Regular Rocktalk poster, Sloper has got in touch to highlight the continuing problem in the Peak District with over zealous wire-brushing. This time it's Stanage and the big boulder below the Unconquerables. There's a thread on ROCKTALK with the details...
Perhaps the BMC should run an anti-chipping campaign together with one of the magazines? We need a constant flow of editorial like that from John Horscroft (good effort January Climber). I know it's partly the search for more rock and trying to find the next great boulder problem, but chipping isn't going to get you the fame that you're after. This isn't going to go away without more publicity, more awareness and more condemnation. It seems like every time I go bouldering thesedays you come across something dubious (Andy Brown's wall - Earl Crag, was that sidepull always that big?). And does no-one ever see these people at work, surely they don't just come out at night? Don't be shy, go and tell them what they're doing is wrong.
The point is that an experienced climber might use a wire brush very, very carefully to clean a new route and not damage the rock, but this does ABSOLUTELY NOTHING WHATSOEVER but send the message out that it's accepted practice to wire brush grit. If those people who actually need to brush lichen off new problems/routes just used plastic bristle brushes, then the inexperienced numbskulls who currently think it's the norm might think again. I can only imagine that there are people out there using wire brushes who think it's normal practice to tear off crystals and pebbles and ultimately destroy the skin of the rock. Wire brushes need to be banned full stop in my opinion, the "if used with care" argument doesn't work because there are too many people now who don't give a s*it.
Do you suppose that sponsered climbers would still receive photo-incentive money (or gear) if the were pictured doing something bad whilst displaying the sponsors logo?
I think that's an oversimplification really. There are plenty of sponsored climbers who would use a wire brush carefully and have no intention whatsoever of chipping. I really think that the chipping is a result of inexperienced people not understanding that they're doing permanent damage, who perceive that a wire brush is just part of the gear, along with chalk bag, bouldering mat etc and to pull a few pebbles off is okay. If sponsored climbers said "on my new route I took the care to clean it without a wire brush because I'm aware of and concerned about the amount of over-brushing on established problems", then we might get somewhere. The really sad thing is that it's just so totally at odds with what British bouldering and gritstone climbing is about. Since when have boulderers been interested in making problems easier? Isn't is all about missing out the holds...a harder eliminate...sticking a sit-down start on it. And Grit routes are the ultimate in sticking your neck out on 30' of rock. You don't go climbing on grit for a straightforward plod at whatever grade.
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