New and Experienced Climbers Over 50 #15

And quite a finger it is!

Kristian Solemwrote:

I'll never forget the night I sat in Carnegie Hall and listened to Chicago Symphony play Mahler's 5th under Sir Georg Solti. Of course Herseth, at principal Trumpet, was my hero, but Clevenger just blew the roof off the place in that 3rd movement. OMG. No hand in the bell for those solo's, just point the sucker up in the air and let fly.

I'm writing a book, and of course one chapter delves into the similarity, for me, of the experiences of trumpet playing and climbing. It's a lengthy introspective piece, but it ends here:

"...In climbing, being exposed means you are in a committed situation in a wild high place. A climber halfway up the sheer face of Yosemite's El Capitan is in an exposed position, over 1,500 feet from the ground and equally far from the top. 

A trumpet player in an orchestra is exposed because the instrument is prominent. The entire audience will hear your smallest mistake. While the consequences of failure are different, the experience of being on the edge is similar. In either case, before you begin, you feel anticipation and nervousness. Then it's time to commit, to begin the journey. Along the way, you might find yourself in an exposed section where control is vital, and mistakes have consequences. But being on this edge is your chance to be stylish, to perform, to make art of it.

Of course, failing on a climb can kill you, but the great majority of climbers manage to get down alive. Failure is most often the inability to do the climb in good style, or not to get up it at all. Back safely on terra firma, the defeated climbers will be disappointed, perhaps embarrassed, and in most cases anxious to make a stronger attempt next time. 

Failing on the trumpet would leave me despondent, perhaps having lost the respect of my colleagues, the conductor, the audience, and even worse, myself. I could not go back in time to make it right. It was over. I'd never play that music for those same people ever again. 

Simply put, coming up short in a musical performance would leave me wrecked. Coming up short on a climb motivated me to go back for more."

That, right there, is why I confounded those closest to me when I put down the trumpet to go climbing. It was a decision that cost me a career, a marriage, and many friends and colleagues. I even have family who, to this day, look at me like I have  tail. But it was a decision that I have never once regretted. 

That is possibly the coolest post I've ever seen in RC.com, Rec.climbing, or MP.  No disrespect to RG and others who also post some really cool sh*t.

TS

What a beautiful and timely post from Kristian.   I just came home from a morning of climbing with Bob where I had some real awakenings... came to kind of a turning point without expecting to. 

I was climbing a route in Hall of Horrors where I hit my limit, couldn’t figure out how to move upward and I was totally overwhelmed by the level of strength required to crimp down and pull through. On steep slab I always believed that my feet would carry me. Today I realized that from here on out these routes are going to require my finger and arm strength, biceps, triceps and lats, and absolute conviction and determination to move through cruxes.  

I’ve been thinking about the mental part of climbing and now the harder I climb the more of it becomes about mindset. Vision. And ability to power through a crux move with an absolutely clear head... no excuses.  

Now that I think about it The Rock Warriors Way really deals with fear of falling and working through that mental block. But it doesn’t address the work and sobriety required to make your way up rock and the character required to give your highest effort to the endeavor.  We used to joke that childbirth was a 'character building' experience.  Well, so is rock climbing.  

Tony has said “Lori, are you ready for the bowling league?”  NO!  In fact I can’t wait to rest up and return to the route that shut me out... and then go one better. Exactly as Kristian said.  

PS. Whoop gave me a 13.9 strain score so now we’re starting to see eye to eye.

Had a "climb in tights" day yesterday. Just doing really easy. (grade 9, 10, 11) leading over the last few days. 

Carl Schneiderwrote:

Had a "climb in tights" day yesterday. Just doing really easy. (grade 9, 10, 11) leading over the last few days. 

Yay Carl! Thanks for staying in touch!  Those may be tights but they’re man’s tights! 

The view from my camp. Off to The Gramps tomorrow or the next day after my 12th day here, and climbing for 10 of those. Feeling quite worked over but happy and relaxed. 

Lori Milaswrote:

Yay Carl! Thanks for staying in touch!  Those may be tights but they’re man’s tights! 

No such thing.  Act your age.

Our own private little sport area yesterday. 

Nick Goldsmithwrote:

Our own private little sport area yesterday. 

Very nice!

I see Bob caught another fish.  Men and their fish!  I don't understand it.     Apparently this one could be a winner of something big.  

This is absolutely climbing-related.  At least, it's desert related.  It seems there should be mandatory Colorado River trips to offset the dry heat here in Joshua Tree.  Tony has never been a part of river-rat life, but I think he could dig it.  Planning a trip soon...  hopefully some downtime at Fox's. 

Just when I think I'm getting over him, Dave reappears.     I was out exploring today, just having fun... and wound up underneath the Houser Buttress, gazing up at Loose Lady.  No matter how you slice it, it's a beautiful rock, and a beautiful route that Jan and Dave put up.  The thing is, I didn't wear my red T-Shirt when I climbed it... so I really hope to do it again, in proper attire.    

Also... now that we are more enlightened here, I don't know how that reprehensible misogynistic name has stood when everything else is being redacted.  I am proposing we change "Loose Lady"  to:  "Non-Binary Gender Person of  Questionable Moral Turpitude 5.10a".  As long as we're changing the name, can we make that grade a 10b? 

Lori, I too don't know how that name has survived. A climb I once did called Bimbo in Limbo is now redacted.

 I put up a 9+ called A Lick Tickle and  A spank. I don't enter climbs on MP but its in the real guide book.. wonder if that one will be redacted in the new edition... 

Russ Wallingwrote:

No such thing.  Act your age.

I refuse to do that.. 

Nick Goldsmithwrote:

 I put up a 9+ called A Lick Tickle and  A spank. I don't enter climbs on MP but its in the real guide book.. wonder if that one will be redacted in the new edition... 

Wendy, Nick... oh good god.  Our fragile feelings. I don’t know what to do about this anymore.  What’s the right stand?  

Something I’m experiencing being “over 50” is that I’ve become less militant, less offended, and with fewer battles I’m willing to engage in.  I’ve always been Left leaning but apparently I’m not woke enough now.  

I don’t know how you all feel about this. I realize anything we say is proof of our privilege and ignorance.  

Thinking about collaborating on some kind of history of Joshua Tree climbing it was a wake up call to learn that the actual history might be offensive to modern climbers.  That it would somehow have to include apologies for being too white, too male, to obscene, too privileged.  We would have to sanitize the story instead of recording it as it happened.  

I miss humor, raucousness, good-natured ribbing where everyone understands it all comes with love. As to route names I’d take down racist/violent names in a heartbeat.  So far not a single route name in Joshua Tree has offended me... the grades sometimes do.   

Kris tuning up before climbing...

Can’t recall where I took this one.

Kris repeating his climb “Seam Stress” 12c ... 

Always enjoyed the preclimbing call to arms. While sitting out days of rain Kris organized a bunch of us, with makeshift instruments, into a orchestra of sorts.

Getting the photo of Kris made me open up the desktop.... I kinda like this one. Lori this is what “run out face climbing” looks like... 

(Photo below)

B and Y 

And heck here’s another.... the impossible boulder problem as Sam is finding out. This is ice slick and not yet sent

Lori.... this “sport climb” is found in CG #2 or 3 in IC .... forget the name- you need to go do this one!

Some old dude 

Lori Milaswrote:

Thinking about collaborating on some kind of history of Joshua Tree climbing it was a wake up call to learn that the actual history might be offensive to modern climbers.  That it would somehow have to include apologies for being too white, too male, to obscene, too privileged.  We would have to sanitize the story instead of recording it as it happened.  

Lori, this is not what I meant when I responded to you regarding a JT history book. You asked several times why such a book doesn’t exist already, I only meant to suggest that the general public and publishing companies (what is left of them) might not be interested. I never said that climbing history should be sanitized or rewritten, I was trying to offer an alternative perspective on why such a book might be difficult to publish in today’s social and political climate.

In most respects it is pretty hard to think of the regulars at Josh as privileged when most were dirt bag climbers living out of their cars at least part of the time and devoting their entire beings into something that has no meaning to anyone else.  Dedicated, driven, even insane are some of the words that make a lot more sense.

Guyzo, the Indian Cove route is El Chivo (or something like that.) I think TG called it 5.8, which IMO is bagged by about a grade.

The trumpet shot is in, of all places, the Gorge of Despair. Base of Cobra. 

Seeing that Seam Stress shot today? F+ck. 

I'll dig up one I have of Guy drilling on Gold Standard off a hook. 

Those routes are at Courtright Reservoir, but not everything up there is a death defying stunt.

Lori, Courtright Reservoir will blow your mind. Go up there with a partner and do some of the 4 to 5 pitch routes on Power Dome that run 5.8 to 5.9 all the way up. And you cannot find a more beautiful place. The camping is mellow. The road ends there, no through traffic or tourons.

I'm with Jan. There was nothing about "privilege" or any other such business going on. Climbers made sacrifices to do it. As I said above, I tossed a marriage and a lot else. That's not privilege, it's a drive that borders on insanity. Guy posted that shot of Seam Stress. I'm doing hard .12 right there, and if I peel my belayer will have to run like a son-of-bitch or I deck. 

But enough drama. A history of JT climbing must be done as a book. That way you can tell it like it was. Cole, Guy, Jan, Guy and I can give you a lot, and point you in the right directions, but you'll need to interview Fidelman, Largo, the list goes on. Perhaps introductions can be made. But promise me you won't give in the woke/cancel culture idiocy.

One last thing. Get yourself a copy of a climbing video called Hard Grit. Those damned Brits are nuts, but that video has a lot to teach.

Cheers, K

Courtright from the summit of Locke Rock. Jan's wife Rachel and I had just topped out on The Best in the West, a wild ride first done by Herb Laeger and Dick Leversee.