UKC

The amount of 'top 50' routes in the new Lake District Rockfax seemed a little bit suspicious. I ended up counting them and there are in fact... 114 of them.

Can anyone explain?

Try counting a few other books, you might be surprised 😀

Chris

Maybe Alan secretly employs Dianne Abbot and Priti Patel as proof readers?

Are you saying it averages out at 50 over all the Rockfax publications?  

No, I think we had one book in which there were actually 50 - Eastern Grit 2006. All the rest have had more (I think - not sure about Lofoten where there might be fewer). I think there could be 130 in one of the books! We quickly used 'Top 50' as a concept rather than a number. However, we have now removed it altogether from all future books, and all app data.

Alan

It all makes sense now!

There are only 50 if you measure in feet and inches and use British grading.

This metric system and French technical grading has a lot to answer for.

T.

What is the thinking behind that Alan? Stop those routes getting so busy/damaged?

Inflation

Without passing judgement on yourself - because I appreciate that this was meant as a joke and the context won't have factored in at all  - but have you realised that of all the public political cock ups around numbers and statistics in the last few years, you managed to pick two examples that are both women from a racial minority? (As much as Priti is one of the elite and has no qualms about expressing her own prejudice). 

I'm convinced that there's been multiple occasions of various male ministers making a thorough hash of the numbers whilst on camera, and yet these two are the ones that have stayed in the public consciousness. 

Odd. 

Hi Dunc

Sort of although it wasn't only for that reason. I wrote a bit about it here - https://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/rockfax/rockfax_top_50_symbol__outlived_i...

Alan

And there's me thinking how even handed of him to use one red one blue.

I rather think that is down to media bias rather than the person posting.  

The media do seem to pick and choose who gets to stay in the spot light and who gets away with mistakes. 

Everything will be rightfully restored, after Brexit.

Oh, I certainly wasn't implying that the OP had made his choice through any personal prejudice! Apologies if that was unclear. 

Yes, this was more along the lines of my thinking. How uncomfortable.

Hmmm well if there have been examples of other ministers failing to use the correct words for numbers I've missed them.

The nearest other example was when G. Osborne was quizzed on his times tables at a school photo op. Like a rabbit in the headlight! 

That's a bit sad. So will there be no way to identify uber good climbs from standard three stars?

By the polish resulting from them previously being "top 50".

You will have to read the text now - "a classic of its genera", "must-do", "one of the best around", "magnificent" etc. You'll find most of them that way.

Chris

Sounds like 'top 50' with extra steps.

Which is what a textual description of a route excels at.  To me, one of the things that excites me is a textual description that instantly inspires me to want to do the route.

Do i want to go somewhere and just tick off all the supposed 'Top 50' routes?  No, everyone has a slightly different idea of what constitutes 'greatness'.  Me and my partners generally take it in turns to pick routes and that depends on what inspires us at that moment.  Give climbers inspiring route descriptions, don't funnel them into a standard idea of 'a good day out'

Do i want to do a few of them, amongst many others?  Yes, of course. 

Yeah I suppose. No crag has more than a few hundred climbs so it won't take too long to read them all. Although, I suppose there's no real point in all of us reading every description. Maybe one of us should read them all and then make some sort of a list for all the ones which seem like they're really really good? It could be called a 'top climbs' list or something.

Top Fiftyish