Andinistaloco wrote:I disagree that climbing is a "sport."

Except for "sport climbing," that is.

Sport climbing is neither

haivanhuynh wrote:

Misha wrote:

McCannster wrote:Out of the several years I have been climbing, I've only seen a handful of non-white people out in the hills. Of course that doesn't mean that they aren't out there, it's just that they are few and far between. Is it a cultural thing? Why do whites tend to be attracted to climbing? Thoughts?

Try going to the Japanese Alps. My bet is you will only see Japanese climbers and many of them

My wife is Japanese.

In Hokkaido, there is only unspoiled nature (shhh ... don't ruin it for everyone), potatoes, and climbers.

So is mine. Hokkaido is our next trip to Japan!

Misha wrote:

Andinistaloco wrote:I disagree that climbing is a "sport."

Except for "sport climbing," that is.

Sport climbing is neither

+1

I dunno... I think relative to their representation in the general population, I've known quite a few Hispanic and Asian climbers.

TacoDelRio wrote:Lotsa Koreans here.

Koreans are big on hiking and easy climbing here in LA, and often go in massive groups. The Japanese also are quite big on it, though they seem to be a bit more professional and they travel in much smaller groups.

<a href=http://www.koreanalpineclub.com/bbs/zboard.php?id=PhotoGallery&page=10&sn1=&divpage=1&sn=off&ss=on&sc=on&select_arrange=headnum&desc=asc&no=2536><b>The SoCal Korean community also has its share of advanced climbers</b></a>

McCannster wrote:Not sure if anybody has brought this up, but has anybody noticed how climbing (and just outdoor activities in general) are very white dominated? Why is this? Out of the several years I have been climbing, I've only seen a handful of non-white people out in the hills. Of course that doesn't mean that they aren't out there, it's just that they are few and far between. Is it a cultural thing? Why do whites tend to be attracted to climbing? Thoughts?

well...it's certainly Joe White's sport

There are definitely a lot of different races that climb mountains but I think the big exception is black people. I have *never* encountered one.

I hear there may have been one or two OK climbers from central Asia. Called Sherpas or something like that. Probably never climbed anything serious though.

JHH60 wrote:Are Asians and people from the Indian subcontinent now defined as "white"? Here in Silicon Valley there are a lot of both who climb and/or participate in outdoor sports. In fact in California it doesn't make much sense to talk about "white" or "asian" or ... because there are so many mixed families, including mine....

I'm with you on that one. My Japanese mother climbs, although she says she's "only doing 4th class" these days. I think it would make an interesting article to profile accomplished non-white climbers.

Might not want to tell Mike Freeman that black guys don't climb...

http://www.summitpost.org/user_page.php?user_id=41692

---Many contributions to the SP Gear site. Perhaps he's just a gear whore, though.

About a third of the people I've climbed with are Asians. I've met African and African-American climbers in Colorado, in the Sierra, and in the mountains of NM. "SophiaClimbs" -- who has done Everest -- has a unique take on the situation.

I think it's mainly a sociological issue. A lot of African-Americans are still paying attention to climbing the ladder for equality, and this outdoor stuff is kind of frivolous.

Go to Zion in Easter, and you will meet a lot of people who are definitely not "White"; but the interesting thing is, that many are from outside the US.

...for what it's worth probably the best ski-mountaineer i know is african american. he's in his 50's, is a personal trainer, trains all the time himself, and could school many half of his age...whatever it is that makes you happy, as long as you ain't trampling over others, then happy pursuits!!...as a side note: excluding all those freespirit dirtbaggers (an endangered species??) has climbing become bourgeoisie (gear & plane tickets aren't cheap)?? not that it really matters of course, it's just curious to see how things evolve.

HandjamMasterC wrote:I asked a black guy I worked with once why more blacks didn't climb. He said " we're not crazy enought to go in the woods with some white guys with a rope ............. "

Exactly. Trust is still lacking between blacks and whites. and given that murdering blacks in the backwoods have been on the news within this decade it's a prudent response.

I've tried several times for years to get my next door neighbor to hike with me but he has no interest. We live on a mountain and can be on a trail in less than a quarter mile from our front door. He's Black, my other neighbor is East Indian and he won't hike with me either, maybe they don't like whites.