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Location: NV : Red Rock : Mt. Wilson : Horseshoe Wall : Gwondonna Land Boogie (5.9+)
By: phil broscovak When: May 18, 2005 | view comment >> |
Comments: Note to Larry Hamilton:I was recently surfing around and came across an actual place called Gwondonaland. It is a region at the Fox Glacier in New Zealand. The locals refer to it as having once been attached to India. A different spelling than the Gondwana district of India but obviously related. The New Zealand region has only one N in it's spelling but I don't suppose I could convince the guide book authors to retro print their books for a spelling correction.
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Location: CO : Gunnison : Black Canyon of the Gunniso... : North Chasm View Wall : The Hallucinogen Wall (5.10 A3+ R)
By: phil broscovak When: May 18, 2005 | view comment >> |
Comments: Under 9 hours! ....Barring the use of R2-D2 jet packs that is FAST, mindblowingly fast! All kudos and congrats to these uber dudes. This remarkable news inspired me to jump up out of the rocking chair (of course that may have been due to the spastic sphincter seisure syndrome that I experienced while reading about their speed ascent) and wonder if I could break my own ...speed of 132 hrs, Nah, not likely. All my juvenile juice has turned to geriatric jelly I'd surely be slower. Your record is s... more >>
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Location: CO : Gunnison : Black Canyon of the Gunniso... : North Chasm View Wall : The Hallucinogen Wall (5.10 A3+ R)
By: phil broscovak When: May 1, 2005 | view comment >> |
Comments: To quote the 'thought of the day' in the Colorado Daily 5/1/05 "America is a country that doesn't know where it is going but is determined to get a speed record getting there." -Laurence J. Peter
As an old fart tradie I always thought that climbing fast was for safety in the mountains not competition glory. Style in climbing is a personal choice not a dictate. Cheers!philo
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Location: CO : Gunnison : Black Canyon of the Gunniso... : North Chasm View Wall : The Hallucinogen Wall (5.10 A3+ R)
By: phil broscovak When: Apr 30, 2005 | view comment >> |
Comments: 23 hours 39 minutes or 48 hours 27 minutes, who cares it is still a great route. It is not the Olympics. No one is going to give them a medal for breaking the four minute mile. And even if they get featured in the crag rags they will still be eating tuna out of the can with a piton in the back of a VWee micro van. Even if they fixed the first five pitches just climbing the beauty of a beast in any thing close to 24 hours it is amazing. If you want to go faster go for it. Joe Callahan and I did o... more >>
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Location: NV : Red Rock : Black Velvet Canyon : Whiskey Peak : Amber (5.10)
By: phil broscovak When: Apr 11, 2005 | view comment >> |
Comments: No bogousity here Ant. Good topo. I will attest to the 2nd pitch (left hand variation) being 5.12ish.
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Location: NV : Red Rock : Black Velvet Canyon : Burlap Buttress : Wish Bone (5.9 R)
By: phil broscovak When: Mar 14, 2005 | view comment >> |
Comments: I am not sure how the program elected to give this a vs rating, probably because I made mention of the less than ideal protection. I would not consider this route vs. Maybe s (with a small s). But I would consider it harder than the 5.8 the guide gives it. In fact I think it is much harder and more serious than Arrow Place but there is NO reason to get hurt on this route. On a side note I got a camming unit stuck in the back of the bomb bay slot right below the belay station. You can have it if ... more >>
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Location: NV : Red Rock : Black Velvet Canyon : Burlap Buttress : Arrow Place (5.9)
By: phil broscovak When: Mar 14, 2005 | view comment >> |
Comments: A really pleasant route. The start looks intimidating but goes really well. I found two bomber small wired nuts that had me feeling fairly secure through the opening moves. After the first body length you get a good stance and can readily place solid pro. The rest of the climb is well protected and very enjoyable.
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Location: CO : CO Ice & Mixed : RMNP - Mixed/Ice : Glacier Gorge : Black Lake Slabs (WI2-3)
By: phil broscovak When: Feb 9, 2005 | view comment >> |
Comments: Tracy- Never mind about the ACs, they only like to compensate for certain personal inadequacies by making snippy arogant comments fom the safety of anonymity. A 'V-thread' is a very useful technique for an ice climber to know (and know well). It will make a secure placement in dodgy ice and will allow a rappel without leaving expensive gear like screws behind. Essentially it is nothing more than two intersecting holes created by boring ice screws at a V angle toward each other. After the screws ... more >>
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Location: NV : Red Rock : Juniper Canyon : Jackrabbit Buttress : MysterZ (5.7)
By: phil broscovak When: Feb 9, 2005 | view comment >> |
Comments: Larry- Wow I am really honored that you went and did ths little climb. Nice pictures. Looks like a great day! I am glad you liked it. Jimmy and I thought it was a very pleasant adventure. I think it would be a logical link-up route for the Brownstone wall climbs. Well take care and keep climbing. philo ps: Your book is really awesome!
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Location: CO : Grand Junction area : Colorado National Monument : Independence Monument
By: phil broscovak When: Nov 25, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: I am in total agreement with Brent on this one! Think of WHEN this was done an give the ole' boy the respect he deserves. Thankfully climbing evolves. Apparently, closed minded arrogance is eternal...
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Location: UT : Moab Area : Castle Valley : Castleton Tower : Kor-Ingalls Route (5.9)
By: phil broscovak When: Nov 25, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: I would like to ask if anyone knows what happened to (who took) the original summit registers of Castleton and many other desert towers?????
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Location: CO : The Wet Mountains : Royal Gorge
By: phil broscovak When: Oct 3, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: For you naysayers out there I thought I'd let you know that next weekend (Oct. 8th, 9th and 10th) there will be an extreme event at the Royal Gorge. The second annual Royal Gorge Go-Fast games will include Base Jumping from the bridge and Americas' first multi-pitch speed climbing competition. This will take a quality new route up the north wall just up stream of the bridge. Many of the big name luminaries of our modern climbing community will be vieing for substantial prize money.This event wil... more >>
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Location: CO : Gunnison : Black Canyon of the Gunniso... : The Painted Wall
By: phil broscovak When: Oct 2, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: The Dragon is a very serious route, the real deal! This is NOT a free climb, though you will do free moves on every pitch. If you go be competent on inobvious obscure aid placements. Though this is not as seriously rated as many modern air routes it is NOT a route for beginning aid climbers. Note... Rusty did some extremely crazy stuff but he was in no way crazy. He was certainly made of sterner stuff than most and a tremendously talented climber.
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Location: CO : Gunnison : Taylor Canyon : First Buttress : The Upper Wall : Sasafrass (5.10a)
By: phil broscovak When: Sep 21, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: Originally the route finished up the slab half way between the bail-out into Dunn's to the right and the moves out left to the bolts. This was a really excellent and spicy way to top out. I just did this route a month or two ago and we went left to the bolts. Very nice but no where near as edgy as going straight up to the big boulder. All in all, no matter which way you top out this is a fabulous climb!
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Location: CO : Gunnison : Black Canyon of the Gunniso... : North Chasm View Wall : The Hallucinogen Wall (5.10 A3+ R)
By: phil broscovak When: Sep 8, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: Hmmm...I just saw a great picture in the paper of Aron Ralston climbing. Many will remember that Aron is the Guy who had to cut off his own arm to survive after being pinned by a boulder for days. It appears he has had a prosthetic arm modified to attach ice axes to. It looked like he was cranking some pretty hard stone. But I bet you'd say it was only A0 or maybe A1...
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Location: CO : Gunnison : Black Canyon of the Gunniso... : North Chasm View Wall : The Hallucinogen Wall (5.10 A3+ R)
By: phil broscovak When: Aug 29, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: I WOULD call this a FREE ascent, and I am very impressed! When "dry tooling" a mixed route or alpine climb you are not suddenly "aid climbing" when you move off of the ice. You are simply using "tools" as extensions of your own "natural" equipment. If you hang in your harness from an axe or piece of protection THEN you are aid climbing. These guys were moving onward with tools in hand not feet in aiders. No one out there is willing to say that the use of sticky rubber shoes or crampons is "ai... more >>
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Location: CO : Gunnison : Black Canyon of the Gunniso... : North Chasm View Wall : Leisure Climb (5.9)
By: phil broscovak When: Aug 25, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: This is my least favorite climb in the B.C. Prehaps I am tainted by a few past shadows. For me this route doesn't even rate the distinction of"pile". I never appreciated the names "Leisure" Climb or "Casual" Route, or for that matter "Cruise".As Jimmy Newberry so succinctly put it long ago... "It's desperate in the Black". There is nothing "casual" or "Leisurely" in the B.C. Even when compared to the "desperates". I for one (as well as several other of the old time Gunnison climbers) felt that ... more >>
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Location: CO : Gunnison : Taylor Canyon : First Buttress : The Upper Wall : Sasafrass (5.10a)
By: phil broscovak When: Aug 18, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: ....[FA] No springs or sticky shoes either.
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Location: CO : Golden : Clear Creek Canyon : Wall of Justice : Finger Prince (5.13a)
By: phil broscovak When: May 5, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: First off, sorry about my screwy text. I recently went Mac and don't have the bugs worked out of my browser yet. So please bear with me.
Guys like Hank DO NOT get their self esteem from climbing a number. They get it from doing what they do extremely well. And they do what they do so well for themselves not for the numbers.
Admittedly I am one of those stale old has beens many of you have been raggin' on in this thread. True I had my better days before most of todays climbers were, as Hank wo... more >>
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Location: NV : Red Rock : Mt. Wilson : Horseshoe Wall : Gwondonna Land Boogie (5.9+)
By: phil broscovak When: Apr 1, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: Gwondonna Land Boogie was indeed named with the ancient paleocontinent of Gondwanna (aka Pangea) in mind. But it was also a deliberate play on, or with words. Simular to the Central Pillar of Frenzy or the Grand Giraffe. It also helps to explain the directions on the "Tectonic Shift" traverse... Gwondonna... "Go on down" the ledge and see if we can boogie off this wall. When we did it originally it was with a small rack of stoppers and hexes (no springs) and a single 150' rope. You can try it t... more >>
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Location: NV : Red Rock : Mt. Wilson : Horseshoe Wall : Gwondonna Land Boogie (5.9+)
By: phil broscovak When: Mar 31, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: Here is an update on Gwondonna. Apparently we were braver bolder and no doubt crazier a few decades ago but this route probably should have been rated IV 5.10a/b X. The third pitch was a probable death lead. It had only 3 or 4 small wired stoppers in a full rope length and the climbing is hard steep face. The good news is (good news, bad news, you choose) the whole route has been retro-bolted. This was done with the approval of the first ascensionists. The old pitch three now has enough pro bolt... more >>
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Location: NV : Red Rock : Oak Creek Canyon : Eagle Wall : Levitation 29 (5.11)
By: phil broscovak When: Mar 15, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: definitely not a grade III
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Location: NV : Red Rock : Mt. Wilson
By: phil broscovak When: Mar 5, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: I highly recommend Joanne Urioste's new book, Red Rock Canyon the Red Book Supplement. Beautiful pictures and descriptions of twenty six classic trad routes. It just came out last year and isn't easy to find. So ask your local shops to order it in and consider yourself lucky if you get a hold of one. These will probably end up being coveted like the original "Red Cover" Red Books are. Really nice work Joanne!
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Location: NV : Red Rock : Icebox Canyon : Bridge Mountain : Northeast Arete (5.6)
By: phil broscovak When: Mar 4, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: George: You truly are an adventuresome soul. Not many people would endeavor to put in the effort to explore the further reaches of Red Rock Canyons. Subsequently, not many others would discover the secret treasures like arches and hidden forests. There is so much to discover out there once you get away from the scenic loop road. My hat's off to you. I have not yet, but have long wanted to do a route on Bridge Mountain as it is such a strikingly beautiful swath of stone. Thanks for posting so ma... more >>
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Location: CA : Joshua Tree National Park : Roadside Rocks : Dihedral Rock : Coarse and Buggy (5.11a/b)
By: phil broscovak When: Feb 24, 2004 | view comment >> |
Comments: I led this route not long after it was established as a free climb and it was just like Randy described. I remember it being stunning but spooky lead. I am actually glad to hear it has been "groomed" into civility. I am planning a trip out there this March and have always wanted to go back to this cool route. Unfortunately, time, and other thieves, have tarnished the stainless steel of my shrinking family jewels. I dont think I would want to lead it like it was now that my juvenile juices have t... more >>
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