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ipsofacto
Mar 15, 2004, 6:48 AM
Post #26 of 141
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innominato
Mar 15, 2004, 7:02 AM
Post #27 of 141
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In reply to: In reply to: ...I ain't namin' areas Sounds like you're a bit soft, mate.
Never said I wasn't.
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wedgy
Mar 15, 2004, 7:26 AM
Post #28 of 141
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come on dude, don't be so judgemental. i remember my 1st roadtrip after a few years climbing. i almost blew my wad when i saw a 3/8" bolt... and it wasn't even stainless! if they are so soft maybe you should put up your own instead of following ALL THE TIME. or maybe you're just a stud out west. stop criticizing. out here there will always be someone who can do it better than you, looks better, and has more money. get in whee you fit in.
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wedgy
Mar 15, 2004, 7:27 AM
Post #29 of 141
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come on dude, don't be so judgemental. i remember my 1st roadtrip after a few years climbing. i almost blew my wad when i saw a 3/8" bolt... and it wasn't even stainless! if they are so soft maybe you should put up your own instead of following ALL THE TIME. or maybe you're just a stud out west. stop criticizing. out here there will always be someone who can do it better than you, looks better, and has more money. get in whee you fit in.
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dirtineye
Mar 15, 2004, 2:42 PM
Post #31 of 141
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In reply to: In reply to: Route ratings are weak out West because all the climbers are weak out west. The climbing's all easy too, and all low angle. If you come road trip out West, you'll get soft. So the best call for climbing high numbers out east is to not bother road-tripping out west, there are lines on all the climbs out here anyway... Does everyone lack the gene that picks up on sarcasm?
Not everyone, just many users on rc.com.
Anyway, I find that where the rock is soft, the climbers are soft, and therefore so are the ratings. Ssftness breeds softness, and all things soft tend to cling together, like so much dryer lint ( VERY SOFT, RIGHT?).
IF you ever get to the south, ty the climb at Lost Wall, Southern Softmen, it will explain everything. Well, actually it won't wxplain anything, rocks don't often talk silly, at least not in complete sentences!
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tradpuppy
Mar 15, 2004, 3:03 PM
Post #32 of 141
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In reply to: IF you ever get to the south, ty the climb at Lost Wall, Southern Softmen, it will explain everything. Well, actually it won't explain anything
Qoute from Southern Softmen:
"I started out as a 10a/b, but now I'm a 5.9+. Next week I'll be downgraded to 5.8, and by April I'll be a 5.6 after Scott climbs me. But I'll be a 10 again in June after the bugs and snakes come out."
:P
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innominato
Mar 15, 2004, 3:34 PM
Post #33 of 141
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In reply to: Does everyone lack the gene that picks up on sarcasm?
I've got the gene. I just thought I'd take the low road--you know, the one not less traveled?
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fatgirl686
Mar 15, 2004, 4:40 PM
Post #34 of 141
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Damn steelmonkey, did I get your panties all in a bunch?
In reply to: Try some of the granite crags around Phoenix instead of the sport areas.
Nice assumption! Who said I only climb sport?
In reply to: Come back and send a few 10's at Granite Mountain in the fall when it's open.
Oh no, not 5.10. I am so scared.
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rockscaler2
Mar 15, 2004, 10:26 PM
Post #35 of 141
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I didnt start this p[osting to start and argument which it has turned into. I started it for an answer and to warn climbers from the West not to go to the East and climb what you climb here because when you get to the actual crux your gonna see why. thanks See ya!!!
Joey
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mreardon
Mar 16, 2004, 12:55 AM
Post #36 of 141
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In reply to: I didnt start this p[osting to start and argument which it has turned into. I started it for an answer and to warn climbers from the West not to go to the East and climb what you climb here because when you get to the actual crux your gonna see why. thanks See ya!!! Joey
Um, you stated one side sucked worse than the other and didn't think that would cause an argument? :roll:
You're right, last time I was in the 'gunks, the ratings were nothing like they are out here in the west, the real west. Joshua Tree, the Needles, even that chosspile at Yosemite all have really soft ratings. Definitely stay away. Only the east coast has proper ratings.
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degaine
Mar 16, 2004, 1:57 AM
Post #37 of 141
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I agree with Michael - the Needles (of the Southern Sierra Nevada) have the softest ratings of all. Must explain why so few people climb there. I hear (since I have not climbed either) that Spook Book is the easiest 5.10d this side of the Mississippi, and that Romantic Warrior would be rated 5.8+ if situated on the East Coast.
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curt
Mar 16, 2004, 2:10 AM
Post #38 of 141
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Well, having done 1,000+ routes in Joshua Tree and 200+ routes in the Gunks--the ratings seem pretty comparable to me. Actually, I have never heard either place referred to as "soft" before.
The overall quality of routes (especially in the moderate grades) is better in the Gunks, though.
Curt
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howdidshedothat
Mar 16, 2004, 4:42 AM
Post #39 of 141
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Registered: Apr 15, 2003
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:roll: Dude... I have 1 word for you Jersey Boy, YOSEMITE....until you have climb there, you don't know your ass from a hole in the ground. My two cents
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rockscaler2
Mar 16, 2004, 4:48 AM
Post #40 of 141
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Registered: Mar 12, 2003
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And now we resort to petty name calling lol and yes I'll climb there and put in my 2 cents......but I have heard the same on it too....See ya!
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bvb
Mar 16, 2004, 4:54 AM
Post #41 of 141
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In reply to: Well, having done 1,000+ routes in Joshua Tree and 200+ routes in the Gunks--the ratings seem pretty comparable to me. Actually, I have never heard either place referred to as "soft" before. The overall quality of routes (especially in the moderate grades) is better in the Gunks, though. Curt
dittos on the grades, but for route qualty i'm gonna have to go with josh. is there a better 5.7 on the planet than mentalphysics? a better 10a than solid gold?
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bishopclimber
Mar 16, 2004, 5:47 AM
Post #42 of 141
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Registered: Sep 15, 2003
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In reply to: In reply to: Well, having done 1,000+ routes in Joshua Tree and 200+ routes in the Gunks--the ratings seem pretty comparable to me. Actually, I have never heard either place referred to as "soft" before. The overall quality of routes (especially in the moderate grades) is better in the Gunks, though. Curt dittos on the grades, but for route qualty i'm gonna have to go with josh. is there a better 5.7 on the planet than mentalphysics? a better 10a than solid gold? |
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curt
Mar 16, 2004, 6:23 AM
Post #43 of 141
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In reply to: In reply to: Well, having done 1,000+ routes in Joshua Tree and 200+ routes in the Gunks--the ratings seem pretty comparable to me. Actually, I have never heard either place referred to as "soft" before. The overall quality of routes (especially in the moderate grades) is better in the Gunks, though. Curt dittos on the grades, but for route qualty i'm gonna have to go with josh. is there a better 5.7 on the planet than mentalphysics? a better 10a than solid gold?
Well, first of all Bob, I was talking about overall quality--not the exceptions. However, yes, there are better 5.7s at the Gunks than even Mentalphysics. Yellow Ridge, Something Interesting, CCK, Westward Ha and Thin Slabs Direct are a few of them.
At 5.10a, I would say that Never Never Land, Retribution, Nosedive, Criss Cross, Simple Suff, The Spring and a few others are better--not that Solid Gold isn't a great route.
Curt
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curt
Mar 16, 2004, 6:25 AM
Post #44 of 141
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In reply to: In reply to: In reply to: Well, having done 1,000+ routes in Joshua Tree and 200+ routes in the Gunks--the ratings seem pretty comparable to me. Actually, I have never heard either place referred to as "soft" before. The overall quality of routes (especially in the moderate grades) is better in the Gunks, though. Curt dittos on the grades, but for route qualty i'm gonna have to go with josh. is there a better 5.7 on the planet than mentalphysics? a better 10a than solid gold? or a better 5.9 than Touch and Go?
Go do Directissima in the Gunks--finishing on High Exposure, and tell me then how you think these two 5.9s compare.
Curt
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okinawatricam
Mar 16, 2004, 10:49 AM
Post #45 of 141
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Curt, the more I read your stuff, the more I like what you have to say. I don't always agree with you, but in this case I do.
I have climbed all over the country and other parts of the world too. I enjoy both sport and trad. I can honestly say that ratings are fairly comparable in each area. Sure some areas have there sandbags, but as a whole once you learn the local rock, the climbing becomes more comfortable.
Nose Dive at the Gunks is a good example: many of the climbers I saw there last summer struggled on it, but I taught is pretty straight forward. I guess it’s because I had more crack experience then the Gunkies who were on it.
After doing a few face routes in the Gunks, I didn’t find the area to be “sandbagged.”
I lived in the Southeast for a few years, the routes there aren’t any more or less difficult then “out west,” generally speaking.
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bvb
Mar 16, 2004, 2:43 PM
Post #46 of 141
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curt, as you know i have done every gunks route you've listed. and indeed they are all of the highest quality. we'll just have to agree to disagree, and continue this debate at a later date over a wee dram.
you'll be drinking your precious edradour, whilst i'll be sipping lagavulin.
in whisky, as in climbing, it all comes down to matters of personal preference and taste.
bottom line? every year we get to climb at both the gunks and josh. is this a great country or what?
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hyhuu
Mar 16, 2004, 4:30 PM
Post #47 of 141
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Registered: Jul 25, 2001
Posts: 492
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In reply to: Well, having done 1,000+ routes in Joshua Tree and 200+ routes in the Gunks-- Curt
I'm definitely jealous. That's a lot of climbings. I need to get out more.
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curt
Mar 16, 2004, 4:49 PM
Post #48 of 141
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Hey BVB,
I'm not sure that my real point got across in that last post of mine. It is this - that the average overall quality of routes is higher in the Gunks than at JT.
I should have explained what I mean this way:
It is actually difficult to name crummy routes in any grade at the Gunks. Sure there are a few, but you really need to seek them out. At JT, this is certainly not the case (although there are many great routes) there are many many that are non-classic choss piles.
Curt
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yanqui
Mar 16, 2004, 4:58 PM
Post #49 of 141
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Registered: Feb 24, 2004
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Has anybody out there ever tried Stevens Pass Motel on Midnight Rock in Leavenworth? Phew. I think it was a Peter Croft route and I don't know how 11+ goes in the Gunks, but man, that thing seemed kick-ass hard. It's hard to imagine anyone calling that grade soft. Did the route about 10 years ago with Jose Pererya, who was one hell of a crack climber, and the thing spanked him good. But who knows, could be that since then the route's been uprated, and the grades really are going soft in the West.
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mreardon
Mar 17, 2004, 12:23 AM
Post #50 of 141
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Registered: Jun 17, 2002
Posts: 1337
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In reply to: I agree with Michael - the Needles (of the Southern Sierra Nevada) have the softest ratings of all. Must explain why so few people climb there. I hear (since I have not climbed either) that Spook Book is the easiest 5.10d this side of the Mississippi, and that Romantic Warrior would be rated 5.8+ if situated on the East Coast.
They upped it to 5.8+? Pathetic. Back in the day, people from the east would send that as a warm-up without a rope or shoes. Some seriously pathetic ratings boosters out here in the west. Spook Book doesn't even qualify as a 5.10, I'm pretty sure every east-coaster stated that it was basically a walk-up, especially with such bomber gear placements. And that Thin Ice, Love Potion #9, Scirrocco, and the rest are pretty much over rated as well. Maybe 5.6. Yup, everyone should definitely stay away unless they just need an ego boost.
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