.
To share some more definition of "Folk Hero" I want to quote Wikipedia on the subject:
A folk hero or national hero is a type of hero–real, fictional or mythological–with the sole salient characteristic being the imprinting of his or her name, personality and deeds in the popular consciousness of a people. This presence in the popular consciousness is evidenced by its historical frequency in folk songs, folk tales and other folklore; and its modern trope status in literature, art and films.
Although some folk heroes are historical public figures, many are not. The lives of folk heroes are generally fictional, their characteristics and deeds often exaggerated to mythic proportions.
The folk hero often begins life as a normal person, but is transformed into someone extraordinary by significant life events, often in response to social injustice, and sometimes in response to natural disasters.
One major category of folk hero is the defender of the common people against the oppression or corruption of the established power structure. Members of this category of folk hero often, but not necessarily, live outside the law in some way.
In the list Brad furnished at the start of this thread, he mentions Billie Jean King & (Doug) Peacock as Folk Heroes. It is appparent that Wikipedia disagrees: It appears Folk Heroes have to be deceased to be Folk Heroes & I agree with Wiki on that point.
Soooooo- I nominate Royal Robbins, Fred Beckey, Sheridan Anderson, & Warren Harding, as easy first picks for climbing Folk Heroes. All fought adversity, tried to do right, lost some fights, won some fights, were "larger than life" & left great legends behind.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Nov 15, 2017 - 02:38pm PT
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BURT BRONSON
There can be no other.
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Barbarian
climber
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Nov 15, 2017 - 02:45pm PT
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Frost. Do you need to ask why?
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Nov 15, 2017 - 03:13pm PT
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Barbarian,
"Just a minute, pilgrim."
If Frost, then why not Chouinard? The two together pushed limits, both had their own visions. They changed things so that even dolts like me could climb more effectively and safely, etc.
And let's not forget the true dolt, Bill Dolt, handsome actor handsome, his life much more meaningful than his untimely and tragic death.
(I like the OP's Abbey/Peacock pairing, by the way.)
edit: "dolts like us!"
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clode
Trad climber
portland, or
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Nov 15, 2017 - 03:20pm PT
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How about Dan Osman and John Bachar?
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Fritz
Social climber
Choss Creek, ID
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Nov 15, 2017 - 04:05pm PT
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And then of course, there is the folk hero, Baron Von Mabel & his trusty sheep Bob. Or??? Do they need to be co-heroes with Sheridan Anderson?
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Oplopanax
Mountain climber
The Deep Woods
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Nov 15, 2017 - 04:13pm PT
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Johnny f*#kin Dawes
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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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Nov 15, 2017 - 04:29pm PT
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Salathe.
Harding.
Eichorn.
Largo. Well someday, he's not dead yet :-)
Edit: Why do they qualify? They are all legendary figures in climbing, and their personalities are larger than life.
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kief
Trad climber
east side
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Nov 15, 2017 - 04:35pm PT
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The first name that comes to mind that hasn't been mentioned yet is Bridwell. Definitely larger than life and definitely a legend in his own time.
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Ben Harland
Gym climber
Kenora, ON
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Nov 15, 2017 - 04:48pm PT
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I think these are two strong motifs for any climbing folklore:
1. A climber that isn't seen and may not exist, but there are stories about things that they've done. John Gill, Jim Holloway(?)
2. Somebody puts up a death route. There is a period where stories incubate while the route remains unrepeated. Then the hero arrives to slay the dragon. I'm thinking about Hank Caylor and the Southern Belle, but maybe Gullich going after Bachar-Yerian? There must be other examples.
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zBrown
Ice climber
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Nov 15, 2017 - 05:11pm PT
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Dr. J
He blew the competion away
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AP
Trad climber
Calgary
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Nov 15, 2017 - 05:12pm PT
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Walter Bonatti
Conrad Kain
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mudrock
climber
Eastside
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Nov 15, 2017 - 05:33pm PT
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Norman Clyde. I imagine he will endure as an American climbing hero due to his long dedication, high ambition, record of success, personal style, and not least his choice of playing in the High Sierra rather than a more obscure venue.
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nah000
climber
now/here
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Nov 16, 2017 - 01:57am PT
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this has been a fun question to consider... upon reflection and a first stab, for myself a folk hero has, at their essence, two commonalities: purported larger than life/mythical quality that to some degree or another probably sometimes outstrips their actual relative abilities/accomplishments and a heroism/myth that has been developed/transmitted as much through non-establishment sources as it has been through the establishment ones.
ie. while there are many [north american] climbing "heroes" [bachar, robbins, chouinard, most of the lowes, hill, etc and etc] there are fewer heroic climbers for whom the largesse of their stories and myths has been contributed to at least as much through word of mouth, around campfires, etc as they have been via establishment pathways... for me here are a few [and i'm ignoring the american component of your request] climbers who jump out as "folk heroes", rather than "just heroes":
harding: the quintessential anti-establishment dude... i don't even know who to compare him to, cause he was [at least to many north americans] the damn original... he was the substance of punk before the aesthetic of punk was even an apple in anybodies eyes.
bridwell: while he was written about in the rags for sure, he also always seemed to be the bad ass behind the scenes guy who would have taken down names and addresses rather than just their numbers. the kind of guy you wouldn't want to piss off in a back alley and who though you might have followed behind to fight a guerilla war with, probably wouldn't have had any interest in being a five star general.
beckey: the johnny appleseed of climbing. except most of the stories about and reported sightings of beckey were/are true.
croft: dude starts to become pretty close to just a straight up "climbing hero"... but still, his purported near sainthood and the whispers of "croft did what?" through the decades makes him another still living member that pops into mind. [for the record: i personally assume, given the snow white quality to his purported hat, that the actual reality involves him running a dog fighting ring in his basement while spitting betel nut juice on a dirt floor and drinking a home brew swill brought in via mexican cartels]
guy edwards: this is probably more a canadian climbing folk hero. but anybody with the purported and actual record of naked ascents and bad ass almost completely unreported adventures will likely never die as long as climbers tell stories. or at least to the canuckistanian ones who give a shIt about these ventures.
buhl: now we're getting to the big uns. in the same way johnny cash could never have been the establishment even if he was at times by all outward indications the epitome of the establishment, buhl walks the line, at least to me, on just the near side of the folk hero vs just hero line.
kurtyka: to at least a few north american alpinists he's some kind of wierd combination of the devil and jesus. his didn't complete his most famous ascent, yet most would consider it impeccable. he bucked the climbing norms of the day, never chased after competing the 8000m tick list and wrote very little [in english] yet he remains one of the most revered to any alpinist that gives a shIt about the history of that game/art/pursuit.
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Gnome Ofthe Diabase
climber
Out Of Bed
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Nov 16, 2017 - 03:19am PT
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Well this challenge needs to be addressed
but time dose not permit
OK, FAST BUT MORE LATTER
Fritz Weissner, Hans Kraus, Kevin Bein,
there are others . .
Those who still pursue the hiest of history . . .as compared to the way that they , those three told it ...
So the folklore. . .
Richard Goldstone Knows and has remained a pure climber.
and all the other Richards , a full quiver of dicks if you will
Romano And Williams to name just a few . . .
Of course there are others. . .(Hot Henry Barber!?)
All the Johns, & Two Jims at least; McCarthy and Donini. . .
But, John Stannard & John Gill
HAVE (MOSTLY*) RISEN TO THE LEGENDARY STATUS OF THE ULTIMATE ROCK STARS
* as they are still with us and post regularly here at our mexican food truk
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Nov 16, 2017 - 04:46am PT
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Do they still tell around the campfires of the home run by Chuck Cochran that won the day against the Park Rangers?
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norm larson
climber
wilson, wyoming
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Nov 16, 2017 - 04:58am PT
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Lots of good names already here. For me Beckey, Kurtyka,for sure and what about Johnny Woodward? Lots of storied climbing from that guy.
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Jon Beck
Trad climber
Oceanside
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Nov 16, 2017 - 05:23am PT
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Climbing is not an activity that really generates heroes. Athletic prowess and risk taking does not make a hero. Climbing is essentially a selfish form of recreation, not a lot of social good coming from it. Coonyard has made a mark with his unique approach to corporate social consciousness. There are a few other singular events come to mind, Greenpeace protests, cracks painted on Hetch Hetchy dam.
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Gnome Ofthe Diabase
climber
Out Of Bed
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Nov 16, 2017 - 05:34am PT
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Jon Beck : Your allusion to the great Joe Healy Is Noted And confirm'd as a hero to some. . .
Edit:
For sure TOBIN
DEREK HERSEY (Sp?)
&
YES!!
YABLONSKI
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