Search results for ""Author Steve Roper""
Mountaineers Books Camp 4
In the 1960's, California's Yosemite Valley was the centre of the rock-climbing universe. Young nonconformists -- many of them the finest rock climbers in the world -- channelled their energy toward the largely untouched walls and cracks. Soon climbers from around the globe were coming to Camp 4 -- gathering spot for the creators of the Golden Age of Yosemite climbing -- to see what all the fuss was about. Climber and author Steve Roper spent most of 10 years living in the Yosemite Valley with its intriguing inhabitants. Camp 4 is his take on the era's top climbers and the influences behind their achievements. The text is full of stories both hilarious and revealing about the likes of bolt-disdaining Royal Robbins; fun-loving, big-wall expert Warren Harding; free-climber Frank Sacherer; multi-talented Chuck Pratt; master craftsman Yvon Chouinard; and ill-fated Mark Powell. Roper also tips his hat to the elder statesmen of the 1930s and 1940s who pioneered early, important climbs in the valley. Camp 4 looks at the most significant climbs, and the most riveting controversies of a legendary era. With more than 50 fascinating historical photographs, most never before published, Camp 4 is the definitive history of Yosemite climbing during this period.
£15.99
Patagonia Books A Mountaineer's Life
Tales of the Trail from a Living Legend, The Slim Fox Sixteen-year-old Allen Steck made his initial climb, a first ascent of Mount Maclure in the Sierras, with no hardware, no ropes, no experience. But the event turned his into a mountaineer’s life. Over 70 years later, Steck, also known as The Slim Fox, has had a prolific climbing career, including a 1954 expedition to Makalu, a 1963 first ascent of the south face of the Clyde Minaret, and a 1965 first ascent of the Hummingbird Ridge on Mount Logan. In 1967, with Steve Roper, he co-founded and edited Ascent magazine. Two years later, his interest in the far reaches of the world led him to partner in Mountain Travel, America’s first true adventure travel company. These are stories from the days when mountain climbing was discovery, when men like Steck forged new routes, both literal or literary. With dry humor and detailed recall, he captures the excitement and intrigue of a time when there were few rules and no guidelines. As he says, “We do not deceive ourselves that we are engaging in an activity that is anything but debilitating, dangerous, euphoric, kinesthetic, expensive, frivolously essential, economically useless and totally without redeeming social significance. One should not probe for deeper meanings.” With amazing photographs, many published for the first time, this memoir is a treasure, an inspiration, and an anchor to the foundation of the life-changing sport of alpine climbing.
£22.49
Distributed Art Publishers California Surfing and Climbing in the Fifties
The story told by the photographs in California Surfing and Climbing in the Fifties takes place against the larger backdrop of postwar America: Truman and Eisenhower, the Korean War, the Cold War and the Red Scare. Young people were embracing new symbols of non-conformity: Elvis Presley, Jack Kerouac, Marlon Brando and James Dean. All along the California coast, surfing became popular as heavy balsawood boards were replaced with lightweight ones crafted from polyurethane foam, fiberglass and resin. Meanwhile, climbers descended on Tahquitz Rock in the south and Yosemite Valley to the north to test handcrafted equipment that would set new standards for safety, technique and performance. The photographs in this volume include images of legendary surfers such as Joe Quigg, Tom Zahn, Dale Velzy and Renny Yater, in locations such as Rincon, Malibu, South Bay, Laguna and San Onofre; and famous climbers such as Warren Harding, Royal Robbins and Wayne Merry among others, photographed mostly in the Yosemite Valley by the likes of Bob Swift, Alan Steck, Jerry Gallwas and Frank Hoover. Soaked in surf, sun and adrenaline, the photographs in California Surfing and Climbing in the Fifties depict the birth of an era and an exhilarating moment in Californian history.
£31.50
Patagonia Books Yosemite In the Sixties
The sheer granite walls of Yosemite Valley galvanized a dedicated group of rock climbers in the 1960s, who saw the nearly holdless, glacier-polished faces as the purest form of challenge. The awesome Half Dome and El Capitan were first climbed in the late 1950s, ushering in a new era of rock climbing later known as the golden age of Yosemite climbing. During this era, the climbers of the sixties developed the techniques, tools, and philosophies that made Yosemite the most influential rock climbing arena in the world. In the spirit of the social changes of the sixties, a small group of committed climbers dropped out of mainstream work and society and took up residence in Camp 4, perfecting their skills and developing a unique social scene. This austere, boulder-strewn campground became the epicenter of the climbing world. It served both as a launching pad for spectacular feats and adventures and a refuge from them. Here plans were made, teams were formed, and the rest of life was lived. The significance of Camp 4 was recently recognized with its placement on the National Register of Historic Places.
£38.69