We were unable to find this route in any of the climbing guides, so we are listing it as a first ascent. I doubt that it has never been climbed but based on the roughness of the crack it is clear it has not seen much traffic.
The crack is great for jamming and eats pro.
Reach the base of the Tangen tower as described in the Rock section. Walk West around the South side (left) of the rock. You will pass a small boulder leaning against the lower South face below an incipient crack (this is the South Face right route from Rossiter 5.9), continue up past two slots (the second cleaner slot being the Roach route.)
As the face turns right around an arete you will see two thin shallow parallel cracks that fail to reach the ground. The right crack disappears after a few feet but the left crack continues to the ridge above your head.
Start between the two cracks and make a couple of bouldery moves that will allow you to reach the left crack. From there life gets easier, work up the crack until you reach the ridge of a sloping ramp. Crank up onto the ramp and head left for some 10 feet to an easy headwall that leads to the summit.
Descent - Make an exposed short rap to the West from threaded slings.
Protection
Standard Flatiron rack with an emphasis on finger and hand sizes.
Isn't it common knowledge on this site that the star rating is only applicable to an area. North Table Mountain has no comparison to Eldorado Mountain. Flagstaff does not compare to Lumpy Ridge. Eldorado Canyon is quite different from Clear Creek Canyon. Morrison is different from the Black Canyon. Longs Peak is different from Unaweep Canyon. Do you get it now?
Calling all AC's: feel free to do the climb and down-star to your heart's content!
Note also that length of a climb has nothing to do with the number of stars. Check out all the 3 star boulder problems in the Flatirons! Perhaps it is more realistic to compare this problem to the Bongo Boulder, Sputnik One, etc. These too are *** climbs ...
Good job Warren and George on the first ascent - it's nice to see that adventure and exploration are still alive in the Flatirons!
By Tony B From: Boulder, CO Jan 17, 2003 rating: 5.9
I note the comments from the cowards at 140.226.55.118 & 128.138.145.199.
In so far as your questions regarding the comparison of this route to Death and Transfiguration, West Overhang of the Maiden, and the First Flatiron East Face...
I bet you haven't climbed the first two of those. I don't think you are a 5.11 leader rarely need to spike thier own egos by spraying about routes they haven't done.
You are free to come out of the closet and prove me wrong. All you have to do is tell me how many broken pins are on the W.O. and where they are. Please sign your name.
Hello, this is Anonymous Coward 140.226.55.118 speaking
I apologise for the negative tone of my comment, which wasnt a dig at the 3-star rating as much as at the patronizing and incorrect argument offered by anonymous coward #2. I promise to make only nice comments from here on.
Warren and George - thanks for adding a new quality route to the Flatirons!
Matt made a good point and I also can't help but wonder if all the AC folks realize that Warren and George have climbed, between them, literally hundreds, if not thousands of routes in the Flatirons and what do they do? They go looking for more! Hooray for the spirit of adventure!!
Sorry, that last post was quite stupid on my part, too much beer. What I mean is that climbing grade has nothing to do with posting anonymously. I thank George and Warren for their addition. While many anonymous postings are annoying, they are a fact of the internet that will never go away and that one must deal with. There is no reason to get so upset about anonymous postings, take them with a grain of salt, anyone can post anonymously and sometimes it is quite funny, being flamed is a risk you take posting to the internet, a righteous crusade will feel good but do nothing, better to take things with a grain of salt.=ac
By Tony B From: Boulder, CO Jan 21, 2003 rating: 5.9
OK, so we've got a little clarification from one AC. It was Andy. I re-learn the lesson that it is hard to read tone over the net.
Knowing and having climbed with Andy in the past, I know he's not an egoist. He is a good guy that's not generally out to bash people he has probably has lead all of the pitches in question. To state that he climbs a lot harder than I do is an understatement. I also get to eat my words in one case, but who is the other AC?
I see that Andy has explained his post as a negative reaction to the previous post... which seemed to be a negative reaction to the first post... Obviously mine was a negative reaction to the whole chain and in that respect I made the mistake of continuing it. I am glad to see though that it provoked an explaination of one of the posts, on the brighter side of things.
In retrospect, I don't think it's necessary to always comment "nicely" but certainly to try to be clear over what is being said. The AC posts are going to gather fire and I guess obtuse comments are easily misinterpreted. If the initial AC comment had read: "Warren and George, by the looks of this it is quite short and so I am wondering what justifies the 3* rating to you" and was signed, I doubt any of this would have ever occurred. In fact, it may have lead to constructive discussion.
Maybe when I say something that is not well said and offhand or offensive to someone they can at least know that it was me and write it off to the fact that I'm a jerk. Whatever... but they can't do that if I post AC.
As for the comment of comparing dick size, obviously the poster doesn't even see the relivance. Neither do I. I thought this discussion was about anti-social use of the AC login in one respect, and about spraying over routes that one has not done in the other respect.
By Casey Bernal From: Wheat Ridge, CO Jan 21, 2003
Ah the ACs are coming out.
I am AC #2 (from 206.247.49.3). I was trying to be a smartass and I guess it worked. I wanted to be direct about this because I have a rated route I did the FA of with 3 stars and felt it was justified. I still stand by my statements about "climbing it and rating it yourself". I apologize if I offended anyone.
I tried to Email the "Tony Blair" address and have found that it is a fraud address that someone posted from. It is just another Anonomous Coward.Hey Myke, can you look up the capture from the creation of the profile and let us know who the AC is?Thanks!-Tony Bubb
Alright, so it's been a week since George and I posted a couple of new routes on this obscure piece of rock in the Flatirons.
Since it seems that the flaming has subsided, I figured I'd crawl out of the asbestos suit and philosophize for a couple of seconds:
The posting of this route, that I dared rate 3 stars, attracted the attention of:
- Four different Anonymous Cowards some attacking the route, others attacking the previous AC, and some of them explaining to me what to expect from posting in the net (thanks for the guidance)... Two of them were eventually prodded out of their anonymity as it turned out
- Replies by the two original posters that should have known better than to do so
- Postings by four friends of the original posters coming to their rescue and trashing some other friends that, as it turned out, had masquerated as AC's ;-)
-We had a British Prime minister impersonator/ Anonymous Coward whose original posting identity is now being ferreted by those climbers with superioir internet know how
- A request to show up somewhere and measure the size of our Penises
- And of course, Lorena's promise to show up at the above mentioned measuring contest to chop off our Pride Appendages with a Dull Butter Knife... I have never met Lorena and fail to understand why she'd want to chop off my Willie, but I diggress...
While all this happenned, not a single person went to try the routes. No feedback on actual facts...
On the good news side, reading all this nonesense jogged Greg Hand's memory and he remembered doing some first ascents on this and some nearby rocks in the 80's. He posted 6 new routes! some of them damn hard! and yes! some of them 3 stars! Brace yourself Greg...
So, I look forward to the day when someone will accidentally stumble onto the routes and climb them, perhaps even enjoy it! and if I am really lucky even get feedback based on the experience.
In the meantime be safe and stay away from "Lorena the Willie Chopper" and her Dull Butter Knife
Cheers, WT
By Tony B From: Boulder, CO May 30, 2003 rating: 5.9
Did this route today and enjoyed it, but it was, as said, short. The moves were bouldery at the bottom, and the grade will depend upon finding the key feet and upon your height. A very tall person could grab the bomber from tip-toes and skip the crux move. A felt the grade was 5.9.
I find that when I go do a new route, I generally get more out of it for the 'adventure' and for the feeling of accomplishment. Maybe that accounts for the stars here, I don't know. I think of this more like a boulder problem, where difficulty and complexity relative to ability might be what generates the rating, not length or asethetics. I can't be sure what others think, but that's for me; stars are subjective, and I didn't think this line was classic. I give it a 1-star. Worth doing, but not a destination. I probably wouldn't go back for it.
I enjoyed this route. It's more of a boulder problem with a short scramble on top of it, but definitely worth doing if you're in the area. I'd do them again. This area is nice and secluded, yet only 200 feet from the trail.
RSS Feed
Slideshow
