New and Experienced Climbers over 50 #43

philip bonewrote:

As for the discussion on stairs. There was a mention of documented decline in elders that avoided them. Is not that cohort by definition in decline?

Blue Zones was a National Geographic special on Netflix a few months ago.  One of the areas they documented that had a much higher ratio of people living to 100 was an area in Sardinia that I just had visited.  They came up with a number of reasons for the longevity there.  Some were pretty obvious - close multi generational families, low stress high reward jobs, etc.  One reason they summed up as "steep".  To get anywhere - inside or out in the streets - one had to constantly go up and down steps.  I remember just going to the market couple of 100 yards away involved many stairs and probably 200 feet of gain.  

Exploded off a 5.12c last night. At first my fingers hurt. Now they’re okay. Made a pretty loud pop off the hold.   

But I’m good to climb…

In case someone doesn't know the context of me ribbing Ward and misunderstanding, I have known him a long time and climbed with him, his brother and their families close to 40 years. I consider it my duty to heckle him occasionally as he is an older brother and I a younger. It can help with projects some times too.

#43. I’m in.
Climbing is ridiculously fun.

Long time ago before Ed Corrupted me.. ;) 

M Spraguewrote:

In case someone doesn't know the context of me ribbing Ward and misunderstanding, I have known him a long time and climbed with him, his brother and their families close to 40 years. I consider it my duty to heckle him occasionally as he is an older brother and I a younger. It can help with projects some times too.

You can bust my balls all you want Mark, I am immune! 

So a couple of days ago I re-tweaked my left shoulder on the big up and left move.  This is the spot where I fell on at the end of the hard climbing on my best try in November.

I hurt my left shoulder in December after coming home from failing on the project.  I had planned to take two weeks off, but having failed like an idiot I went full bore on training and then had a  frozen left shoulder.  

This morning, I was knocked down in my mind because with a hurt left shoulder that move was a mental block in addition to being the redpoint crux.

Anyway, I had very low expectations today so I spent hours looking for anything different on a toprope.  Amazingly, I figured out and cleaned a totally different top sequence that doesn’t tweak my hurt left shoulder but is a similar move up and right instead of up and left

I feel like I went from having no chance on this  boulder on this trip with the hurt shoulder to being back in the game with one week left.

No promises, but feeling optimistic with cooler weather coming.

Cool Ward. You got this.
I am more of a fan of LCO’s. PAC’s are just another cog in the corrupt machine.

Lori first thing I want to say is thank you for starting this thread years ago. Climbing is not about grades even though we all get caught up in them from time to time. I have been climbing for a while and some seasons are 5.11 and others are 5.7. Doesn’t really matter if you’re hanging out with friends and enjoying the outdoors. I just love the whole experience.

 Guy the weather in the north east changes a lot. I was in Southern California for a year and really enjoyed the boring weather. Last week was 70’s and t shirts this week it’s been snow showers and cold. Supposed to be sunny and 50 tomorrow so hopefully I will climb. 

Cold and sunny last two days but snow showers today.  Sunny and 49 tomorrow.. not looking forward to working in the snow today. 

apogeewrote:

I’m curious about how this ‘cohort’ feels about Local Climbing Organizations. Do you think they are a positive contribution to a climbing area? What makes one more productive? If you aren’t a fan, why? How do you feel about the Access Fund, both as a concept, and what their overall effectiveness has been over the years?

I'm a long term Access Fund member and support their efforts to advocate for climbers and climbing areas.  The LCO in McCall meets when Jim, Todd and I put up a new route or do trail work.  There are a couple of other climbers in town but they are much younger and don't interact with us oldies.  I'm also a long term AAC member and am very disappointed with how that organization has evolved over the last 10 years, but maintain my membership in hopes of a change in leadership.  

BITD photo for #43

This was when I first got interested in climbing, 1970 age 14.

Me in the middle with my 2 brothers,  Joshua Tree National Monument on a natural fiber rope I bought at Kmart before I knew better and had proper gear. Lol. 

T Hockingwrote:

BITD photo for #43

BITD photo of me on Amazon 5.11, from 1979.

Amazon is below the right side of the tower in my MP user photo.

Me leading BITD (70’s) in the swami belt and hex days. Guess the route. (Hint: El Cap base route).

Bob Gaineswrote:

BITD (70’s) in the swami belt days. Guess the route. (Hint: El Cap base route).

Moby Dick Center. Cool photo of a fun climb. 

Daniel Shivelywrote:

Moby Dick Center. Cool photo of a fun climb. 

Bingo!

Bob Gaineswrote:

Me leading BITD (70’s) in the swami belt and hex days. Guess the route. (Hint: El Cap base route).

I mentioned just tying in with a bowline on a coil to a couple team kids at the gym last week when one of them left his gear at home.... by the bewildered look(s) I might as well been talking in Farsi....  coach was behind them was giving me that "don't give them any ideas look"

Give me my rattling rack of hexes and a questionable stopper any day. At least when you topped out, you knew it was you— not a rack of spring-loaded miracles

apogeewrote:

I’m curious about how this ‘cohort’ feels about Local Climbing Organizations. Do you think they are a positive contribution to a climbing area? What makes one more productive? If you aren’t a fan, why? How do you feel about the Access Fund, both as a concept, and what their overall effectiveness has been over the years?

I approve of them all, generally. Seems like something is better than nothing. Has Access Fund been "overall effective"? I mean, how do you quantify that?
Here, check them out at Charity Navigator. I've seen their funds go towards trail management, protecting crags, and so on. Again seems way better than the alternative, which is doing nothing.

I'm curious to know why you're curious.

Bob …. Is that a FISH screamer on that stopper?  Or some old underwear used as an extension?

I had a really fun time on that climb BITD. We were in the Valley during Washington’s Birthday and being young n dumb we decided to go to the base of the Captain. Being by far the strongest, and best climber in our group I was tapped to get the rope up there. I was about 60 feet up and had some hex’s and stopper’s in. When the sun hit the top of the crag a rather large shield of ice cut loose. It impacted someplace way up there with a loud bang and lots of clattering as the smaller chunks fell into the trees  off to our left. My partner's shouting encouragement at me to keep going put the spurs in. I got up higher than another louder BOOM happened. It was directly overhead and the clatter of the ice chunks was coming- straight for ME - I looked down to see what the belayer was doing and much to my surprise I could see them running back into the trees! This made the rope go tight and I watched all the “pro” slide down the rope. Leaving me unprotected while ice cubes rained down all around. I self rescued.

Apogee … re LCO      They are great, the closer to the issue the better. The best example is a bunch of friends getting together to maintain a crag. I think as soon as money shows up the opportunity to misappropriate the funds happens. The larger the org becomes and the further away from the issue it is, the less effective the org is. So you get to the Access Fund, in my opinion, takes in lots of $$$ and produces little to nothing of value. I know that I might sound like a broken record but when WE (local SoCal climbers) needed them they did didley squat to challenge the CBD and the government closure. Now before all the attorneys come and jump on me (they do stick together) I say this because I have attorney friends also, who have pointed out the fact that the AF didn’t even put up a fight. If they had the facts could have come to light. But the AF choose the become the facilitator, along with the government, to close the place.
What I find amusing with the closing is that one can still go climbing there and I do sometimes. The place is pristine, hardly any chalk or footprints even. The government doesn’t have the desire or the muscle to maintain the closure. I know of a few climbers who required “long line helo rescue” out of the place and the NPS just smiled.
So now you know how I feel. It’s a dead horse.

Anyway I’m close to having my own Monarch. The critter has grown a bunch, it’s starting to change into a darker color and has stopped moving and eating. Will it survive?

Later all 

Alex Smithwrote:

Give me my rattling rack of hexes and a questionable stopper any day. 

Here's my contribution to the BITD photos.  I bought a set of newfangled wired WC Rocks when I was putting together my first rack - making the transition from my husband's rack of cord slung hexes and stoppers. To me they were a miracle - the stiff wire meant you could just reach the stopper up to place it, not fiddling with your fingers. Some of that original set has been lost and gotten stuck and replaced with newer ones over the years, but otherwise, they last forever. Look at that gorgeous patina.  I have similar patina on my skin, but somehow it's not quite as appealing in that location.

When we moved down here 12 years, I did a whole house purge of stuff and pried a bunch of things from my husband's pack-rat hands.  All the slung hexes and stoppers went to Sybille Hechtel, who at the time claimed to prefer them to the new wired stuff.

Another BITD photo of my first time leading Inverted Layback 5.9 in 1975.