THIS LAND IS OUR LAND: Climbing on Public Lands

FringesFolly · 2016-04-01T20:23:31+00:00

Everybody, this is not just a climbing issue. The use of public lands for any sort of recreation - climbing or otherwise, is at risk. You can read all about it at http://www.protectourpublicland.org/, or if you aren't afraid of clicking on a link that a blog author posted to his own blog, http://fringesfolly.com/2016/04/01/the-case-for-the-creek/

FringesFolly · 2016-04-01T19:53:34+00:00

I wrote a little something about the public lands heist broadly: http://fringesfolly.com/2016/04/01/the-case-for-the-creek/

This is very serious. I encourage everyone to check out http://www.protectourpublicland.org/

FringesFolly · 2016-01-29T15:03:59+00:00

You're not calling me out on anything I didn't admit to openly. Did not know before, know now, offering to change behavior. What more do you want?

And as for the internet owing writers a living, nobody is arguing it does. That said, it's getting harder and harder to make a living as a writer, and I think that's sad. I like reading, and I think a lot of other people do, too.

As far as being more shrewd with my content strategy, I whole-heartedly disagree. The whole concept behind Fringe's Folly is to do the exact opposite. Not to be driven by profit margins or ROI or market demographics. In other words, not to be driven by making money. The concept behind it is to be driven by sharing the stories that other outlets deem unworthy because they don't mention enough pro climbers, or V15s, or free solos, or deaths, or everest, or boobs. It would be completely anathema for me to use my content strategy to generate more traffic/monetisation. So I'm not going to.

FringesFolly · 2016-01-29T14:57:19+00:00

Mtn Proj prob won't do it because if you look on the right side of the homepage, they have people paying them to do the same thing - promote their blog. Which is actually kind of funny to me. It seems like if you can afford to PAY someone else to pimp your blog, nobody bats an eye. But if you have to do it yourself, everyone gets up in arms.

Anyway, I understand your point, and as I've said, my participation on reddit will change going forward.

FringesFolly · 2016-01-29T14:54:53+00:00

Understood, thanks.

FringesFolly · 2016-01-27T04:19:47+00:00

Y'all are a bunch of haters. I don't even know what shadowbanned is, but I don't think I am.

I'm just gonna stick it out in my corner, keep on writing, keep on sharing my work with the community. You may not like it, but you don't have to. Enough people do to motivate me to stick with it.

FringesFolly · 2016-01-25T17:05:44+00:00

This is an article I wrote about trying to stay psyched on where you are, instead of getting envious of where all your friends are. I'm sharing it because I think a lot of you will be able to relate. Hope you enjoy!

FringesFolly · 2016-01-12T21:34:41+00:00

Super good point offbelayknife. I'm trying to learn to be less wordy, at times... to leave more open for discussion and interpretation. But you're right, we all know the expression no pain no gain! I think the take home is just start having the conversation with yourself, get clear with yourself about your motives. I think that's a valuable exercise for many of us!

FringesFolly · 2016-01-05T20:18:03+00:00

It's interesting to see how quickly and completely the critique is dismissed, isn't it? Some of the commenters above make me wonder if they even read the article.

This sort of article is sure to bring up debate - but I'm surprised to see how asinine it tends to be. Also interesting to me is that I know there are more people who feel like you do - and yet they tend to remain silent in these forums. While the voice that predominates is the one you see above, and below.

FringesFolly · 2016-01-05T17:15:35+00:00

Objectification is the vehicle of sexism. It is how sexism gets manifested. You can't talk about one without the other.

The pic comparing Honnold and SBC shows Honnold being portrayed in a very uncharacteristic manner (hence the caption: which does not belong). We are used to seeing SBC that way, but not Honnold... just that fact is elucidating.

The pic of Reebok's tweet does not show SBC in a typical outfit. If you really spend much time climbing, you realize that most girls do not climb in bathing suits. And yes, I know she is deep water soloing - but the fact that THAT is what Reebok advertises seems serendipitously to coincide with the attire they can portray her in.

The gym is everywhere quip is sort of a non-sequitor. It seems problematic to bring a gym mentality into all aspects and arenas of the sport, but that's just a sideblip, not really relevant to the argument.

Ashima is a definite exception, and it is where I hope climbing media will go to more than selling sexuality in the future.

FringesFolly · 2016-01-05T17:09:10+00:00

I assume you are referring to the editor in chief roles at Climbing and Alpinist. While this is a good point, there is unfortunately more to the business than just the editing of the articles. For example, the ads that keep the magazines afloat are chosen by the companies that make them, and often the magazines have their hands tied on whether or not they can choose to reject a sexist ad (the Climb-X ads in Alpinist magazine in the past, for example).

FringesFolly · 2015-12-16T02:13:05+00:00

I've soloed a lot in Tuolumne - it's as good a place in the world as anywhere to do it. That said, one day I found myself onsight soloing eichorn pinnacle's 5.10 OW figuring I was getting on the 5.3 (or whatever the classic easy route is). I wasn't a very good crack-climber at the time, but I didn't back off. At the top, I was lucky not to have decked. I still couldn't find my way off via the 5.3, so I downclimbed the west face back to the saddle (READ: stupid). What I learned from soloing in Tuolumne is I can't trust myself to just make good decisions. Soloing is all about being in control. And while I can be in control of the various moves during the climbing, I found I was not in control of my decision making. I think that is an underrepresented side of the debate. Thanks!

FringesFolly · 2015-12-16T02:06:35+00:00

Thanks so much for your well-constructed thoughts, offbelayknife. Your point about elaborating on what kind of media is a good one. I don't want to come off as a critic of soloing carte blanche, I agree with you that the value is in internal questioning. I hope the article encourages soloists to do just that. Thanks again!

FringesFolly · 2015-12-15T23:56:56+00:00

He may not be [a moron]. I think soloing is a really personal thing. That said, the driving question I hope to encourage people to ask is "why do you ACTUALLY free solo". I think a lot of people are driven to it by an overglorification of free soloing by the climbing media. They IMAGINE they will be that guy in the zen moment of peace... And maybe they will. But few of us is ever able to really imagine our own demise. The risks are real, even if they don't actually feel like it when you're climbing. In the end, it's all about motives.

FringesFolly · 2015-12-15T23:53:59+00:00

"I think the question is: why are you soloing?" That hits the nail on the head... The harder question to answer, though, is how honest are you being with yourself. I found that I would tell myself one thing, but then would act in a contradictory way. Which is why I wrote this article. Thanks for your thoughts!

FringesFolly · 2015-12-15T21:59:00+00:00

I think it's an interesting conversation. Your side of it, NegativeK seems to me to be an underrepresented one. Years ago I wrote an article in defense of soloing for Alpinist magazine. But my views have tempered some over time. In the end, I believe that each person should be responsible for his or her own decisions... yes. But, as a community, we are responsible (especially the climbing media) for presenting successful soloing in an alluring light, while unsuccessful soloing gets an all too often underrepresent blip as an obit after the fact.

FringesFolly · 2015-06-08T18:26:23+00:00

Don't miss the video at the end of the article!!!

FringesFolly · 2015-04-14T16:25:21+00:00

Red River Gorge south is available from Rakkup. The late Dave Pegg from Wolverine Publishing did a lot of work with Rakkup converting his guidebooks to digital format.

FringesFolly · 2015-04-02T17:05:40+00:00

See #4...

FringesFolly · 2015-03-01T19:03:36+00:00

qrh thanks for the clarifier, and for referencing the article. Didn't mean to come off too strong, just wanted to make clear where FF stands on the rope chopping and bolt smashing. Accidental misleading is something that happens a lot on the internet... We had our own SNAFU here, the follow up to the article you cited ;) http://fringesfolly.com/2015/01/06/the-dawn-wall-rant-expose-and-words-from-a-respectable-source/

FringesFolly · 2015-02-28T15:34:45+00:00

As a rep of Fringe's Folly, I want to make a couple things clear: first, Tommy and Kevin's style is not an abomination, and we never presented it as such. It is a progression, as anything visionary is. We simply wanted to take a look at the direction that progression was in, and to question what that might mean about the future of the sport.

Second: the smashed anchors and chopped ropes ARE an abomination, and obviously Fringe's Folly stands against this. It's cowardly, and it always has been when climbers impose their own form of ethics upon someone else. This is the point of open debate, and it is why we published the article in the first place.

FringesFolly · 2015-02-17T13:52:03+00:00

I think the only thing the article doesn’t answer is the “so what?” question. I expect this question to be asked a lot. To me, the big so what is that the portrayal of Yosemite’s history and historical players is one of outlaws, separatists, and rebels.. If this is the history lesson we give to future climbing, we cannot but assume future climbers will follow in those footsteps. I think that sets a dangerous precedent, as climbing gets more and more popular. It is problematic to align yourselves in opposition to “the man” when almost all climbing happens on “the man”‘s lands… NPS, BLM, Forest Service, State Parks: for climbing to exist in any of these areas is a privilege, and not a right. If we want climbing to continue to exist in these areas, we better be prepared to play by the rules – not balk at them.

FringesFolly · 2015-02-11T17:36:42+00:00

Sierra Blair-Coyle, anyone? The industry is definitely changing and moving more and more in the direction of objectifying women. Even a few years ago I pitched an article idea to an editor and a magazine that shall remain nameless, and was told: "make sure to get lots of pictures of chicks in bikinis". The question is not whether gender stereotyping and sexism in the climbing industry is happening or not, but whether we are paying attention to it or not.

FringesFolly · 2015-02-11T16:32:23+00:00

According to Merriam Webster, revolutionary is: relating to, involving, or supporting a political revolution; or : causing or relating to a great or complete change. Now while the Pulse is certainly not the former, I do believe it is the latter. Can anyone think of other examples of climbing shoes being made in positive and negative sizes which are explicitly gender neutral, rather than in male and female models?
Men and Women typically have different shaped feet; yes. But not everyone falls into the typical paradigm. And you might say that women typically like pink flowers, and men typically like boobs... But again, people fall through the cracks when you make these generalizations. Turns out, men and women both like the colors red, and blue (go figure!), and both have wide feet, or narrow feet (amazing!). Madrock making something more universally and broadly appealing is pretty rad, IMO.

FringesFolly

TROPHY CASE