I amongst many others here have a project and for those of us not completely flush with time, with family and an other life outside of climbing etc., the pressures against an individual to perform at their limit, at a given time in given conditions are immense.
I must admit that if you are in this situation then keeping a project closed long term seems to me to be quite a selfish act. Unless you're at the cutting edge I don't think that many people are actually overly concerned who did the first ascent of a line. Everyone who is familiar with a crag will know who had the vision to bolt the route and open up the line so surely it shows a certain humility to open up the project, accept that for you the personal challenge is still there and that it doesn't really matter a gnat's fart who does the first ascent. It's got to be better than standing there going "f*ck you all, I bolted it, keep off until I've done it!" which to be frank just smacks of ego driven wank.
Not that I'm in a position to be stealing anyone's projects but feel free to punter me as you like.
Though it might be deserved of a righteous place in the log pile, it has been somewhat of an enlightening topic.
Chris j, I think the point here is that for some individuals, the act of claiming an FA isn't really about "who did it first". At least for me, I think it has more to do with a primitive sense of adventure (something that is sadly lacking in modern life).
I find the opportunity to explore 'unchartered ground' to be a hugely exciting one and the rewards for doing so just as exciting. Accordingly (and not that I'm in any current state to be stealing anybody's project), my belief is that if somebody has invested -and continues to invest- a significant amount of effort into a project and has done from the start, then their efforts ought to be respected.
This is of course my own opinion and naturally others will differ in their attitude towards a project. I'm far from a hippy but I do believe first and foremost that the promotion of a culture of respect ought to proliferate through the sport.
