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Ksolem
Trad climber
Monrovia, California
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Nov 21, 2008 - 04:56pm PT
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I met Walt Shipley one time. It was over some sport climbing in the Owens Gorge. I had just done a climb and was resting and Walt, seeing me idle, came over and said “Ned Guy’s Proud Pearl Necklace?” I was like, “Sure.” He led it. For those familiar with the climb, this was before the location of the bolts was “adjusted.” Anyway, he got up, did the crux, got pumped and skipped the formality of clipping the bolts from there on up. I was thrilled when he got to the anchors. I would have caught him of course, but it would have been huge.
Normally I would have pulled the cord and led, but by then I figured out who this guy was, and there was no way I was going to add those upper three draws, and also no way I was leading it without them so I top roped his bold lead.
When I got down he looked me straight in the eyes, shook my hand and was gone. I always figured I would meet him again, and was sorry when I heard of his passing.
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BASE104
climber
An Oil Field
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Nov 21, 2008 - 07:29pm PT
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I met Walt when he showed up in the valley after quitting his job and building that amazing van.
We were in France together. I have some great stories about that one posted elsewhere.
We always kept in touch. I know a lot of people who have left this world, but I miss him the most because he had the mixture of intensity and outrageous court jester. He could make me laugh til I cried.
Bump again to get this on top of that LEB crap. What does she say? I can't get past the first couple of sentences.
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johntp
Trad climber
socal
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Nov 21, 2008 - 10:41pm PT
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BaBump
Mr. 104-
How about a link to the tale?
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chez
Social climber
chicago ill
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Nov 22, 2008 - 12:47am PT
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Ksolem,
I am familier with the route Ned Guys proud pearl necklace.
I Put up the route originally with the bolt protecting the original crux to the right.
Now a different route which goes through what used to be choss at an easier grade to the left.
"Ned" is a high school friend which i jokingly named the route after and was also a good friend of Walt's, which may be the reason Walt lead that route that day in that form.
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Karl Baba
Trad climber
Yosemite, Ca
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Nov 22, 2008 - 01:17am PT
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I'm reposting this from a previous Walt thread
"Walt was part of a film crew that covered "freedom fighters" fighting against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan. It turns out he was there when a woman I went to school with died of Hepititus before they could evacuate her. They were in a sketchy, whacked situation and it seemed bizaare to me that I should know two such different people who coincidentally shared this intense time so far away.
Of course, Walt was a total specialist on the subject of intense. He was a super intelligent guy, an engineer, and felt things intensely. It seemed like he needed to up the ante on life to keep it interesting, but then it could be overwhelming, so he have to be wasted or solo something, and then that lead to even more intensity.
So I enjoyed hanging out with him, hearing his beta and animated stories complete with full body re-enactments of key sequences. When I finally got to do a miserable job climbing Crucifix, Walts voice was in the back of my head, warning me about sketchy blocks at the top of some amazing fist crack.
A lot of times his sense of humor was at the expense of young ladies passing by the Deli. Sometimes I wanted to hide under the table when I thought he was going too far.
But his (last?) girlfriend (Stephanie?) was sweet and it was cool to hang with them together up at the terrace where she lived.
and the deli has never been the same since he died. I'm sure he would have approved of himself dying doing something rad. Lots of us still miss him.
I know he was one of the funniest guys alive. Puppet shows, wild stories, but he was an amazing big hearted complex guy who defied any simple charactarization. I don't believe he was quite ready to "rest in peace" I think he's just run out on another epic, and after shaking out and composing himself, will be pulling the crux and clipping the anchors.
Peace
karl"
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WBraun
climber
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Nov 22, 2008 - 01:32am PT
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"I'm sure he would have approved of himself dying doing something rad."
Everyone always says something along this line.
I ain't buying it. I've been right there and guys are looking at me asking if they're gonna die now with the look of I don't want to die now. The people that have been in that situation know what I'm talking about.
When it's the real thing happening nobody is approving and saying I was rad and am checking out now.
That's a deli myth full of alcohol .....
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BASE104
climber
An Oil Field
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Nov 22, 2008 - 09:31am PT
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Yeah, Werner,
I was totally shocked when Walt died. I had known him forever. He would write these letters on old Meyers topos that the print would get smaller and smaller and then wind around the page.
And late in his life, I remember him saying that he was becoming very interested in your view of religion.
Then later he used email, Karlamos, and we had been yacking at each other every now and then before he died...kind of keeping up when we were bored or whatever. I had moved from climbing to jumping for a long time, but I would always go straight to looking up Walt when I passed through the valley. We stayed friends for many years. A lot of these are drinking stories, where Walt could go way over the edge, but he was intense and interesting. He never seemed to have a swollen head, either. For me, he was one of those people that just stick in your head for years. You couldn't forget him.
He was just one of those little gems that once you got to know him, you couldn't get him out of your mind long after you had gone in different directions. Although he died, I was really shocked, even when his close calls were legendary. He just had that weird light around him.
I know that when my number is up, I will be forgotten. It is really something that after all of this time, we just can't get him out of our heads.
I still use the jacket trick to freak out the normal people. There are a lot of stories that are probably best left untold.
Here are a few funny things that happened in France..1984:
http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=62445&msg=62445#msg62445
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zip
Trad climber
pacific beach, ca
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Nov 22, 2008 - 01:38pm PT
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Jeff Perrin, Myself, and Walt were in JT attempting Spiderline.
Jeff floats it, Walt doesn't make it, I get up on it and take a fall and hit my head.
I say: Damn that rock is hard.
Walt replies: That's why it's called a rock.
Jeff snickers.
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east side underground
Trad climber
crowley ca
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Nov 22, 2008 - 03:37pm PT
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used to party abit with walt,swilliam,and uncle ned up in yos. west at the bunkhouse while building up there. Never got to share a rope with walt but got to enjoy some good times. RIP
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east side underground
Trad climber
crowley ca
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Nov 22, 2008 - 03:38pm PT
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used to party abit with walt,swilliam,and uncle ned up in yos. west at the bunkhouse while building up there. Never got to share a rope with walt but got to enjoy some good times. RIP
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K. Fosburg
Sport climber
park city, ut
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Nov 23, 2008 - 09:55am PT
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Wall-eye brought this thread to my attention a few days ago and at first I didn't think there was anything I wanted to say on the subject. Walt was my best friend and we shared so many great adventures together that I will never forget. His spirit is completely alive to me and I invoke it sometimes when I have to do something difficult and/or dangerous.
Those are the things I didn't think it was necessary to say as so many others seem to feel the same way and to have expressed it nicely.
I would like to sound a word of caution though against what seems to be a tendency to mythologize our departed droogs. Walt was more or less a suicidal maniac and I've come to understand that as the basis for our shared drive toward the same sort of experiences. We all know how enlivening it is to throw caution to the wind bring our best efforts to bear on a difficult climb or athletic challenge. There is another challenge though that I'm sure Walt would not hesitate to affirm if he were around, the challenge of coming down from that ineffable space and living our lives in a way that is of use to those we love. I think it's possible to use the kind of brave passion Walt so uniquely embodied and bring it to bear on our daily lives in a creative non-self-destructive way.
Cheers, Kevin
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clubber
Trad climber
eldorado springs,co
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Nov 24, 2008 - 12:07am PT
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Walt was and still is a great guy. Once old " Ned" dug up one of his buried bottles of gin and let Billy R mix us some drinks.1st mistake. well,shortly we were primed for the mtn room to get even more jacked.Ipuked outside and passed out.Walt was good enough to drag me over to camp 4 and stuff me under his van to sleep it of.saved me from the rangers. Thanks Walt!!! peace and fuk-nes steve s
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Fluoride
Trad climber
Hollywood, CA
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Nov 24, 2008 - 01:37pm PT
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Bump!
Because yet again this has fallen off the front page and that LEB Pirates thread is still monopolizing this site.
I didn't know Walt, but from what I know of him from those who did, he deserves to be head and shoulders above any diarrhea at the keyboard thread.
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Elcapinyoazz
Social climber
Redlands
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Nov 25, 2008 - 08:41pm PT
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Bump for Malt Whipley, the last savage.
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WBraun
climber
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Nov 25, 2008 - 08:53pm PT
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So one night Stretch decides to see if Walt's really suicidal and crazy. They're in Stretch's rig and Stretch loads a 44 magnum revolver and slides it over to Walt.
"There's one bullet in there Walt" says Stretch. "You're always talking about doing it and here's your chance" in his best most serious tone.
Walt looked at the gun and then Stretch and pushed it back .....
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Jaybro
Social climber
wuz real!
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Nov 25, 2008 - 09:18pm PT
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There is no question that, over the years, Walt had an aura of the Darkside™ about him, to varying degrees. Kevin's admonition is well grounded. But, I noted changes with him at various times. He was much less fatalistic after Tissiack, than before. He'd signed out on the rescue list chalkboard beforehand with a cartooned skull and crossbones. I was standing close enough to him that my right elbow was in his ribs when upon return, he changed that notation.
"Oh man I just want to live."
I had an extended talk with him in Flag at the A-5/Deuce facility after the Afghanistan film project. I'm naive, but it seemed to me that he had developed a much higher appreciation for life at that time than he had expressed before. (Kinda like when TinTin went to Tibet, for a pop culture refrent).
Of course he was always still calculating and cynical, but I never thought he was conciously, suicidal, after that.
Werner, russ, Jobee, Swilliam, Cilley, Deuce, Kevin and others knew him closer than I ever did, but it seemed like a shift to me.
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Karl Baba
Trad climber
Yosemite, Ca
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Nov 25, 2008 - 09:28pm PT
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I'm guessing that Walt had a bigger heart than he knew how to handle. His level of self destruction seemed, like Yabo, to depend on whether it was broken or not
peace
karl
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Mimi
climber
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Nov 25, 2008 - 10:54pm PT
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WB, I agree. No way did Walt have a death wish. He loved life and adventure as much as anyone I've ever met. He got a bit wreckless with a very unforgiving medium (whitewater) that's all.
Jo, you nailed it. Walt is very much alive in our memories and our own love for adventure.
You are so missed, Walt. May we meet again on the other side.
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Jaybro
Social climber
wuz real!
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Nov 26, 2008 - 12:50am PT
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Yikes, That, Shirt!
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