New and Experienced Climbers over 50 #40

John and Rich you guys are true legends of the sport. Your post are hilarious and I admire how sharp your minds are. Thanks for drawing away from the tedious things. 

John Gillwrote:

It's 1898 and Rich and I are learning crack climbing on the infamous Y-Boulder in the Lake District. I am on top having given up but Rich perseveres and I suspect he will master the technique. 

Okay, you and Rich are one of the main reasons I keep coming back but does anyone know where this boulder actually is?

With my daughter at school in Scotland and my making a few trips back and forth, we're hopefully heading to the Peak District for a bouldering trip sometime next year and if that boulder is there, I'm getting on it!

Buck, I don't know for certain where that boulder is, though according to John's post it is in the Lake District not the Peak---two very different areas. I'm guessing that it is near Wasdale Head, as that was the main climbing center in the Lakes during that time period. Later, when I have a bit more time, I'll try to dig around a bit in my library to see if I can find some more definitive information.

Alan Rubinwrote:

Buck, I don't know for certain where that boulder is, though according to John's post it is in the Lake District not the Peak---two very different areas. I'm guessing that it is near Wasdale Head, as that was the main climbing center in the Lakes during that time period. Later, when I have a bit more time, I'll try to dig around a bit in my library to see if I can find some more definitive information.

Thanks Alan!

You're the best!

When I lived in Germany for 5 years I had a Peak District trip all set and had the huge, fat guidebook for the area as I was told that the Peak District has way more famous boulders and tons more of them and then COVID hit!!!

Damn!

Unfinished business!

Edit to add:  There's a whole thread about this by the Master himself, John Gill, from 3.5 years ago!

"You guys are so far off you're not even wrong   But you brought up the Jenny Lake Bouldering Guide Yvon and I composed about 60 years ago. Chouinard wrote the geology section after extensive research: "The boulders are composed of stone". I have no idea if the guide still exists. We left it with the climbing rangers.

What you see here is perhaps the first rock climbing guide in the English language, and perhaps the first ever. It's a bouldering guide for the Wastdale Y-boulder, near the famous inn in the Lake District where rock climbing was first practiced as a sport. The guide was written in 1898 by Aleister Crowley (the "Beast 666") and Alphonso Legros, the son of the famous painter."

Okay, back to clinic!

Kevinmurraywrote:

You sir are just as disgusting as epstein for coming to any kind of defense of him no matter how fine you split the hairs.

It's not really Epstein they're defending. It's someone else and they're just trying to get ahead of the news before the next shoe drops.

As I believe that I wrote in that earlier thread, the Gill-Chouinard handmade guide to the Jenny Lake Boulders in the Tetons is an absolute classic. For years, hopefully still today, it was available to view upon request at the Jenny Lake Ranger Station. The introduction was a parody of the then current Ortenberger guidebook to the main Teton Range. In addition to the deeply researched geology section that John quoted, the pamphlet also provided detailed meteorological information to the extent of: "these are big boulders, they make their own weather". The problems were graded with John's B1,2, 3 system---which provided it's own form of amusement!!! Needless to say, even most of the B1s were far beyond reach for most of us.

Kevinmurraywrote:

You sir are just as disgusting as epstein for coming to any kind of defense of him no matter how fine you split the hairs.

I apologize for sharing definition by American Psychiatric Association with you.
Apparently asking "to trust the science" is too much for you.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DSM-5

no. its arguing schematics in defense of horrible crimes that is too much for us.  

It has come to my attention that I need to climb 25 more pitches this year in order to surpass my previous personal record for total number of pitches in a year. At least, that's what my MP stats tell me.

So I'm now in a race against the clock to get in 25 more pitches before the end of the year. I just came back from the cliff. I went out to climb Betty today, with the support of my long-suffering bf, who volunteered to belay me. The plan was for me to lead P1, set up a TR, and climb it as many times as I could manage. Unfortunately, when we got there, someone else was just starting on it. Foiled! It's kind of a windy, raw day, and nothing else looked very appealing. We walked up and down, they were taking forever. We gave up. Maybe tomorrow.

Lori sometimes asks about climbing goals. My goal is to (1) "have fun" and (2) "climb more". I did have a lot of fun this year! I hope I can succeed in my second goal. I like the idea of being able to surpass my previous records (yearly number of pitches). Not sure how realistic that is at my age, but I will try.

C Miller, that video was great!

dragonswrote:

It has come to my attention that I need to climb 25 more pitches this year in order to surpass my previous personal record for total number of pitches in a year. At least, that's what my MP stats tell me.

So I'm now in a race against the clock to get in 25 more pitches before the end of the year. I just came back from the cliff. I went out to climb Betty today, with the support of my long-suffering bf, who volunteered to belay me. The plan was for me to lead P1, set up a TR, and climb it as many times as I could manage. Unfortunately, when we got there, someone else was just starting on it. Foiled! It's kind of a windy, raw day, and nothing else looked very appealing. We walked up and down, they were taking forever. We gave up. Maybe tomorrow.

Lori sometimes asks about climbing goals. My goal is to (1) "have fun" and (2) "climb more". I did have a lot of fun this year! I hope I can succeed in my second goal. I like the idea of being able to surpass my previous records (yearly number of pitches). Not sure how realistic that is at my age, but I will try.

C Miller, that video was great!

Ooooof!  I feel singled out!

;)

Jk.

But on that note, my daughter Natty and I were speaking last night and she is INSISTING that we go climbing at the Gunks when she gets home from Scotland while on Christmas break!

She arrives back on the 21st of December!

I told her that it would be way too cold and then I had a BRILLIANT idea and said that she had to link up with you as you are always so hardcore and looking for partners no matter the weather!

We'll see!

;)

dragonswrote:

 I like the idea of being able to surpass my previous records (yearly number of pitches). Not sure how realistic that is at my age, but I will try.

It's a calling and a duty.  Line 'em up, knock 'em down!  Report here on progress.    

We're getting some real pretty mornings here.  

dragonswrote:

It has come to my attention that I need to climb 25 more pitches this year in order to surpass my previous personal record for total number of pitches in a year. At least, that's what my MP stats tell me.

So I'm now in a race against the clock to get in 25 more pitches before the end of the year. I just came back from the cliff. I went out to climb Betty today, with the support of my long-suffering bf, who volunteered to belay me. The plan was for me to lead P1, set up a TR, and climb it as many times as I could manage. Unfortunately, when we got there, someone else was just starting on it. Foiled! It's kind of a windy, raw day, and nothing else looked very appealing. We walked up and down, they were taking forever. We gave up. Maybe tomorrow.

Lori sometimes asks about climbing goals. My goal is to (1) "have fun" and (2) "climb more". I did have a lot of fun this year! I hope I can succeed in my second goal. I like the idea of being able to surpass my previous records (yearly number of pitches). Not sure how realistic that is at my age, but I will try.

C Miller, that video was great!

Peterskill might be the right place to knock out a bunch of pitches -- or would that be cheating?

Doesn't Peterskill climbing close for the winter? That has been my understanding, but possibly inaccurate. If it does remain open, I don't see why doing routes there would be any more 'cheating' than doing laps on the first pitch of Betty or many of the 'Uberfall routes'. Of course, one can be like me and get in even more pitches in the gym--but I guess that is really cheating!!!!

Edit to add as I am at my 3 post limit.

Only the grades, Eric, not the pitch totals. And grades are stiffening at Hadley ( well, sometimes) as you would find out if you ever again dare to venture this far into the wilderness.

Snow down to around 4500’ last night. Rock climbing will be paused for a few days until the sun returns to clear away the snow. 

Last year, our first day of ski touring was Thanksgiving day, if the next few systems produce we may be skiing soon. Fingers crossed. 

Alan Rubinwrote:

Doesn't Peterskill climbing close for the winter? That has been my understanding, but possibly inaccurate. If it does remain open, I don't see why doing routes there would be any more 'cheating' than doing laps on the first pitch of Betty or many of the 'Uberfall routes'. Of course, one can be like me and get in even more pitches in the gym--but I guess that is really cheating!!!!

Only at Hadley

BINTD I kept a climbing journal and my best year for volume was the year I quit the martial arts academy. teaching class on your days off really limits how big a climbing day you will have and where it will be...  that year that I quit I hit 190 days. I would be rather delinquent at work and bounce out of there with any excuse and drive from Killington ski area where I was a mountain photographer to bristol VT and solo a 280ft tall frozen waterfall... 

Thanks Buck for asking the completely obvious question on that other thread: "what is a 'whoop band?'"

The question came to my mind too, but not as politely as you posed it.

I think that I've reached a point of pride that I am so out of what is trendy these days.

I suspect it is a vital sign monitor from what Lori has been saying previously on this thread. 

^^^

Yep, that's the answer he got and the same answer referenced Lori using the phrase too. I did not remember seeing it (or did not get it when I did).

PTR, Peterskill is not cheating. All outdoor pitches, including TR or follow, are included in the count. MP doesn't have any way to distinguish the pitch counts. Gym climbing doesn't count though. I don't record gym climbs in MP, in any case.

Alan, Last time I checked, Peterskill closes Dec 15, "weather permitting". So there's still time. I was just there last weekend with a group. It was pretty gray and cold!

Buck, A couple years ago, I climbed Three Pines on December 31st (I even led a pitch of it!). So, we'll see!