Sport Climbing Creates a False Sense of Safety and Expertise...

It would appear that sport climbing, gyms, and top roping are slowly becoming causes of climber injury and death. All of these are replications of real climbing that have increased safety measures to prevent harm. But when climbers try and take on something outside of what they have been doing, their safety net is no longer there. The article is written by a man who has been climbing since 1970 when the sport was still young. He uses the story of a child climber's death to illustrate how sport climbing is allowing people to neglect the basics of climbing and safety. He argues that traditional climbing teaches safety and responsibility as well as the skills one needs to be a succesful rock climber. This article talks more about the issues that sport climbing is causing for rock climbing.

http://www.rockandice.com/lates-news/dumb-climbing