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Trad climbing an uncool parent sport

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 zimpara 19 Oct 2015

Parents sports are rarely cool. (From another post)
Yup agreed, particularly trad climbing. I mean, call it a sport if you will! But shuffling on ledges, sitting down ALOT belaying, shouting to seconds, and eating+taking photographs whilst playing with a bunch is nuts is madness. To be outgrown (along with climbing trees) by the age of 8 I hope.

It's more an affinity to buy lots of gear and tie a lot of knots that make you look a smug Pr*ck when you actually do in the real world. No one cares about your inline such and such.

And it gets even uncooler when its american. Being generally overweight (but not always) and pulling cams is not a sport.
Post edited at 06:51
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 ericinbristol 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

And with the latest item in your logbook being a VS 4c dnf sounds like you are the expert on this subject
 Hawky 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

you're posts amaze me. either you are a very bored person or you just like a good wind up...
who gives a monkeys fart what you think of trad climbing or sport climbing....

how long have you been climbing it's maybe time time to hang up the rack for good.

I've been climbing for 4 months and in all honesty a vs vc that you never finished must mean that left gear on the crag, now I've seen you ripping into people for leaving gear behind on a crag, the next minute you are asking for someone to ab in for your gear on another route, pretty strange..
3
 gribble 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

Wish my parents had been trad climbers. Would have made for some interesting holidays.
OP zimpara 19 Oct 2015
In reply to ericinbristol:

Grumble grumble
4
Andy Gamisou 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

Given that your log book shows 6a as your best sport climb onsight, and V0 your best bouldering effort (!), exactly what is YOUR main climbing forte? Stairs? Ladders? Mild slopes behind your house (although thinking you'd probably need gear from that, so maybe too uncool)?
2
 Cheese Monkey 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

Yeh man the last time I went trad climbing all I did was drink tea, eat cake and look seriously cool building obscure belays on the ground
OP zimpara 19 Oct 2015
In reply to Cheese Monkey:

And reading guidebook must be a sport... And national past time
OP zimpara 19 Oct 2015
In reply to Willi Crater:
Worse actually. I don't know what grade V0 is but its pretty spicy!!think it was the descent path for a highball
Post edited at 08:05
 Cheese Monkey 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

It is. The winner is the one that incorrectly identifies the line and convinces their mate to go up it.
 ericinbristol 19 Oct 2015
In reply to Cheese Monkey:

That explains a lot about our climbing sessions - b******
 Oogachooga 19 Oct 2015
In reply to ericinbristol:

Example of smug bastard hahahaha!
 Oogachooga 19 Oct 2015
In reply to Willi Crater:

logbook says your a f*cking geek bastard lol
 springfall2008 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

I honestly suspect despite the rude way you posted the question there is some truth to this.

I think younger people are more into indoor climbing progressing to outdoor sports climbs as they get older. Partly because old men (like me) like Trad climbing, partly because they are good enough to climb hard sport (I'm not) and partly because this generation prefers instant gratification. Trad climbing is much slower and involves more care and thought and a lot of kids who grow up with Youtube and Playstation have the patience for.

However, I doubt it really matters, as long as everyone enjoys their climbing?
 ericinbristol 19 Oct 2015
In reply to Oogachooga:

You've lost me - what/who?
 Cheese Monkey 19 Oct 2015
In reply to treforsouthwell:

I grew up with Playstations. I'm considering giving up climbing just to move on to the instant gratification of heroin.
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 Cheese Monkey 19 Oct 2015
In reply to ericinbristol:

We should do more trad haha! Bonus points if noone dies
 wercat 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:
Yo dude right man trad ent no place for assassins, less yor called Clint!
Post edited at 08:33
 GrahamD 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

Ahh bless
 ericinbristol 19 Oct 2015
In reply to Cheese Monkey:

Climbing meets heroin? Smack my pitch up (sorry!)
 Goucho 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

There's a good V1 problem on the left hand side of that bridge you're sitting under, if you're looking for a long term project.
 Mark Kemball 19 Oct 2015
In reply to Goucho:

Not perfect, one reply to his own topic looses a lot of points.
 Clarence 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:
Trying to be "cool" is an uncool parent sport...

Climbing is just climbing.
Post edited at 09:28
 radddogg 19 Oct 2015
In reply to ericinbristol:
> Climbing meets heroin? Smack my pitch up (sorry!)

Yeah climbing and drugs aren't a good mix

http://www.lep.co.uk/news/local/teenager-high-on-drink-and-drugs-fell-to-de...
Post edited at 09:36
 The Pylon King 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

Trad climbing isn't a sport.
4
 Brass Nipples 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

Considered so uncool that it becomes cool eh? Whether something is cool or not, is something for the kids to worry about, the rest of us just get on with doing something we enjoy.

 pebbles 19 Oct 2015
In reply to Orgsm:

the kids who worry most about being cool are the kids who are secretly worried they might not be
 Jimbo C 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

Do you not know that trad is actually an abbreviation and stands for Totally RADical
 beardy mike 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

Dare I say it but your mums an uncool parent sport.
 Misha 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:
Sitting down eating cake while taking photos is a pretty good way to pass the day. Does it make it cool if you do it in winter?
Rigid Raider 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

I'm too old to know anything other than "climbing", which is getting up a rock face or a mountain, placing running belays to protect yourself and using your technique and experience to reach the top safely while enjoying the exercise. I haven't done much of that in the last 30 years since work and family conspired to rob me of most of my free time but nowadays I think people make it easier for themselves by abbing down and pre-placing their protection or even *shudders* knocking in pitons or bolts, which would have been viewed as cheating when I climbed in the 60s and 70s. I did some climbing recently in South Africa and miraculously somebody had already gone up and pre-placed all the protection for me, which reduced the day to an exercise in moving up rock and seemed to take away most of the challenge.

So is that the difference between "traditional" and "modern" or "sport" or what?
 Lornajkelly 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

If the prevailing attitude now is that trad climbing is uncool then I, a 29-year-old who was taught to climb by her father, am happy to perpetuate this. It's a long time since I was bothered about appearing to be cool, so instead I'll enjoy the benefits of my favourite low-grade trad routes being free while the traffic builds at sport and bouldering venues!
 rocksol 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

Tosser!!!!!!
 Cheese Monkey 19 Oct 2015
In reply to zimpara:

You know whats funnier than the OP? People taking it seriously
cb294 19 Oct 2015
In reply to Cheese Monkey:
Exactly, I should be offended as a trad climbing, middle aged parent, but instead thought this was a fantastic wind up rant.

CB

and overweight, too!
Post edited at 17:10
 d_b 19 Oct 2015
In reply to cb294:

I'm always amused by young people assuming that becoming old and uncool won't happen to them.
Lusk 19 Oct 2015
In reply to davidbeynon:

I used to be mildly concerned about getting older.
But now I've got there, I've discovered I'm still as childish as I was back then
cb294 19 Oct 2015
In reply to davidbeynon:

Ha, the definition of cool ages with our generation!

If the youngsters only knew how uncool beanie hats really are they would cry into their bouldering mats!

Probably the 70 year old climbing 7a says the same about us 40 somethings, though.

CB
 deacondeacon 19 Oct 2015
In reply to davidbeynon:

> I'm always amused by young people assuming that becoming old and uncool won't happen to them.

I know loads of cool old people.
In reply to zimpara:

Trad climbing is by far the 'coolest' physical activity (call it a sport if you wish) that I've ever come across. It has to be by its very nature. To lead well on potentially dangerous climbing crags, with only natural protection, means that you have to remain super cool. The best climbers I've ever met, or climbed with, have been just that.
 d_b 19 Oct 2015
In reply to deacondeacon:

That's a point. The old bit is still valid then. I'm still in denial about it anyway

 Michael Gordon 20 Oct 2015
In reply to Rigid Raider:

>
> So is that the difference between "traditional" and "modern" or "sport" or what?

Pretty much
 summo 20 Oct 2015
In reply to Orgsm:

> Considered so uncool that it becomes cool eh?

Makes me think of all the hipsters growing beard to be different, only now everyone has one!

Beside the more kids that think trad isn't cool, the quieter the crags will be. So it's in our interests to portray it as being a dull as dish water.
 d_b 20 Oct 2015
In reply to summo:

...until someone turns up and retro bolts everything because "nobody goes there".

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