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limpingcrab
Trad climber
the middle of CA
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Topic Author's Original Post - May 5, 2016 - 03:24pm PT
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Seems like more studies are showing that reading about peoples' failures might make you better off than reading all of those inspirational stories where people succeed.
Example:
Rather than interpreting the struggles of some of humanity’s greatest minds as proof that a regular person has no chance, at the end of the six-week experiment, the students who learned of the scientists' struggles ended up outperforming the group that learned only of their achievements. http://www.sciencealert.com/science-students-do-better-when-they-know-einstein-and-curie-also-struggled
Inspire and encourage the next generation!
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limpingcrab
Trad climber
the middle of CA
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Topic Author's Reply - May 5, 2016 - 03:26pm PT
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I'll start:
-When my wife and I started dating I wanted to teach her about climbing and I had to call a friend from the base of the route to ask how to tie a figure 8.
-On my first trad lead I forgot to clip the rope to about half of the gear I placed.
-I make it to the top of less that 50% of the FAs I try.
-I've dropped just about everything you can drop from a climb, except the rope or a partner
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ionlyski
Trad climber
Kalispell, Montana
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My failure; Not climbing (much) for nearly a whole year. Doesn't look any better for the next 6 months at least either.
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ecdh
climber
the east
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Yep.
As a climber who regularly fails to achieve the goals that others seem to like to see i think about this a lot.
Always attracted to tales that didnt go as planned or fell apart 'controlled failure' i find fascinating. I love the idea of pitching ideas with so many gaps that failure is an honour - f*#k, we just need to try.
Is failure not to succeed or not to try?
Id love to see 'failure' reinterpreted as a failure of vision, not of topography. The highest point isnt the goal etc etc. our tribes media doesnt always help here.
Or maybe it does.
May i submit http://www.supertopo.com/tr/China-Sichuan-West-face-of-Se-erdengpu-problems-solved-problems-found-long/t12892n.html as an example.
Of course i may just be making excuses for being a sh#t climber...
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johntp
Trad climber
socal
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I screwed up a clip to a bolt. 10 feet later the biner decided to unclip and slid down the rope to my belayer's harness. What was an R climb turned into an X. Good times.
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jgill
Boulder climber
The high prairie of southern Colorado
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When I was in my late teens a friend and I climbed one peak thinking it was another.
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Sierra Ledge Rat
Mountain climber
Old and Broken Down in Appalachia
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When I was young neophyte in Camp 4, I ran into an old crusty hero of mine (can't remember who) and I started asking him a lot of climbing questions. He couldn't believe that I was a climber, so he started asking me some climbing questions.
He finally acknowledged that I was a real climber when he learned that my ascent success rate was less than 50%.
I haven't been on very many big walls, but I have more failures than successes:
-Bugaboo Spire, east face (stormed off)
-South Howser Spire, Chouinard-Becky (jammed rope)
-El Capitan, Lost World (fall, injury)
-El Capitan, The Nose (too slow)
-Washington Column, S Face (too slow)
-Quarter Dome (partner was a turd)
-Gargoyle, Great Gorge, Alaska (avalanches)
-Sandia Mountains, The Shield (ran into a blank face)
Failed twice on Denali:
-West Rib (multiple deaths)
-Reality Ridge (too scary)
My highest success rate was free soloing, probably because I carefully chose my poison.
When I was in my late teens a friend and I climbed one peak thinking it was another.
Did that twice in my late teens. Thought we had summit the Grand Teton but it was just a little minor spire on the shoulder of the Grand...
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Reeotch
climber
4 Corners Area
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Failure?
Its all in the mind . . .
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Alexey
climber
San Jose, CA
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climbing failure usually best remembered and mostly funny stories [if no injuries happen] especially if those failure were overcome somehow..
I had many f*ck ups .
One of them was climbing Overdrive http://www.mountainproject.com/v/overdrive/107658849 with Salamanizer 4 years ago.
You need two ropes to climb this route. One you fix on the tree near the entrance of Wawona Tunnel , rappel down two pitches and than climb up back 2 pitches to the tree using second lead rope. We spent a lot of time for looking for rappel tree, and finally find it out. When we rappelled all the way to the bottom of the climb [ which is not bottom of the cliff, but just mid wall without access] I found to my horror that I left second [lead] rope at the tree above. The fixed rope was 60m about same as rappel we did [I mean nothing left on this rope for lead] . We had no ascenders, and no slings for prussiking. I was completely demoralized had no idea how to get back and expected that Chad [who did not forget sling with gear] would say something sarcastic to me about concentration and climbing. But he did not.
He climbed first 30 feet basically free solo holding the fixed rope by hand.Than take me on belay and I come to his ledge and we had ~35 feet of rope to lead next 1/3 of the pitch. Than we had 70 feet of the rope after second lead. So we did first pitch at 3 small pitches. And than we were under the roof with half rope for the lead and half tope still fixed.
Back to the tree, grab useless lead rope, and end of the story about f*ck up and partner saving your ass
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hooblie
climber
from out where the anecdotes roam
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what a noob might not realize is that failure to manage others is some kind of skyrocket road to heartache
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Stone Cowboy
Trad climber
Livermore, CA.
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El Cids Embrace- TM Herbert said " I would never climb it in my lifetime" kma!
Lancelot....I will not be denied.
Mount Whitney- Airy Traverse.
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Moof
Big Wall climber
Orygun
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Forgot to bring the haul line a couple times, luckily figuring it out within 30 feet both times. Just had to hang off 2 good pieces while lowering down a loop of the lead line.
Dropped my favorite 2.5" custom ring angle claw, never found it :(
Back cleaned too much and then fell like 50' while solo. Jugging back up the wire on the wiregate was held open against the rock. Good times. Bailed.
Figured out I had the flu 4 pitches up the Prow solo. Had to retreat while feeling completely destroyed. I was totally winded ferrying loads down. Spent a week on the couch in the fetal position getting over it.
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jeff constine
Trad climber
Ao Namao
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Whipper time from Rock&Ice Mag.
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Fossil climber
Trad climber
Atlin, B. C.
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Long ago I gave up on a nice Yosemite FA because it looked like I might take a minor fall. The idea of a fall didn't bother me, but I didn't want to get even a little scraped up because I had a hot date that night.
The climb was a failure. The date was a success.
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PAUL SOUZA
Trad climber
Central Valley, CA
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I've had more successes than failures, but the failures were BIG ambitions in the later years.
-Attempted to lead my first multi-pitch at Tollhouse
-The Shield on El Cap
-South Face of Washington Column
-Evolution Traverse due to altitude sickness
-Whitney Basin Traverse due to altitude sickness
-Snake Dike due to extremely high winds
Here's a good TED talk on failure...
http://www.ted.com/talks/astro_teller_the_unexpected_benefit_of_celebrating_failure
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Failures? I'm still here, much to yer chagrin!
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Sierra Ledge Rat
Mountain climber
Old and Broken Down in Appalachia
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Once I drove from San Jose to Lee Vining to go ice climbing. On arrival at the trailhead I realized that I had left my ice climbing boots sitting on the sidewalk outside of my San Jose apartment.
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johntp
Trad climber
socal
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moof. Where ya been?
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August West
Trad climber
Where the wind blows strange
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No failures. Only strategic redeployments.
Although I have some unfinished climbing projects that might have to wait until my next lifetime.
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Wade Icey
Trad climber
www.alohashirtrescue.com
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It's complicated.
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Moof
Big Wall climber
Orygun
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Johntp, I never left? What did I miss? Who the hell are you? Where are my pants?
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mcreel
climber
Barcelona
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Once went to do the Salathé, but saw that it was jammed, and argued against starting. My partner talked me into doing Astroman. The next day we climbed up to the start of the boulder pitch, looked at it a bit, and I made some lame excuse to to bail. The next day we did Free Blast, and got bombed by rocks knocked loose by aid climbers hauling the Half Dollar. In spite of the bombing, the real problem was in my head. The climb was fun, though.
Did the same thing on Lucky Streaks on Fairview, got up a pitch or two and bailed.
Got lost on the S. Face of Charlotte Dome, and bailed. That one is pretty painful in hindsight - all that walking and didn't do a great climb!
So, I have some bails that were due to getting psyched out. No big deal though, it's probably best not to climb when your head is not right.
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johntp
Trad climber
socal
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Johntp, I never left? What did I miss? Who the hell are you? Where are my pants?
Apologies. I guess I've missed your recent posts; I'm just an old dork. Your pants are in a tree near the base of Suicide. For $40 I'll give you the GPS cords.
Cheers!
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Reeotch
climber
4 Corners Area
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Which climb is more of a "failure"?
Climb A: Supposedly, well within your abilities. You get up there, you're shaking, you pick the wrong gear over and over, gear falls out, you're risking you're neck when you didn't intend to, you take FOREVER to lead the pitch. But, somehow, luckily, you pull off the red point in the end.
Climb B: You and your partner spot an awesome line that's not in the guidebook, and decide to give it a shot. It is way harder than it looked, but you and your partner take turns pushing the gear higher and higher before pumping out. You finally get to he anchors, but, still, neither of you can link the whole thing even on toprope. However, you pushed yourself harder and climbed at a higher level than ever before in that one session.
Edit: The one John Bachar quote that sticks with me is when he's talking about his solo of the Moratorium, something like, "I got away with some bullsh!t . . . "
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Off White
climber
Tenino, WA
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Greatest failure: Despite over four decades of climbing, I remain a rather mediocre climber.
Greatest success: Managing to remain at least a mediocre climber for over four decades.
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mcreel
climber
Barcelona
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Yep, the best climber is the one who's still doing it.
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Bad Climber
Trad climber
The Lawless Border Regions
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I'm in the Off White camp--40 years climbing next year. Still mediocre but still at it. Moving to Bishop to continue my mediocrity.
I suppose my biggest failure was bailing on the Chouinard-Beckey on S. Howser Tower in the Bugs. We had a good weather window--rare as many of you know--but were a party of three. I had not been getting along with my partners very well at all, so I'm sure that played into my decision, but I was jugging the first fixed pitch after an uncomfortable bivi the night before. My feet were absolutely numb in rock shoes. The buttress was looming above. I felt fear and uncertainty and a premonition that an epic was in the making. By the time I got to the anchors, I resolved to rap off and let the other two continue. I've never been back to the Bugs.
I did salvage the day by having a fabulous free solo of Pigeon Spire on the way back to the hut, but looking back at the prize of S. Howser was painful. Still is.
BAd
@Cragman: Dude, that story was horrifying. Learnt yer lesson, I bet.
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