New and Experienced Climbers over 50 #33

John Gillwrote:

Looks like Joshua Tree on a Spring Break weekend!  

Although I must say that today was quiet (except for the artillery from the Twentynine Palms Marine Base) and uncrowded, with perfect weather (60 F and no wind), perfect for hard slab climbing on cold rock in the shade.

This is so sweet... Have I shared this with you in previous year?  My sister teaches art to 450 elementary school kids in her Hartford school.  Every year about this time they do a multidisciplinary  fitness curriculum.  She does an art thing - in recent years she highlights rock climbing for fitness and uses a photo of me climbing and also a more closeup photo of me. The kids can do any activity with a fitness heart they want but they often choose the rock climbing.  Here is one example from this year.  Not sure where the axes and dry-tooling are coming from but I like it!  And they are always surprised that her older sister - she tells them my age - can do any of these things!

Looks a little like Willi Unsoeld and daughter Nanda Devi. 

Sibylle Hechtel and her dad.

I for one am thoroughly enjoying these romps through memory lane and climbing history. Thanks, and keep the photos and stories coming. It’s a privilege to be sitting around the virtual campfire with all of you.
The old postcard of the crowded pinnacle was hilarious and oh too close to the truth these days. 

It’s in the fingers. Yesterday was a day of aha moments. I try not to brag on Bob too much because I don’t want to embarrass him. But man, I am so full of gratitude. I have asked him to be hard on me, and he is, but always with the intention of helping me learn how to get to where I want to go. Just about the time I’m ready to give up on that next move. I will hear. “stay with it, Lori. Focus!” Or “Reach higher. Twelve o’clock.”  For people who have climbed their whole lives this must be perplexing. But I am still learning as hard and fast as I can.

So yesterday it was all about the crimp. I’ve been so focused on footwork that I didn’t realize how totally impossible steep slab climbs are without strong fingers. It gets especially interesting when there are no holds or crimps at all, and there is only to press fingertips into the wall and bear down. But boy doesn’t it make a difference to use your fingers!  

So now some of the more difficult routes I had to give up on several years ago are back in play.   

(I know we’ve had this conversation before – – Jan comes to mind when talking about the route, dirty tricks. Is it fingers or toes? Obviously both but without determined fingers you’re just gonna slide right off that rock.)

I was going to say something about turning 71 and all the wrongheaded expectations I had (all negative) but I will save that for another time.

I did a couple circus trick v5's at the gym, lead a bunch of low angle slab and purchased hundreds of dollars worth of new cams so I decided to go and try and lead a 5.10 crack that I used to be able do pretty easily.  The cams worked great, I didn't get hurt or even scared and the route turned out to be about 5.10 A0 for me.  I plan to try again soon.

Jim Malonewrote:

That looks very nice! Where is it?

Brandt Allenwrote:

That looks very nice! Where is it?

Tollhouse rock, Spiderman.  1st ascent Larry Zulim, who could probably still do it now at 75.

Jim Malonewrote:

I did a couple circus trick v5's at the gym, lead a bunch of low angle slab and purchased hundreds of dollars worth of new cams so I decided to go and try and lead a 5.10 crack that I used to be able do pretty easily.  The cams worked great, I didn't get hurt or even scared and the route turned out to be about 5.10 A0 for me.  I plan to try again soon.

Hahaha, A0. That looks like an easy lieback for a 20 year old us, but a super tough crack for the older heavier versions of ourselves!

fossil:  Messner

Alan:  The postcard was in an old book I bought off the internet back around 2000 when I started researching the history of rock climbing. Don't recall which one. 

Here I am BITD holding the boulder down while others climb.  

fossil wrote:

John and Rich no and no.

Fossil, this direct from Sibylle.  Her dad Richard was a prominent alpinist in his own right.

rgoldwrote:

Fossil, this direct from Sibylle.  Her dad Richard was a prominent alpinist in his own right.

Interesting...

It came out of a post by John Stannard along with the bit about his daughter and the steer.

I would need to dig to find the post, but here is the original quote with my context in bold

On whether women can climb as hard as men

Seems to me we need to imagine an encounter with Ueli in a pub somewhere. And imagine small talk with him over a beer. And imagine how important that encounter would be to us. And as to the gender based discussion...... My daughter and I were standing looking at a neighbor's thousand pound yearling steer who was born the same day as my daughter. I said to Kristy, "the two of you were born on the same day. What's with you Kristy?" She replied, "Now daddy. You are being silly again." On the day of our birth, all of us have nearly everything we will ever need.

Not very clear when 'blown up' but doesn't look like John to me---and I have no idea whether or not John has a daughter or any children. Rich, I'm sure, will know that.

Also looks from the clothing, equipment, haircut, looks like a bit older picture, so a very young Sibylle and her father, definitely seems to fit. If also sounds like something that she would have said.

John has a daughter.  Don't know much about her...

This is a MP photo from the Gunks page, claiming to show a young JStan, Kevin Bein, and an unknown climber. My husband thinks the "unknown" climber is Ivan Rezucha.

The photo you showed looks more like Richard Hechtel to me, although I only met him a couple of times at the Loma Prieta RCS meetings - and once climbing in the Owen's Gorge IIRC.

Definitely Stannard and Bein, could be Ivan--though it has been so long since I last saw him, no way I can be certain. Again, I'll pass the ball to Rich on this one.

Back to the original photo in question. The 'where are they' question also looks more like somewhere in CA, rather than the East, so also supports the photo being of the Hectels.Anyway, Sibyelle posted that  it was of them, so that seems definitive.

I'm pretty sure the third guy isn't Ivan, but don't know who it is.  Stannard and Bein for sure.

Finally got to climb with a belay . it's been awhile since Isa pretty much gave up on ice climbing. My over 60 friend Jim was trying to recover from the flue so I thought it would be a good idea to take him up 20 below.  It was nice and steep but probably not a great Idea so we only did the first pitch. still good fun. 

My fried Kel was styling on Glass with a client. 

That skinny thing behind Kel is Extensive Homology WI5 which I have led 3 times. 

you can see Kel just to the right of the cave in the middle. 

Lots of things hurting these days so decided it was time for some cold therapy.

Chopped a hole through 3 inches of fresh ice and did three rounds with four plunges.. 

Not Ivan