Is soloing becoming too "casual"?

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NutAgain!

Trad climber

South Pasadena, CA

Sep 27, 2016 - 01:07pm PT

...it would be easy to be sucked in too far over your head...esp soloing with someone else, which I did a few times with Vardanega and I didn't like that aspect of my head...I thought this is what gets you and maybe both of you killed.

Interesting take... I've only "soloed" a handful of routes a few grades below my limit, but they were always in conjunction with another person present- Royal Arches, Tenaya Peak, most of Matthes Crest, N Ridge of Conness a few times, first pitch or two of NEB Higher Cathedral Rock. Having that other person there definitely affected my mental state in a way that made me feel more comfortable or casual about the situation. I wonder if I would have committed to doing those things if I was alone? Maybe not. Maybe I would have talked myself out of it. Hek, one of my first posts on supertopo in 2005 was talking about lucky survival on a botched attempt to solo Royal Arches when I couldn't find a partner. That led to me getting my first climbing partners here.

Apart from that, I guess on many occasions I have put myself high enough to be in harms way (if not dramatically multiple pitches off the deck) for the experience, for the feeling it gave me, almost as a compulsion or to scratch an itch in a way that I can't altogether say is healthy. I'm pretty certain I never soloed anything where I thought "this will make me look so cool." The thought of dying is stronger than that attraction for me (at least from my present vantage of being 40+ years old)- but at times some other compulsion has been stronger than the fear of death. Maybe just some inner sense of ability and knowledge that I would not fall in that situation and that the feeling of being in that place is what I needed at that moment. Just a way to concentrate my attention in a powerful way, to stop other head noises, to be really present in that place and time. That to me is a powerful drug. But I have since learned how to bottle the essence of that drug without needing to risk death. It is all in our minds. As are the many reasons which might attract us to soloing.

But we each have our own reasons, and whatever casualness with which we may approach soloing, any facades or veneers quickly fade when reality is upon us. Hopefully what we have underneath is strong enough to last. That is a question that some of us are dying to find out.

this just in

climber

Justin Ross from North Fork

Sep 27, 2016 - 01:08pm PT

Oh ok Kingtut, so you have nothing but respect for bold runouts, but soloing goes over the line and is selfish. Can't wait for your Kingtut's Version Climber's Bible to hit the stores.

labrat

Trad climber

Erik O. Auburn, CA

Sep 27, 2016 - 01:20pm PT

"For the climber doing the soloing, it should be casual."

I totally agree on this point from Steve.

The soloist that came up to me at the final belay on West Crack on Sunday flatly stated to me that he had pushed it a bit and didn't feel like he could of down climbed the start of the first pitch and the wait at the first belay (right before the second pitch roof) go to him a bit..

He was stoked to have done the climb once he was on top... Wonder what impression he left on the parties that he passed lower on the route?

NutAgain!

Trad climber

South Pasadena, CA

Sep 27, 2016 - 01:29pm PT

I rambled in my last post... here's a more focused answer to original poster's question.

We live in a time of information glut, for better in some cases and for worse in others. As a parent, I consider my job not to protect my children from being aware of all these signals- all these distractions, all these temptations- but rather to learn to live with them gracefully, to be discerning in how we use the information we receive and to make as wise decisions as we can. Nobody walks in our shoes but us, and we have to make decisions that honor that.

So as for lamenting about what our culture is, what messages are glorified, and so on.... I consider all that a lost cause and focus on what we are personally responsible for. The guiding theme for my teenage kids these days:

freedom AND responsibility

(or what's that old quote: "If you can't do the time don't do the crime." or there's the investor's metaphor: "don't gamble what you can't afford to lose")

this just in

climber

Justin Ross from North Fork

Sep 27, 2016 - 01:30pm PT

So much more to this existence than climbing. The arts, sciences, helping others, love, children, dogs...a life lived soloing on the edge is a shallow life--white people invented problems because you have forgotten how precious life is...

No dude (and not trying to fight with you or put you down)...what I respect is an individual's right to choose their own destiny, and their expression of that in their climbing...its their routes and their lives...

So which is it?
Since you seem to always go with the until you are experienced act with me, I have been climbing outdoors now for 23 months and probably 5 years in the gym before that, so I have experience bro dude.

couchmaster

climber

Sep 27, 2016 - 01:36pm PT

Holy smokes, I bet Cathedral would be a kick ass group solo Bad Climber. I've only "group soloed" once, Tiptoe Ridge Arapiles. SO DAMN MUCH FUN. At first I was nervous as I'd never been on that route and the rock was still somewhat newish for me. I was following my buddy and above my other friend, which seemed kind of dumb to not rope up at first. I solo cause I can't find a partner and want a lot of mileage with no encumbrances. On a 1500 foot long solo, you'll relax somewhere in there and not worry about falling on your buddy or having the one above you pull a rock or land on you. Dear lord so much fun. How the hell do you not get addicted? The ST has a picture of a group solo of monkeys running up Arches at times and they must be flying.

brotherbbock

climber

Alta Loma, CA

Sep 27, 2016 - 02:22pm PT

Is that quick ridge traverse worth the happiness of a lifetime?

Nope.

GDavis

Social climber

SOL CAL

Sep 27, 2016 - 02:29pm PT

I had this whole post I typed up refuting your point and that these soloists are just scrambling, then near the end I realized that you are right and people assume scrambling means not soloing therefore safe.

So, yeah. you might be on to something...

moacman

Trad climber

Montuckyian Via Canada Eh!

Sep 27, 2016 - 02:31pm PT

To each its own...............

Stevo

estwing

Trad climber

montreal

Sep 27, 2016 - 02:55pm PT

A foot injury pushed me out of climbing a number of years ago, but some of my solos remain my most vivid climbing memories. I had a few sketchy moments on terrain that wouldn't have been much safer roped, those stand out. But the very best memories are the ones of moving unencumbered up multi-pitch terrain where the flow was cut by climbing roped in.

Perhaps leading ice also made soloing some rock seem logical. The mindset was already there. Same idea with a lot of easy trad climbing. The lack of good pro at crux moments means you were already effectivley soloing, so why not just remove th cord?