New and Experienced Climbers Over 50 #28

Keep on keeping on.  

Guy, see my last post in #27.

Darrell do you ever use a light cord for rappel retrieval? What diameter?

Flashed two gym V4, got upset not flashing 4 others. Floundered on a V5. Think this one V6 is possible?

Resting for tomorrow.

Omgosh, a new one already???

Hey IdahoBob, you home for the earthquake this morning?? I didn't feel this one, this time. Walking laps at the mall, lol. It was snowing rather merrily here, earlier today. Sheesh.

But Saturday?

T shirt weather. 

We went bouldering. Murphy is the best, by far, but we all greatly enjoyed the sunshine, warm, and BLUE SKY! FINALLY!! My buddy Paul actually made a fairly hard one look pretty easy...and the only climbing we've gotten in months and months was one outing to the gym, with Bob, actually. So go figure. This stuff hangs on, some how, even when we don't do much of anything, the body still remembers. Or at least knows what it wants to do.

Not his hard problem, no pics cuz myself and our other friend were both spotting, but here's a nifty crack...and that blue blue sky!

Saw what was likely a pair of Golden Eagles, unless Cessna 172s were courting. On the drive out, a bald eagle, and.... 

https://youtube.com/shorts/LwhIBGit3hQ?feature=shared

Best, Helen 

If I need a second rope for getting off it's usually a 9 because I have some.  One of the reasons I like 80's is in spite of liking longer pitches in reality it's rare that a multi-pitch rapp has any rapps > 40m, so one rope usually does it (keeping in mind I'm generalizing for face routes with bolted stations).  With the number of FA's I do the more common scenario is what is the diameter of the tag line - which also serves as the second line for rapps - for that I prefer around 9 because it's a little easier to hang onto while pulling up with any weight, and the tag is more equally sized to the lead line when rappelling.

People complain about the weight of an 80.  But to me the weight of an extra 10m is better than the weight of another rope.

Darrell Henselwrote:

Keep on keeping on.  

Guy, see my last post in #27.

I did…. I rolled that over and over in my mind. A 80 was almost my pick because we have been adding pitch two on a bunch of one pitch climbs that were established about 20 years ago. A 80 works perfectly to do the lower from these. I did consider a thinner 9.2 or so but tossed that thought out because I’m pretty much a top rope hero now. So I bought a cord that suits me. My friends will appreciate it, they all ganged up on me when they discovered the core shot about 25 feet from the end. Group shame.

Philip Bone - I always liked climbing on double ropes in places like the Needles, Red Rocks and Sierra. It just made more sense to me. Dragging some tag line 150 feet down below me or having it stuck in a pack just seemed wrong. It’s a personal choice, if you haven’t used doubles try it. You gain much more power and versatility with them.

Darrell-I hope to climb at Pine Creek this season and run into you.

OLH! Blue skies put a smile on my face every time. 

Guy - So good to hear you're doing well! The pear tree in my front yard is starting to blossom so Spring can't be too far off. I'm ready for A Hills and Bishop as soon as I can schedule it. Perhaps we could get together in one of those spots.

thx on the tag line responses. Most of my needs are met with a 70. In Yosemite yesterday a thin cord would have been useful.

pb

I always liked climbing on double ropes in places like the Needles, Red Rocks and Sierra. It just made more sense to me. Dragging some tag line 150 feet down below me or having it stuck in a pack just seemed wrong. It’s a personal choice, if you haven’t used doubles try it. You gain much more power and versatility with them. 

I double roped on 8.8 for a stretch of many years.  There are certainly advantages.  When I went 8.7 I bought 2 even though they're single rated so I could double rope with thin ropes if I wanted.  We did a pitch on the West Side where the line of a pitch would have resulted in paralyzing single rope drag - with selective choice of which double to clip it was np (well, sort of.  you still had to climb it but at least you could. It's rather difficult to go up when you can't move.) The biggest problems are that a lot of people have never double rope belayed so it might not be smooth, and it requires a device that can handle 2 ropes at once (not a GriGri).  Spot on with disdaining the weight of a trailed second rope, I sure don't want it when leading, and avoiding it hanging up while trailing it as a second is always a hassle/concern in addition to the weight annoyance.

I agree, the rope diameter and length are best ultimately based on what suits the individual and usage.

Edit: Guy, PM me if you're coming up.  Increases the chance we'll run into each other.

I bumped into this picture (SW Corner) with fond memories.  The only problem was no one mentioned I would catch a little air on the way down.  

A while back I was wondering where all the cowboys have gone. Well, I think I found some of them.

I’m having a little trouble on this trail. It’s been a while and I’m just not used to it yet. Both yesterday and today I hit some pretty serious low blood sugars.  While sitting on a rock and drinking maple syrup I got to talk to Ranger who patrols this area. Oh my gosh, the stories!  One great piece of advice, he said he practices “stair avoidance“, he will walk around any stair if he possibly can.  Isn’t that cheating?  No matter… this trail is a whole lot easier not doing it the Stairmaster way.  

Also, relieved to hear that I am not the only one to ever get lost on the Loop.  And he told me about young hikers he has had to carry off this trail because their knees can’t handle it the descent. 

I’m watching a documentary tonight called The Wrecking Crew and wondering if Kris Solem had arrived in town yet and was in the biz.  It’s on Hulu.  This was a group of studio musicians who played backup instrumentals for many of the 60s groups including The Beach Boys, Sonny and Cher, Phil Spector albums, a ton of others.

There’s a lot of names I never heard of or didn’t recognize right away but it’s very cool history since these guys produced that LA sound that we grew up with.  Carol Kaye, Tommy Todesco, Glenn Campbell etc.  

I remember cruising through the KHJ years and that great early 60s music but then came the Beatles White Album, Hendrix and Led Zeppelin and KLOS and it was a whole new world.  For some reason I never took Pet Sounds all that seriously but I’ve heard it called revolutionary many times and really enjoy it now.

Massive heat wave today. It was7f when I got up for work this morning but when I clocked out @2pm it was 50F.  I thought maybe I would be able to sneak in a shady climb on Mt Hor before everything falls down. 

It was a little spooky walking across the lake but the fisherman assured  that the ice is 10inches thick. 2nd year in a row it was not safe to drive on. I was amining for that icicle in the middle of the cliff.  Everything on the sunny Pisgah side was completely baked and falling down.

when I got up to the ice I didn't like the look of the upper pitch. the morning sun must have hit it hard.

too much black rock with water running on and under the ice. bottom was fat but the top above that curtain looked baked and possibly delamed. I had really wanted to climb this rig as I have never done it before.. Usually climb on the other side in the sun. My back up plan was Woober Gubber Gully just up the hill to the left.  I know this climb goes up a shaded gully and hope it has survived.  the first pitch goes up a fat pillar in a huge chimney

this climbed really well but when I got in the gully above the pillar it got a bit funky and mixed. a bit of mandatory spice to get to the next solid ice to potentially bail from. once  i got a crew in and had a good think about the top pitch I knew it was not worth it. Just too much sun this morning.

made a nice naked thread

and bailed

 that was a spicy little bit of easy climbing.. 

spooky walking back across the lake at night alone.. 

Lori Milaswrote:

I’m watching a documentary tonight called The Wrecking Crew and wondering if Kris Solem had arrived in town yet and was in the biz.  It’s on Hulu.  This was a group of studio musicians who played backup instrumentals for many of the 60s groups including The Beach Boys, Sonny and Cher, Phil Spector albums, a ton of others.

Ha! I might be old, but I'm not that old. I got started in the studios in L.A. in the late 80's. I did do a lot of work with Jeff Peters, who mixed a lot of Beach Boys records after Pet Sounds, and also some solo efforts by Brian Wilson. Here's a shot of Don Was, Jeff Peters, and me (L to R) at a concert in about 2003. I peg that date because we were working on a record by a superstar Algerian rai singer named Khaled. The album, Ya-Rayi, came out in 2004. I'll have to check out that documentary...

The Wrecking Crew is fascinating and wonderful- if you enjoyed it, you might appreciate Muscle Shoals, a similar background documentary on the influence of FAME Studios. 

Added 115 pounds, 15 seconds, 10, 7, 5 seconds full holds. The  90 pounds 20, 15, 10 second hangs full holds. Flashed a new 5.11b floundered on a bunch of 12s. Thursday will be a peak climb day, hopefully…. Single weighted Pull-up 45 pounds. Could possibly do 70 pounds? My weight is dropping to 193 in the morning. 197 at night.

185 pound body weight goal and plus 135 should be achievable in 6 months or so? Have to be careful. At 27 I was able to double my body weight hanging on a ceiling rafter, but now I’m old.

Still building core strength…

Half of the pitches we did in the Pyrenees were 40m, I almost bought back an 80m rope since they were just over 100 bucks there. I wasn't so happy having to lead with twins for the first time in 20 years, they get darn heavy after about 25m. I was also wearing borrowed shoes after the airline lost our bags for the first 5 days...

M Mwrote:

Half of the pitches we did in the Pyrenees were 40m, I almost bought back an 80m rope since they were just over 100 bucks there. I wasn't so happy having to lead with twins for the first time in 20 years, they get darn heavy after about 25m. I was also wearing borrowed shoes after the airline lost our bags for the first 5 days...

Looks really awesome! So jealous… it’s beautiful. Should let my daughter know.

Climbing gear is affordable in Europe.
BTW, I still use twins when I can, but if I get puzzled looks from the belayer…  

Those goats look too confident.   

MM, where did you climb in the Pyrenees? A friend just got back from the Ariege region visiting family, He didn't climb but reported mild temperatures and little snow---too little.

I listened to all of Pet Sounds on my morning hike. Over the years so much has been said about this landmark recording and that Brian Wilson was trying to one-up the Beatles or vice versa. I must be missing something. There’s a couple of tracks on pet sounds that I’ve always loved– – Caroline, No, God Only Knows. But to me it just sounds like a little more evolved Beach Boys album. But compare this to Sergeant Pepper, how are they even in the same universe?  I’m open to being schooled on this.  

Beautiful day here. I hope y’all are getting out and having a wonderful time.

Alan Rubinwrote:

MM, where did you climb in the Pyrenees? A friend just got back from the Ariege region visiting family, He didn't climb but reported mild temperatures and little snow---too little.

Calames, just North of Andorra.  We weren't sure whether we would be doing winter or summer activities so we had packed lots of gear, which of course didn't  arrive until we had 3 days left... We saw many cars with skis on top but as you can see in the one picture it was late late spring conditions which actually made for some excellent hiking . The last day of climbing was at a local and recently developed quarry near the house which was bolted like a gym, apparently almost all bolts are paid for and maintained by local governments in France which is quite progressive in my American eyes. 

Lori, you are right. The Beach Boys cannot be compared to The Beatles.