UKC

Is climbing more selfish than other sports especially if ones partner is not into it?

In reply to Mr Moac:

No

In reply to Mr Moac: Nope

In reply to Mr Moac:

nah

In reply to Mr Moac: And does climbing make you economical with the truth?

In reply to Mr Moac:

Which other sports?

In reply to Mr Moac:

Absolutely. You can nip out and have a game of squash in an hour, a football match in three but climbing takes all day. Or all weekend. Or maybe a week. Yup. Guilty, m'lud

In reply to Wiley Coyote: Or 3 weeks...

In reply to mike kann:

Or 10years...

In reply to mike kann:

Nah, never than long. I get bored red pointing.

In reply to Mr Moac:

not as selfish as table tennis

In reply to Mr Moac: All sports are selfish... surely you go climbing for your own fun, not to help others.

In reply to Wiley Coyote: A game of football doesn't take three hours*

In reply to tom.e:

Surely no sport is selfish. Only the people doing it?

And that becomes very subjective. So no climbing isnt selfish.

In reply to ice.solo: got really into table tennis for quite a while. really is an awesome game.

In reply to Mr Moac: yes.

In reply to Mr Moac:

I think that it can take more time than other sports (e.g. you're unlikely to go climbing for an hour, whereas you might go swimming or running for an hour) but I don't think it's necessarily any more selfish. I think that any sport performed at a very high level is necessarily selfish to be able to achieve your best performance, whether that's the risks associated with high-altitude mountaineering, for instance, or the huge amount of training time taken up by something like triathlon.

In reply to Mr Moac:

I started a thread saying the same thing years ago!

I got flamed! even though I still say yes climbers are selfish, but I dont think more than any other sport like sailing, golf etc

Sam :0)

In reply to sam mayfield: it is selfish though of course. who benefits from someone climbing anything, be it a mountain or a crag? its just calling a fish a fish. some people dont like to admit that its all a bit selfish and pointless really.

In reply to Mr Moac:
Climbing is not selfish, but if pursued 'seriously' it makes you a selfish person.

In reply to Only a hill:


"Selfish person" is a tautology.

In reply to Mr Moac:

What's wrong with being selfish - you have to do what you have to do. Finding someone who wants the same is the key!

Chris

In reply to Mr Moac:

I would say not. I grew up with a dad who played rugby quite well. That involved him training two or three nights a week, and matches all day on Saturdays. Then there was coaching the youth teams on a Sunday. I don't begrudge him that at all, just telling it as it is.

I have also lived with a very good runner, who trained everyday and would race frequently too. I think that anything less than dabbling in a sport requires a significant time investment. So, in answer to your original question I do not think that climbing is more selfish than other sports.

In reply to chris craggs: nowt wrong with it but the question was is it? and yes, it is.

In reply to thommi:

Are there degrees of selfishness?


Chris

In reply to Simon4:

Really? Interesting take on life. Does that make "generous person" an oxymoron?

In reply to Mr Moac:

It's an interesting question.

A yoga teacher once told me that yoga was a selfish pursuit. I was surprised by his comment, until I thought about it.

Any activity which is so self-focused, is by definition selfish. That's not to say that selfishness is necessarily a bad thing in every scenario.

In reply to Mr Moac:
Only if your partner demands you spend every free minute with them.


What about skiing, sailing, kayaking, all take days weeks.

In reply to Mr Moac:

How can an activity be selfish?

An individual may choose to engage in something selfishly but that's them being selfish, not them being a hostage of something inherent of the activity.

In reply to hindu:

I think that's what he meant

In reply to chris craggs: errr... im not sure. i guess not. i suppose climbing could be seen as cooperative, if climbing with a partner, but it extends no futher than the individuals involved. it certainly isnt altruistic, unless of course you were climbing in order to save a princess or something. oh, and you didnt like climbing.

In reply to Only a hill:

Beat me to it. You'll never achieve your climbing goals without being selfish - something that's uppermost in my mind at the moment and causing me a nano second of anxiety.

E

In reply to Mr Moac:

I started another thread about what happens when the boot's on the other foot with regard to partners and their activity(so to speak), to avoid hijacking this one: http://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?n=445063

In reply to Enty:

Regarding the OP - no, the level at which you do any sport defines how selfish you are or need to be. My dad was a pretty good amateur football player and after 20 odd years of 1 night a week training, 5 a side Thursday, a game on Saturday, a game on Sunday morning - my mum walked!!

E

Yeah any sport can be.

Going for an evening run is not the same level of commitment as someone who constantly travels about to marathons and races up and down the country (and even Europe).

I know people who play a game of fives on a week night evening, but also Amateur footballers who play in leagues and their week revolves around training and then weekend games.

The same can even be said about friends who just watch football who every week will travel to away games which take much longer than a couple of hours.

In reply to Mr Moac:
climbing is only selfish from the point of view if u drag them along. you need to have your own space you dont have to be joined by the hip i know several people who climb and their partners dont it works if anythin it aids the relationship. yes time consuming but most people work all week why shouldnt they do something they enjoy

In reply to Mr Moac: It can't really be looked at in isolation as the whole relationship needs to be considered. Often the give and take occurs subtly in ways only clear to the two involved.

But yes, it easy to allow climbing to dominate your time and prevent you spending it with your partner. It's down to you how you moderate your time.

In reply to Mr Moac:

You could call it selfish because you are doing it for you but I dont think thats a bad thing.

There was a good comment in one of the films I saw at the Banff film festival UK tour last week (well worth the viewing btw) and a kayaker said that participating in a sport you love makes you happy and feel alive which in turn makes you a better person. On the flip side of that I guess if you couldnt take part in climbing if it is your passion then you would perhaps be unhappy and perhaps not a cheery soul to be around??......

In reply to becdent:

Ha ha ha what a really amusing thread. There has always been this contention with climbers and their annoyed spouse sitting at home:-s

All I can say is...........get yourself a partner who likes climbing lol! I did.........works out just fine! :-p

But for those out there that aren't lucky enough to have someone that climbs....I guess it's just a case of give and take, like anything!