Stolen draws/anchor biners from Anarchy wall…

Yeah, so I’ve been working Anarchitect lately. I went ahead and left my draws up with the good faith that no self-respecting climber would steal them – this was a mistake. I showed up this morning and they were gone. Under further inspection of the wall, I realized that the anchor-biners on Monkey Wrench were also gone (these were not worn out). Now there is now way to clean Monkey Wrench with out coiling the shit out of your rope.

Taking one leaver binner or a stuck cam off a route is one thing – that’s booty.
Taking 10 draws off one route that someone is clearly working is theft
Taking practically new anchor biners off an anchor that requires them to be functional is theft AND a community disservice.

I’m going to give this thief the benefit of the doubt and just assume that they didn’t know any better (this was not my initial reaction).

If you, or someone you know is the culprit, please contact me (I promise I won’t cut you). Or just drop them off at the Wilderness Exchange in Denver if you wish to avoid confrontation.

PS – these are VERY recognizable draws. If I see anyone walking around with them I might act a fool/ loose my cool (resulting in somebody getting cut).

Thank you,

SB

This shit pisses me off! Just return the draws... Or we'll find you...

Damn Sam, sorry, it's always lame when this happens. However, I've known 3 different people who have gotten their draws yanked off Anarachitect in the past 3 years. I know it's a bitch to hang the draws on that thing, but this kinda behavior is really no surprise in CCC these days. So if you're going to put project draws on something in CCC, especially if its a high traffic area, then think twice about it or don't be surprised if they're taken.

Sam Benedict wrote: PS – these are VERY recognizable draws. If I see anyone walking around with them I might act a fool/ loose my cool (resulting in somebody getting cut).

Why not post pics and a reward so we can all be on the look out(and ready to cut!).

Cheers,

josh

It's interesting that someone had their draws on Anachitect all of last spring/ summer/ fall and no one f***ed with them. Yet this guy comes around and steals Sams draws and my biners off of the monkey wrench anchor that worked only with those biners there.

What a giant Deuce

You could just remove them when you are done climbing that day... I don't leave my cams up on a trad route that I'm working and expect them to be there the next day...

johnL wrote:John, have you ever tried Anachitect?

Nope, never even climbed in Golden - I am at least a couple years away from climbing that grade entirely :). I just think its lame to leave all your draws on a climb. Especially on one that you, yourself said that they were "super easy to clean on rappel". Leaving them up is just laziness and is an eye sore in general. I'm not convinced project draws have ever caused access issues, but they do annoy me when I'm climbing nearby.

Thats my opinion though and I don't expect to convince you of it.

To the OP

"Taking one leaver binner or a stuck cam off a route is one thing – that’s booty."

I would again disagree...

Well at least on the cam part. Someone who got a cam stuck probably is someone learning the game or is someone who had to bail in a hurry. If I find stuck gear of any value, I think its good to post here and get it back to them.

Tony B made a great point about not only returning it to them, but explaining how he got it free. I think that is the right thing to do.

I will say though that stealing the biner from the anchors IS a dis-service and entirely lame.

I wish you luck in getting your stuff back.

Flame on,

John

johnL wrote: 2. STFU n00b.

I'm not really known for being quiet...I'd say remember guideline #1, but your posts are usually funny and I'm not that easily offended.

Anyways -

If the route is too difficult or too dangerous to climb for you, wait until you are good enough to climb it.

This is a concept that it took me a long time to learn. I don't understand why guys who climb hard sport think its cool to dumb down a route so that they can climb it. I guess I just don't understand how fixing draws is any better that chipping, or adding bolts during the run out. What if someone shows up and wants to send it clipping bolts on lead? Should they have to remove all the draws you left up because you were to lazy to rap down and take off? Maybe I will understand it in a few years, but for now its over my head, I guess.

This is really going in a direction that is against the ideas of the OP so thats my $.02.

John

Edit* I should add that I have no problem with someone sending a route on fixed draws. Its not a style that makes sense to me, but to each his own. The only issue I have is when stuff gets left up for no other reason that laziness. If there are routes that can't be cleaned on rappel, so be it. You made the point that this isn't one of them, and why I spoke up.

John Maguire wrote: Nope, never even climbed in Golden - I am at least a couple years away from climbing that grade entirely :). I just think its lame to leave all your draws on a climb. Especially on one that you, yourself said that they were "super easy to clean on rappel". Leaving them up is just laziness and is an eye sore in general.

Hanging the 3rd draw on Anarchitect is usually accomplished by standing in a sling clipped to the second bolt, and really stretching to reach the bolt. The bolt is placed well to protect the crux move, but hanging the draw would require you to clip off the worst hold on the route - and would be much harder than any move on the route. Which is why people use a long draw on it, so they can clip off the decent hold lower (still a reachy and tenuous clip). It is not realistic to climb through the crux before the 3rd bolt is clipped because you might hit the ground if you fell.

So that's why people leave draws on the climb. It's not laziness, it's the fact that getting the draws on there is not that feasible if the route is anywhere near your limit without an aid climbing production, or at minimum, a dangerous scramble to rappel from the anchors.

Also, clipping draws to bolts to make for a more fufilling lead is, IMO, kinda silly. I've sent sport routes that were hard for me both ways, and felt no more satisfaction doing it one way vs another. I suspect most sport climbers would agree with me, especially those climbing 5.12 and up. Gear climbs are another story - placing gear is involved enough to really add to the value of the climb.

Well you could make some special project draws by replacing the upper biner on the draws with a quicklink. It might make it less desirable, but also makes it harder to clean. It might discourage the thief, or they may take the time to fully clean it, or they may simply take the lower biners :p

Jeff Welch wrote: Hanging the 3rd draw on Anarchitect is usually accomplished by standing in a sling clipped to the second bolt, and really stretching to reach the bolt. The bolt is placed well to protect the crux move, but hanging the draw would require you to clip off the worst hold on the route - and would be much harder than any move on the route. Which is why people use a long draw on it, so they can clip off the decent hold lower (still a reachy and tenuous clip). It is not realistic to climb through the crux before the 3rd bolt is clipped because you might hit the ground if you fell.

That would be good information to have in the route description.

johnL wrote: The road taken by most of us to get to that point has changed my view on a lot of things.

agreed.

were the anchor biners on anarchitect taken too?

Anarchitect anchor replacement, 8/20/08.

I have to ask...don't you see the posts that pop up every few months in regards to someone getting all their draws stolen off a route?

In no way is this excusable and it's downright theft, but what do you expect?? This is no different than the guy 3 months prior to you that got all his draws stolen too.

People will stop stealing draws when people stop leaving them on a route. No sense in tempting people to steal your stuff, no matter how hard the route is etc. This will stop happening when people stop leaving draws. Simple.

But again, sorry you had to learn the hard way. Not cool.

I had the last three draws stolen off anarchitect earlier this spring also. I had tried the route on sat and then came back sun and the top three draws were gone. Sam, I think you might have been out there one of those days with tom t. Someone must have rapped in during the night or early in the morning when it was freezing cold to nab them which is pretty weird just to steal three kinda manked project draws. lame

I see why people leave draws on routes. But if your leaving them on routes in CCC that is very populated and had large amount of climbing noobs that drive though it; Then they are probably going to get stolen.
When people just get into climbing they do not know anything about the ethics. Most noob climbers probably don't even know what a projected route is and just see some left over draws hanging on a climb, or extra biners at an anchor.

Just saying, CCC seems like a place where stuff gets stolen easily.