Editor, Daily Nexus,

I would like to disagree with Michael Long’s assessment of the sport of climbing in, “Rock Climbing: Santa Barbara: Like a Rock” (Daily Nexus, May 17). I would argue that climbing is a sport that embraces the cautious and injures or kills the reckless.

Last Sunday, I was climbing with a friend at Lizard’s Mouth when we witnessed another “climber” fall, land among a pile of boulders and flip onto his back. Miraculously, he neither broke a leg nor bashed his head on any of the sharp rocks surrounding him. Earlier, his “spotter” had looked at a more difficult and dangerous climb and simply said, “You just can’t think about falling.”

You can never eliminate risk in climbing, but a skilled and intelligent climber can easily manage it. I believe that the sense of accomplishment that comes with conquering a new route or problem and not the fear and risk of failure should drive most climbers. If you have a few screws loose, please stay home. I’d much rather be climbing by myself than running to call Search and Rescue while you writhe in pain.

JOHN KAEDING