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bvb
Social climber
flagstaff arizona
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Topic Author's Original Post - Nov 25, 2014 - 03:57pm PT
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RE: the latest WOS circle jerk: this phrase gets thrown around a lot, as though it means something. Is it a club you get voted into, like the free camping ropes-and-jugging ghetto they had in C4 in the 80's? Is there a secret handshake? A particular grade you must be able to hike? I lived Yosemite for years and years over four decades, and I don't think that this apparently self-designated badge-of-whatever means a f*#king thing.
What am I missing?
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bvb
Social climber
flagstaff arizona
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 25, 2014 - 04:01pm PT
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Perhaps, but my question is sincere. I mean, wtf?
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goatboy smellz
climber
लघिमा
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Nov 25, 2014 - 04:06pm PT
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Matching sheepskin codpiece's, DUH!
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Nov 25, 2014 - 04:06pm PT
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I't a designation that defies analysis. The Urban Dictionary states the term "Yosemite Valley local" is nearly always used as a pejorative.
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The Larry
climber
Moab, UT
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Nov 25, 2014 - 04:09pm PT
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MisterE
Gym climber
Bishop, CA
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Nov 25, 2014 - 04:10pm PT
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People who live and/or work there, I would guess.
Just like villages, towns and cities everywhere.
lo·cal (lkl)
4. Informal A person from a particular locality.
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DickSilly
climber
cutlass supreme
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Nov 25, 2014 - 04:10pm PT
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Well that's a Stoopid American question. Everyone knows Werner thinks he has all the answers. what a dumbf*ck
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eeyonkee
Trad climber
Golden, CO
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Nov 25, 2014 - 04:47pm PT
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As I understand it, you totally nailed it with No 2...secret handshake. Never have been able to get anyone in the inner circle to sing. Be perfectly honest, I just wanted to post to this thread because it's bvb.
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WBraun
climber
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Nov 25, 2014 - 04:59pm PT
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"Valley Locals" protecting the home turf
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zBrown
Ice climber
Brujò de la Playa
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Nov 25, 2014 - 05:06pm PT
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Well bvb you get to decide, just like Herr Braun and all Americans (even the stoopid ones). I will grant you the right to make these decisions for me, so de facto with a count of two, you are the winner.
C'mon everybody ante up for bvb for Emperor of the North.
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Maysho
climber
Soda Springs, CA
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Nov 25, 2014 - 05:09pm PT
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Get a job, buy a house in El Portal, sire a kid...then you are a Valley Local! Hanging out a few seasons, climbing a bit, embarrassing yourself drunk at the Deli...not so much.
Peter
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Captain...or Skully
climber
in the oil patch...Fricken Bakken, that's where
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Nov 25, 2014 - 05:11pm PT
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Ha ha! I could tell ya, but it MIGHT spell your doom.
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eeyonkee
Trad climber
Golden, CO
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Nov 25, 2014 - 05:15pm PT
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Actually, it occurs to me that I NEVER saw the secret handshake. I mean, I'm not the most observant person, but it DOES seem a little unlikely that in all of those Springs in the Valley, that I wouldn't have even once observed the secret handshake. So, I'm changing my answer.
My new answer is, it's like pornography, you know it (one) when you see it (one). Since a Valley Local obviously has a temporal aspect, I'm going to give an example from, say, 1979.
Valley locals (from Captain Obvious):
 Bridwell
Long
Kauk
Bachar
Werner
...
You know, people like that.
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Delhi Dog
climber
Good Question...
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Nov 25, 2014 - 05:20pm PT
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Maysho just answered the question.
Next?
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Vitaliy M.
Mountain climber
San Francisco
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Nov 25, 2014 - 05:25pm PT
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DMT has it right.
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BuddhaStalin
climber
Truckee, CA
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Nov 25, 2014 - 05:55pm PT
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These days, I reckon it takes tremendous fellatio skills.
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zBrown
Ice climber
Brujò de la Playa
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Nov 25, 2014 - 06:15pm PT
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Herr Reagan?
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Nov 25, 2014 - 06:24pm PT
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Duh,,,,the postal department decides, you have a PO Box, you're a local.
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The Larry
climber
Moab, UT
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Nov 25, 2014 - 06:26pm PT
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Po box won't get you a library card.
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Larry
Trad climber
Bisbee
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Nov 25, 2014 - 06:28pm PT
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It helps if you've been given a nickname.
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Lorenzo
Trad climber
Oregon
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Nov 25, 2014 - 06:30pm PT
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Nov 25, 2014 - 05:09pm PT
Get a job, buy a house in El Portal, sire a kid...then you are a Valley Local! Hanging out a few seasons, climbing a bit, embarrassing yourself drunk at the Deli...not so much.
Peter
No. That makes the kid you sired a valley local.
The second part you can do anywhere.
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John M
climber
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Nov 25, 2014 - 06:32pm PT
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Po box won't get you a library card.
jees.. The Larry.. don't give away all the secrets..
Though I am the President of the board of the Friends of the Wawona Library..
And I CAN get you a library card.
on the back it has the secret handshake.
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Nov 25, 2014 - 06:32pm PT
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Who the hell would want to be a local? The Valley is the absolute epitome of the place that's "a great place to visit but you wouldn't want to live there."
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John M
climber
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Nov 25, 2014 - 06:35pm PT
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I see the great Donini has lost his love, or perhaps never found it. sad face..
and yes.. the place has been overrun with unmitigated bullsh#t. Much like the taco.
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
mammoth lakes ca
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Nov 25, 2014 - 06:36pm PT
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Rats in a box....?
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WBraun
climber
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Nov 25, 2014 - 06:37pm PT
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Donini -- " ... you wouldn't want to live there."
Yep people come to the Valley just to die .....
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bvb
Social climber
flagstaff arizona
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 25, 2014 - 06:38pm PT
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Get a job, buy a house in El Portal, sire a kid
Job: check.
House in El Portal: check
Sired a kid: check
Holy motherf*#king sh#t I'm IN! I simply did not know what teh standards were! Where's my codpiece? Hair shirt? Drum? Watch TV and smoke cigars in Camp 4 wearing just my underwear!
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Splater
climber
Grey Matter
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Nov 25, 2014 - 06:39pm PT
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time for a new sequel?
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Ed Hartouni
Trad climber
Livermore, CA
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Nov 25, 2014 - 06:45pm PT
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with regard to climbing, it usually refers to someone actively climbing in the Valley, perhaps the majority of that time. A Valley Local probably has a good idea of who the other locals are, by frequent encounters on the rock.
Given that worthy projects are limited, a Valley Local is probably up on the possibilities, and most likely has an eye for the current aesthetic, and some understanding of what that aesthetic entails.
There probably is not a "group" who have self-elected themselves as "Valley Locals," but they are identified by Others as the force of conformity, opposing those who would come in and do stuff that is contrary to the local "rules."
This was probably a bigger problem when the rate of route first ascents were high and the style of climbing in the Valley not established. Today, people that alter routes (putting in convenience bolts, for instance) may or may not find their work erased depending on their status as a knowledgable local or a clueless outsider (whether or not the alteration is a good idea).
I think that it is legitimate to claim that Yosemite is a special place. I certainly haven't been anywhere quite like it for rock climbing. There are tremendous places to go, like the Eastern Fjords of Baffin Island, but you'd count yourself lucky just to get to see the place, let alone climb there.
Being a special place includes the ease of access and the huge number of climbers that climb there. Climbers who bring a large number of styles and thoughts of ethics with them, and a set of experiences and expectations which might not quite fit in the Valley, at least the way Valley climbing has evolved.
There are those who have a tremendous understanding and respect for that way of climbing and think it is a distinguishing feature of Yosemite Valley. There are those who do not recognize that way as being anything special.
You can guess which group the "Valley Locals" might belong to of those two.
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Nov 25, 2014 - 06:45pm PT
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The Valley is the perfect mother. She takes you in, nourishes you, teaches you, and then, when you are ready, she gently nudges you onto other pastures.
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zBrown
Ice climber
Brujò de la Playa
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Nov 25, 2014 - 06:59pm PT
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I found a codpiece with your name on it in the restroom at Wawona. Oops, nevermind it was bvd.
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climbski2
Mountain climber
Anchorage AK, Reno NV
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Nov 25, 2014 - 07:38pm PT
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I'm just a valley regular.. but in my heart it's one place I consider my true home. Even with all the crap that springs up along the roads, and the BS you have to deal with ..once you step away from the road its ... Home
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Risk
Mountain climber
Olympia, WA
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Nov 25, 2014 - 09:04pm PT
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Unless you’re a valley local, you’re just another valley touron.
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
Nothing creative to say
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Nov 25, 2014 - 09:58pm PT
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The mundane sense: living in the NP, or just outside it, or work in it.
The historical sense: spent substantial time there. More than just two weekends. Perhaps something longish was climbed.
The meaningful sense: what Ed and Donini said.
Next question.
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Nov 25, 2014 - 10:05pm PT
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I'll let someone else decide who's getting to decide.
If stretching the meaning of the word "valley" to include people who live in El Portal, these pix might be of interest.
Since I took these last year, I've since come to the conclusion that one cannot be sure that these initials were carved by tourists, male or female, youngster or older person, or by kids out screwing around on a summer day, which was my naive first impression.
I know the OP really intended to make this about climbers who consider themselves or are considered by others to be "locals." I'm no yokel. I don't consider myself to have been a real local, except in my days living and working there. I remember being called a "local climber" by an out-of-state climber who had just been introduced to me as being from Merced and having a sound knowledge of "the game." This was on my one and ONLY climbing vacation in years, sometime in the eighties.
The SNAB (the B is for BS) in me says to relay the feeling of pride and surprise following that impressionable lass's mistake.
I'm pretty much with Maysho on the definition which comes closest.
The jobs are pretty scarce but it signifies and helps narrow the group.
The real estate comes with the territory, too. It means a great deal sealed by payment of TAXES! Which in turn support dirtbag suppression, but let's stay on track.
But not for long.
Sorry for being so long-winded.
The last part is sexist, or not well-thought out...so what if you have kids or not? Good old "Responsible You" pays taxes either way. F it. You DON'T EVER have to have kids to prove anything.
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RyanD
climber
Squamish
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Nov 25, 2014 - 10:09pm PT
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I got a bunch of friends in SF who are valley locals
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BuddhaStalin
climber
Truckee, CA
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Nov 26, 2014 - 12:18am PT
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Hell, I lived there, both in a gainful and ungainful manner, volunteered lots of my man-hours of labor within the park, and I still don't consider myself a 'valley local' nor do I find the terminology to be remotely significant in any way. Mostly its to 'impress' other people, if thats important to you. I can barely stand to go there anymore. there are lots of wonderful places to climb in this world that aren't 'the valley'
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Captain...or Skully
climber
in the oil patch...Fricken Bakken, that's where
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Nov 26, 2014 - 12:41am PT
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No fair, Ed...you make far too much sense to refute.
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hooblie
climber
from out where the anecdotes roam
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Nov 26, 2014 - 01:22am PT
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first indication? ... you aren't going anywhere
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NutAgain!
Trad climber
South Pasadena, CA
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Nov 26, 2014 - 12:33pm PT
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Whether one is considered a local or not, there is probably a much bigger group of folks who feel some sense of community just by the shared experiences and special feelings about Yosemite.
When I come into the valley, it feels like coming home- the sense of familiarity, constancy, the peacefulness and security and a fountain of memories. If we count up our lives in terms of memories rather than clock/calendar time, I have lived much of my life in the place.
I'm definitely not a local, but I like the feeling of pulling into Reed's turn-out at sunrise or sunset, or the lodge for breakfast waiting for a winter day to warm up, and running into friends. It's a sort of ex-pat community of regular non-locals, and for a bit a few years ago I felt like a consistent member of that community.
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hobo_dan
Social climber
Minnesota
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Nov 26, 2014 - 06:56pm PT
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If you're in for the winter-I'd say you get the name tag
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Captain...or Skully
climber
in the oil patch...Fricken Bakken, that's where
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Nov 26, 2014 - 07:15pm PT
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Good post, Nut Again!...I can dig it.
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deuce4
climber
Hobart, Australia
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Nov 27, 2014 - 02:26pm PT
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Every valley local has to find one of the Yosemite's secret pitons, found only very high up on one of the most obscure routes (it will always be a piton originally placed during the Golden Era, and is removed by hand without a hammer, much like the sword in the stone--you know when you have found one, because you will hear a trumpet playing in the background and there will likely be a flash of light).
The secret piton is then hung on the rearview mirror of your car from a ratty tie-off salvaged from an El Cap trade-route ascent. The appropriate car has spent at least 6 months in a non-running condition in the Camp 4 parking lot, plus you've survived at least three Camp 4 winters living in the back of the car.
The piton possessors meet several times a year at a secret location, and among other things (as has already been surmised by several non-locals here on Supertopo), formally deliberate and decide on who should be shunned and who accepted in the Valley scene.
Bob, I always wondered why you weren't showing up at these secret meetings. Never knew you didn't know...
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
Nothing creative to say
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Nov 27, 2014 - 02:35pm PT
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and a Valley Local has a good sense of humor too!
:)
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Michelle
Social climber
1187 Hunterwasser
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Nov 27, 2014 - 07:56pm PT
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I got a bunch of friends in SF who are valley locals
and putting their dirtbagging skill set to good use in the Mission.
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James
climber
My twin brother's laundry room
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Nov 27, 2014 - 11:27pm PT
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get a local file
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BASE104
Social climber
An Oil Field
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Nov 28, 2014 - 07:01am PT
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You just need to hang out in the valley and make a bunch of friends.
It helps to get a nickname. Russ the Fish used to hand those out, and they were pretty embarrassing.
Herndie
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ryankelly
Trad climber
el portal
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Nov 28, 2014 - 07:46pm PT
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only locals are the bears, everybody else just "fake it till you make it"
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Wade Icey
Trad climber
www.alohashirtrescue.com
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Nov 28, 2014 - 08:48pm PT
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I am. I do.
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crawdaddy
Trad climber
California
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Definition of a local somebody who should have left 20 years ago, aside from that we are all visitors.
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