New and Experienced Climbers over 50 #34

GabeO wrote:

I only watched a few minutes, starting around minute 11, as you suggested.  Just my opinion, but as far as I'm concerned, that's just what "try hard" looks like.  This level of exertion is nothing special.  I'm sure sometimes when I try hard, I look like I'm going to blow a gasket.  Maybe some day I will.  Or maybe I'll just stop trying hard before that day comes.  I guess that's just one's choice.  Keep in mind, I'm only mid fifties, so take this with a grain of salt.

GO

Gabe... thanks for taking a peek!    I'm so glad you wrote this.  This is my 'try hard', too.  But Bob and I were having a discussion about whether trying this hard AS A SENIOR CITIZEN with one foot in the grave is a good idea.  I think it's fine.  Randy Leavitt is my new climbing hero.     

I am beginning to think that rock climbing doesn't fit into any conventional slot.  I work harder than I think I should... huff and puff a lot.  My heart rate skyrockets.  But honestly, I feel just fine.  

My doctor asked me "Do you have any heart palps?" no. "Skipped beats?" no.  "Pain?"  no.  "Then forget the stress test!"   

It was also comforting to see Randy's comment about "extreme levels of effort and discomfort while rock climbing".  So, it's NOT a walk in the park.  It's not always pleasant. 

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I also really appreciate all the posts on the Shingles vaccine. Per Jan's comment, I think I may have been reacting to various friends of mine who got their Shingles vaxs years ago, and got incredibly sick.  I hope I won't. 

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Also... I somehow met Pat Ament on line and we wrote back and forth for over a year.  John Gill's name came up many times, and I may have that book of his.  It sounded like John was a mentor and hero of Pat's.  I can see why.    

Sad to hear about Val Kilmner's death.  Tony has Tombstone and popcorn ready to go this afternoon.  I thought Val's portrayal of Jim Morrison in The Doors was exceptional.  Sad for him to have suffered so much in recent years.  

Lori Milas wrote:

John, thank you.

. . .  I take off almost every day and spend hours hiking and exploring alone. Sometimes I feel like I have gone feral just out there hanging out with the ravens and coyotes and watching the bees and then reluctantly returning home. . . . Meanwhile, what do you know but this picture showed up on my Facebook feed yesterday and I saw the words The Gill Crack. WHAT?  So I had to dig it up, of course, and read the comments, especially the one by John Long. John, you did this?  OMG.

The most enjoyable times I had as a climber were wandering about on isolated granite domes in central Wyoming during the 1990s. No guidebook, no previous knowledge of existing routes, never encountered another climber - like being in an adventure on another planet, alone and self-sufficient. An illusion of total confidence. I did convince John Sherman to meet there one summer, and we happily tip-toed up steep barren rock, except for the fact that afterwards John admitted to being nervous at various places as I moved up above him and as I removed my toes from the rock surface, the tiny holds would skitter downward. 

I spent a couple of days at Castle Rock in Boulder Canyon while in grad school in Fort Collins. None of the longer routes.

John Gill wrote:

The most enjoyable times I had as a climber were wandering about on isolated granite domes in central Wyoming during the 1990s. No guidebook, no previous knowledge of existing routes, never encountered another climber - like being in an adventure on another planet, alone and self-sufficient. An illusion of total confidence. I did convince John Sherman to meet there one summer, and we happily tip-toed up steep barren rock, except for the fact that afterwards John admitted to being nervous at various places as I moved up above him and as I removed my toes from the rock surface, the tiny holds would skitter downward. 

I spent a couple of days at Castle Rock in Boulder Canyon while in grad school in Fort Collins. None of the longer routes.

That’s it! I’ve been channeling you!  

So this is how it unfolded for you – – college, graduate school, gymnastics – – and along the way you became an outdoor adventurer as well. (?)

And a world class innovator on stone. Wow.

Did you wind up suiting up and getting a job? I am supposing you did…

Also, I didn’t expect to see your name on a crack climb. So you did it all.

That part about exploring without a guidebook. I’ve been chastised here for wandering and asking questions later. Perhaps I should get better with coordinates and navigation, but really I just like to head in the direction of my curiosity. I spend a lot of time staring and wondering.

Yesterday, I thought I would try something new. I was listening to Queen, a song called Killer Queen, and I thought what a great name for a route. But sure enough that name was already used on a route on Queen Mountain, Upper Walt’s Rocks— a whole area that I have never seen.  Right next to Killer Queen is the route called Rain Man, Bob Gaines and Peter Croft did the FA (!) so I wanted to go find that. 

I drove quite a distance down a dirt road and wound up at a tiny cul-de-sac with a massive foreign desert out in front of me and some amazing looking rock formations miles away. I’m not sophisticated enough yet to head out alone in that kind of terrain, but it’s really on my mind.

What blows my mind is knowing that Bob and Peter were there, that most of the people on this thread have wandered near and far – – way beyond what your ordinary person would ever contemplate. And here am I drawn to do likewise.  If I do find a wanderer out there straggling along, I know I have met a kindred spirit.

“What blows my mind is knowing that Bob and Peter were there, that most of the people on this thread have wandered near and far – – way beyond what your ordinary person would ever contemplate. And here am I drawn to do likewise.”

Lori…. Be careful wandering alone, sometimes you need assistance to extricate yourself from a tricky situation. When Kris and I did our first trip to “The Gorge of Despair” the Kings Canyon rangers all voiced the same concern, namely, “no established trails exist even close to where you boys want to go” - “you’re off our map, what if something goes wrong?” We didn’t even let them know that we were going Rockclimbing.

Exploring is, I believe, at the core of why some of us are “lifers” in this “sport”. If climbing was confined to the Gym or the crowded crag I don’t believe I would have fallen in love with it. Fifty two years later, what gets me going is the prospect of something new, something fresh.
The “Top of a Mountain” is after all a new place to explore.

DirtBag…. A term I personally hate when used to describe a dedicated full time climber. Fred Beckey was not a dirtbag. That crappy movie was such a disappointment. It focused on Fred’s failure to climb some hard mountains, in his 90’s,  and didn’t show that he was still climbing shorter routes in Josh and elsewhere. That man set the bar for all of us.

It’s finally starting to warm up and become “springtime” (apologies to you folks who actually have “Winter”) and that excites me. I still have stuff I want to do this year, creeks to fish, climbs to attempt, people and places to visit.

Lately I’ve been thinking that I don’t have all that many years remaining to get to all the fun stuff I want to do. Don’t put anything on the back burner.

Later all 

This might be the single stupidest thing any of us will ever see," Dunt argued. "It is stupid in every way: presentationally, intellectually, politically, methodologically, morally and of course economically. The word stupid doesn’t really suffice for the full level of idiocy we’ve now reached." 

I certainly hope none of us lose our homes over this st00pid economic suicide.... 

Nick Goldsmith wrote:

I certainly hope none of us lose our homes over this st00pid economic suicide.... 

National Review: Americans Will Pay the Price for Reckless Tariffs

This, from one of the most rational, conservative sources in America.

Guy & Kris, I'd love to hear more about your Gorge of Despair venture...that place has always intrigued me, and I've been tempted a few times (if I could find the right partner).

apogee wrote:

National Review: Americans Will Pay the Price for Reckless Tariffs

This, from one of the most rational, conservative sources in America.

Guy & Kris, I'd love to hear more about your Gorge of Despair venture...that place has always intrigued me, and I've been tempted a few times (if I could find the right partner).

There is a good write-up in Eddie Joe's Rites of Passage book if you are interested.  Lots of other good stories about route development in the Sierra during the golden era.

that is a great book

Guy Keesee wrote:

“What blows my mind is knowing that Bob and Peter were there, that are disappointed to have to wait so long that’s a good idea. I was gonna say you could squeeze, but I don’t think you’d be happy right now. I want to go after the surgery so I’m thinking maybe like the 22nd to 23 of June 1 of all you’re done Fourth of July Fourth of July was here last year a horrible day or wait until August the end of August I don’t think you’re gonna be in any mood to go most of the people on this thread have wandered near and far – – way beyond what your ordinary person would ever contemplate. And here am I drawn to do likewise.”

Lori…. Be careful wandering alone, sometimes you need assistance to extricate yourself from a tricky situation. When Kris and I did our first trip to “The Gorge of Despair” the Kings Canyon rangers all voiced the same concern, namely, “no established trails exist even close to where you boys want to go” - “you’re off our map, what if something goes wrong?” We didn’t even let them know that we were going Rockclimbing.

Exploring is, I believe, at the core of why some of us are “lifers” in this “sport”. If climbing was confined to the Gym or the crowded crag I don’t believe I would have fallen in love with it. Fifty two years later, what gets me going is the prospect of something new, something fresh.
The “Top of a Mountain” is after all a new place to explore.

DirtBag…. A term I personally hate when used to describe a dedicated full time climber. Fred Beckey was not a dirtbag. That crappy movie was such a disappointment. It focused on Fred’s failure to climb some hard mountains, in his 90’s,  and didn’t show that he was still climbing shorter routes in Josh and elsewhere. That man set the bar for all of us.

Later all 

For all the times I’ve asked to come along with you and Jan on your top secret fishing trips – – and I promised I would not make a peep and not be any trouble at all but noooooo.    What I really wanted was to see Jan’s 14 1/2 pound backpack. And to get to eavesdrop on real life late night guy  talk.

Barring that I’m just a lonely heart destined to wander the Earth alone.

Got out for some climbing today. I was just a mess. Blood sugar unaccountably high. Then blood sugar crashing low. Dehydration. foot and leg spasms.  That’s OK. It HAS to be OK. I cannot think that every time I have a bad day it is the last day I’ll climb.

I had to laugh this morning… a guy on my Diabetic Ultramarathon FB site, a new diabetic, complained that he just got a new insulin pump and wanted to know why his blood sugar wasn’t perfect.  He got close to 100 “lol”s as responses.  It will never be perfect and there is no amount of tinkering with the gadgets that will make it perfect.  You just have to be generously gentle with yourself.  

Meanwhile, we made a gentleman’s bet on how far the Dow will drop today. Bob thought closer to 2200 points. I thought 18. I think it wrapped up at 16 so I win. Sorta.   

Lori Milas wrote:

For all the times I’ve asked to come along with you and Jan on your top secret fishing trips – – and I promised I would not make a peep and not be any trouble at all but noooooo.    What I really wanted was to see Jan’s 14 1/2 pound backpack. And to get to eavesdrop on real life late night guy  talk.

Barring that I’m just a lonely heart destined to wander the Earth alone.

Got out for some climbing today. I was just a mess. Blood sugar unaccountably high. Then blood sugar crashing low. Dehydration. foot and leg spasms.  That’s OK. It HAS to be OK. I cannot think that every time I have a bad day it is the last day I’ll climb.

I had to laugh this morning… a guy on my Diabetic Ultramarathon FB site, a new diabetic, complained that he just got a new insulin pump and wanted to know why his blood sugar wasn’t perfect.  He got close to 100 “lol”s as responses.  It will never be perfect and there is no amount of tinkering with the gadgets that will make it perfect.  You just have to be generously gentle with yourself.  

Meanwhile, we made a gentleman’s bet on how far the Dow will drop today. Bob thought closer to 2200 points. I thought 18. I think it wrapped up at 16 so I win. Sorta.   

Lori!  Do you have an inReach?  These can be lifesavers. Yes they can be abused but if you start to go really hypoglycemic and are on one of your lone rambles, it could save your life.

Worthwhile investment for most of us that like to play "out of bounds".

apogee wrote:

National Review: Americans Will Pay the Price for Reckless Tariffs

This, from one of the most rational, conservative sources in America.

Guy & Kris, I'd love to hear more about your Gorge of Despair venture...that place has always intrigued me, and I've been tempted a few times (if I could find the right partner).

Also from the N.R.

Former Senator Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) " . . .  and if you listen to his language — he believes that if you have a trade deficit with another country, that is the measure of the amount that country steals from you. And that of course disregards that we get something when we purchase products from other countries, but this is the way he views it. He thinks that the Canadians are ripping us off, because we buy some more goods from them than they buy from us . . . "

Buck Rogers wrote:

Lori!  Do you have an inReach?  These can be lifesavers. Yes they can be abused but if you start to go really hypoglycemic and are on one of your lone rambles, it could save your life.

Worthwhile investment for most of us that like to play "out of bounds".

Thank you Buck! I do carry an InReach mini but have to start all over with learning how to really use it. It’s entirely different from the regular InReach, which was stolen a year ago.  When I don’t use something weekly it becomes all Greek. 

I am a little overwhelmed with tech stuff lately, and it would be great to hear how you all manage. It seems like things change daily.

My understanding is that SAR response time is 3 to 4 hours in Joshua Tree. For a severe hypoglycemic episode, I would be dead. So I carry an excess of fast acting carbs with me at all times. I also have a life saving nasal spray called Baqsimi.  It delivers a powerful blast of glucagon through the nose, which will revive almost any situation.  I’ve only had to use it once and I can attest it’s an incredible jolt to the brain.

A couple of threads ago we talked about snake bites. I gathered all the information available from the national snakebite registry and it seems the consensus is to walk out and get to an ER if possible. Hitting the SOS button and waiting for a helicopter isn’t wise unless you’re overcome by pain and can’t walk.

If I were stuck in a crevasse somewhere with a busted limb, that InReach could be a lifesaver if it could ping through the rocks.  

I’d love to master its navigational capabilities, but what I have found so far is that the in reach will guide me “as the crow flies“ but will not recognize mammoth rock formations along the way.  

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What I’m trying to deal with this week is learning how to use and manage my devices. It seems now everything is operated from a cell phone and that drains cell battery quickly.  The InReach mini is operated from my cell.  My tiny insulin pump is now 100% operated from my cell and if my cell were to go missing or run out of batteries, I’d be in big trouble.  I now carry a battery back up, but I don’t know how long that is good for.

I decided to figure it all out this week, including the GoPro and Canon mini camera. Tony has checked out of the entire ordeal. I’m lucky if he answers his own phone or acknowledges a text. “ when did you call? I didn’t hear my phone.”     Tony totally glazes over when it comes to techie stuff so I’m on my own.

Everything charges via different method. The GoPro requires its own SD card and battery and battery back up. My Canon has a completely different plug-in battery. My insulin pump only charges from a “Fast external charger“.

Whenever I’m out of cell range lately, my phone invites me to use its “satellite texting“. So I’d like to find out if that is essentially what the InReach does.  

Basically, I decided after yesterday‘s outing that I will have to buy another cell phone and keep that one on my body at all times. I cannot run an insulin pump, play music, and take pictures from one device Hard to imagine needing all this stuff.

I share this because I have a feeling someone out there already has a system down that doesn’t require having multiple devices charging at all times— and maybe has gotten rid of some redundancies. And this is seriously hampering my free spirit dirtbag alter-ego.   

The DOW is already down another 1200 points. I don’t usually feel like a victim, but it’s a helpless feeling.  

duncan... wrote:

If anyone is still vacillating over getting the shingles jab, there is increasing evidence that some of the vaccines help reduce dementia risk. 

That’s great news! Planning to.

On the gym climbing front, finally got this 5.10- crack clean. Very technical.

One of the 5.10+ off hands was a bit too narrow for a fist with awkward body positioning and nearly topped out. Slipped out of the top move.

Halfway up one 5.12- hand/finger crack. More endurance is required.

Putin is a pretty smart dude. I would be surprised  if he was not pulling Donnies strings getting him to trash our economy.  Putin made a great purchase... 

Nick Goldsmith wrote:

Putin is a pretty smart dude. I would be surprised  if he was not pulling Donnies strings getting him to trash our economy.  Putin made a great purchase... 

Hahaha, it certainly seems that way.

looks like a Duck, smells like a duck .. probably a duck... 

And, unfortunately, the damage from this nonsense will be so widespread that none of us will be able to 'duck'!!!!

Well, it was down 1600 yesterday.  Probably going to be that again today.  

Jan Mc wrote:

Well, it was down 1600 yesterday.  Probably going to be that again today.  

Bought yesterday, bought again today.  Laddering in, still have a lot of dry powder.   I'm not retiring any time soon. 

Jan Mc wrote:

Well, it was down 1600 yesterday.  Probably going to be that again today.  

2200+.  Yikes.

Good opportunity.  Got a little nibble.  We'll see next week.