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Outside Magazine October 2001

Letters

The Beast Without

READING NATASHA Singer's article about Keiko the tame/wild killer whale ("Jonah Is the Whale," August) made me shake my head in disgust. I have a ten-year-old beagle named Randy, and I don't need to spend $10 million to see if she'd run with the wolves in Montana just because she's a canine. You know why? 'Cause she's tame! She likes eating canned food and sleeping on the couch! Just feed Keiko his frozen fish, let him play in his pool and live out his life the way he wants, and try to find something worthwhile to spend $10 million on, like keeping killer whales out of movies and aquarium shows in the first place.
Paul Wright
Cambridge, Ohio

I'm Your Fan

MY GIRLFRIEND broke up with me, saying it's immature to ride a bicycle and childish to spend a weekend climbing. My boss tells me my mud-covered car is an eyesore and he will not allow me to park it in the lot until I wash it, remove the kayaks from the roof and the bikes from the rack, and learn to park in a dignified manner. He has also informed me that chain lube on my khakis and scrapes on my knuckles are undesirable to our clients. My neighbors have no appreciation for the climbing tower I built in my backyard. In point of fact, no one in my life is very happy about my lifestyle except my dog, who's never been happier. Then just when I think no one understands why I live this way, I come across your magazine. It is everything an out- door magazine should be; I never miss an issue. Thanks for doing what you do and for understanding why we do what we do.
Savant Chase
Stephenville, Texas

When the Tide Was High

WHEN I TURNED to page 52 of your June surfing special ("Have Gun, Will Travel"), I could not believe my eyes. Suddenly it was 1973 again, my family was living in Lima, and four friends and I convinced our mothers we were each staying at the other's place for a while. A hell of a bus ride later, we were coming off the bus in Puerto Chicama, Peru, where the waves were a solid five feet and growing. The wind was ferocious, the currents brutal but manageable, and my board did the things it was designed for. I have always wanted to go back to Peru and try those waves again, especially now that I have more experience behind me. Thank you for taking me back there, if for just a few fun memories.
Jaime "Surfdog" Alcocer
Corpus Christi, Texas

The Price of Admission

I READ WITH amusement and dismay Charley Shimanski's remarks regarding the controversy over who should be paying for mountain rescues in Jason Paur's article, "Search and Revenue" (Dispatches, August). I've been a moun-taineer and backpacker for over 20 years, and I am drawn to the wilderness largely because it requires me to be responsible for my own actions and decisions. Shimanski decries the idea that climbers ought to cough up for their rescues because "If people think they're paying for their rescue they tend to delay calling for help." So? That's their decision and it should be their responsibility. What's next, taxpayers footing the bill for heart attacks suffered on the golf course?
Bill Valentine
Redmond, Oregon

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