Holloway Mountain Road Climbing

Have I beaten a dead horse yet in saying how much I love being back in Boone? Even though classes are a total butt kicker right now and we don't get out of classes until 5pm, there's still enough time to get out and climb since there is so much stuff nearby. Recently, Melissa and I have been running near the parkway and then hitting up Holloway Mountian Road, which has a fun, albeit short, cliff with some easy cracks for leading and some top-ropable face climbs. The 3 main cracks, from 5.7 to 5.9, are really fun. The only problem with this wall is how limited it is; after a just cuople of trips, we're already running out of new stuff to climb. But, hey, it's better than gym climbing and it's a great place for new climbers. It's strange, but trad climbing seems to actually be therapeutic for my shoulder. I wake up the next day and my shoulders feel looser than usual and not very sore. So at least I can still trad it up for now!

Here I'm leading the 5.7 Tree Crack:

For directions to Holloway Mountain, click here.


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Rock Climbing Blog Aggregator

I began working on this project a few months back and totally spaced on it since moving and starting school. Since I just remembered it, I figured I'd finally "go live" with it. I used Blogger's blog feed tool to set up a page dedicated to collecting climbing blogs. What I have now is just the start--I just started pulling from my favorites and other random blogs I found online--so if you have suggestions or if I left your blog out, just drop me a line on the contact link and I'll get your blog on there. 

From what I can tell, there's nothing else out there that pulls in a bunch of climbing blogs this way. Of course, I'm also of the opinion that if I can think an idea up, someone has probably already done it on the web. Regardless, I hope this helps people find new blogs and connect to other climbers.
You can check it out here:

frixtionclimbingblogs.blogspot.com

And it can now always be found on the link on the right side of this page.

Also, just in case you're wondering, I organized the blogs alphabetically by topic to avoid any appearance of favoritism.


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Looking Glass Weekend & Fundraising Events

Looking for something fun to do on the weekend of September 25th & 26th? The usual Adopt-A-Crag event at Looking Glass is now going to be a weekend-long event. Here's the info from the CCC website:

This year Fox Mountain Guides is expanding the classic Looking Glass Rock ‘Adopt-A-Crag’ trail day into a weekend long event for climbers from across the Southeast region to get together and to raise funds and awareness for the Access Fund, Carolina Climbers Coalition and Southeastern Climbers Coalition

The event will have three main components, Saturday 9am-1pm is the Access Fund Adopt A Crag trail day at Looking Glass Rock, with time to climb through the afternoon at the Glass. Saturday evening will be the Carolina Climbers Coalition Event of a catered BBQ, slide show and multimedia presentations from local climbers with a huge silent auction and fundraiser for the CCC. On Sunday Fox Mountain Guides and Climbing School will be offering two Climbers Self Rescue courses with 100% of the proceeds going to the Southeastern Climbers Coalition.

Misty Mountain will also be showing up to support fundraising efforts by selling lots of goods at serious discounts (Thanks to Misty for their continued generous support). Also from the CCC site:

Are you going to the Western NC Climbers Weekend at Looking Glass? The Hound Ears comp? Do you want to score a killer deal on some Misty Mountain goods? Well, you're in luck. The fine folks at Misty will be having a gear sale at both events with all proceeds going to the CCC. There will be piles of stuff at different price ranges - sales samples, overruns, all great stuff that can't be sold at retail. Cash only, so stuff a few bills in your pocket and trade them in on some new gear. Many thanks to Misty Mountain Threadworks, who continue to find new ways to support climbing in the Carolinas!

Sounds like a good chance to have fun, enjoy the fall temps, and help support the crags and the folks that look out for em. More info can be seen at the Access Fund calendar.


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New Slackline Obsession

During my first week on campus I noticed a bunch of outdoorsy-looking undergrads hanging around a couple of slacklines they had set up on the grassy quad. I'd only tried slacklining once before years ago, but I figured what the hell else is college for if not trying new things (and falling on your ass in front of hundreds of people)? So I talked to the guys, jumped on the line, and preceded to really suck and fall on my ass in front of hundreds of people. But it didn't matter; I was hooked. I've been hitting the slackline a few times a week now, including an old (seriously moldy) one that's been set up for years behind the place I'm living. I'm now able to walk the whole length of the line most of the time. I just keep hoping the old one doesn't snap and take out my ability to reproduce as it whips old locking 'biners towards me at 100mph.

So I've been searching out how to set a new line online and also looking at some vids on youtube. People do some insane stuff on slacklines; just take a look at the vid below. I can't believe it took me so long to get into this sport since it dovetails with climbing so well. Also, it's a fun diversion as I work with my shoulder injury. It's nice to try something completely new and be on the steep end of the learning curve for a change, where progress comes quickly. I've been climbing so long that my timeline of ability looks like a seismograph during a earthquake, it's so full of ups and downs with injuries and periods of strength building. Now, with slacklining, I can work on ruining the lower half of my body for a change!



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The Simple Joys (and Unexpected Trials) of Table Rock

Before I get going on my post about our recent rip to Table Rock last weekend, I want to say that it's been busy as hell lately with starting school, and things are only going to pick up from here! So apologies in advance if my posts get a bit more rare. I love blogging on climbing and will try to update on my adventures as much as I can. But if it comes down to having the time to either go climbing or blog about climbing--I'm going climbing! As I mentioned awhile back, not sitting at a desk for work for 8 hours a day really cuts into my blogging time!

As for Table Rock: I love this place. I learned to lead trad here 15 years ago and I've always loved the laid back routes. It's such a great place to train new multi-pitch climbers like Melissa. That said, we had a damn mini-epic this past weekend on Rip Van Winkle (5.7). It re-learned me on the notion that you should never underestimate a climb, ever. To make a way-to-long story short, our rope got stuck on the 2nd pitch and a lot of downclimbing, rapping, and reclimbing ensued. Also, the guidebook's route descriptions seemed off and the top 2 pitches never seem to get climbed. We actually had to launch a huge dead limb down the face so Melissa could follow one pitch. This 4-pitch route took us 7 hours! WTF?! I felt mired in gumbyland; this from someone who has climbed Half Dome. Gumbyness can strike at any time, I guess.

Anyway, here are a few pics from our misadventure! And remember, always bring your headlamp (we didn't!)




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Survived the First Week

This was the first week of classes for my Master's degree in Speech Therapy at ASU. So far, so good, but it's gonna be a hell of a semester. Both Melissa and me are taking 17 graduate hours and we have jobs as GAs 10 hours a week. Luckily, Boone is loaded with tons of closeby climbing. I've already been overdoing it, especially since I can walk to a few boulders from my house. (It doesn't get much better than that!) In the last week or two we've been pretty slammed with getting organized and unpacked and getting to class and all that, but we've made it to Ship Rock and Table Rock for roping up, and we've hit some bouldering areas when we have a free hour or so, along with ASU's amazing climbing gym (which they didn't have when I was an undergrad, the wankers!). It's been a lot of fun, but last night I was seriously using 4 ice packs. One for each shoulder, one for my right elbow, and the last for moving around between my strained ab muscle and my neck and my right middle finger. Yeah, it's that bad. But I might have come out of my summer climbing "retirement" a bit too hard. But now that the initial excitement has worn off I'm realizing I need to pace myself a bit!

Here are a few pics from the recent trips out. I haven't been taking quite as many pics lately. But now that we're settling in I plan to get back into shooting again. These are from a trip to Ship Rock, where we climbed Edge of a Dream (5.7); a return trip to Grayson Highlands where we got rained out; and a hike up the Grandfather Mtn. Profile trail, where we also got rained on at the end of the hike.




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Armenian Climbing Video

It's nice to see that Rock & Ice is starting to jump into the multimedia game more. You should check out this video just to see the crazy geometric rock formations on some of the cliff's in Armenia. It looks like Devil's Tower on speed.

Amazing Armenian Rock Climbing from Rock & Ice on Vimeo.

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Grayson Highlands State Park

I'm a bit behind getting this post up since we went to Highlands last Sunday. One thing I've noticed about not sitting at a desk for work anymore is I have a lot less time for messing around on the internet and updating the blog. I've actually been enjoying getting away from the computer these last few weeks though. It's a good thing to do every once in awhile.

Anyway, Highlands was a blast. I always love checking out new areas and this place was really different and fun. It doesn't compare size-wise to someplace like Horsepens 40, but it makes for a fun visit nonetheless. In fact, I debated with myself about posting these images. One thing I really liked about Highlands was that it's still so pristine around the boulders (especially in the lower elevations not up in the Highlands area). If you visit, please tread lightly and keep gear sprawl to a minimum. This place is beautiful and we should work to keep it that way. Especially beautiful is the Highlands area itself...you hike for about 15 minutes uphill into terrain that looks like it belongs out west somewhere. It's above the treeline and you can see forever, and there are rock outcroppings popping out all over the horizon. I'm looking forward to going back with just a light daypack and shoes to do some exploring.

The climbing is reminiscent of Hound Ears in many places, but not as sharp. I'm climbing around V2-V3 right now and I had a blast in that grade range. But there's certainly harder stuff I was tempted to get on (but restrained myself so I could avoid more injury). There are some really classic highballs that lend to the adventure climbing feel of the place. My favorite was Highlands Highball, a fin that is maybe V2 and about 20 feet tall. (see the slideshow for pics of it.) (Also, if you want more info, check out my longer post on the area here).

Here are about 30 pics from our day:




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Climbing Ranked as Sexiest Sport

Well, it's about time. Climbing has finally been proven to be the most attractive sport to women in a recent study by a British researcher. Now my main motivation for climbing is finally substantiated. We even beat out soccer players. Somehow, climbing also edged out "extreme sports" in the study. Huh? Oh, well. I won't let one minor detail tarnish this important (perhaps even groundbreaking) study.

From matadorsports.com:

A study by a University of Hertfordshire professor suggests that women are especially attracted to men who rock climb.

Working with fitness expert Sam Murphy, Prof. Richard Wiseman polled over 6,000 people to find out which of 15 sports they thought would make a member of the opposite sex more attractive. Climbing topped the list for women with 57%, edging out extreme sports, soccer, and hiking.

Somehow, golf finished second to last, just ahead of aerobics. Go figure.


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Bad Day for This Guy...

I laughed my ass off watching this video...this hungover kid gets stuck in an offwidth and then actually craps himself. Poor guy. I can't help but repost it, though.

Boogie 'til You Poop from Cedar Wright on Vimeo.

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So Long Asheville, Hello Boone (again)

Okay, I've finally got some time to get caught up here on the blog. In the last two weeks I had to finish finals for sumer classes, move everything to Boone, drive back and clean the house for new renters, drive back to Boone with more stuff, then drive back to Asheville for my last days of work at Lark. It was busy. I did get to go out to the Walker Creek boulders one last time before I left Asheville, though. Thanks to whoever has been cleaning the place up. Someone has been doing the much-needed work of pulling off all of the loose stuff there, and they've opened up a few good holds on the overhanging face. The hard lines are actually looking climbable now! Please let me know if you've been out there sending any lines...just curious about any development. I'm glad to see that the place is getting some traffic, though. It has some good potential, even if it's small. Also, the scenery is hard to beat.

I've had a little bit of time to climb since moving to Boone, though we've mostly been unpacking and organizing and running errands. It's a bit strange to be back in town and on campus...a bit of a time warp. But it's awesome to be back. I've really missed the ability to go bouldering on short notice, and now I've got a couple of boulders in walkable distance from my house (and a swimming hole!). It's perfect for when you have a short window and want to get a quick workout in. Aside from still dealing with injury, I'm basically in heaven here. We even live on a gravel road that's perfect for going on short jogs. I didn't realize how much I didn't like living smack in the middle of the city until I got here and moved back into the woods.

We also got to take a day trip with a bunch of cool folks from Charlotte, DC, and Columbia to Grayson Highlands this past Sunday. I'll post about that soon, but I was psyched to climb a couple of V2s and V3s, which is a good bit harder than the V1s I've been climbing all summer. And after icing, stretching, and ibuprof-ing, the shoulder felt pretty good the next day. So here's to hoping that taking basically the whole summer off climbing has helped turn the corner on this lingering injury.

Some pics from my last visit to the Walker Creek boulders:



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How Does the Public View Us?

Know that it's with irony when I say that I love when non-climbers talk about climbing like they understand it. (Although I do relish how the misinformed always seem to have the strongest opinions because it can be very entertaining.) Case in point: an editorial in the Standard Examiner that had this to say about climbers in Arches National Park:

"The fact is climbing areas such as Delicate Arch is more fad than sport. These natural resources are not particularly difficult to climb. Many of today's climbers are as likely to climb for the publicity as they are for the sheer respect of the terrain."

The accompanying cartoon shows a gorilla on top of an arch with an onlooker filming, saying, "Smile, sweetheart. You're gonna be Youtube famous." Wow. Aside from my initial disagreement with much of this statement, it brings two things to mind.

First, it appears that the disservice Dean Potter did to climbers by going up the Delicate Arch is still having lasting consequences in the public's mind.

Second, does the public now view climbers as a bunch of video and media obsessed goons who care more about image and spray than the activity itself? As the writer of a blog who does push the media elements of the sport, this is something I've often wondered about. In the end, are we using the internet to share our passion or to inflate our egos? I prefer to think it's the former, but I'm sure the latter is mixed in. After all, what is 8a.nu if not ego run amok? Regardless, how the public views climbers is obviously a big issue in public debates concerning access issues. This is a bigger theme than I want to get into at the moment (finals today for summer classes! ugh! Moving tomorrow!). So I'm gonna let a full blown post on this come at a later time perhaps.

But you should check out the editorial for a somewhat maddening read. And let 'em know your opinion, too.

UPDATE:

I didn't know a whole lot about Potter's climb on the arch except for the fact that it caused a lot of controversy. I figured I should know what I was talking about before I said he did a disservice to the climbing community. I found an in-depth article on Outside's website that is definitely worth reading on the matter. Here's a quote from someone who initially supported Dean:

"There are many people who think Dean just walked up there and climbed it," Daly says. "I wanted to think that, because I have all this respect for him and this spiritual context under which he says he climbs. And I think other people want to believe that. That's why I feel so hurt. He did rehearse it. It was for a photo shoot. It was a communal effort by a group of people, and there is damage to the arch. It takes all the polish off the diamond."

A video clip is brought up in the article and should appear alongside it, as it was apparently shot after roped rehearsals. The embed on the video is disabled, so check it out on Youtube.






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