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A time for laughter.. a time for celebration.

penguinator

16-Jul-2008
10:33:01 PM

Certified to use wall.

Post has been edited as to be politically correct.

hipster

17-Jul-2008
10:20:32 AM

Great stuff Penguinator!!!
Put it to some use, it got a fair bit when it was built a few years ago but the keen guys have moved on, and taken all their holds with them unfortunately. I came up with the design, so apopogise for all the vertical, but the 45 degree bulges are awesome!!
I'll be down that way at the end of the year helping out on a course so I'm sure you'll have a bunch of crag classics by then for me to have a thrash on..
Ado

penguinator

17-Jul-2008
4:39:15 PM

I was scoping out the routes today, and they have some pretty good lines from the looks of things.

I might press the PTI's and see if they will let me do a bit of route setting!

evanbb

17-Jul-2008
5:47:20 PM

Good effort indeed. I suspect the Army is similar to most other Govt agencies in that the inertia of beurocracy can be suffocating. Just keep turning the big handle and eventually something good will happen...

Turtle Wall

18-Aug-2008
8:29:00 PM

On 16/07/2008 penguinator wrote:
>Well the good news has arrived... The lazy military adventure trainers
>have finally agreed to certify me to use the COMPLETELY un-used large indoor
>rockclimbing wall situated about a 5 minute walk away from my accommodation
>on the base. It literally sits there...and they refuse to let people use
>it based on the fact that they cant always supervise un-certified people,
>but up until now were too lazy to certify them.
>
>A lot of climbing is about to be done!
>
>Please share in my joy. I have not climbed anything since January.

I share in your joy PENGUINATOR for your new ability to use the very under utilised wall at CERBERUS.

I dont share in your obvious disregard for safety protocols and procedures put in place to protect not only yourself as a very able climber but also those that claim to be very able climbers. (there are far more of the latter than there is of yourself)

Exactly like climbing gyms the Government also has insurance requirments to meet and are covered by an insurance body known as COMCOVER. COMCOVER pay all the bills when things go wrong and also go head hunting to find out who let things go wrong.

If "the lazy military adventure trainers" let any self proclaimed expert climb on the wall at any time with no supervision and no certification, accidents, not unlike the climbing gym ones constantly promulgated on this forum would be a regular occurence.

These accidents are obviously no good for the persons involved nor any good for the tax paying public who will in turn then be paying compensation in the form of wages and rehabilitation for many more years to come to the accidentee. Of course those accidents would have most probably happened to members who told the "lazy military adventure trainers" that they climbed punks blindfolded wearing dunlop volleys and got certified by word of mouth.

I can understand your frustrations in what seem like a very menial and simple task to action, however there are far greater ramifications than can be seen from the surface as a very eager person to put into use an unused piece of equipment.

I ask you to imagine for a second that you have served some time in the Navy, gone to sea and maybe even decided to start a family. Sea time is tough with a family so you move to a shore base to spend time with that family, although you love your EXTRA work you also have a family you want to see grow up. Maybe now you can appreciate that those "lazy military adventure trainers" also have a life outside of work and only take on the role of adventure trainer in addition to there normal job as a love but also because the people who are supposed to fulfill that role (PTI's) have no interest in nor any intent in keeping the facilities that you have been so longing to use open.

You might also want to note that those "lazy military adventure trainers" spent the best part of 12 months fighting to keep the climbing wall open and trying to make climbing a bigger thing in the Navy. This 12 months wasnt exciting involving climbing everyday but more writing paper after paper on procedures and minimum safety standards that were to be followed to allow COMCOVER to give Navy the green light to continue using these under utilised facilities. Some of the stipulations where a certification process for climbers and belayers as well as basic safety standards that any reasonable person would follow.

Love your enthusiasm but dont love your ignorance in thinking those "lazy military adventure trainers" dont read this forum and dont put a great deal of effort into ensuring you and other eager people can use the facilities at all, let alone having to wait for a month or two to be certified in work time that you get paid for.

I bet one or two Chockstoners would like to get paid to go climbing on a facility they dont have to pay to use and is only a 2 minute walk from there home?

Hey at the end of the day you can think what you want "the lazy military adventure training instructors" and about the Navy and its regulations but at the end of the day be wise enough to realise it only takes one accident or even a near miss for the government beuracrats to implement a knee jerk reaction.

Maybe the dive school at PENGUIN will qualify anyone as a Clearance Diver if they tell them they can disarm an underwater mine?

dalai

18-Aug-2008
9:17:08 PM

On 18/08/2008 Turtle Wall wrote:
>I bet one or two Chockstoners would like to get paid to go climbing on
>a facility they dont have to pay to use and is only a 2 minute walk from
>there home?

At the chance of getting sent to the front line and shot at!!?? Thanks but I'd rather pay to go to the local gym...

skink

18-Aug-2008
9:22:34 PM

On 18/08/2008 Turtle Wall wrote:
>
>I share in your joy PENGUINATOR for your new ability to use the very under
>utilised wall at CERBERUS.
>
>blah blah blah
>
>Maybe the dive school at PENGUIN will qualify anyone as a Clearance Diver
>if they tell them they can disarm an underwater mine?

Glad you got that off your chest...

kezza

18-Aug-2008
9:26:02 PM

woah .

muki

18-Aug-2008
9:33:02 PM

On 18/08/2008 andesite wrote:

>>blah blah blah

>Glad you got that off your chest...

Cmon the guy has spent allot of time and effort to keep the climbing facility happening for the grunts to
play on, and he gets bagged by penguin for having to put up with certification?
Any gym any where will put you through that before letting you lead on the wall!
Sure it was long winded, but prolly just pent up frustration at having to jump through so many hoops
himself, if you know anything about the services, it's that they are drowning in paperwork/redtape.

penguinator

19-Aug-2008
7:39:43 AM

Appologies. Obviously a lot more to it under the surface. The way a lot of the PTI's have put it, which basically for word from a few of them was: "Most of the people qualified to certify belayers wont do it because they dont see the point if belayers will only be on the base for a couple of months at a time", it does not really seem very fun.
But now its apparent that only two people on base can certify, and these are great guys who now are taking time out of their own schedule to run belay courses in the last few weeks.

Not trying to insult anyone. Just like people say... sick of all the red tape.

Just glad im finally able to use it.

Climboholic

19-Aug-2008
1:26:08 PM

Be very careful mate. The words 'prejudicial conduct' spring to mind.

I understand your frustration at the system but there are some really good guys out there like 'Turtle Wall' who put in a big effort for little reward.

Maybe the best time to complain wasn't after the wall opened?

There are 11 messages in this topic.