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irregular climbing venues 23-Feb-2006 At 1:56:34 PM Nottobetaken

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On 23/02/2006 Ronny wrote:
>Its a slippery slope from dedication into obsession...
Don't I know it...

My dear friend and housemate at the time decided to go buildering in Sydney. It must be said that he was 'well under the influence', and probably already 'well worked', given that some of our weekly pursuits included bouldering for 7 hours at a crag - then going home, sucking down 250mls of espresso, undertaking 'The Jacky Godoffe Exercise Regime' - then training on Wood for a further 3 hours. No wonder I'm falling apart now...

This particular day we had however scratched the Jacky & Wood regime in favour of warming down with a case of beers and various other anti-inflammatories. My friend - who's never been able to handle his alcohol - declared after his 4th beverage that he was going climbing again. Based on the ratio of beverage intake between he and the rest of us (about 2:1) - we weren't going anywhere - so left him to it.

Off he trotted with his 'just a friend' female acquaintance - taking along with him the dog. Given that the nearest crag was some 4kms away, we weren't too surprised that he was walking. What we were surprised at was that it was 5pm, it would be dark in less than an hour, and he could barely see straight as it was. Nevertheless - off he went.
45 minutes later he was back, raving on about nearly getting arrested - but dissuading the arresting officer with a well versed teaching on the merits of 'buildering'. Given the amount of Mental Care institutions within the immediate area - it must be said that he was in real danger of finding new digs - only the kind that warranted no furniture and a lot of padding.

What actually happened was that he was caught climbing the outskirts of the local Westpac Bank - the kind with the inset red brick architecture that allows upward movement via an ongoing series of well spaced first-joint edges. Various housemates even had some double-hand dyno projects (the jump for the guttering being the most committing). Two policemen (actually one of them female) asked him what he was doing (whilst he was between the window and the roofline) - to which he replied quite blatantly "Buildering" - as if they already were familar with the term from birth. They asked him what buildering was exactly - to which he gave them an in-depth analysis (after returning to the ground). Strangely, they didn't apparently seem to take it all in. When they further questioned him - he simply stated...

"What would I be doing - robbing a bank with my girlfriend and dog standing looking up at me from the bloody pathway?"

They let him off - because at the end of the day you must admit: He had a point.