Ok, this is coming from someone who has barely dipped her toes into trad climbing (so far), but I think if you have to ask that question, you aren't going to understand (most) of the answers you're going to get. It's like my friends who don't climb asking me why I do. There's not an answer that will really make them understand it.
I think you're missing the chuffer's attempted humor.
cmiller12 wrote: Ok, this is coming from someone who has barely dipped her toes into trad climbing (so far), but I think if you have to ask that question, you aren't going to understand (most) of the answers you're going to get. It's like my friends who don't climb asking me why I do. There's not an answer that will really make them understand it.
i have climbed up to 5.11 trad, and can consistently do 5.10.
to people that say sport requires no mental game, you need to try pushing yourself physically, remember moves, fight through a pump, and see if sport isn't a mental game.
i know trads that do much harder sport than me, but especially as i get older (40), i seem to run into more the majority of trads seems to sit on their (large) haunches and pontificate how placing gear on a 5.9 and maybe work a 5.10 makes them somehow on the same level, or better, as someone who trains to do 5.12 sport. it isn't, and they aren't. they would do well to train a bit and they would see their trad grades increase as well.
(This post was edited by superchuffer on Jul 30, 2011, 12:37 PM)
I really like the feeling of superiority. The ability to look down on other activities makes me smile. While trad climbing I like to discuss the silly things that sport climbers and boulderers do, the clothes they wear, and how softly graded their climbs are.
I also enjoy the ability to focus on every minuscule detail of my day except the actual climbing itself.
I didn't like trad climbing when I first started so I stuck to sport climbing for 10 years. Then I got bored and I wanted to be a more well rounded climber so I started going out to the Creek with a buddy. Now I enjoy both types of climbing.
I didn't like trad climbing when I first started so I stuck to sport climbing for 10 years. Then I got bored and I wanted to be a more well rounded climber so I started going out to the Creek with a buddy. Now I enjoy both types of climbing.
Also trad climbing brings in the mental games, which is almost non existent in sport climbing. not to mention there are very few places where you can do multi pitch sport routes
Rumney N.H. has at least one, two pitch sport routes, Orange Crush 5.9,,tropicana 5.11,,via ferrata 5.11 is a three pitch, iron man 5.11,rock du jours 5.9 the thang 5.10c thats just a few . AND YES I checked the guide book and it is a current printing as well .
Yes, there are places to multipitch sport climb, there are even a few close to my house, but the number of multipitch sport climbs compared to the number of multi pitch trad climbs is miniscule
You ferget: "Dag nabbit, when I started climbing there was no sport klimbing so we TR'd all those little short klimbz." Also, I voted for all your options since they pretty much all apllied.
I really like the feeling of superiority. The ability to look down on other activities makes me smile. While trad climbing I like to discuss the silly things that sport climbers and boulderers do, the clothes they wear, and how softly graded their climbs are.
I also enjoy the ability to focus on every minuscule detail of my day except the actual climbing itself.
To answer your question: I trad climb because it's fun and challenging.
And while I love both, I have to say that so much more goes into a successful trad ascent that truly challenged me. So naturally I get more satisfaction out of it.
GO
(This post was edited by cracklover on Aug 8, 2011, 4:01 AM)
Also trad climbing brings in the mental games, which is almost non existent in sport climbing. not to mention there are very few places where you can do multi pitch sport routes
Rumney N.H. has at least one, two pitch sport routes, Orange Crush 5.9,,tropicana 5.11,,via ferrata 5.11 is a three pitch, iron man 5.11,rock du jours 5.9 the thang 5.10c thats just a few . AND YES I checked the guide book and it is a current printing as well .
Yes, there are places to multipitch sport climb, there are even a few close to my house, but the number of multipitch sport climbs compared to the number of multi pitch trad climbs is miniscule
If only you knew how silly Joe's examples were.
BTW, there are some superb long multipitch sport lines elsewhere in Europe, not just Spain.
How about SAVING THE ROCK! That IS the reason we put down the pins and picked up the nuts...ANY one can DRILL a rock into submission, and make it "safe" for them. The dumbing down of new climbers is what you get from sport routes. Proof is in the pudding kiddies..Newer climbers are hitting the deck like a hail storm these days due to the fact they ony now how to push plug n gos int a crack. The falling on them discover that they didnt hold.
How about SAVING THE ROCK! That IS the reason we put down the pins and picked up the nuts...ANY one can DRILL a rock into submission, and make it "safe" for them. The dumbing down of new climbers is what you get from sport routes. Proof is in the pudding kiddies..Newer climbers are hitting the deck like a hail storm these days due to the fact they ony now how to push plug n gos int a crack. The falling on them discover that they didnt hold.
I like trad because I can be honest with myself. It is like a mirror where you see your default and quality. Minimizing the risk is a chess game for me and trying harder and harder thing just for the pleasure of being proud of what we can accomplished without competition is relaxing. climbing trad with a partner just to go to the summit with all our skill and stress, laught and critic, without telling to any one what we did.
On many larger rocks, walls and mountains there are no line of bolts going to the top. (Thank god) If you like to climb these you may want to learn how to use gear. It's fun. It's different. If you want more of an adventure. Trad makes easy climbs more thrilling. These are some of the reasons I trad climb.
Tomorrow I will be in the Ghetto, lol, see you there. Wes
Because the is what I learned on. If I had started climbing in a place where it was sport climbing, I am sure I would have liked that.
Still, I do really like the totality of what is involved in leading on gear. It's not "placing a piece;" it's creating a system of protection. There is some satisfaction, for me, upon coming to a placement, and hearing that little voice in my head say "Yellow Alien," or "Red Tricam" or what have you. When it slots easily and bomber-like, that's great, but when it isn't quite that bomber, but the best I can get, and now THAT comes into the equation as to how well I'm protected.... that is something that I just find exhilerating.
Can't imagine it stays exciting for long to come up to a bolt and thing..."hmmm, which draw is best for this."
That said - I do like sport climbing too. It's fun! But I am glad I am mostly a traditional climber.
This question is like asking "Why do people play tackle football?" Trad climbing is climbing - everything else is a subset of climbing or training for climbing - Trad climbing is neither superior to nor inferior to any other type of climbing. It is just climbing. Tackle football is football - it is neither superior to nor inferior to flag football or touch football or frisbee football. It is just football.
No, you're wrong. Tackle football is WAY better than all those other games. It requires bigger cajones. It's much harder. The consequences are higher. Just like trad is superior to everything, except serious big peak glacier/ice/snow/alpine climbing.
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