Says the top-rated comment on "Coming Soon to an American Cliff Near You: ‘Via Ferrata’ Routes/Long popular in Europe, the beginner-friendly climbing routes are being installed on peaks and in gorges across the United States. Here are six to try now" (NYT).
Another commenter responded: "I'm not a fan of electric mountain bikes, scraping undeveloped nature for human activity or a tram that could whisk you the bottom of Grand Canyon. I don't object to a via ferrata at a responsibly-developed, sustainability-focused resort like Taos Ski Valley, which was already a year-round destination popular with climbers, mountain bikers and hikers."
That guy was out there alone and really exerting himself. At these beginner-friendly places, don't you think it's a slow moving crowd — a bit like the "South Park" "Trip from Hell"?
Where's the "just right" zone between boring and dangerous? It's going to vary by person — and I wouldn't want to be in a group of people with variable ideas about the boredom/danger balance.
Don't even ask me about the time I fell out of an alpine sled because I misunderstood the danger warning. And I have vague memories of being terrorized by a Ferris wheel companion who thought it was a natural part of the fun to get the seat rocking when you were stalled at the top during the time-consuming loading process.
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24 comments:
Re Ferris wheel: AAAAAGH! I once made them stop one to get me out. That was my last Ferris wheel.
so, how does this tie into placing an electric-bike path in a wild and scenic river valley?
is The Plan: make the entire world accessible to lazy people? Isn't THAT what amusement parks are for?
What happens if (I mean, when) the person(s) ahead of you should stall or crash: do you wait, retreat or try to help them? What if those behind you keep crowding you? What means of communication do you have with the operator of the via ferrata: a walkie-talkie or your smartphone that —oops— just slipped out of your hand and is now sailing down the cliff face? How does the operator manage the flow of traffic and any conflicts? Who comes out to rescue somebody who gets hurt partway up? Who maintains and repairs the equipment and who checks their work?
Does the waiver of liability fill two telephone books or three?
So many questions!
"Electric Mountain Bikes" are better identified as Electric Off-Road Motorcycles.
In my experience of suburban USA, "electric bicycles" have pedals, chains and sprockets that are superfluous to the way most people ride ... errr ...drive them. They are too slow in traffic and too fast on sidewalks.
The more people have opportunities to be in the great outdoors, the less mental health problems.
The one in Colorado...
. According to Mr. Iuppenlatz, between 4,000 and 6,000 visits were anticipated during its first year; more than 10,000 were recorded
hmm. seems like a summer thing; let's figure (maybe) a hundred days a year, 8hrs a day?
so
More than 10,000people/100days == More than 100people/day
More then 100 people/day // 8hrs/day == More than 12.5people/hr
hour/60minutes // More than 12.5people/hr ~= LESS THAN 5 minutes per (between) person
Sounds like you so get there early.. or, don't go
math is FUN!
This is an old issue. Is via ferrata different than via mula? A visitor can hike the trails of the Grand Canyon down to the Colorado River or take a mule. We hiked down, and felt that we enjoyed the experience more than the riders. There is something to earning the scenic view. The accomplishment is more exclusive.
Decades ago, Acadia National Park had a few rebar ladders to complete hiking trails. Even difficult and technical climbing routes may have permanent anchor points installed so that each climber isn't setting their own. Via ferrata should be employed sparingly so the climber is still working for the goal.
I'm not sure what the issue with the ferrata. I can't see the NYT article but the YouTube video just looks like a permanent belay system. Any easy rock climbing route is going to look like a busy queue on a busy day. I don't think the permanent metal rope is any more distracting than multiple belay lines.
My mountain bike gained about 4mph yesterday after an afternoon repairing a dragging disc brake.
But should we really be encouraging mountain climbing?
And I have vague memories of being terrorized by a Ferris wheel companion
I don't know how these fears work out, but while I don't have a fear of heights, I'm not comfortable in glass elevators. I'm fine with roller coasters, but I don't like ferris wheels.
I did the same thing on the alpine slide at Copper Mountain many years ago. Went too fast (of course, I was 22), bit it and slid a really, really long way down the trough. Lost a bit of skin that day :-)
via ferrata? No way, never, no, no, no! Can't even watch the video without getting the heebie jeebies.
There’s a ferrata course in the Red River Gorge in Kentucky. A few years ago I went there with three millennial guys who are friends of my children. They did the course and I stayed back at the base and took telephoto pictures. Interestingly, none of my children whose friends these were would do the course – they all went to a small reptile zoo nearby.
It's not heights of which I'm afraid. It's the slipping and falling.
Ferris wheel rockers are THE WORST.
So, what's the Carbon footprint of going on a via ferrata trip?
I think it’s great! Making that climb was no easy feat, and making it safer can’t be a bad thing except for those very precious few who have, or think they have, real skills. It’s sort of like those Yamaha electric pianos that will play chords progressions and rhythm for you while you pretend to be a real musician. At least you get to enjoy the process of doing it.
- Krumhorn
Less intrusive than the ziplines that have sprung up everywhere.
Wilbur said...It's not heights of which I'm afraid. It's the slipping and falling.
It's actually a fear of jumping.
Don't like it, don't do it.
Simple
Wind turbines, planes of glass, a Green blight upon green fields.
I climbed down a cliff in Israel using permanent rungs (but no safety gear) because by the time I realized what it was it was too late to back out. The guy behind me talked me through it.
When I got to the bottom, a fellow hiker said, "You've conquered your fears."
"No," I said. "I have confirmed my fears."
In my family, especially on my wife's side, the affirmation "We climbed that sucker!" is used to confirm a successful ascent of Long's Peak in Rocky Mountain National Park. Those who failed the ascent are not allowed to say that. This is really a long hike, not a climb, about 16 miles round trip, ascending to over 14k feet at the summit.
There is a large boulder on the trail up that is best navigated by using a rebar inset in the stone, to avoid the opportunity of sliding off and falling to one's death. I appreciated the hell out of that rebar, nature be damned. Gravity should never be allowed to win.
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