Fred Beckey, 90 years old, climbing in JTree
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AWESOME |
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Somebody should write this man's life... from a climber's point of view, he has made more accomplishments than can be counted. It would be a shame if there were no biography for Fred! |
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Becky: Awsome. |
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So moved and inspired! Thank you Fred |
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nicojah wrote:Somebody should write this man's life... from a climber's point of view, he has made more accomplishments than can be counted. It would be a shame if there were no biography for Fred!You should invest in a copy of Fred's "100 Favorite Climbs" ($50 or so on Amazon.com). The intro is a long & funny biography of Fred by Barry Blanchard. Fred's route descriptions also have lots of personal recollections. |
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There are many that come close (Layton Kor and Harvey Carter come to mind) but nobody that quite equals the awesome lifetime dedication to the spirit and meaning of "Dirtbag Climber" (or in modern parlance, "professional climber"). Fred and Harvey may have to dicker it out on actual first ascents, but nobody shines a brighter flame to our tribe, around campfires or in brewpubs, about our passion for who we are and what we stand for. Climb on forever, Fred! |
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so awesome to look up and see fred climbing that day. |
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Clint, thanks. That was incredibly fun to read. |
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Erik Harz wrote:Upon returning to the base to pick up our stuff, Fred discovered that while he was climbing, a little girl camped at the nearest site with her family (her dad must have told her about Fred) wrote Fred an inspirational card! Fred was stoked, and walked with his head up as high as he could back to camp, with the card in one hand and his classy mountaineer coiled rope in the other.I love this! we climbed moosedog tower that day as well, the same very cute little girl (around 4 or 5 yo) told my partner and I if we needed anything to come to their campsite. oh and way to go Fred! |
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Rock & Ice has an article on their website concerning your climb with him using your pics, and more. Thought they should haave at least named you instead of,"two other climbers". Anyway, good on you! Best wishes, and happy new year! |
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anyone read the coffee table book by Smithsonian called "Mountaineers: great tales of bravery and conquest"? Great book but Fred only gets a mention on Yvon Chouinard's bio page. Serious over site! |
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Richard, thanks for sharing. Your post has been linked on a recent post on Patagonia's blog, The Cleanest Line. |
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Erik Harz wrote:Upon returning to the base to pick up our stuff, Fred discovered that while he was climbing, a little girl camped at the nearest site with her family (her dad must have told her about Fred) wrote Fred an inspirational card! Fred was stoked, and walked with his head up as high as he could back to camp, with the card in one hand and his classy mountaineer coiled rope in the other.As ever, the ladies love Fred Beckey! Watch him around your girlfriend... |
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Regardless of his previous accolades, climbing a few pitches of 5.6 at 90yrs old is and should be an inspiration to all of us, climbers and non-climbers alike. |
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Awesome. I had the opportunity to meet Fred and watch him climb almost 20 years ago. At the time I knew of him but my appreciation and admiration of him skyrocketed after that day and climbs more year after year. A true legend, I hope I get that opportunity once again. |
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Richard, thanks for posting this. One of the most inspiring things I've seen on MP. |
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Awesome post - thanks for sharing. Really made my day. |
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I want to send Mr. Beckey a birthday card from all my 2nd graders. anyone know the mailing address of this dudes van? |
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Fred is incredibly inspiring! Once a climber always a climber! It's in the soul!! |
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Hope he took the "obvious descent gulley". |