Tag Archives: Customary

Having a Ball

Title: Having a Ball

Informant info: Informant name is Jason Laackmann. Jason is twenty-eight years old and attends Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH as a United States Army Veteran. Jason served in the Army for five years in active duty and continues to serve in the Minnesota National Guard. Jason has served in Fort Bend, Georgia, Fort Riley, Kansas, and overseas in Eastern Afghanistan.

Type of lore: Customary, Ceremony, Tradition

Language: English

Country of Origin: USA

Social / Cultural Context: Jason was interviewed at Dartmouth College. Jason was asked to talk about any ceremonies or traditions that took place in his time in the army.

Associated File: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E6KcnEdk7Q4 (start at 2:05)

Transcript: [I have recorded the item exactly how it was told to me in the interview]: Each, each unit has there own, uh, specific history. So a lot of what you’re doing in the military is tied to your unit lineage. Um, so understanding, uh what your unit did in previous wars is really important. Um, so change of command ceremonies are always important. There’s a lot of, regal things that happen with that. Um, so I guess some of the main traditions is to have a ball and bring your girlfriend or husband and uh have like a traditional dance, if you will.

Informant’s comments: Jason has been to a few military balls and values the regal traits.

Collector’s comments: During Jason’s response he smiled when recalling the ball and was very animated when he talked about the idea of lineage in the military.

Talus

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Informant Info
Mallory Bird, 18, grew up and lives in Durango, CO with a family of climbers. She is now a freshman undergraduate at Dartmouth College. She’s been climbing with her family for as long as she can remember. She loves the puzzle-aspect of the sport and simply finds it enjoyable, while her biggest climbing fear is being high during windy conditions. Mallory first learned of the tradition during her freshman fall when she first became strongly involved in the DMC.

Type: Material, Customary

Language: English

Country of Origin: US

Date Collected: May 12, 2016

Location Collected: Jonathan Belden Daniels Climbing Gym, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH

Social Context: Talus is a book consisting of Dartmouth Mountaineering Club folklore. The book is well-known by DMC members and is given as a parting gift to seniors.

Associated File:

Lore
A copy of the book is placed on top of the locker of each graduating senior during the end of Spring term. Over a few weeks, anyone can write and sign the book, much like a yearbook.

Informant Comments
Mallory hasn’t personally read the book but knows of many stories within it which have been retold by friends. She really likes this tradition since it reflects the tight-knit community that is the Dartmouth Mountaineering Club.

Collector’s Comments
Signing Talus at the end of the year is a custom that gives DMC members a way to remember the club, its members, and its defining stories for years to come. It’s one of many parting rituals that seniors participate in.

Tags/Keywords: book, climbing, Customary, material, Ritual, seniors, talus

Climbing Near Harvard

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Informant Information
The informant was Josie Nordrum, a 20 year old junior at Dartmouth and a member of the DMC. She was born in San Francisco, CA and raised in Corte Madera, CA. She learned how to climb at Dartmouth from Jay Dumanian two and a half years ago on her DOC freshman trip. Josie’s climbing phobia is exposure to the elements. She loves the feeling of satisfaction after a climb.

Type: Customary

Language: English

Country of Origin: U.S.A

Date Collected: May 15, 2016

Place Collected: Jonathan Belden Daniels Climbing Gym, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH

Social/ Cultural Context: This is likely in the spirit of Ivy league rivalry between the Harvard and Dartmouth Climbers.

Lore: The DMC frequently climbs are Rumney, an extremely popular climbing area in New Hampshire about 50 minutes from campus. When DMC members see Harvard climbers also at Rumney they take off their clothes and climb naked.

Informant’s Comments: Not all but some DMC members will adhere to this tradition. It’s a way for the Dartmouth climbers to not one-up Harvard but also embrace nature and themselves

Collector’s Comments: This is another example of Dartmouth climbers’ rebelliousness as well as generally fun and outgoing attitude. It shows the DMC’s desire to embrace themselves and their view that nudity is not a complete social taboo.

Tags/Keywords: naked, Harvard, Rumney, climbing, DMC, self-expression, Customary

Climbing Etiquette

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Informant Info
Mallory Bird, an 18 year old freshman undergraduate at Dartmouth College, grew up in Durango, CO with a family of climbers. She’s been climbing with her family for as long as she can remember. She loves the puzzle-aspect of the sport and simply finds it enjoyable. Her biggest fear while climbing is being high during windy conditions. Mallory learned the etiquette when she was young while learning how to climb with her family.

Type: Customary

Language: English

Country of Origin: US

Date Collected: May 12, 2016

Location Collected: Jonathan Belden Daniels Climbing Gym, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH

Social Context
An important aspect of trad climbing is the gear (pictured below) that is placed in the wall and is needed to keep the climber safe. The pieces of protection can often get stuck in the wall– certain etiquette surrounds these situations.

Associated File:

Lore: If you lose someone else’s gear while climbing at the end of the day you’re supposed to buy them a beer. Similarly, if you come up after someone and free their stuck gear and return it to them then they should buy you a beer.

Informant Comments: An important part of climbing is what you do at the end of the day. There’s usually a lot of down time, especially if you’re camping near the wall, so there’s a well-defined after-climbing culture. It usually involves alcohol.

Collector’s Comments: Trad climbing etiquette is a good example of how climbers are not a groups of adrenaline-high thrill-seekers looking for danger. Although the group has many traditions which might suggest delinquency, there is a strong sense of trust and community shared by all climbers. It’s necessary when your life is in the hands of your belayer.

The Wine Game

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Informant info: The informant was Ian Raphael, a Dartmouth ’18, who was born in Kirkland, WA and raised in Miami, FL. He learned to climb when he was 18 from an older, close friend in Port Angeles, WA.

Date Collected: 5/16/16

Place Collected: Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH

Type: Customary Folklore, Ceremony, Prayer

Language: English

Country of Origin: U.S.A

Social/ cultural context: The wine game is ceremonial in climbing culture and is used to bring members together. Climbers often go on day trips together. At the end of each trip, climbers are usually tired and hungry. The wine game is a way to finish off the night and come together to reflect on the day.

Associated File:

Lore: After a long day of climbing, climbers gather around in a circle with a gallon of wine and christen it by making toasts into the fire to famous past climbers and the climbing “gods”. The climbers toast to Earl and Valerie, John Joline, DMCers of the past and present, and the “homies and the homeless”. Afterwards, the gallon wine bottle is passed around the circle. Participants may only hold the bottle to drink with their pinky finger. The person who drinks the last drop of wine is considered the winner of the game.

Informant’s Comments: This is a way to celebrate after a climb. It is a fun way to wrap up the day and have fun with your friends. No one knows why we toast to the “homies and the homeless”, but we toast to Earl, Valerie, and John Joline because of their importance to the club.

Collector’s Comments: The wine game begins with a prayer when the climbers christen the wine. It is followed by a game where each player tries to drink the last drop. The game is a celebration of the end of a long day of climbing. It is a way to reflect on the day and relax after a long climb; basically, it encourages mindfulness and team bonding. While playing the game, climbers celebrate their friendships and their outing.

Tags/Keywords: wine, games, prayer, climbing, alcohol, celebration, Customary, DMC, folklore

Fairlee Bridge Challenge

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Informant Info
Natalie Afonina, 25, born in Moscow, now lives in Seattle, WA. She learned how to rock climb 5 years ago in the Adirondacks with Eric, who was a senior at Middlebury College. She enjoys rock climbing for the feeling of control it brings and her biggest fear while climbing is finding snakes. Natalie learned of the game in Hanover from Zebediah Engberg while chatting about what their plans for the night would be.

Type: Customary, Game

Language: English

Country of Origin: US

Date Collected: May 15, 2016

Place Collected: Jonathan Belden Daniels Climbing Gym, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH

Social/Cultural Context: The game is often performed as a fun afternoon or night adventure. The afternoon offers better views and the possibility of Whippi Dip afterwards, while the nighttime brings additional since the police will actively try to stop people from climbing the bridge.

Associated File:

Lore: The Fairlee Bridge Challenge consists of starting on one end of the 45′ tall bridge and climbing to the other side over the top of the bridge. It’s strongly discouraged by local law enforcement and especially dangerous and little to no climbing protection is used. Some variations of the game involve doing the climb naked. Afterwards, Whippi Dip, located down the street, is a popular way to relax after the strenuous climb.

Informant’s Comments: Climbers complete the challenge as a way to celebrate and honor tradition. It also is pretty thrilling to climb the bridge and break an established rule without being caught. In addition, climbers complete the challenge to gain membership into a select group who have also performed the same feat.

Collector’s Comments: This was another one of the many games that we collected from climbers and is similar to the “buildering” games played on campus. The excitement comes from climbing a well-known local feature as well as the trill of rule-breaking.

Tags/Keywords: climbing, Customary, Fairlee Bridge, game, rule-breaking

Dartmouth Folklore Archive

local and world folklore collected by students in Russian 13

Tag Archives: Customary

Having a Ball

Talus

Climbing Near Harvard

Climbing Etiquette

The Wine Game

Fairlee Bridge Challenge