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Chockstone Forum - Trip Reports

Tells Us About Your Latest Trip!

Author
TR: The Obsidian Depression (Bare Rock Projecting)
PThomson
27-Aug-2016
10:13:04 AM
G'day all,

This TR might be a bit too self-indulgent and pretentious (feel free to tell me if it is) since it doesn't deal with anything particularly epic, adventurous or obscure...

...But I recently wrote an account of my multi-year siege of a route I bolted at Bare Rock in Tasmania on my blog, entitled "The Obsidian Depression". It deals with the challenges of red-pointing a route in a semi-extreme location (while living in a van, and battling wacky Tasmania weather), and trying to digest the subsequent ramifications of failure.

You can find it here if you're interested: http://theclimbingobscurist.blogspot.com.au/2016/08/the-obsidian-depression.html.



Be safe.

-Paul

Eduardo Slabofvic
27-Aug-2016
1:24:18 PM
On 27/08/2016 PThomson wrote:
> (feel free to
>tell me if it is)...
>
>

This is Ckockstone after all, so I'm someone will
Jayford4321
27-Aug-2016
6:50:40 PM
On 27/08/2016 Eduardo Slabofvic wrote:
>On 27/08/2016 PThomson wrote:
>> (feel free to
>>tell me if it is)...
>>
>>
>
>This is Ckockstone after all, so I'm someone will

Eduardo my friend. U surprise me. What with that display of affection, I shall recommend U for a stipend increase.
Don't let it go to Ur head prematurely, as it requires PT's co-endorsement.
technogeekery
29-Aug-2016
9:15:23 AM
Geez Paul - its just a climb, mate! (Or not even one yet...)

I love your blog, get a lot of vicarious pleasure out of following your "expeditions" - so cool that you are out there living the dirtbag life in Aus. You've had 2 years out doing exactly what you wanted to do (a priceless luxury for most of the worlds population). You've made friends, explored new places, opened up climbs, climbed on some of the most amazing rock int he world, tuned your body and skills to the point that you climb harder than 90%+ of all the climbers out there, and stacked up experiences you'll remember for the rest of your life. Good for you.

So - why obsess about some obscure piece of rock that you have not yet managed to climb? Is that little black strip qualitatively and different from a squillion other meters of rock out there that you will never get up? You've obviously given a lot of thought to your motivation and drivers - now that you've decided you are no longer enjoying the process of trying to do the climb, and not learning anything more about yourself or the world, move on...There is no failure there. Holding even the least amount of your self-worth hostage to an arbitrary physical goal seems counterproductive.

Thanks for writing your blog, it has provided some good reading and photos of places to dream about.
simey
29-Aug-2016
8:52:39 PM
On 27/08/2016 PThomson wrote:
>This TR might be a bit too self-indulgent and pretentious (feel free to
>tell me if it is) since it doesn't deal with anything particularly epic,
>adventurous or obscure...

I have enjoyed reading your blog reports. I think you are allowed to be a little self-indulgent in your own blog, but I haven't found your writing to be self-indulgent despite your obsessive approach to climbing.

Overall you have climbed or attempted loads of interesting and inspiring routes, so I am quite envious.

My obsessive approach to climbing died long ago, so it is good to see the flame still burning bright in others.
PThomson
29-Aug-2016
11:25:46 PM
Hehe. I was worried that this blog update might be a bit too "woe is me" (though that wasn't the point I was trying to make) for Chockstone, but I posted it anyway as most of the peeps I know from this forum in the Real World are actually very rad (even if they're occasionally d!$ks on here). I was actually hanging onto it for a while hoping to have a "win" back here in the Blueys to finish it off on a high note (with no luck there).

I'm glad you guys enjoy my blog. I love writing, and I love talking about those "million star adventure routes" in the guidebooks that everyone talks about doing, but no one ever does.

Neil and I joined forces yesterday to do a repeat of Red Edge, which totally felt "just like old times" and was an absolute blast. TR coming whenever I get around to writing it. =P

Simey - Can my blog inspire you to pull on the rock again, mate?

technogeekery - Thanks for the response, it's well thought-out and well-written. I appreciate the time you spent to reply here, mate.

All of your points are totally valid, and similar ones have joined the crescendo in my head over the last few months. I guess my experiences on The Obsidian Obsession -as a route- was a metaphor for the chaotic culmination of 8 years as an obsessed climber, and the last 2 as a professional climbing bum(bly). And the lack of success coalesced with all the other difficult life/climbing/working/future questions that I've been struggling with in increased intensity as my time in Tassie progressed.

It was a hard blow to my ego to really invest time in trying to take a big step forward in the technical difficulty of my climbing (on a route, and in a place that inspires me) -the sort of time 99.9% of climbers can never afford to expend- and then come away empty handed. Trying to swallow that pill was particularly bitter (but only for egoistic reasons). It's really forced me to consider what I really want out of my climbing, moving forward.

And you're right, mate. I have no regrets about my fortuitous journey, nor do I take it for granted. It's been bloody rad... And while I look for work back here in the Blueys, I'm inevitably climbing 5 days a week, cause I just can't stop my frothy self.

=)

- Paul


pmonks
30-Aug-2016
3:44:21 AM
That was awesome Paul! I'd have enjoyed a lot more of the soul-searching actually - I skimmed a lot of the "moves and routes" stuff, although in part that's probably because I'll never get within a light year of being able to get on any of the climbs you describe.

I have no idea if this will work for you, but maybe switching it up might be reinvigorating? Maybe do some Blue Mountaineering for a while - long, easy, "adventurous" (chossy / vegetated) stuff. The Blueys has endless amounts of that - Mt Hay is great for this (most of it is climbable < grade 16, and access is a snap), the Wolgan downstream from Old Baldy, etc. etc. And who knows, you might discover the next Margarine Ridge / West Face of the 3 Sisters and become a household name for the next generation of bumblies / weekend warriors??
technogeekery
30-Aug-2016
8:50:38 AM
Paul - I think the mental aspect of climbing is what has kept me coming back to it for so many years, when other things have dropped away.

I've never climbed at your level - but used to climb a lot closer to my own limits than I do now. Have also spent a lot of time thinking about why I climb and what I really get out of it (and not just that "oh god why did I take up climbing" feeling we all get when run out and scared!). Very interesting to read about your own thought processes and how ticking a route affects your sense of self-worth.

On 29/08/2016 PThomson wrote:

>It was a hard blow to my ego to really invest time in trying to take a
>big step forward in the technical difficulty of my climbing (on a route,
>and in a place that inspires me) -the sort of time 99.9% of climbers can
>never afford to expend- and then come away empty handed. Trying to swallow
>that pill was particularly bitter (but only for egoistic reasons). It's
>really forced me to consider what I really want out of my climbing, moving
>forward.

You've obviously come a long way in your introspection - that damn ego, eh? It serves is evolutionary purpose, but sometimes seems that life is an endless battle to tame the excesses of the ego! Arno Ilger's Rock Warrior's Way irritated me with the whole warrior metaphor - but had some very useful guidance for me in understanding my own motivations and focusing on how to get the most enjoyment / learning / personal growth from climbing.

You write well too - keep it up, its great to read about your adventures mental and physical :-)


There are 8 messages in this topic.

 

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