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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 12, 2013 - 07:33pm PT
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Excerpt from How to be a Rad Trad Dad 2nd edition:
"Copping a Credible Trad-Itude"
Tip #5.11: when approached, always down rate like shitt, then tie it up with a transparent false-modesty chaser.
Example:
Q:
Hey T-Bird ... How was 4th of July Crack? A:
Floated it in shorts, no shirt & a Stetson ... felt like a helium baloon with nothin' but contempt for string and forefinger ... 'dunno where them Wyomin' boys git their ratings ... felt like 10D... maybe I just had a good day.
Tip #5.11D : If higher up in the pecking order, just flatly dismiss the challenge:
Q:
Hey Bachar ... How was Ball Hair Singeing Waltz? ... You know, that flared seam over by Death Ride... A:Eh ... Not that bad...
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Mark Force
Trad climber
Cave Creek, AZ
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Apr 12, 2013 - 09:39pm PT
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Bachar....a one man definition of trad!
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 12, 2013 - 09:51pm PT
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Dude ... Good call!
We now bow our heads in homage to OUR BLONDE GOD.
Hey Kevin: what did we decide, free solo is trad right?
Clear the deck for full-fledged stolen-photo Internet assault!
What starts out as mild-mannered bouldering,
Left in the hands of Yano became not so mild-mannered "bouldering" ...
As Wunder Braun would say: "just see"
Trifle Towers, Airtime:
Curt Smith photo
Hot Rocks:
photo stolen from John, original photographer?
Baby Apes:
photo stolen from John, original photographer?
Spider Line:
watermarks are good value!
Butter Balls:
photo Mark Chapman
Five and Dime:
(doesn't he look almost bored?)
photo somebody help me out with this one?
Reed's Direct:
photo Phil Bard
Manic-Depression:
photo Curt Smith
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drljefe
climber
El Presidio San Augustin del Tucson
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Apr 12, 2013 - 10:00pm PT
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Mark Force
Trad climber
Cave Creek, AZ
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Apr 12, 2013 - 10:14pm PT
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Paradise Forks....a one crag definition of trad!
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 12, 2013 - 10:19pm PT
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Sorry Mark, I think they just call it a "GEAR Cragg" now.
You know, now that Enzo is dead, we are not supposed to call his cars Ferraris any longer.
But your heart is in the right place ...
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 12, 2013 - 10:28pm PT
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Check,
I'm listenin' & learnin' here.
Where the heck is Higgins in all of this anyhow?
Too many posts I presume. This sort of unbridled morass never stopped him from chiming in before.
Just wait: we'll get 12 pages of finely chiseled smack talk just reeking of erudition out of him before this thing is over!
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 13, 2013 - 12:56am PT
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Tricksters and Traditionalists A Look at Conflicting Climbing Styles
Tom Higgins 1984
(Not 12 pages, but 9 pages of shall we say ... relevant commentary)
http://www.tomhiggins.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=13&Itemid=19
excerpt:
Picture Note: The ultimate refinement of "traditional" climbing: John Bachar free soloing a classic jamcrack on the second pitch of Outer Limits. Since a fall during unroped climbing high above the ground proves uniformly fatal, few climbers practice the pure but risky style portrayed in this and the following two photographs, all taken in Yosemite Valley. Lanny Johnson.
Please go to the link to view the article and Lanny Johnson's pictures!
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Norwegian
Trad climber
the tip of god's middle finger
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Apr 13, 2013 - 08:14am PT
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did someone request a blonde demi-god?
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patrick compton
Trad climber
van
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Apr 13, 2013 - 08:54am PT
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I thought it was pretty cool when the Hubers were on The NA Wall, they would ask a lot of questions and try to get a consensus of opinion on what would be Ok in the protection realm, so as not to destroy a Historic Wall Route. Skinner would've just bolted it up.
I still dunno aboot "Trad", though. You mean Tad?
Even in the grave, Skinner can't get a break, but I suppose californicated territorialism is 'trad' too huh?
Unless it is Honnold is putting in bolts on rappel on a Skinner line, then that is AOK, because Honnold is tradder than trad.
Like a priest blessing bread, Honnold turns the bolts into gear placements.
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 13, 2013 - 09:13am PT
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Perhaps someone could direct me to an author who develops a cogent exposition on the divisive nature of human relations?
And I don't mean to impugn a productive dialectic.
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 13, 2013 - 09:26am PT
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Paging Dingus McGee et al. to the white courtesy telephone please:
While I'm not going to recant my agreement with you that things have changed quite a lot, evolved if you will, away from a common understanding and usage both of the term and the means of trad in the last 25 years, can you please explain to me why a writer in 2012 is still using the term? My sense is that you've been saying the term is essentially meaningless and I conceded that I really wouldn't know as I'm not a member of the mainstream postmodern trad or the modern sport community.
From the link above, below Tom Higgins' links:
http://www.splitterchoss.com/2012/07/18/the-sport-climbers-guide-to-trad-climbing/
The Sport Climbers’ Guide to Trad Climbing
Posted by BJ Sbarra on July 18, 2012
The second part of our attempt to further peace, love and understanding between rivaling groups in the climbing community, you need not look any further if you are a sport climber who just doesn’t get trad climbing. Have you always wondered why it’s fun to slog up some less than vertical choss pile with twenty pounds hanging off your harness? Or why you’d want to try climbs that hurt you and leave gobies on your hands all the time? Or why people actually watch the Twilight Series? (OK, we don’t know the answer to that one either.) Again, we take a look at some common misconceptions our underfed, bolt-clipping friends make about the dark and mysterious world of trad climbing.
They’re All Old and Crusty
OK, let’s get this one out of the way first. While trad climbing has been around longer than sport climbing, in no way does this mean that all trad climbers are older people who don’t sport climb. In fact, most of the older climbers in this area mostly sport climb, since it’s a casual way to enjoy some vertical mileage. And you don’t have to look far to find some of the young guns in the sport today who enjoy trad climbing. For many, it’s as simple as what kind of climbing you have where you live. In the Northeast, for example, there ain’t much sport wanking to be had, so most folks plug gear. In the South, you have both, so you can do whatever you fancy. The sooner we all come to a live and let live attitude about this, the better off we’ll all be.
It’s Just for Gear Heads
Another misconception is that trad climbers are people who like to play with gear more than actually climb. What you might not realize, my cave dwelling hunchbacked friends, is that there’s a certain satisfaction that comes from mastering any skill, and placing gear quickly is no exception. The biggest lag I have when I haven’t trad climbed in a while is the ability to look at the crack and pick the right piece the first time. When this is moving like a well oiled machine, it’s a thing of beauty, to be plugging up some corner, firing in gear with easy, as the ground fades below your feet. Setting up belays quickly, moving efficiently up a large cliff, there’s an unencumbered joy in the freedom of movement. The more honed your skills, the bigger you can dream.
Is It Really Fun to Climb a Bunch of Easy Pitches on Top of Each Other?
Yes! Getting high off the ground is one of the best things about climbing, and in this country, it’s difficult to do if you only clip bolts. There’s nothing quite like the adventure of casting off for some summit, watching the world below fade as each pitch brings you closer to the sky. Much like the clarity gained during a hard redpoint, as you get higher, the only thing that matters is the next pitch, and then the one after that. Even the most devoted sport climbers I know enjoy cruising long, moderate trad routes. And if you want to step it up a notch, it’s just as easy to take on an outing that will push you physically as well. There’s nothing like the commitment of tackling a crux pitch a thousand feet off the deck, with nothing but the birds for spectators. No beta spraying, no fan club, heck, your belayer might not even be able to see (or hear) you. It’s just you, your mind and body, and the stone.
Crack Climbing is Painful (& Boring!)
Some will be quick to lambaste pure crack climbing as a boring discipline, lacking the variety of a sport pitch. While there are indeed climbs in places like Indian Creek that might be the same size for a hundred feet, the truth is these are few and far between, and most trad routes offer a variety of techniques. You might layback, pull a roof, sketch out a slab, and jam a splitter, all in one pitch. This requires a variety of skills, and certainly makes you a more well rounded climber than grabbing big holds on steep stone. Trad climbing generally requires a mastery of a variety of skills, both technical and movement-wise. And as for the painful part, yes, pure cracks can be painful, but once you know what you are doing, you’ll find that it fades to the back of your mind, and you can focus on the fun.
Bottom line, trad climbing is a blast! It adds an interesting element to climbing, and it can get your butt way off the ground, where you can wave to your sport climbing friends down below, who might still not quite get why you love what you do. But that’s OK, because they don’t have to, and you know why you’re there!
We hope you’ve enjoyed this mini series, and that we’ve helped people reconnect with friends who they thought they’d lost to the dark side years ago. Unless they’re into bouldering or mountaineering, we still don’t understand those, and it might be a lost cause.
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Sierra Ledge Rat
Mountain climber
Old and Broken Down in Appalachia
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Apr 13, 2013 - 09:32am PT
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Uh, I am still seeing the word "tr*d" being used here. That word is banned, and anyone caught using that word from here on out will receive a spanking from my climbing law-enforcement posse.
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 13, 2013 - 09:37am PT
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Sierra Ledge Rat, you have a bad attitude and obviously suffer from lack of some reconditioning: "Bailiff: whack his PP".
 From Cheech and Chong's record.
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Dingus McGee
Social climber
Laramie
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Apr 13, 2013 - 09:37am PT
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Tarbuster,
2 things:
genetics plays a big role in how we act.
The days of Yosemite as once the Mecca, the Hub and the voice & movie of all climbing out west is past. No one gets their orders from there except Californians clinging to the past. To wit Scarpelli does his own thing, we no longer reads the mags to tell us what is what.
Climbing is Local
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Sierra Ledge Rat
Mountain climber
Old and Broken Down in Appalachia
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Apr 13, 2013 - 09:39am PT
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From Beavis and Butthead's Insect Court: "Cut off his tweeter."
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 13, 2013 - 09:43am PT
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Dennis said:
The days of Yosemite as once the Mecca, the Hub and the voice & movie of all climbing out west is past. No one gets their orders from there except Californians clinging to the past. To wit Scarpelli does his own thing, we no longer reads the mags to tell us what is what.
Thank you for your response.
I disagree with none of what you said and I don't hold any feelings to the contrary, excepting perhaps that I don't understand this idea about the mags telling us what is what. Are you informing me that the author of that source material is a Californian?
Here's the parent website from which I extracted Sbarra's piece:
http://www.splitterchoss.com/
[edit] Dennis, I am unfamiliar with the slant of this particular website: are you suggesting they are representative of old-school myopia?
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Apr 13, 2013 - 09:53am PT
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Interesting point. BINTD the mags and gear catalougs did tell us what was right and wrong. I and many others have not had a new glossy climbing rag in over a decade.
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 13, 2013 - 09:54am PT
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Trad man: the piece I posted was from a modern website, not a magazine, please see my edit just above, thanks.
I think this is largely how things roll these days, as print media is dying.
Perhaps your point is independent of this: it's true we used to take our marching orders from printed editorial and things like Chouinard catalog.
*Though I will say Duane Raleigh is an old friend and I don't consider Rock and Ice dead.
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