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Reading Raymond Chandler 

5.12a

   

FA: Skinner/Piana, early 80s
Type: Trad, TR
Length: 1 pitch, 80 feet
Views: 666 page views

Submitted By: Anonymous Coward on Jun 19, 2005


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Description 

On the far left side of the shady side of the Holdout, past Currey's Diagonal, and above the leaning boulder/chimney/cave, is a steep seam. This is RRC.

Begin either on top of the huge boulder, or traverse in from the left by climbing the first 10 feet of a flared finger crack and step across to the huge boulder. Climb the obvious seam to the top. The climbing is sustained and difficult with a distict stopper crux in the lower section. A great rest comes in the middle, followed by another crux section of sharp micro crimping at the top.

I would imagine that 99% of the traffic this route sees is as a toprope for folks who climb Oslund's and rap right over it. The gear looks decent, but is very small and would be extremely difficult to place from heinously strenuous stances. Not sandbagged as a Vedauwoo 12a, but seems undergraded as a seam/tips crack. I would think this would deserve a PG/R rating as a lead. A testament to the ability and boldness of Skinner and Piana to those who continue to slag their achievements and vision to this day.


Protection 

RPs, medium stoppers, and maybe a few tiny cams. Two bolt anchor.



Add Comment Comments on Reading Raymond Chandler
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By Bob D'Antonio
From: Superior, CO
Jun 20, 2005

I led this back in the summer of 82 or 83 with Mark Rolofson and thought it was a good route with fairly good protection. We also did the route to the right (Static Cling) and I thought that had a lot more spice to it and a fairly serious lead.

By Anonymous Coward
Aug 29, 2005

Bob is correct, I'd take it a step farther and say that Static Cling is actually HARDER than RRC. Maybe I'm wrong though.

Blue Aliens and small nuts and RRC is not PG at all.

Near the beginning of the route, there are some very tiny pin scars in the crack. Were there pins in this in the early days? They seem wholly unnecessary.

By John Langston
Nov 12, 2006

I'm not one to call sandbag, but I find this thing to be quite a lot harder than "The Far Reaches" (12c/d) on the Sunshine wall in the South Platte.

Maybe I'm missing something...

By Bob Rotert
From: Broomfield, Co
Aug 10, 2007

Your missing something... \;0) footwork is key!!! I did this back in the early 80s and the interesting thing is the first time I did it was with Mark Sonnenfeld the guy who put up "The Far Reaches". When we did it there was one pin in Raymond Chandler that protected the crux move & you were glad it was there.... Hopefully it still is.