Today I went out to Brady's Lookout to try an old project up the steeply overhanging face on the south side of the cliff. I'd been on the route previously and due to the difficulty, steepness, and lack of good lower-off anchors I had chose to leave my draws on it for easier access on my return. It's been a couple months since then (damn near impossible to convince someone to come give me a catch out there), but I made it out today only to be disappointed by the discovery that someone had taken my draws. Now this route isn't exactly popular or on the beaten path, in fact as stated it's yet to be climbed (probably 30/31) and off by itself. This means that whoever took those draws didn't just snag them in opportune passing but specifically rapped or aided the line with the sole intention of plundering the gear. Of course this realization left me a little bitter, but rather than mentally labelling the individual straight away as a thief I considered that maybe this person just didn't know any better and wasn't yet privy to the 'code of conduct' as it were among climbers for gear that's been left behind. You don't often see fixed routes here in Tasmania and obviously there's local ethics to take into account, but I've found in all the countries and areas that I've climbed there are some general guidelines climbers follow which I've shared below. If you're the person who took my draws and after reading this would like to repent your actions then you can either a) replace my draws where you found them, b) use someone else to anonymously return them to me, or c) email me directly at markpolinski at hotmail dot com. If on the other hand you read this post and still choose to keep what you stole, consider that I will recognized those draws (or biners for that matter) if I see them again, the tassie climbing community is small, and although I may not actually brand you as done in Inglorious Bastards, there will be retribution.

What you CAN take:

1. Single Carabiners on any bolt other than the anchor. This usually indicates that someone couldn't get past this point and had to bail. A 'bail' biner is fair game for the taking. 

2. Single piece of gear on a route. Sometimes people get nuts or cams stuck and after failing to get them out abandon them. If your savvy with a nut tool, they're all yours

3. Slings or draws on anchors. Unless it's there to even up height difference, equippers will only put the minimal (i.e. single biners) on an anchor. If there are slings or draws left behind it usually means they've been forgotten.

-Now of course you could be generous and try and return this stuff to the original owner, but that's for you and your karma to decide.

What NOT to take:

1. Single carabiners left on the anchors of a route. These are not booty, they were intentionally left to make yours and everyone else's life easier so leave them alone.

2. Tramming carabiners. Although you won't see this much in Tassie  apart from maybe on a traverse or something, in areas with lots of steep climbing you'll often see a single biner on a bolt partway up the climb. This is because when your trying to clean your draws on steep terrain sometimes it's quite handy to have something midway to run your rope through to make cleaning those last few draws easier. I suggest using it as it's intended before you get all exited to get another bail biner for your rack.

3. Draws left on most (if not all) the bolts of a route. Some people, such as myself as I indicated above, leave the draws up on their projects so they don't have to bother re-hanging them each time they go try it. Maybe the first draw will be removed to keep people from just walking up and taking it, but this is not a sign that it is abandoned. Rest assured the owner will return. Feel free to clip them, fall on them, put them through there paces; but don't steal them. If someone spots you doing it you might end up like this guy:  http://www.dpmclimbing.com/articles/view/smith-rock-quickdraw-thief-caught-video

-If safety, aesthetics, or some other reason warrants the above gear be removed you should make a good effort to return it to the owner if possible or replace it with something better.

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13 Comments

  1. Jed Parkes

    Ah damn, that's shit mate :( Hope u get them back. Same thing happened to Jake on Pleasant Screams, unfortunately they where never seen again.

  2. Simon Young

    well said! lets try and pass the message on to those who don't read this site so much!

    what biners/draws were they? then we can all keep an eye out....

  3. dave james

    that sux Mark. sorry to hear. I'm a bit scared though,your message seems  a bit hateful and  lacking in compassion for young climbers that may only suffer from naievity and ignorance. They have probably left the state in fear with ur draws. good idea to put the brief up. maybe the dudes with blogs could repost your info to spread it further. i'll post it on the Uni club facebook page.

    goodluck

  4. Mark Polinski AUTHOR

    My primary intention for writing this little passage wasn’t really to get my draws back. Although I obviously would be happy with their return, having 5 or 6 of my leaver-draws stolen isn't something that I'm going to loose sleep over or incite me to start stapling flyers to telephone poles. It was more to outline some fundamental codes of conduct that, in my opinion, should be instilled into every climber. You don’t walk all over other peoples ropes, you don’t shit underneath the start of a route, and I believe just as importantly you don’t steal biners off anchors or fixed protection off of routes. These principles may seem like common sense, but in my experience I’ve come to realize that if someone doesn’t at least point our attention to such details, many intelligent and otherwise caring individuals will do some pretty dumb and ultimately destructive things as a result of simple ignorance. I posted this here to bring these points freshly to the attention the climbers that peruse this site in hopes that they, as mentors, club directors, climbing instructors, ect., will pass it along for the improvement of our climbing community as a whole. Wouldn’t it be nice to go to your after-work sport crag and have lower-off biners on all the anchors? I assure you it’s not from a lack of people that would be willing to make this improvement a reality. It’s because the would-be altruist figures those biners will likely get stripped and it will have been some ‘climber’, albeit maybe a newbie, that has done it.

    Before I moved to Tassie, I usually had 30-60 draws hung on projects at local crags at any given time. We had bines on all the anchors of popular routes, even on many of the not so popular ones, and I’d have to say it was pretty awesome. I haven’t been as motivated for climbing since I moved here for a variety of reasons, but nevertheless I still usually have 15-30 draws hung up on projects at crags around the Island and I’ve definitely thrown some biners on anchors of routes that I thought were really good or popular to help in making other peoples experience a little easier. The recent loss of my draws from Brady’s hasn’t yet sent me stripping my other draws or improving anchors, but I’d have to say I’d be pretty disheartened if more where stolen or if I go back to some of those popular climbs only to find bare steel. I’d hope we can encourage our community to be better than that.

    1. John Fischer

      Right on Mark. I have done a fair bit of dirtbagging, but stealing people's gear is absolutely shit. There was an article in Rock by a local from the blue mountains who was proud about stealing draws, ropes left by school groups, etc. He does new routing as well and I wonder how he would feel if I unscrewed and stole his hangers as booty? I could argue that, surely he should just stick with carrot bolts. And actually what about prying carrots out as well? Im just trying to make a point here. But how far do these idiots take there logic? Or are they just plain thieves?

      I love booty. Lots of climbers do. Dave is kind of right. Young, naive, bumbly, (read: STUPID) climbers who hear about "booty" get all excited and start "bootying" leaver biners and draws justified by some sort of preconceived "trad" ethic of not leaving gear behind or some other horse shit. Its funny that in the USA, where dirt poor bastards are tearing down power lines to sell for scrap,  quickdraws can still remain on routes. But in Oz, where I have personally financed international climbing trips on the dole, (comparatively) rich kids are stealing draws! Its actually really annoying.

      The scrappy, "booty" everything, bin dive, live in the same clothes for months attitude is good to have when your trying to keep the climbing trip going forever. My friend Neils, while climbing El Capitan, stopped halfway on the Monster Offwidth (on lead!) to booty a stuck #6 camalot on his and Mayan's one day free ascent of Freerider. That's commitment to booty. Retards who think they are carrying some hardcore "booty" ethic by stealing draws off a project need to be quickly put back in there place. Thanks Mark for bringing this up. I hope the people who did this STOP it and give the draws back. The next time I hear of some bumbly, or a retard like Mitch from the Blue Mountains proudly bragging about "bootying" gear, I will remember to set them straight. However, if they are just simply thieves, I think we can get inspiration from Inglorious Bastards.

      1. dave james

        those "comparitively rich kids" may well be on the dole too CJ.

        I think its also fair to say that the mostlikely person to steal draws is someone who probably genuinely believe the draws were left accidentally rather than deliberately (on a trad climb accidental would mean fair game in most climbers thinking). I would suggests someone who simply hasn't done enough climbing yet or someone yet to be taken seriously by other climbers or under the wing thereof. A far more parsimonuous accusation than suggesting there are a bunch of arseholes in the climbing community seeking to steal at any opportunity.

        1. Jon Nermut

          or it was the goddam abseilers! or the goddam basejumpers

        2. John Fischer

          Dave- I have no idea what your point is about rich kids being on the dole.

          Regarding if it is "fair to say" they genuinely thought they were left accidentally: If someone thought all the draws were accidentally left on an unclimbed grade 30 project, it would be the almost inexcusable act of an extremely stupid person. Otherwise, it is the same as telling yourself your just "borrowing" a random car when you steal it. The reality is that there ARE in fact a bunch of arseholes who are seeking to "booty" at any opportunity. Some of them are our friends. I believe my summary of uninformed (stupid) climbers who are fascinated with the idea of "booty" and would love to rap in and steal draws off projects is accurate. It may well be abseilers, or other twits who have, just barely, the sense to rappel over a route and unclip a draw from a bolt. If they are not, in fact, stupid bumblys who are taking these draws, then they are thieves. Either way it is inexcusable and needs to be stopped. Although on second thought, it probably is those god damned basejumpers!

          1. dave james

            John, u suggested the so called thieves were "(comparatively) rich kids". How do you know that? More likely college kids on youth allowance with a poor code of conduct or could think of no other reason for the draws being there because they doint understand what its like to redpoin/work hard 'projects'. They could just as easily be dirtbaggers collecting draws for their next dole funded eurotrip. I actually doubt the latter the case because Climbers of that ilk or experience almost always understand why there are a bunch of draws left on a sport route, and i'm sure u wld agree. I just don't think its fair to make up stuff about the nuts that took (or bootied) some draws.

             how many draws have u lost in this manner and let me know which of our friends will booty at any opportunity?

  5. Daniel Rose

    The way i see it if there is gear left behind it should be seen as "litter" and picked up and returned to their owner. We don't throw rubbish on the ground at the crag. So why should a draw on a wall be any different. And anyway who wants to walk up to a crag and see a draw in every bolt on the wall. Seeing the bolts up there is bad enough. Not to mention the fact that leaving a draw out in the weather is most likely going to damage it. And i don't think insulting people and accusing them of stealing draws that have been left out in a public place is fair. Also the 'rules' that have been layed out......there are many different reasons to leave gear behind and any that does should be picked up by the next person and returned to them. If someone doesn't try to return the gear then it can be considered stealing.

    1. Will Bartlett

      Hey Dan,

      Going to have to disagree with you there man. Draws are left in routes for a variety of different reasons, some which Mark has outlined above. The main reason is that when working projects at places like the Star Factory, Sphinx, Neika, Fingal etc draws are left in simply for the convenience. Re-hanging draws each time you want to try your project is just a pain, simple as that. This problem is compounded when they are hard to put it on lead or you have to extend some draws.

      Personally I think at an established sport climbing cliff leaving draws can no way be considered 'litter' or likened to leaving rubbish on the ground. The bolts are already in the rock (that's another debate) so people are going to visually be just as attracted to the bolts as they are to draws if they are left it. However in Tassie it's a moot point - how many walkers/tourists/non-climbers walk underneath places such as the Factory, Neika and Fingal and exclaim that the draws are an eyesore? The answer is virtually none. There are exceptions to this, the most obvious being the Organ Pipes. If someone leaves draws in Pleasant Screams for example then yes, it is quite visible. Is it more visible than all the hangers glinting in the sun? Probably not. Again personally I have no problems at all with these long bolted routes on the Pipes but that's another debate if you disagree. 

      People who leave draws in sport projects generally accept that there will be weather damage to the draw. This is usually negligible if it's short period of time (say a few months) but yes it can damage the draw over time. However I think you're going to leave draws in for that amount of time you are prepared to sacrafice them. The only issue I see here is at places like Diamond Falls in the Blue Mountains where there is often super strong winds, and the draws swinging in the wind damage the rock. This doesn't really happen in Tassie though so not really a valid issue I think.

      Mark's not insulting people - he's simply laying down some pretty straight forward, commonly accepted practices in regard to fixed gear. I know I would be pretty pissed off if someone went to all the bother to strip draws off a project, especially on a hard route. Then there's the issue of whether the draws get returned - it is better just to leave them in place rather than consider it your duty to go around cleaning draws off lots of different routes just because you think they shouldn't be there for whatever reason. Obviously I'm only talking about draws left in for the purpose of the owner returning to the route - gear left on trad routes and people bailing due to bad weather etc is totally different but it's a very clear distinction in practice. The people who've taken Mark's draws are either A) complete bumblies who have taken the draws thinking someone has left them there or B) dickheads who've stolen then. Simple as that I think.

      The other issue is fixed gear like at Sphinx Rock, where there are a couple of fixed draws with mallions. They make everyone's life a whole lot easier to clean the routes so please respect the time/money/effort that's gone into putting them there and leave them be. Same goes for all the fixed gear at the anchors of routes as Mark has already said (e.g Antimatter at the Factory).

      So in short, please leave people's draws as you found them on sport routes. If the whole route has had draws hung on it, the obviously it's someone's project so there's no need to move the draws. Whoever's got Jake's, Mark's and anyone else's draws, own up, and give them back to the rightful owner! Not trying to cause a shitstorm, just trying to clarify if anyone is unsure of the accepted norms regarding such fixed gear. 

      Cheers

      Will 

  6. Simon Young

    SES got my draws out of serpentine

    an even simpler summary of the above:

    Rule #1: dont be a dick (if unsure if your being one, you are)

    its the overwhelming minority that would a)notice, and b) not find it fascinating.

    1. dave james

      delightfully succinct Simon and a fundamental. The problem is dicks suffer the same lack of self awareness/perception that psychopaths do. Dicks don't think they are dicks... which is part of the reason they are dicks ;)