"I think climbing is less a sport and more a hobby, and as such, I think everybody's a beginning climber"
About this Quote
Alex Lowe, the exuberant American alpinist whose grin was as famous as his feats, pushes back against the urge to treat climbing like a ladder of rankings. Calling it less a sport and more a hobby re-centers the activity on curiosity, play, and intrinsic delight rather than medals, spectators, and definitive mastery. A sport implies that skill can be measured and settled. A hobby insists that the point is engagement itself. Mountains, weather, rock quality, and the individual psyche change day to day; the terrain refuses to be standardized. In that world, everyone is a beginner because each route, season, or discipline resets the learning curve.
The remark is also an antidote to climbing’s gatekeeping. If everybody is a beginning climber, there is no inner circle to impress, only a community to join. That spirit was consistent with Lowe’s oft-quoted line that the best climber is the one having the most fun. By taking pressure off performance and identity, the hobby frame invites safer decision-making. A beginner’s mind asks better questions, respects conditions, and errs on caution, which matters in an arena where nature sets the terms and consequences are real.
Lowe spoke during an era that was professionalizing rapidly, with sponsorships, competitions, and ever-harder grades. He was at the forefront of achievement yet refused to let difficulty replace joy as the metric of value. The humility in saying everyone is a beginner is not false modesty; it is a practical posture. Ice one day, desert sandstone the next, a storm on a high face the week after: experience transfers, but not completely. The mountain always has the last word.
Long before climbing entered the Olympics, Lowe articulated a more durable ethic. Keep learning. Share stoke. Treat the outdoors as a teacher, not a stage. That mindset keeps the heart of climbing alive even as the scene evolves.
The remark is also an antidote to climbing’s gatekeeping. If everybody is a beginning climber, there is no inner circle to impress, only a community to join. That spirit was consistent with Lowe’s oft-quoted line that the best climber is the one having the most fun. By taking pressure off performance and identity, the hobby frame invites safer decision-making. A beginner’s mind asks better questions, respects conditions, and errs on caution, which matters in an arena where nature sets the terms and consequences are real.
Lowe spoke during an era that was professionalizing rapidly, with sponsorships, competitions, and ever-harder grades. He was at the forefront of achievement yet refused to let difficulty replace joy as the metric of value. The humility in saying everyone is a beginner is not false modesty; it is a practical posture. Ice one day, desert sandstone the next, a storm on a high face the week after: experience transfers, but not completely. The mountain always has the last word.
Long before climbing entered the Olympics, Lowe articulated a more durable ethic. Keep learning. Share stoke. Treat the outdoors as a teacher, not a stage. That mindset keeps the heart of climbing alive even as the scene evolves.
Quote Details
| Topic | Sports |
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