So what does climbing mean to you?

I am writing a paper and need some descripive words for what climbing means to others....I AM NOT TRYING TO FIND MY OWN REASON FOR CLIMBING I HAVE ONE

Meeting new people, going new places, and experiencing new experiences. Climbing is actually just a small part of it the big picture and it's a pretty good excuse to travel!

To spend time in the outdoors with my kids

Climbing to me has always just been a self-evidently awesome thing to do.

Lots of reasons...

Getting outside and getting (somewhat) away from the crowds

Facing fear

Forcing myself to focus. I have a short attention span and my mind is continually bouncing from one subject to another. I CANNOT do that while climbing. I guess it is somewhat meditative to me.

Spending quality time with my teenage sons. This is the biggest right now. My sons love the sport as much as I do. You get up on the rope and you realize you are putting your life in the hands of the person on the other end if you fall. Your 16 year old son is a pain in the butt, but now you are staking your life on him. Likewise, your son thinks you are a grumpy curmudgeonly ogre and can't wait to get out of the house. But suddenly he has you on belay and he realizes your life depends on him.
He's on the rock and he realizes he's not the be-all end-all of the world who can leap tall buildings in a single bound. He has to rely on you to catch him. It's really pretty deep and hard to explain if you haven't felt it.
It's an amazing bonding experience for all of us, and REALLY brings us together. For now, that's why I climb.

Adventure, a chance to push my limits, discover something new about myself, among many other ways of enjoying myself in the outdoors, it is the one I appreciate the most. Chiefly, it offers something that requires my full and complete attention, which pushes out all the background of a busy life and gives one clear purpose: that next hold, that next piece of gear, whatever that may be.

Its funny how every time I hit the crux on a trad lead I start thinking "Why the hell am I doing this...maybe trad isn't for me..." and by the time I'm at the top I'm already planning the next route I want to do, or the next trip I need to make.

It doesn't matter how crappy your day was, how stressed out you are, or how many problems you might have. When you get on the rock none of those things matter any more. I can only think about one thing and that is getting up the rock. It frees your mind if only for a few hours. It is the Best.

I think my boy Luda said it best:

What means the world to me? Snappin bras, menage-a-trois
What means the world to me? Smokin hash, slappin ass
What means the world to me? Breakin laws, racin cars
What means the world to me? Makin bail, A-T-L

Also, climbing for me is a lot like what fishing is for many – an excuse to be outside and get shit-faced.

I’ve also heard people say that climbing is like a metaphor for life as a whole – that actually makes since. The only problem there is that climbing is lame. If climbing defines you as a person, you are lame.

Climbing is also meditative – whatever.

I also think its sort of a means for white people with comfortable lives to fulfill an instinctual need to fight to survive.

Some people see it as a competitive sport – those people are usually just bad at real sports.

Really, I think it just is what it is. It means something a little different to everyone and that’s ok.

Climbing takes us to some of the most beautiful places on earth!!!!!

A way of life.

So interesting.

mountaineering
For me it's the freedom of the hills and the solitude of a small group or solo. Seeing what others don't get to see, hearing the "space" around you, and the sheer joy of it. I don't even care about summit logs anymore. The journey really is the reward. Some of my failed attempts have been my greatest memories. People focus on the summit and miss a everything else. I try to explore and just take it all in.

One of the best quotes I have heard:

Live your life each day as you would climb a mountain. An occasional glance towards the summit keeps the goal in mind, but many beautiful scenes are to be observed from each new vantage point: Harold B Melchart

As for rock climbing, well it's just fun from the easy to the hard.

Climbing puts the mustard on my rutabaga. It butters my britches, man, tickles my cockles, and makes most any beer taste exactly like Zeus' sweet tit milk.