Etiquette

Hey gang. After reading through the recent "trade routes" thread, I thought a definitive thread on climbing etiquette would be a great addition to mp. I have friends who have tried climbing but gave up on it because of bad experiences that would have been avoided if people knew what others expected of them. One could argue that there are enough people crowding the crags as is, but... I still think a general, as-definitive-as-possible-on-mp etiquette thread is a good idea.

So bring it on. What's commonly accepted etiquette that new climbers (and old) would do well to observe?

I think everyone can agree that:

- You must yell "rock" whenever you cause something to fall or observe something falling. Whether it's an actual rock, or your rope, or a piece of gear, whatever... yell "rock." People have died.

- Don't give beta on the route unless the person climbing asks for it. Just like the guy who's wearing the t-shirt of the band he's going to see... don't be that guy.

- The universal climbers' currency is beer. If another climber retrieves your gear for you, or gives you a ride, or otherwise does you a solid... offer it.

I'll probably catch hell for this but I'm going to take a stab at it anyway:

- If you're into a multi and spy a faster group gaining on you, make a solid judgment call on whether or not you can allow them to safely (for everyone) pass. Base this decision on your [group collective] expertise and ledge/anchor situation as well as taking into consideration time of day, their speed/your speed, distance to end of entire route and whatever else may come to mind based on the conditions. Once a decision is made, convey this decision to the approaching party and offer your rationale if the decision is to not let them pass.

Above all, *communicate* respectively with the other party to avoid bad vibes getting started... that stuff just snowballs and eventually explodes somewhere on a forum in nasty shades of pent up frustration.