Carderock Geoff RIP

I'm not the best guy to post this sad news, but Geoff Farrar, AKA Carderock Geoff has passed away. He died from injuries sustained at Carderock. There's a great picture of him here.
I've never met anyone like him, and the loss of knowledge about Carderock is heartbreaking.
Please share any stories you have. He'll be missed.

Definitely not a climbing-related injury resulting in his death. Sad news for all around.

dccrimestories.com/2014/01/…

This is really tragic. Geoff was a fixture of climbing at Carderock and was always friendly. I hope the news article is wrong about the way things transpired. Dave is a good guy, though maybe somewhat misguided.

Article says "David DiPaolo, 31, also known as David Jennings, was charged with manslaughter after U.S. Park Police detectives caught up to him in upstate New York on Thursday."

Who is this Dave? Was he a regular? Did he have a nickname he went by at the crag?

Super sad. When I posted earlier, none of this was substantiated. The news story is maddening! "I found a claw hammer..." I met Dave once. He was a regular out there. Kept a little dog with him.
Regarding Geoff, "misguided" is not accurate. He was an opinionated, condescending, grump who knew everything about that lump of rock called Carderock. The first time I climbed there, I had set up for top rope soloing at Jan's Face. I'd just climbed "The Flakes". Geoff, after a little introductory chit chat, informed me that I had not actually climbed The Flakes because I used a certain obvious nob. Within a few minutes, a had three guys standing around me offering more beta than I thought possible. Even better, the beta was great. It was a very pleasurable send. I got to be a guest in a wonderful, small and cantankerous climbing community. It was unexpected, for sure. And from my vantage in the Front Range, I find myself missing that singular little crag and that tight little community. Geoff dying like that is pretty hard to take.
I'm sure others here have good Geoff stories. Let's hear some.

Dave Dipaolo (aka Carderock Dave) was the second most commonly seen person at Carderock after Geoff. He is 31, as the article states, and an extremely strong climber. If you had ever spoken to him, he would strike you as a burn-out with a classic stoner affect to his voice. He could commonly be seen free-soloing and bouldering and would happily accept a belay if someone would offer. You could usually find him smoking a cigarette while chalking up his mismatched shoes before a hard bouldering attempt. I've traded belays with him several times at Carderock. I know that Geoff and Dave had climbed together because I had exchanged stories with Geoff about Dave many times. Geoff would fondly refer to him as "little Dave".
I was shocked to hear of Geoff's passing and am now even more shocked by hearing of Dave's alleged involvement. I can only hope these allegations about Dave are not true. Geoff continues to be in my thoughts as I mourn his loss.

I spent a day at Carderrock with Geoff, good dude, he knew every single eliminate at the place and then some and was willing to show you in between his circuit.

"Little Dave" was commonly known as "Stoner Dave" most recently.

So sorry for your loss Sharon. . . my condolences to you and your family.

I met Geoff the first time I went to Carderock this past fall. New to the area and in need of some beta he was more than happy to oblige. We knew a lot of the same people from the industry and spent the day bouldering around. I wish I had had more time to learn about the area from him. Thank you for your knowledge.

The family is planning a memorial for Geoff, at Caderrock, in May.

Oh behalf of the family, I'm collecting images of Geoff. If you have any please send them here [twelve7nine(a)gmail.com] so I can pass them along.

Thank you in advance.

Ocean

I didn't know Geoff personally, but I do know he was a well respected and liked member of the local climbing scene. Such a shame.

I did meet Dave on a few occasions a few years back at VA crags. His mental health is surely a factor in this incident, provided he is truly involved. He always seemed more than a bit unusual - not violent per se, but definitely somewhat manic and certainly reckless. It was difficult to carry a coherent conversation with him, and I thought he was going to kill himself the way he placed pro and climbed. I always felt the need to watch my gear closely when he was around.

I met Geoff a couple times. Really nice, but but no pushover either. He wouldn't let you 'cheat' on all those elimination problems. Loved to sandbag too - 'just reach your right arm' or 'now pull'... as if it was that easy on those polished pebbles! Tendon pullers and toe-tweakers for sure. He could float on them. Wasn't he a farmer? Seemed to know a lot about that kind of stuff too.

I first encountered little Dave at Seneca, when he lowered someone off the end of the rope on the southern pillar (Climbin' Punishment I think). Descending from that anchor requires two ropes or a stretched out 70M; end of rope went right thru belay device, climber seriously injured.

Brad in the bay wrote:I met Geoff a couple times. Really nice, but but no pushover either. He wouldn't let you 'cheat' on all those elimination problems. Loved to sandbag too - 'just reach your right arm' or 'now pull'... as if it was that easy on those polished pebbles! Tendon pullers and toe-tweakers for sure. He could float on them. Wasn't he a farmer? Seemed to know a lot about that kind of stuff too. I first encountered little Dave at Seneca, when he lowered someone off the end of the rope on the southern pillar (Climbin' Punishment I think). Descending from that anchor requires two ropes or a stretched out 70M; end of rope went right thru belay device, climber seriously injured.

So sad......

What is "beta"?

ShazyB wrote:What is "beta"?

So sad....

RIP Mr. Farrar

Geoff was the first climber I met outside the tight circle I started climbing with. He made fun of our slip lasted shoes and distaste for swami belts, chided us for pulling on plastic in 'bad' weather and showed us how much more interesting climbing you can do on short, slick, oddly angled schist if you are willing to keep your hands below your waist. Geoff should have been on the cover of the local guidebook. No offense to Sharma, who visited once. Carderock will be a little quieter and a helluva lot more boring with Geoff gone. R.I.P. Geoff

I met Geoff during my first trip climbing outdoors, years ago. We thought we were hotshots, but Geoff free soloed literal circles around us as we top-roped. He sure as hell made an impression on me, and opened my eyes to the possibilities of climbing. Here's the only picture I have of him then (well, the back of his head), showing us one of his signature boulder problems. This one requires a handstand with a flip follow through.

Geoff was a treasure and will be greatly missed by many. His routes and willingness to share his knowledge help countless climbers.

Geoff, thank you for all the help and patience over the years!

See the story and bio by Hunt Prothro in rockandice.

http://www.rockandice.com/lates-news/carderock-geoff-farrar-killed-by-climbing-friend

Truck13