In reply to JackM92:
> 20 quickdraws is pretty mental! Falling off at Vdiff would (on most crags) be exceptionally unpleasent, even with gear every couple of meters.
There's a difference between pretty unpleasant (5-10m, fall, basically a slip at or near the gear at the top of a long pitch) and a likely to be lethal fall. As I said: if I'm taking the rope and gear then it's going to work for me, no point having it otherwise to my mind. If you and Offwidth think that's mental then so be it, you're each presumably experienced enough to decide for yourselves.
> Whenever I've been out at busier crags I've been astonished by the amount of gear people are taking on easier routes, most of which is clearly getting in their way.
Can't say my gear get's in my way.
> For my first trad season I was taking a single set of nuts and usually 2/3 cams plus a couple of slings, and found this perfectly adequate for routes at S - VS (and I fell off a few times).
Good for you if you're happy with that. I started out with a few nuts and cams too.
> If you're getting to the top of a route with stacks of gear remaining then you've taken too much, provided you're familiar with the rocktype it's usually possible to guess what you'll need fairly accurately.
I don't get to the top with stacks remaining, I usually get to the top with one or two quickdraws left, sometimes none and bits of my rack canbalised to improvise extenders but the key thing is I'm usually pretty happy with the level of risk I've taken and I've enjoyed myself. In 15+ years of climbing I don't recall ever once getting to the top wishing I'd left some kit on the ground. The times I've got to the top wishing I'd had a couple more clips or nuts so I didn't have to run out the top section tired above a very serious fall are well and truly seared into my memory!
Each to their own of course but personally I've no intention of ending my climbing days battered to hell tumbling down an easy route, broken hold in hand for want of a few extra bits of kit I own and will have walked in with anyway.
jk