RR - World - Karabin Climbing Museum

I have a bunch of stuff to share of Royal Robbins. Photos, stories, history paperwork and his personal writings. This is exciting! For now I will keep adding stuff in a file drawer format and see where it leads me.

I have to say that just being with Royal Robbins personal notes, I am seeing a totally different person that what I profiled him as being for most of my climbing career. I think possibly it is because to me it centers on the Warren Harding verses Royal Robbins drama of the later 1950s. I was more into Warrens “Camp” and the way Warren saw climbing as being allowed to have different forms of ascent within how one person viewed it to another's, instead of how Royal saw climbing as to be done in only one style. To me this brought forth the idea that Royals ego is what was leading Royal to be what he was being.

And then the situation that happened with route “The Wall of Early Morning Light” where Warren placed many bolts to be able to get up the route. Then Royal on the second ascent proceeding to chop the bolts on the first three pitches of the route to prove something to Warren personally that Warren had a weakness, which was placing himself in a way that Warren was escaping human boldness that a climber should be faced with which is part of the climbing game.

Don Lauria was Royals partner on that second ascent where Don mentions that at times Royal was putting himself within situations that even Don was not comfortable with, as Royal took chances far beyond what was needed to ascend the route in a much safer way. In the book, “The Vertical World of Yosemite” by Galen Rowell, the last story within is Galen interviewing Royal trapping him within his words where Royal then comes forward and admits that the piton work that Warren did to ascend the Wall of Early Morning Light route was in fact Brilliant.

So now as I am personally holding Royal Robbins personal notes and letters and written stories, I am seeing a totally different person than the ego climber that I profiled him as, and I was way off!! That situation between Warren and Royal was just one odd instance, which does not fit Royals true profile at all. That situation I believe forever changed Royal, and held Royal staring at himself in the mirror for the rest of his life. Royal was not egotistical, but he was continually striving to find ways to get away from personal inadequacy from continually attempting to trap him. Royal was not trying to be better than anybody else, but was trying to be better within himself.

As I am here holding the true essence of this person named Royal Robbins, it shines a very different light upon his life story. This light that I am presently with, I want to first state to Royal personally, “I AM SORRY,” and I bend a knee to his being.