when does a rock become a problem?

[fuchsl]

Since I've taken an interest in climbing, every time I see an object I think about climbing it.
I was wondering how one goes about deciding if a rock is a good bouldering project or not.


http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150148290059191&set=a.10150148289994191.289468.512709190&type=1
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150148290129191&set=a.10150148289994191.289468.512709190&type=1
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150148290204191&set=a.10150148289994191.289468.512709190&type=1

obviously finding a rock and attempting to climb it is a good start.
How is the route or line on the rock decided or rated for difficultly?

[stoneseeker]

Even if I sign in with my wife's facebook account, it says "content not found", so I cant view your photos, but...

Ratings for difficulty on new routes or problems is decided by a majority opinion of climbers who send it, and are experienced enough to know how hard (relatively) something is compared to other climbs they've been on.

So if someone develops a bunch of boulders (scrubs the lichen/moss off them, finds the lines, climbs them, shares them) and he or she gives the problems that were sent a tentative grade, for the first while their friends and other climbers would be confirming the grades, or challenging them. It's obviously very subjective, and at some point guide book authors just sorta have to settle on a grade that seems most accepted, despite how much controversy might surround the difficulty of the problem.

For most, quality of line is what determines whether it seems worth cleaning a rock to project it or not. Obviously, some would walk right on by boulders that others would drool over, so its pretty subjective. But man, if you find rocks others have not climbed, and they look interesting to you to climb, then climb them (assuming its legal)! Even if it turns out to be way easier than you anticipated, or kind of a sucky line, you'll still be ahead in experience IMO. I've also found sometimes scrubbing seemingly unassuming boulders has revealed tiny holds and cool lines I never would have seen the potential for if I hadn't given it a chance.

Things NOT taken into account for the grade are things like:
height dependency,
scare or danger factor,
conditions needed,
or how many bugs you had leeching your blood at the time of the send.


Good luck! Hope this was helpful.

[fuchsl]

I created a flicker account so there shouldn't be a problem to view the pictures.


http://www.flickr.com/photos/61873000@N04/5628228461/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/61873000@N04/5628228389/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/61873000@N04/5628228343/

[chameleon]

i've got a vague recollection on climbing on that.
i think it's out at crystal crescent ?
used to be real licheny
til we sprayed the snot out of it with acetone
nice and clean now, eh?

[fuchsl]

It was completely clean. I didn't climb it though, just checked it out.
It's out at Crystal Crescent, closer to Pennant point.

[stoneseeker]

How far is it? past IMax?

I would absolutely climb that! It's hard to tell its size, but it looks like you could launch from the crack out the widest part of the roof and try to catch the lip for a fun short dynamic climb. If its smaller than I think, than perhaps it would just be a matter of reaching out and grabbing the lip, but regardless, cool rock!

I'm glad someone was willing to lug 50 litres of Acetone out to that rock!

[fuchsl]

I have it marked on my gps, if Im using the measure tool correctly it's about 350m past the imax area.


p.s.
thanks for the detailed reply Luke

[Eager]

You frickin hippies, I would have used bleach!

[seanT]

it is called the Dinner plate and has been climbed many times in various ways.

[betaburgler]

Pfft bleach and acetone are so last year. I've got some lab grade hydrofluoric acid for my next cleaning project!

[jeremy benjamin]

This thread has wandered way of topic. A rock becomes a problem when it is added to a guidebook. If it is not in a book, it is not a problem and no matter what you are told about how many people climbed it, I wouldn't waste my time. If it is not in a book, then there is no box next to the name of the climbs to put a tick mark in when you send them. If you can't tick it or spray about the grade you just sent then what's the point? This rule applies regardless of the ecologically disastrous biohazardous waste that was used to clean the rock.

There are some climbers that like first ascents (FA). An exception can be made if you are one of these outside the box type thinkers. Remember, no matter how clean the rock is and even if there is chalk on all the holds, if it is not in the book always assume no one has climbed it before you. This way you get the FA. In achieving the FA you get to name and grade the problem. Every attempt should be made to pick a name that uses words you would not say to your grandmother, the filthier the better. When it comes time to grading it you have two choices. Jack the grade 3 levels higher then anything you have ever climbed before so you can spray about how strong you are. OR sandbag the grade by several grades under what you think it might actually be. In this case everyone who climbs it after you will be impressed at how strong you must be to think the V8 is a V3. Another approach to grading is to grade everything V3. This works for some people.

[betaburgler]

Another approach to grading is to grade everything V3

I thought this was the accepted grading strategy in NS. I always believed the reasoning behind adopting a V3 grading policy was to protect our climbers egos. If I flash a v3 then everything is as it should be, but if that v3 spits me off like a an epileptic gerbil caught in a blender (was it a gerbil? I feel like I have the wrong rodent ) then I was week that day. At that point I can simply choose to avoid that v3 by pretending it is beneath me, even though the sight of it makes me pee my shorts a little bit.

[stoneseeker]

Another approach to grading is to grade everything V3. This works for some people.

I'm projecting a V3 right now! It's been my baby and my curse for 5 sessions straight... all it needs is some more solvent and it should go.

Actually, I might even give it a grade of V3 in the Gibralter update when it is finished... just to honor the Benjamin grading tactics.

After all, "Rise Higher" only ended up being a committing 3!

[seanT]

During the first wave of development when the LOC was being explored I graded everything V3....during the second wave everything was V6 and by the third wave ..Skull Rock etc... V8.... and STILL the sponsors didnt roll in.....

[fuchsl]

I came across another rock that I thought was pretty sweet, I thought I'd share it. I didn't see it in a book. Maybe it has a name though?


http://www.flickr.com/photos/61873000@N04/5644113475/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/61873000@N04/5644114385/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/61873000@N04/5644681918/

[ben smith]

These boulders are terrible and small.
Do better.

Hippies.

[Rowan]

That's funny, fuchsl - I just saw that boulder yesterday for the first time. It really is a beaut but - like so many rocks around here, it has a couple of easy ways up that are pretty much scrambles, and then a beautiful sheer face that's just .... blank.
Having spent the winter exploring this vast area near Terence Bay, with mixed results (lots o rocks, but lots o lichen), I decided this W/E to check some 'blank' spots on the coast. Sunday I hit, if not quite the motherlode then at least an auntlode of fun problems near Pond Cove (I'll probably post something about that soon and submit myself again to the ridicule of the community)... so anyway yesterday, encouraged I decided to see what *this* area had to offer. For anyone who doesn't know, it's near the Marine Research Station at Sandy Cove which would more aptly be called Rotting Seaweed Cove. It is a gorgeous, serene spot for a walk, for sure, probably one of the nicest places I've seen in the HRM, with that huge shield of land sloping into the sea, but not much in the way of climbing. There were some nice looking short faces out at the point, probably some good edgy climbin', but close to the water so with the seas so high they were getting battered.
Anyway, re your original question, I learned from my Terence Bay experience that a rock becomes a *problem* when you see it from a vast distance and, intrigued, you return again and again, following obscure trails just trying to figure out how to get to it, then finally having touched this rock, your rock, you ponder its holds and lines of weakness, you go home and dream of it, sculpting it in your mashed potato at dinner, and in the breaks in the winter weather you trudge out to brush off its lichen, rappelling down from marginal, inverted anchors to do so, and then with your rock brushed and gleaming and pristine you persuade a friend to hike out and share in these magnificent first ascents, and finally after all this effort and energy....the opposit of triumph: it's just too big, too clean and too perfect, it's difficulties too weird and high off the ground for an athlete of your meagre abilities to be able to climb.
My two cents. Be pretty sure you can climb the thing first. Don't count on there being ideal crimps lurking under that lichen, begging to be crimped on because there usually aren't, dammit.

[fuchsl]

I was hiking in the area, looking for an old house foundation. (which I didn't find).......

You know when I saw the rock I was actually naive enough to think I was the only one who ever seen it before... like the climbing community hasn't already scoured the coast line of Nova Scotia.
anyways...
I had to explain to my girlfriend and her sister why i took a bunch of photos of this rock, why i just stood there staring at it and why i running my hands over it like i was trying to find a heart beat of feel it breathing.

in the future if i find another rock I think looks cool I'll run it by ben smith first and then post a link
last thing i want to do is annoy the members of the form with silly pictures of rocks.


peace

[stoneseeker]

Don't worry about Ben, he's just the resident troll (you would be cranky too if your diet consisted mainly of oats and wild rodents!)

Any pictures you have of boulders you find are welcome here, even if some of us have found it and walked by it, it's worth the chance that someone might see it in a different light.

Rowan, I'm intrigued by your "Aunt-load" of boulders... looking forward to your post and pictures.

And if your looking to discover new boulders, there are still hard to reach places in West Pennant with new access roads from recent development that hold potential, although I think Ghislain and Nick scoured anything previously accessible pretty thoroughly in the past.
Also, Musquodobit still has a ton of bouldering along the rail trail and in the woods along the road near Colombus wall parking that hasn't been fully developed or explored. Jeremy and Adam took some pictures of a 20' arete with a flat landing just the other day, never been climbed, looks like it could be pretty hard and wicked line! Local passionate climbers exploring for new rocks... thats the way it should be.

[ben smith]

Post up all the pictures of boulders you have. I'd be psyched to see some new flowers

You asked when boulders become problems, these are terrible boulders, they're small and have poor angles. Honesty isn't trolling. I'm just giving honest feedback unlike the rest of these wankers.
Look for bigger, more overhanging, more holds.

[fuchsl]

I appreciate the honesty. I was just poking fun at ya

[seanT]

Ben just gets all uppity when he sees someone is psyched on a boulder that is the same size as his gut. BURNNNNNNN
It should be mentioned however that during my explorations in the eary days with Todd....and DR Wiggles....and various other nefarious characters we found and sent a crap load of problems sometimes with minimal scrubbing if any...in some very obscure places...and documented virtually NONE of it. I could probably take people to dozens of boulders with super cool lines on them that no one has ever heard of or seen. I think that is one of the cool things about bouldering here in NS..that wild...adventure side....and the sensation of a FA is cool... doesnt matter if some patchouli smeeling hippies sent those lines back in 99 or 01...they probably dont remember any way from all the solvent they were inhaling.
Luke B has it right..keep exploring....sending....having fun..bushwhacking....keep it clean... minimize impact....no chipping..
Big Daddy Wallace OUT!!!

[patzer]

Even just in the well travelled LOC I'm sure there is more potential still... It just seems that about a half hour approach is the cut-off before it starts to feel too far away?! But many other places seem to have really long approaches, especially for quality problems? Maybe we're just spoiled...

But speaking of undocumented problems, does anybody know where this problem named Kev's Arrete in Eastern Tide is located at? It's in the Polly's Cove section and I've wanted to climb that thing for a long time since I saw the movie...