New Bouldering Guidebook for Portland/Seattle Northwest

This post violated Rule #1. It has been removed by Mountain Project.

Really? Satire is no longer permitted?

MorganH wrote:Really? Satire is no longer permitted?

IMMEDIATELY after the OP posts AGAIN about how he is trying to fix mistakes and engage the local community, you rehashed the same tired complaints and sounded a lot more like a jerk than a comedian.

I'm not defending the book, but Rob deserves some credit for taking a licking, and still willing to try to make it better.

Nick Wilder wrote: IMMEDIATELY after the OP posts AGAIN about how he is trying to fix mistakes and engage the local community, you rehashed the same tired complaints and sounded a lot more like a jerk than a comedian. I'm not defending the book, but Rob deserves some credit for taking a licking, and still willing to try to make it better.

Please stop policing the forum. These are opinions and as I can tell from years of reading posts, one in which people have many strong opinions. It is your job as mediator to delete profane, blatantly slanderous posts. However, Rob published a book that has misinformation and is now asking his readers to perform his editing and QA/QI process. So of course he is willing to work with people...it's his editing process. The posts that have been deleted have valid critiques. If one publishes a book, any book, then they are opening themselves up for such critique. If you delete the negative comments then you should also delete the glowingly positive because they are probably biased in some way as well.

Nick Wilder wrote: IMMEDIATELY after the OP posts AGAIN about how he is trying to fix mistakes and engage the local community, you rehashed the same tired complaints and sounded a lot more like a jerk than a comedian. I'm not defending the book, but Rob deserves some credit for taking a licking, and still willing to try to make it better.

Nick - I think you've violated rule #1 with this post. You called me a jerk (yes, saying someone sounds like a jerk amounts to the same thing) and insulted my comic writing skills. I would appreciate it if you would moderate your own post. For some reason, you've taken a side in this discussion, which has been extremely civil so far, considering what's involved.

In my not so humble opinion, my post was hilarious, it should be restored to its former glory.

If I provide corrections for some of the areas I know, will I get a refund for my copy? Seems like I spent $40 to have to edit it on my own since you didnt want to do the legwork.

Hey Rob, I can't defend a bad book, but you at least seem like a guy with character and class. Which is more than I can say for your fellow PNW boulderers.

Micah Klesick wrote:"Extremely Civil" doesn't explain your post that got deleted in the slightest. There's a difference between the post you made explaining your issues with the book, and downright being a jerk about it. I first heard from Rob about the difficulty he dealt with in getting info from the developers up north months before his book came out, so this issue isn't new. Rob told me that initially some of the developers agreed to help him, but then they refused to give him any more info, so he didn't have a choice but to reference info he found online, on videos etc., and the exploring he personally did of the boulders. So, there's definitely two sides to this story.

He had a choice, to not publish bad information. The correct way to approach this was suggested earlier in the thread. Only publish the information that you personally can verify, and if you don't know it, for whatever reason, don't publish it. Thats not that hard to do.

PabloZ wrote: Beyond this, the guide book includes my name on the inside cover without my consent to give this ream of paper credibility. I in no way assisted in the development of this guide and want my name removed from this book's inside cover immediately.

I was at the store and I opened this book, I saw the name Pablo on the inside cover and I was like "huh, this makes this book way more credible even though I have no idea who he is". I almost bought it on this fact alone and then I realized that most of the bouldering in the book isn't worth the drive.

First, let me start off by saying yes, I did just register. But I did not register just to troll or to talk trash about the book. I've been a casual observer of MP for several years and a PNW climber for almost 20 years. I've been keeping up tabs with this thread and just felt there were a few things that I wanted to either say or ask.

For the group who continues to bring up the same points and points obviously against Rob's book. Grow up. You said your opinion. That is great. But what continually saying the same point does is makes you all come off as childish and petty. If your aim is to try and get people's attention to what could be some valid points against this book, you're not doing yourself any favors right now.

To Jesse and whoever else may have this information. I have not looked at the book. Several of you have referenced the books misgradings. You said in your last post that some grades are off by up to 7 grades. Several of you have used the example of a Laraby route that has a grading of V2/V9 which has been cleared up as to why it has that grading. Is that your only example of a grade 7 off?

To Rob. If you did have trouble dealing with local developers in the Seattle area, did you go ahead and make up some names of problems? Because I agree with Bryans. You have the responsibility to write about what you know and no more. There's a reason that most guidebook authors are people who are entrenched in the local climbing scene. They have access to the information as well as ties to the local scene to gather any info that they don't have.

Yes, a lot of people are "secretive" about their bouldering spots. That's nothing new. But you can't assume that the reason for secrecy is to keep the areas to themselves. There can be, especially in the PNW, land access issues to deal with before opening the flood gates. Look at Gold Bar. And I'm not saying that the locals were being secretive. Sounds like they had a public blog with detailed information about locations and problem info. Can be much more open than that.

And does anyone remember DrTopo? I miss those days. Guides for climbers by climbers. Not for money or notoriety or any BS like that. Just people wanting to share their love of an activity with those around them who also share the same feelings. Yes, they weren't the best of guides, but they got you to where you needed to be and many times let you discover what areas really had on your own.

This forum saddens me, I expected more from the administrators of mountain project. It is clear that they have a relationship with the authors and should recruse themselves from editing this forum. The books grossly erroneous descriptions of remote areas are dangerously incorrect, an inexperienced climber could get seriously lost. The publishers should recall the book immediately before someone gets hurt. When you make up information for a guidebook, you put a lot of people at risk.

JohnML wrote: The publishers should recall the book immediately before someone gets hurt. When you make up information for a guidebook, you put a lot of people at risk.

We are still talking about a bouldering guide right?? Are you joking?

This is funny stuff. So serious about a botched attempt at a guidebook for mediocre boulders that very few people give a damn about!

Anybody have a used copy of this guidebook they want to get rid of? Doing a month in Portland again this summer and would love to help somebody get rid of a book they don't really need or use anymore.

I just want to check back in on this thread and say that I have continued to successfully use this guidebook in Oregon.
I have had no major problems with directions or maps (though there have been a few very minor scale-type errors on a couple maps...but nothing that would lead to the wrong area or boulders).

Lol Mike Brady.
Come visit me in Bend dood!

For good boulders, botched guidebooks or serious people? F it, lets just go drink good beers and leave this foolishness behind. :)

Jason Chinchen wrote:Lol Mike Brady. Come visit me in Bend dood!

This is funny J. You proved me wrong!!