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9781680512328

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Well-researched and fun with flashes of neon--Smoot's Hangdog Days captures all the wild color of climbing in the late '70s through the '80s.--Lynn Hill, climber Full of Homeric characters, epic struggles, heroes and heartbreaks, all played out on an international stage--fans of adventure narratives can't do much better than Hangdog Days.--John Long, writer and climber Powerful, moving, compelling, outrageous, fascinating--Hangdog Days captures eighties climbing perfectly. If you're a climber and you can read, this book's for you.--Cam Burns, writer and editor In Hangdog Days, Jeff Smoot offers an enlightening behind-the-scenes perspective on this fantastic era and its memorable characters. I was climbing in the areas he describes where and while these scenes were playing out. He captures them vividly.--Hans Florine, climber and writer In his book Hangdog Days, Jeff Smoot chronicles the controversial method of hangdogging a climbing route and the debate that raged during the 1980s in climbing circles about this method.... Part history and part memoir, Smoot's book uses his personal experiences as a climber and freelance rock-climbing magazine writer as the vehicle to narrate the sport's rocky transition from the purview of a few grizzled climbers to a phenomenon that attracted younger and more eager climbers wanting to climb harder routes once thought impossible to scale. Smoot's story incorporates the biggest names of the era--everyone from John Bachar to Todd Skinner to Lynn Hill. Each one adds to the debate about the ethics of hangdogging a route.--Eric Patterson Foreword Reviews As a direct result of the people and climbing Smoot describes, we have sport climbing, gyms, comps, bouldering as we know it, and so many other things that were once unthinkable and that now form the bedrock of all serious climbing efforts. As such, I highly recommend this sensitive and fascinating account to anyone interested in how we got here.--David Smart, Gripped founding editor Ontario Climbing Smoot tracks the evolution of climbing, from the early hard free climbs of Yosemite to indoor climbing gyms, and introduces readers to climbing luminaries like John Bachar, Alan Watts, Lynn Hill, and Hugh Herr (a double amputee), and he delves into his relationship with a charismatic free climber, Todd Skinner, to whom the book is dedicated...this crisply written memoir provides solid information on a crucial historical period in a sport of increasing popularity.--Brenda Barrera Booklist This rollicking book is a welcome trip back to the 1980s, the decade of greatest change--and conflict--in America, when resting on the rope and rap bolting were taboo.... With engaging writing and research, Smoot's book is a pleasure, even as it details the uglier incidents (bolt wars, Yosemite rope-shitting, Index crack-greasing!) in American climbing. Without the 1980s, our sport would not be where it is today, a lesson Hangdog Days artfully conveys.--Climbing Hangdog Days recalls the colorful personalities and ethical struggles that spurred a revolution in rock climbing. This fun trip back in time will motivate you to climb harder.--Paul Piana, climber and writer

Well-researched and fun with flashes of neon--Smoot's Hangdog Days captures all the wild color of climbing in the late '70s through the '80s.--Lynn Hill, climber Hangdog Days recalls the colorful personalities and ethical struggles that spurred a revolution in rock climbing. This fun trip back in time will motivate you to climb harder.--Paula Piana, climber and writer Full of Homeric characters, epic struggles, heroes and heartbreaks, all played out on an international stage--fans of adventure narratives can't do much better than Hangdog Days.--John Long, writer and climber Powerful, moving, compelling, outrageous, fascinating--Hangdog Days captures eighties climbing perfectly. If you're a climber and you can read, this book's for you.--Cam Burns, writer and editor In Hangdog Days, Jeff Smoot offers an enlightening behind-the-scenes perspective on this fantastic era and its memorable characters. I was climbing in the areas he describes where and while these scenes were playing out. He captures them vividly.--Hans Florine, climber and writer

Full of Homeric characters, epic struggles, heroes and heartbreaks, all played out on an international stage--fans of adventure narratives can't do much better than Hangdog Days.--John Long, writer and climber Hangdog Days recalls the colorful personalities and ethical struggles that spurred a revolution in rock climbing. This fun trip back in time will motivate you to climb harder.--Paula Piana, climber and writer Well-researched and fun with flashes of neon--Smoot's Hangdog Days captures all the wild color of climbing in the late '70s through the '80s.--Lynn Hill, climber Powerful, moving, compelling, outrageous, fascinating--Hangdog Days captures eighties climbing perfectly. If you're a climber and you can read, this book's for you.--Cam Burns, writer and editor In Hangdog Days, Jeff Smoot offers an enlightening behind-the-scenes perspective on this fantastic era and its memorable characters. I was climbing in the areas he describes where and while these scenes were playing out. He captures them vividly.--Hans Florine, climber and writer

Author Information

Jeff Smoot has always lived close to his outdoor passion, from writing for climbing magazines to researching and writing guidebooks, to serving on Seattle's Camp Long Advisory Council, which supports outdoor education and opportunities for disadvantaged and underserved youth. He is the founder of Camp Long's annual Mountain Fest, celebrating Seattle's rich climbing history and culture. A semi-retired attorney, he has served as Chair of the Washington State Bar Association Law Clerk Board and is a regular speaker at legal education seminars. Jeff lives in Seattle.

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