CHOUINARD EQUIPMENT (1972 catalog) Chouinard, Yvon 07d

FINE catalog. Very early printing. "50 Cents" inside front cover. Those after, from Apr 1972 to 1974, were $1. Karabiner Climbing Museum website: the first catalog was Jan-Mar 1972 and priced at 50 cents. $1 was price after Mar 1972. In this first Jan-Mar period there were no changes but for a few hand done changes on the price list page. The price list page for the very first printing had no hand entered additions or changes. Soon (likely in late Jan or Feb 1972) was added a hand stamped price change, as in this copy. Price still 50 cents. FLAWLESS but: top front tip bumped, bottom tip rounded. Tight, including the stapled binding. Like new, in & out, including the order form and price list page. PROVENANCE: Catalog is this bookseller's personal copy bought in 1972. Address label is my (then) Takoma Park address. BACKGROUND: In mid '60s I started caving (I'm a 50+ year NSS member) and soon found I liked vertical caving. I yoyo'd most of West Virginia's pit caves; Schoolhouse, Hellhole, Cass, Sites, Elk Horn Mountain; but never graduated to the TAG country. Takoma Park borders DC. Much rope work practice was at the Potomac River cliffs at Carder Rock. All this got me interested in rock climbing, hence the Chouinard catalog. I never bought anything (hence the still bound in order form) as I found I much preferred caving. I left Takoma Park in late 1980s. Many websites list my connections back to Takoma Park. I understood and agreed with Chouinard's points. I've been a conservationist my whole life. As a kid I wanted to be a forest ranger and did spend two years in the College of Forestry at Syracuse U. FINE catalog. 1st edition. 11"x6 3/8". 66,(2),(4)pp.