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General Climbing Discussion

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The fear thread 29-Nov-2008 At 2:48:48 PM vwills

Message

>I never got scared and then I got old.

No one seems to have addressed this inference. Is age alone a factor, or is it a reflection of greater experience and length of climbing. Obviously age and experience go hand in hand, but people do seem to become more conservative as they age.

I have got more cautious in a short but varied climbing career. I tend to think its the belayer inattentiveness incidents, the avalanches, the rockfall, the close calls that make you realise that gravity is a harsh judge of errors. I hope that current decision making is not influenced by fear but by wisdom.

Fear is not something to be overcome. It should be embraced and used. Uncontrolled fear is detrimental to performance and judgement. If it can be harnessed it results in clarity, decisiveness and focus.