New Yosemite Free Climbs Select Guidebook Almost Done - Call for Photos!

On the fifth post to this thread started by Erik Sloan he states that he was motivated to work on a Select by the apparently slow speed with which the Comprehensive project is progressing.

He brought it up, not I... I have been trying to correct Erik Sloan's misperceptions on the Comprehensive effort.

Where he has offered topos, they are apparently "beta" releases, to be debugged by the climbing community. I pointed out some problems with the topos... which is what he was asking for (I think).

While I would appreciate out-of-state visitors like K Weber providing input for a Yosemite Valley guide, I don't see what his rush is... maybe he can elaborate. Hopefully there will be ample opportunity to critique the Comprehensive in the near future. I do feel the imperative from the local community who are in the Valley right now. However, most locals can get information the old fashioned way, by asking their fellow climbers. We still want to bring the largest selection of climbs to the widest possible community.

As was pointed out, the new Comprehensive will be larger than the last one, and we are working on a design that will better suit modern climber guide usage.

Me thinks Marc and E.S. are buddies maybe ?

ERIC....please stay away from any areas that don't have new guide books.

"disappointed with the progress that Don Reid, Clint Cummins, Ed Hartouni, and Eric Gabel have made on their book to date. I run into people everyday who say 'oh yeah, they've been working on that for what, 10 years."

Yeah it takes a long time to put out a comprehensive guide, that is not simply a re-drawn copy of the topos found in the old Reid.
I will wait for the comprehensive book, no matter if it takes two more years. The old Reid guide has more routes than I need till than. But good luck to all of you. There should be enough demand for both products.

Ed Hartouni wrote:However, most locals can get information the old fashioned way, by asking their fellow climbers.

Or, god forbid, people actually attempt to climb - *** gasp *** - without any guidebook at all. It's like it's somehow become unthinkable to just eyeball a rock and get on it.

J watermelon wrote:Hey Erik sloan, Can you tell me the opinions of Tommy and Alex about retro bolting and ethics?

You can find opinions of Tommy and Alex on this tread:
Tommy posting under nick name "T Roper " and Alex under name "K Weber"

J watermelon wrote:Me thinks Marc and E.S. are buddies maybe ?

Never met him other than through these threads....

Mike. wrote: Feel free to cite any particular list item and explain your objection to it. Please try to be specific. I don't follow your thinking on the rope swing. Lots of swings and lines have been erected all over YV by many climbers and others who have removed them and not broadcasted that they be maintained (illegally) by climbers. Why would I or anyone object to them?

What's the illegal part?

"Yo Gang!" A group has kindly started a "bickering" thread for all. I think it's titled something like "Why are MP users so sensitive nit pickers...." Plenty of room there.

SRB25 wrote:"Yo Gang!" A group has kindly started a "bickering" thread for all. I think it's titled something like "Why are MP users so sensitive nit pickers...." Plenty of room there.

woot woot!

Yo Gang,

I've been thinking this week about how grateful I am for all of the amazing folks who have stepped up to contribute to this( and my bigwall) guide. Thank You Thank You!

One of the most important modern Yosemite climber tools, that I'm surprised that folks still don't know about(like that REI bought MP), is Xrez.com. Eric Hansen and Greg Collins really helped out Yosemite Climbers when they developed their system of making gigapixel pictures. Their partnership with Google for the Yosemite Extreme Pano project is straight up climber(and guidebook author) gold! Check out this page and see how cool your last route looks, from a couple different angles. Big Big Props to Xrez!

xrez.com/yose_proj/yose_dee…

Sorry that this thread has devolved to such negativity. That is certainly not my intention.

I, and the climbers I talk to in Yosemite, are super psyched on this new guide, AND for the guide that Ed, Clint, Donny, and Eric are putting together.

For sure we are a divided bunch in the climbing community. I sure hope in the near future we can be meeting around a real campfire, at the Yosemite Climbers Ranch, to talk this kind of shop instead of popping off online.

Public opinion is a funny thing, check out this article:

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/11/16/politics-and-the-new-machine

Dude, no one is "popping off online" and every single time you've opened any of these threads you've had an opportunity to constructively engage the community. But at every turn you simply keep posting cheerful drivel while ignoring any and all discussion of your retrobolting, around which, there is little 'division'.

No one has a problem with you rebolting or putting out a guide; they have a problem and a legitimate problem with your retrobolting, comfort bolting and terraforming activities. The damage you do yourself every time you post here without addressing those concerns is substantial and past a certain point just starts reeking of pathology and narcissism.

Since this got bumped back to the front I will respond. Please let this thread die and quit giving this tool free publicity!!!! He doesn't understand the concept of public consensus, nor does he want to.....and wants the attention.

England wrote:Since this got bumped back to the front I will respond. Please let this thread die and quit giving this tool free publicity!!!! He doesn't understand the concept of public consensus, nor does he want to.....and wants the attention.

Internet climber consensus and climber consensus are 2 different beasts

Roper...you're funny.

I was thinking of a different pronoun.

Let's hear it! I was being ironical.

Sorry, my word definitely violates guideline #1

Yo Gang!

Just checking in to let folks know that we are deep in the layout stages of the new book, but could still use some help:

There are several content pages that need to be created.

Fake ads, for things like Fern Spring, are fun and I'd be psyched on some, say for 'the river of Mercy' or 'Toe Joe's bigwall gloves' or whatever

I had hoped to release the book in app form this week. I wanted to just put out a simple app like an ebook. But it looks like the book release could be so relatively soon - sometime between March and June - that I'm going to wait and release a full app as soon as it's finished(a bit of help is still needed with that too).

As always, thanks for all the input and support. The amount of folks coming together behind this has been super inspiring. If you have amazing landscape images I could still use a few of those.

Woot Woot!
Erik
Yosemitebigwall.com

Hi Guys!

Thanks for your interest in the new free climbing book. Man does YOsemite need it!

I"m psyched to announce that I'm partnering with the incredibly talented Marek Jakubowski(marekjakubowski.com). Marek is making some incredible maps to the crags, which I'm sure are going to help us all stay on the trail, get to the cliff quicker, and consolidate our climber impact by not wasting time wandering around in the woods.

The lower canyon has been pretty warm. A friend was complaining about it being almost hot climbing at the Cookie yesterday, hahaha, while we were iced over here in Curry Village. Go For It!

Woot Woot!
Erik - erik@yosemitebigwall.com
Rockclimbyosemite.com - Yosemitefreeclimbs.com - Yosemitebigwall.com

ps. Alex Honnold did not donate the current rope for the rope swing. He did donate a rope back in September, which I put on the Heart Ledges fixed ropes. The rope swing rope is sustained by donations(we buy a new rope every 4 - 6 months). Email me if you would like to donate!

pss. The rope swing has been coming up, so I'll say my two cents about it(that's all this is, just my opinion): The National Park Service is entrusted with preserving the resources of Yosemite Park. They manage user groups and activities within the park, like climbers and climbing, with an eye for keeping Yosemite as wild and natural as possible. The rope swing is hardly a cause for concern. Is it a slightly different type of usage of the cliffs of YOsemite. Yes. Is it really any different than the kind of usage that the climbers participate in, drilling their bolts from bottom to top of the mountain like Warren Harding famously did right next to the rope swing on Wall of Early Morning Light, and Jim Beyer did just last year on his Hummus Fights for Gluten-Freedom route, hooting it up like monkeys, and generally trying to live wild and free on the Big Stones? Is the swing really any different than that? Does it need special attention from the NPS, or is it just a variation on climbing, using climbing equipment and anchors, and is taking place at out of the way spots and so is creating a good outlet for these enthusiasts, and is certainly no more danger than the other activities like hard aid climbing and kayaking that the park manages? Slight variations on activities hardly constitute a new user group definition, or a serious cause for concern - especially when the activity is using existing trails, etc. It blows my mind to think how many more people have had a unique experience of El Cap because of the rope swing. I get comments, emails, and texts all the time with lines like 'It was the coolest thing I've ever done!' Go For It!

Erik Sloan wrote:The rope swing is hardly a cause for concern.

Directly from the NPS:

Fixed Ropes
The Rules

Property left unattended in Yosemite for longer than 24 hours is considered abandoned and may be impounded. However, the National Park Service recognizes that there are circumstances when it is impractical for climbers to return to fixed ropes within 24 hours. In such cases we ask that you leave ropes and equipment in place only as long as you are actively using the lines.

Fixing ropes to get a head start: if you decide to fix ropes partway up a route before beginning your ascent, do so only immediately before beginning your climb and remove them once you commit to the route.
Fixing ropes to "work" a route: If you plan to return to a route regularly, leave your ropes in place only when you are actively working the route. (This does not include taking a week off to rest.)
Established fixed ropes: Ropes like those sometimes found below Heart Ledges on El Capitan are not maintained or condoned by the National Park Service.
Mini Traxion Lines: Same rules apply; If you fix a line for training, remove it the same day. As a courtesy, do not leave ropes or gear on popular routes that might be an eyesore or an inconvenience to other climbers.
--------------------------

Now again, whichever of you overzealous moderators keeps deleting things that I post, (I posted this same thing above earlier today and one of you nutjobs deleted it), if you have an issue, you take it up with me personally. I am very, very close to removing every piece of info I've ever added here and ceasing to contribute anything here ever again.