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Plans and Partners: a failed experiment

PostPosted: Tue Nov 09, 2010 12:50 am
by MoabPeakBagger
Just some feedback from a longtime SP'er. Prior to the implementation of "plans and partners" (boy it's been a few years, eh?) it was always easy to find the latest folks looking for partners- just go to your region and look! Yes, sometimes when you were wanting to find out latest conditions or flip through the recent questions it was annoying to see "NEED PARTNER, JTREE, TODAY" posts, but.... it was worth it for the times those posts paid off.

Now? People simply don't come to summitpost to find partners anymore. A recent search of "plans and partners" within 50 miles of Berkeley, CA revealed just TWO, count them, TWO posts in the current calendar year (which is almost over). That seems absurd, given that the Bay Area is amongst the most outdoorsy-locales in the country, and certainly the most plugged in. You'd figure it would be a hotbed of plugged-in outdoor types, searching for partners. And it is, just not at summitpost. The Plans and Partners interface is clunky, it is not ever updated (so there's still requests from 2006 cluttering up the works), and it's just not useful.

If it was thought that the partner requests somehow "cluttered" the regional boards, then there should be simple, traditional message boards elsewhere for finding partners. The alternative, which we have now, is that summitpost has become largely irrelevant in the fairly widespread domain of internet-outdoor-partner-finding.

This sounds tongue-in-cheek, but it's not. I lament the loss of finding partners on summitpost; back in the day, it was one of the primary reasons to come to this corner of the web.

Re: Plans and Partners: a failed experiment

PostPosted: Tue Nov 09, 2010 12:54 am
by mrchad9
So you are suggesting a new section analogous to the regional boards just for finding partners? Seems reasonable.

Re: Plans and Partners: a failed experiment

PostPosted: Tue Nov 09, 2010 1:57 am
by SKI
That is an excellent idea!

Re: Plans and Partners: a failed experiment

PostPosted: Tue Nov 09, 2010 2:02 am
by fossana
I've given up on finding partners on SP. The method you suggested seems to work well on Mountain Project.

Re: Plans and Partners: a failed experiment

PostPosted: Tue Nov 09, 2010 2:21 am
by kevin trieu
fossana wrote:I've given up on finding partners on SP. The method you suggested seems to work well on Mountain Project.


Same here. What exactly are you going to do with the finest beta on mountains/climbs if you don't have a partner? I do mourn the loss of this irrelevant function of SP. I'm glad I found some partners in the past before SP Plans and Partners went completely into obscurity.

Re: Plans and Partners: a failed experiment

PostPosted: Tue Nov 09, 2010 2:46 am
by lcarreau
Finding a loyal partner is easier said than done. How can "one-stop-shopping" help you find The One ???

Image

Re: Plans and Partners: a failed experiment

PostPosted: Tue Nov 09, 2010 4:19 am
by fossana
kevin trieu wrote:
fossana wrote:I've given up on finding partners on SP. The method you suggested seems to work well on Mountain Project.


Same here. What exactly are you going to do with the finest beta on mountains/climbs if you don't have a partner? I do mourn the loss of this irrelevant function of SP. I'm glad I found some partners in the past before SP Plans and Partners went completely into obscurity.


Let me rephrase that:
Finding partners on MP not a problem. Screening through the riff raff, that's another story. At least there's a wide selection from which to choose. It's not like that's unique to MP though.

Re: Plans and Partners: a failed experiment

PostPosted: Tue Nov 09, 2010 4:50 am
by rhyang
I've had some good luck using Plans & Partners, but mostly for ice climbing and have met some fine people that way.

I don't really seek partners for hikes and scrambles. Mountainproject.com and rockclimbing.com seem like better places to seek out trad partners, based on the responses I've gotten there. I notice they both have dedicated "partner" forums, subdivided by region.

Re: Plans and Partners: a failed experiment

PostPosted: Tue Nov 09, 2010 5:06 am
by Peak Freak
MoabPeakBagger wrote:Just some feedback from a longtime SP'er. Prior to the implementation of "plans and partners" (boy it's been a few years, eh?) it was always easy to find the latest folks looking for partners- just go to your region and look! Yes, sometimes when you were wanting to find out latest conditions or flip through the recent questions it was annoying to see "NEED PARTNER, JTREE, TODAY" posts, but.... it was worth it for the times those posts paid off.

Now? People simply don't come to summitpost to find partners anymore. A recent search of "plans and partners" within 50 miles of Berkeley, CA revealed just TWO, count them, TWO posts in the current calendar year (which is almost over). That seems absurd, given that the Bay Area is amongst the most outdoorsy-locales in the country, and certainly the most plugged in. You'd figure it would be a hotbed of plugged-in outdoor types, searching for partners. And it is, just not at summitpost. The Plans and Partners interface is clunky, it is not ever updated (so there's still requests from 2006 cluttering up the works), and it's just not useful.

If it was thought that the partner requests somehow "cluttered" the regional boards, then there should be simple, traditional message boards elsewhere for finding partners. The alternative, which we have now, is that summitpost has become largely irrelevant in the fairly widespread domain of internet-outdoor-partner-finding.

This sounds tongue-in-cheek, but it's not. I lament the loss of finding partners on summitpost; back in the day, it was one of the primary reasons to come to this corner of the web.


Totally agree. Thanks for bringing it up!!!

Re: Plans and Partners: a failed experiment

PostPosted: Tue Nov 09, 2010 5:47 pm
by mrchad9
Vitaliy M wrote:
elcapitanie wrote:After only one day on this website I already have 6 guys wanting to be my partner. I told them I want to see a picture of them before I make a choice, I am still waiting.


I have pictures!
Are you tall, blonde, and hot? kss kss kss ; )

She didn't post her picture, so probably ugly.

Re: Plans and Partners: a failed experiment

PostPosted: Wed Nov 10, 2010 8:43 pm
by mrchad9
I know something about Argentine women. Many are beautiful, many are ugly.

Re: Plans and Partners: a failed experiment

PostPosted: Wed Nov 10, 2010 8:47 pm
by Haliku
fossana wrote:I've given up on finding partners on SP. The method you suggested seems to work well on Mountain Project.


If you actually lived back in CO that wouldn't be a problem! :)

Seriously the interface has never worked well and, for me, only worked about 4-5 years ago so an upgrade wouldn't hurt. For many we've already met a lot of fellow SPers and just call them to go climbing. But that doesn't help the newer members or if someone moves or is traveling. Cheers!

Re: Plans and Partners: a failed experiment

PostPosted: Wed Nov 10, 2010 8:53 pm
by Haliku
You say in A Few Words: "I am a woman that can outclimb most men", you just joined SP, and you have no pictures, location or summit log hard to believe you've had partner requests from SP...

elcapitanie wrote:I`m far from ugly .My parents are Spanish and from Argentina,if you know anything about Argentina women than well you can figure it out.mrchad9 looks fow women on Craigslist ? Now that is the most funny thing I have heard all day.

Re: Plans and Partners: a failed experiment

PostPosted: Wed Nov 10, 2010 9:16 pm
by MoapaPk
I am a human who can outclimb most pinnipeds. Already this week, 6 pinnipeds have called me. Unfortunately, I couldn't really understand them, and for all I know, they just wanted fish. And all the calls were from Nigeria, which makes me a little suspicious.

Re: Plans and Partners: a failed experiment

PostPosted: Wed Nov 10, 2010 9:35 pm
by CSUMarmot
MoapaPk wrote:I am a human who can outclimb most pinnipeds. Already this week, 6 pinnipeds have called me. Unfortunately, I couldn't really understand them, and for all I know, they just wanted fish. And all the calls were from Nigeria, which makes me a little suspicious.

lol