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| Messages 1 - 13 of total 13 in this topic |
clustiere
Trad climber
berkeley ca
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Topic Author's Original Post - Oct 13, 2012 - 09:09pm PT
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Back at Cragmont,
In addition to Jim's bolting of Farewell to Arms (ps looks great in the new guidebook that he just put out), the book makes no mention of the bolts being new and by he author...great book otherwise save a few missed routes and bolts namely in the Pine Canyon area...
Someone actually bolted the Moss Slab the 15-20ft variation top rope to the right of The Undercling. There is one bolt in the middle of the slab, looks like it's marked for another. Second, someone bolted the route going out the left of the cave, three bolts on that one.
Looks like someone took the torch form Jim and started to make Cragmont a sport crag, all 30 - 50 feet of it.
I'm not even sure what to say......
opinions???
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karodrinker
Trad climber
San Jose, CA
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Oct 13, 2012 - 09:11pm PT
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Took torch form him eh? Wil Geeve it back!
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clustiere
Trad climber
berkeley ca
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 13, 2012 - 09:19pm PT
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That's a great point, I don't know other than Jim last put in glueins, (you know the kind you have to chisel rock above and below the bolt to place).
Bolts all over that place now.
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crasic
climber
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Oct 13, 2012 - 09:21pm PT
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So much drama over a city chosspile :/
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karodrinker
Trad climber
San Jose, CA
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Oct 13, 2012 - 10:29pm PT
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The Watercourse is fun with the new bolts too. heh heh heh
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tornado
climber
lawrence kansas
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Oct 13, 2012 - 11:15pm PT
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Looks like someone took the torch form Jim and started to make Cragmont a sport crag, all 30 - 50 feet of it.
e Here no. what's up with you making jim look like the culprit? Jim is a good dood. back the f*#k up. seriously!
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Roughster
Sport climber
Vacaville, CA
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Oct 13, 2012 - 11:42pm PT
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Honestly? Who gives a f*#k. Sport routes in the Bay, Oh Noes!!!?!?!?!?!?!!! The only ones who care are those who won't matter in a few years. Camo'd / painted bolts are the same impact as a TR setup, perhaps even less.
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ß Î Ø T Ç H
Boulder climber
bouldering
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Oct 14, 2012 - 12:49am PT
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clustiere
Trad climber
berkeley ca
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 14, 2012 - 01:16am PT
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no. what's up with you making jim look like the culprit? Jim is a good dood. back the f*#k up. seriously! - Tornado
@ tornado, don't spin yerself out dood!! Here's the news from Jim himself. PS - I never made a character assessment of Jim, just pointed to a few of his actions including both his positive and imho negative ones. They are quite public hence worth some discussion.
as written by Jim-......
I put the bolts in.
I apologize to those who are offended.
Please consider the following before you do any chopping.
If the new bolts lead to grid-bolting (does that seem hysterical to anyone else?) I will remove the bolts myself.
At the same time I'm stoked for the dozen (or so) people I've seen lead the climb and lower off with pumped arms and huge smiles on their faces - for some (younger climbers) it was their first lead, for others it was their first 5.10 lead. I'm sure there have been others who have enjoyed leading it during the 4 months the bolts have been in.
I didn't ask here at Supertopo because I don't believe this site is representative of the climbing community as a whole.
I instead asked at Cragmont, a place I have climbed at perhaps 1000 times over the past 33 years. The overwhelming response I received (I've put the idea out there to dozens of people over the years) is that it was a great idea and would be an ideal spot for fledgling leaders to practice. It was bolted with those people in mind and is a safe lead, contrary to what's been posted here by people who have not lead it.
I learned to climb at Cragmont Rock. I've also taught 100s of kids to climb there (Cal Adventures kids camps in the summer in the 80s for about five years). Lots of those kids are still climbing today, and yes, I'm proud of that.
I love introducing people to climbing and I can't think of a better spot than Cragmont Park... can you? I don't think the gym is a better alternative. Cragmont has been used as a teaching spot since the thirties. You can practice top roping, rappelling, lead (gear) climbing and aid climbing there. Now you can make your first bolted lead there. Farewell to Arms is a steep climb, about 50 feet high on the far left side of the cliff. Everybody has to make their first lead somewhere... would you rather it be at Lover's Leap (that's where mine was, on a crowded sunday 32 years ago, and yes, I did epic and create a cluster - I should have practiced on those cracks at Cragmont first...).
If your main objection is that it is a sport climb, well, I don't really know what to say to that other than sport climbing is part of most people's climbing experience these days. Is that reason enough to remove a climb people are enjoying?
Ok, flame away!
Jim Thornburg
 you can find this on the second page of http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.php?topic_id=1901014&tn=20
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hamie
Social climber
Thekoots
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Oct 14, 2012 - 08:43pm PT
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It's interesting to see Cragmont back in the 'news'. I have recently read about the origins of climbing there, and the formation of the Cragmont Climbing Club [1932], which later merged with the Sierra Club, Rock Climbing Section. The founder of the CCC was Dick Leonard, who was involved in the FAs of Upper and Lower Cathedral Spires, and other routes in the Valley. Cragmont and its climbers had a major impact on the early development of Yosemite climbing.
Source: Pilgrims of the Vertical, by Joseph E. Taylor.
My comment: This is not the most exciting of reads, but picks up steam as you progress [rather slowly] thru the various decades/eras/ages and personalities of Yosemite climbing.
Jim T. Stone Mountains is a great book. Just great! If any ST readers are looking for an Xmas/birthday gift suggestion, this is it. Did I mention that it's great?
EDIT: I now see that there is another, and longer Cragmont thread.......
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Sam M
climber
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Oct 15, 2012 - 06:01pm PT
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Too bad. You are right Clustiere, this is a terrible message that is being passed along. The impact is hardly limited to Cragmont. Jim Thornburg ought to have known better, and should at least by now recognize the impact and chop what he started. Barring that, anyone chopping these routes has my vote.
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nutjob
Gym climber
Berkeley, CA
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Oct 15, 2012 - 06:47pm PT
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The Watercourse is fun with the new bolts too. heh heh heh
Karo, you raised my blood pressure for a moment with that one!
I think more top-rope anchors wouldn't be a big deal, but don't want to see Cragmont grid-bolted. I can't form an honest opinion until I see it with my own eyes though.
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clustiere
Trad climber
berkeley ca
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 16, 2012 - 02:36am PT
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Yeah it's a serious issue to be considered, glad a few people are capable of having an adult conversation about the whole thing. Ugh, I forgot how troll infested this forum can be.
It'd be an interesting shift to have cragmont as a 1-4 clip sport crag..??
So far as chopping goes I think a well aimed sawzall ought to do the trick, it's tough with those glue in tho. The others will fall easily however.
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| Messages 1 - 13 of total 13 in this topic |
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