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Re: [granite_grrl] Dying Breed?:
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notapplicable
Nov 25, 2007, 4:01 AM
Views: 8617
Registered: Aug 31, 2006
Posts: 17771
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granite_grrl wrote: Its not that climbing on gear is dying, so much as trad ethics are dying. Dingus has writen some nice rants about ground up trad ethics and I'm sure he could put it better than I can. You get strong kids right out of the gym who don't know what the fuck they're doing, they grab a rack and start climbing stuff I can't touch yet. They climb harder than those who might mentor them so they choose not to listen. They just continue and modify the attitude that they learned in the gym.
I think your right, its all in how you define "trad". If its simply climbing on gear, then the answer is no, its more popular than ever.
What is a truely dying breed is the art, ethic or soul of trad? Trad has its roots in exploratory, adventureous, onsite, independent, risk embracing, etc..., climbing. All of that is slowly being filtered out of the genre and what is left is still trad its just new trad and is marked by emphasis on different ethics, goals and attitudes.
Unfortunately I sometimes feel that whats gone is something that most of us cannot get back. I love the Gunks, New River and Red River as much as the next guy and sure I often seek out climbing with sketchy gear and runouts because, for me that's where the juice is. Despite that I can't quite escape the fact that I'm at a climbing park? Perhaps I need to travel farther out and get into the Whites, Rockies or Sierras. I know its not all about the venue but it doesnt matter what routes I climb or in what style I do so, my surroundings some how make it all feel like a bit of novelty. I even get that feeling at Seneca and some of the 'of the radar' spots around there. The feeling is insidious and it creeps. Perhaps it just the tendancy to idealise what came before, retro trends and all that. Cant say what I'm chasing realy.
I know this is all a bit depressing but its Sat. night and I would rather be lying in a tent thinking about the tick list for tomorrow but instead I'm sitting in front of a computer. Ahhh well, I'll make it to the local sports park tomorrow to skip some bolts and plug some gear. Doing what I can to keep the spirit alive. You know, I started this post in a good mood too. 
Edited to add:  I just read my post and it sounds terribly emo. If I wasnt so opposed to deleting posts I would be tempted.
(This post was edited by notapplicable on Nov 25, 2007, 4:04 AM)
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Post edited by notapplicable
() on Nov 25, 2007, 4:04 AM
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