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Mt York Accident 22-Jun-2010 At 3:56:54 AM patto

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On 22/06/2010 td wrote:
>You talk about the "murdering of adventure" and "usurping of the sport
>experience" by bolting at closer intervals on outdoor sport climbs. I completely
>disagree with this. For me the outdoor experience is about being outside,
>climbing in the sun, feeling the real rock, looking for the next hold (without
>coloured plastic ones to guide you) and making the moves. Sure, its exciting
>when the fear kicks in due to the possibility of a fall/injury through
>a fall when climbing, but I think to call this part of the "adventure of
>climbing" is incorrect. Would you ask your belayer to keep an extra 2m
>of slack in the system to make it more adventurous? I think the adventure
>should come from the actual climbing/sense of achievement when sending
>a hard route; whilst the rope, quickdraws and bolts are simply a side product
>necessary for the sport to exist. I would personally spend more time climbing
>and enjoy it a whole lot more if routes were bolted in the fashion that
>garbie describes.
>
>This of course is just my own opinion and as you say I'll no doubt be
>told if anyone disagrees with me on this.
>
Whether we admit it to ourselves or not. If there was ZERO element of risk then climbing would lose half its attraction.

We could have bolts every half metre from ground up. Good bolts have far better reliability so why not do away with trad and bolt everything. We don't do this because risk is part of the game for most climbers.

Some people generally enjoy this game so they do long runout alpine multipitches where the challenge is the risks and not the moves. Others don't so they just confine themselves to bouldering because they value the challenge of the physical moves over risk challenges.

I have lead classics (well singular actually) with 25m between the bolts. Falls on this terrain are extremely serious. But the danger is part of the point isn't it?

It really is all a GAME.