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Does ANYBODY actually like to go climbing?

Original Post
Logan Hugmeyer · · Salem · Joined Jan 2019 · Points: 6

Kind of a rant here but im frustrated with the climbing community. We talk about "shirt off our backs" being a close knit community, blah blah blah. If you are a novice you will remain a novice because every time you ask people to climb they are "sooooo busy" then they post a trip report the next weekend. How do you find somebody to actually go outside and climb. People told me buy your own rope. Done. No partners. Start building a rack to contribute to the party. Done. No partners. Go to the climbing gym and talk to people face to face. Done. They look at me like a leper. What am I doing wrong? I really would love to be a belay bitch even but im not part of the community so i will remain not a part of the community. Is it always so damn cliquey? Ive been asking climbers to go climbing since 2015 and 1 person has said yes. Not an exaggeration ONE person. Getting close to selling my shit and taking up needle point. In the off chance that somebody here reads this im in the willamette valley and willing to drive about an hour to climb. Hell I've even offered to buy the beer.

H Lue · · Leavenworth, WA · Joined Nov 2015 · Points: 10

Sorry to hear you're having such a hard time finding partners. Hope things get better, let me know if you're ever in the Seattle area. 

Brad Larson · · portland · Joined Apr 2019 · Points: 0

Hey Logan. I'm in Portland but I'm down near Corvallis regularly. I'd like to tick the routes on Owl Slab near Mary's Peak, for one. Where are you?

Robert S · · Driftwood, TX · Joined Sep 2018 · Points: 654

1. Maybe you really are a leper.

2. Change your username to something obviously feminine and pirate some model pic for your profile. Then you'll get lots of invites.

3.Complain on MP. Wait, never mind...

Drewski Brewski · · OR · Joined Oct 2017 · Points: 0

What city are you in Logan?

cassondra l · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Nov 2008 · Points: 335

If you’re in Vegas, I’ll drink your beer and climb, as long as you make advance arrangements. I’ll have to fit you in between my other partners. 

Old lady H · · Boise, ID · Joined Aug 2015 · Points: 1,374
cassondra l wrote: If you’re in Vegas, I’ll drink your beer and climb, as long as you make advance arrangements. I’ll have to fit you in between my other partners. 

Oooo! Sounds cozy!

OP, you maybe might kinda consider posting in the partner forum? Asking for partners? Kinda radical, but hey....

Best, OLH
Logan Hugmeyer · · Salem · Joined Jan 2019 · Points: 6
Brad Larson wrote: Hey Logan. I'm in Portland but I'm down near Corvallis regularly. I'd like to tick the routes on Owl Slab near Mary's Peak, for one. Where are you?

Live in Salem, work in Portland. I was planning on top rope soloing some of those this month.

Logan Hugmeyer · · Salem · Joined Jan 2019 · Points: 6
Drewski Brewski wrote: What city are you in Logan?

Live in Salem, work in Portland. 

Logan Hugmeyer · · Salem · Joined Jan 2019 · Points: 6
Old lady H wrote:

Oooo! Sounds cozy!

OP, you maybe might kinda consider posting in the partner forum? Asking for partners? Kinda radical, but hey....

Best, OLH

Is that different than filling out the info for the partner finder feature? 

Marc H · · Longmont, CO · Joined May 2007 · Points: 265

You’re definitely in the wrong place if you’re trying to find someone that actually likes to climb. We prefer to talk about it.

Lena chita · · OH · Joined Mar 2011 · Points: 1,667
Logan Hugmeyer wrote:

Is that different than filling out the info for the partner finder feature? 

Of course it is. Filling out your profile for partner finder means you would be listed in searches that other people do, in your areas. You would be literally a name on the list of 100s names, and no way to tell if you are available this weekend, without messaging you directly. 


Posting for partners in your regional forum  means that you specifically say where you want to climb this weekend, or whatever, and people who aren’t doing a partner search will see it. 

I generally don’t need to search for partners, so I don’t. But sometimes I see a post asking for a partner for the coming weekend at the crag where I’m going, and I respond to that, anyway. I’d say that I have responded to a dozen or so people in the past couple years. And actually climbed with 4-5. Out of whom 2 became repeat partners. 

Maybe you are asking the wrong people? If the people you ask climb much harder than you do, and there aren’t a lot of options for crags near you that accommodate a spread of grades, it is a lot tougher for them to say yes, especially if they are interested in a specific project. 

If you have been climbing outside since 2015, and know enough to do rope soloing, maybe you could invite someone less experienced than you, and “grow your own partners”, so to speak? 

We all have seen that guy who’s gone outside twice feeling that he is an expert now, and can take out his friends for their first outing... and that’s terrifying. But 4 years is a good chunk of time to learn things... if you haven’t learned much in 4 years, that might be telling, why people don’t want to take you out. 
Jon Welchans · · Longmont Colorado · Joined Jun 2010 · Points: 75

Boulder... Bouldering is inherently more social, especially at the gym. I've met a lot more of my partners bouldering than rope climbing (at the gym). You'll also get stronger, which also helps to find partners.

Lee Harris · · Cleveland, TN · Joined Feb 2009 · Points: 30

I've met several folks through partner posts on here. Start with a gym meetup and go from there. Low commitment level, easy to bail if you don't like 'em.

Spaggett, Gotcha! · · Western NC · Joined Jun 2018 · Points: 0

Logan - don't know about all the ideoligical "community" stuff, but generally most people I know like meeting other people through climbing.  I've invited folks from the gym outside after meeting them through normal human interactions (e.g. guest of someone in my climbing group) or just casual conversation during bouldering sessions.  These provide an opportunity to get to know their abilities, general demeanor, common sense.   Just because it's a "community", there's no charity case or obligation to take every newcomer outside because they REALLY want to go.  You have to like their company enough to spend the day with them and trust them to some degree, esp. if it's just 2 of you.  Some DGAF about this kind of thing and attach a Gri to anyone offering beer, but most people care about their company and you can't force it.

Don't get so salty ("people don't invite me" frustration reads like narcissism), focus on getting better in the gym, genuinely try to meet and get to know people through your gym, and needle point is a good fucking activity - maybe those people will climb outside with you.

master gumby · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jan 2016 · Points: 262
Jon W wrote: Boulder... Bouldering is inherently more social, especially at the gym. I've met a lot more of my partners bouldering than rope climbing (at the gym). You'll also get stronger, which also helps to find partners.

But why relegate yourself to the teenagers of climbing. I've seen more clicks and ostracisation in bouldering than any other form of climbing.

Positive attitude and willing to climb outside of yer bubble could help.
Andy Eiter · · Madison, WI · Joined Jul 2014 · Points: 276
Logan Hugmeyer wrote: Kind of a rant here but im frustrated with the climbing community. We talk about "shirt off our backs" being a close knit community, blah blah blah. If you are a novice you will remain a novice because every time you ask people to climb they are "sooooo busy" then they post a trip report the next weekend. How do you find somebody to actually go outside and climb. People told me buy your own rope. Done. No partners. Start building a rack to contribute to the party. Done. No partners. Go to the climbing gym and talk to people face to face. Done. They look at me like a leper. What am I doing wrong?I really would love to be a belay bitch even but im not part of the community so i will remain not a part of the community. Is it always so damn cliquey? Ive been asking climbers to go climbing since 2015 and 1 person has said yes. Not an exaggeration ONE person. Getting close to selling my shit and taking up needle point. In the off chance that somebody here reads this im in the willamette valley and willing to drive about an hour to climb. Hell I've even offered to buy the beer.

It's perfectly reasonable for someone to be too busy to climb with you but not be too busy to climb. Some people already have a hard enough time finding opportunities to climb with the people they already know they like.

I enjoy showing novice climbers the ropes, but I also enjoy climbing for myself, and I don't have unlimited free time. If I have a climbing weekend planned with a partner that wants to push our grade or tick off a bunch of routes, I'm not going to invite novice climbers. It wouldn't be fair to my partner either.

If you want to partner up with someone, look for ways to fill a gap in their climbing needs, so they get something out of it too. Don't look to tag along on a trip where they already have everything sorted. Ask when they want to climb and their regular partner can't. If you're willing to drive up to an hour away, see if someone wants to go get a few laps in on a weeknight.

Beer is great, but no amount of beer that is safe to drink while climbing is going to make an outing enjoyable if you don't get on well with the person. A climbing trip isn't just climbing; it's a couple hours in the car and a bunch of conversation.

Roots · · Wherever I am · Joined Dec 2010 · Points: 20

LOL...funny rant. Yes, climbers do actually like to climb...

Ever make it to this side of the Cascades?

Eric D · · Gnarnia · Joined Nov 2006 · Points: 235
Logan Hugmeyer wrote: Getting close to selling my shit and taking up needle point. 

No, no, no!  Bad idea bro.  The needle pointing community is vicious.  You think it's hard to find people to climb with?  Just you wait.

Old lady H · · Boise, ID · Joined Aug 2015 · Points: 1,374
Logan Hugmeyer wrote:

Is that different than filling out the info for the partner finder feature? 

As someone else posted, yes!!!!

Five years in, I have yet to have anyone hit me up via the partner finder. I've paticipated in the forums (understatement) and now have invites all over the country, and real friends from MP.

From the start, I have ​responded to almost every post in the makedo forum where people post who are looking for partners in Boise. In town for business, wanna climb sorta things. I've also posted myself. That's much, much more specific. I have also begged and offered bribes in the past, with no local response. It's simply tough, when you are new.

Better, for local stuff, we have a Facebook page for climbers here. That's the place to post "Anyone wanna climb at the mids this Sunday morning?". With the size of the climber pool where you are, MP could work the same way. Just give people a little more notice though.

You have a bunch of snow stuff on your ticks. Alpine climbers will (understandably) be much, much pickier about partners than just casual belay swaps on single pitch rock in sight of the car. Get on your local message boards, Cascade climbers, something like that, and start letting people get to know you.

Best to you! If you mosey through Boise, an old lady will do, and yer feeling brave, ya gotta catch! No beer required.

H.
Logan Hugmeyer · · Salem · Joined Jan 2019 · Points: 6
Roots wrote: LOL...funny rant. Yes, climbers do actually like to climb...

Ever make it to this side of the Cascades?

Not as often as i would like unfortunately.

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

Pacific Northwest
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