Continue with onX Maps
Sign in with Facebook
Success finding partners
|
I’ve always climbed with the same partner as we started climbing at the same time and knew each other before hand, but as we get older life might be taking us in separate directions. Is there luck to be found in the MP Forums in finding partners? What are some other ways to find partners that have proved to work? |
|
I’ve had success on many fronts. My main climbing partner is also my life partner. I climb with them about half the time. I have a few other partners that I’ve been climbing with regularly over the last several years, depending on the type of climbing (ice, ski mountaineering, alpine rock, trad, sport, etc). Two met on MP, one randomly at a crag, one from being a friend of a person I met on MP, two from work. Anyway I’m trying to say that there are lots of ways to meet partners. Just try everything and be open and patient. |
|
MP is kind of like a dating app in regards to partners. I have had mixed success with one partner being a good friend, others I see a couple times a year, and a couple that I only climbed with once. My best partners I met organically. The folks I have met at the cliff or friends or friends have ended up being my more consistent partners. Every couple of years I have to refresh my roster because people move away or like you have stated, move in a different direction in life. |
|
I have only had great experiences meeting up with people via MP I've made a lot of great friends. 10/10 would recommend. |
|
One thing I have learned is that stoke and vibes are super important. If you’re climbing with someone who complains a lot when things aren’t going their way or when the going gets tough, it will weigh on you and make climbing way less fun, whether you consciously admit it or not. |
Lane Mathis wrote: This. You meet partners by going climbing - not going to the keyboard |
|
I've been climbing with MP randos since 2012, some of whom attended my wedding this year. Overwhelmingly positive experiences. I have never had a partner that I would decline to climb with again for safety reasons. Some personality issues, but no dealbreakers. I also do a decent amount of vetting, plus virtue signaling on my own profile for those who are considering me. |
|
partner finder goes |
drew A wrote: I am one of these people! Though I think we met through a separate "PNW" forum post, not directly thru the partner finder? Which is how I've met most of my newer partners, rather than spamming the partner finder. Anyway, hope we can get out climbing again sometime, Drew! |
|
I have never utilized the partner search feature of MP, but I have responded to people who posted looking for partners on MP for the times/areas that matched my plans, and I’ve had overwhelmingly positive experiences. A few were one-off meetings, where we just didn’t mesh particularly well as personalities, even if there was nothing wrong with them safety-wise. But many have turned into repeat partners, and friends. |
F r i t z wrote: I can fix that |
J P wrote: Haha hey dude! We gotta get out to ozone again soon. Lots of good climbing days as of late. I’ll text you! |
drew A wrote: Wait I also live in Portland area, and would like to climb with y'all. :P In seriousness, I’ve used MP extensively to find climbing partners, especially when I lived on the road. Never used "partner finder", always made a forum post or responded to a post. I’ve also never had a bad experience, the worst have just been simply neutral. We climbed, it was good, we never spoke again -- a climbing one-night stand. For the most part though, many of the people I’ve met here have become incredible friends who I love dearly and make efforts to see often. One of my main PNW friends I met off MP, then got introduced to their big Portland climbing crew and I’m so thankful. I'm climbing this weekend with a friend I met off MP years ago. Other places that work, are local Facebook groups, example: “ClimbPDX” or “Squamish Climbers”, “Southern California Climbers”, “Vegas Climbers” etc. Some groups have like 9k+ members. They're harder to vet though, because I usually look through someone's tick-list prior to climbing with them and FB offers nothing except the person's own words. I’ve met some people off there, no bad experiences but interestingly enough, more straight neutral than great experiences -- all of the people who have become lifelong climbing friends, came from Mountain Project. Another (obvious) spot is just the gym and crag. I kind of aggressively collect phone numbers and instagram handles by just straight up asking. If someone’s doing the same route as you or are in the same area, chances are they like similar climbing styles. Friends of friends, etc. Met some amazing people that way. |
|
MP partner finder is like when craigslist was at its heyday; you get some good deals, you get some bad deals, but no matter what you get a good story out of it 8) |
|
Let's get some data in here (past two years or so): Total MP Climbed once, wouldn't climb with again: 1 Climbed once, would climb with again but fizzled out: ~14 Climbed more than once: 5 Long term belaytionships, total: 3 Long term belaytionships, active now: 2 (and I stopped looking once these two were active) This is in addition to 3 or 4 other partners that I knew personally/met through friends/etc. Overall I'd say I found success on MP but it was a bit of a numbers game (I prefer longer term belaytionships, so I was 'dating with intention' as they say). |
|
Truest thing ever posted in the meme thread. I have found partners before but mostly the partner finder is this:  |
Adam W wrote: LMAO I made that meme. Inspired by the fact that when I used my real name (very obviously feminine), I got significantly more replies. When I changed my name to something neutral/masculine I got fewer hits. I can't tell you the number of times I've met up with someone off MP, they knew me as "Ry", assumed I was a dude -- and just walked right past me at in the parking lot, very obviously searching for a man. I once also picked up the phone when a potential MP partner called me, and the person on the other line thought they had the wrong number. I like having a neutral name because it immediately vets some people with other intentions...also the shock/surprise factor of "hello I am tiny girl" is fun. :) |
Ry C wrote: Lol message if you want to do an Ozone session on a weekday morning! Either me or JP or both! I’m trying my hardest to become a sport climber :-) My soon to be wife has instilled the joy of clipping bolts in me. |
Ry C wrote: Lol it’s a good meme, if you ever watch something like the Vegas climbing Facebook group this is exceptionally true there |
|
Well, I've been climbing for a long time so originally I met most of my partners at the cliff offering to show people beta for climbs they couldn't get up in order to mooch a top rope. Obviously, a lot of my early climbing partners no longer climb, especially the ones who are significantly older than me. I have found the many people over estimate their climbing ability. I have also found a few people who are looking for free guide service/instruction that didn't really come out and say that. I live in an area that doesn't really have that many Climbers and also if I'm looking to go on road trips and my regular peeps aren't available mountain Project is a very useful tool. Also, I'm retired and it's harder to find people to climb mid week. |
|
Have had lots of success using partner finder and responding to forum posts looking for partners. Some have become a few of my best friends! I usually check out their profile before to see if we mesh, but try not to be picky since some I wasn’t sure about turned out great. Definitely recommend trying your luck. |
