In reply to Paul035:
> I don't think he's claiming it as a commendable legacy or anything Tom. I think he's saying pushing himself soloing is his way of dealing with the lows. Some hit the bottle, drugs, crime, depression, he goes out and solo's E7.
> And who dictates what a commendable legacy is??!! Sensible job, house and family??? Surely every man chooses his own path...
Indeed, but you don't *have* to be miserable when not climbing or regretful about sacrifices or depressed to be a great climber. There are a lot of very well-adjusted people at the pinnacle of our trad sport.
> Personally I think thats impressive.
The climbs are impressive, to me the mindset is less so. I doubt many people would like to see friends in the mental place that the writer seems to be inhabiting? I'm not judging though, and I don't just like articles with content that I can agree with or support completely. The piece seems honest and is certainly thought provoking, it's certainly no waste of bandwidth or the reader's time.
I'd hope the author can combine his level of climbing with a more content outlook outside of it, but we wish a lot of things for people that we really can't influence or change.