Bronco

As a 10 year vet of Monroe ('94-'04) you're kidding yourself to think you'll get to Woodinville in 20 minutes during rush hour. More like 45 minutes to an hour on 522. It is close to Index but unless you have a regular partner also close by, it can be difficult to really take advantage of it. The town of Monroe doesn't really have much to offer either. I'd say get a place close to work so you'll have more free time.

I stumbled on this vid today. It's kinda long but worth watching, there are some pretty funny comments and shots. [video:vimeo]11629725 I thought big boy was going to throw up there at the end.

Surprised you didn't see (or at least mention) debris coming down. That face is typically pretty active on a rainy spring day.

The victim was flushed top to bottom???

Had these symptoms start in November in both thumbs, nice to see diet may be effective in controlling it. I'm 42 and have done a lot of manual labor, suspect 5 years of running chainsaws nearly daily had something to do with it. I'll have to check out the zone diet and skip the fast food. Been eating it 2 or 3 times a week lately. Any of you guys have an update on diets effectiveness on treating this condition? This is very interesting, especially the last bullet: http://www.arthritis.org/illinois/anti-inflammatory-diet/ Haven't been paying real close attention to my weight the last couple of years and could stand to lose a few pounds.

You guys are exciting, here's mine: Forced marches to remote, bug infested lakes & creeks to impress my wife and daughter of my back country savvy and convince them of how fun it is to sleep on the hardened ground. They buy it so far (I tell myself). Drinking coffee and trying to appear busy (yet organized and happy to help you!); Modeling the newest ski gear at the lodge, pretending to fall down the stairs whenever the kid is with me to embarrass her; Shouting out driving violations at automobile operators from my bike (inside my head, not aloud, although once I yelled "hey!" in kind of an angry voice); Researching climbing routes instead of working; Messing around in my garage when I should be training for extreme climbing and skiing (but it's pretty organized); Watching youtube instead of working; Yelling at kids to get off my lawn (not really but sometimes I'd like to); Lurking on Facebook instead of working; Pondering ways to crack up my wife and daughter (timing is important and during Church is not a good time); Reading the crossfit WOD and deciding that I would probably just wait for tomorrow's WOD due too only having a 25lb exercise ball and not the 20lb. Shopping for gear and usually returning it because it's really no different that the thing I already have. Taking my bow/rifle/shotgun for walks. Lost an arrow last year; Reading CC.com instead of working;

I'm reading Conquistadors of the Useless right now so good timing on your TR. Must be some kind of record for days spent in the field vs peaks climbed ratio. Seriously, great effort and photos. Whats the feedback on the HMG Icepack?

Just figured out why DE ski wrecks hurt more after 40. Has to do with the hardening of the earth. See McManus, P, 1981, McMillan, A Fine and Pleasant Misery, p.86

Looked for images of Fred Beckey on the internet today. That made me feel younger but still somehow worse in that he still probably climbs harder than me. Maybe this middle aged stuff is all in your head?

The world's most interesting man - Fred!

What's up with texting? I hate texting. Is that wrong? It drives me crazy when I get a text "what r u up to today". Often, in response, I'll call the offending texter right away to conduct a conversion instead of texting back and forth. Frequently the texter will not answer the phone but send another text "can't talk, what's up?"

Nice Jay, I hope there is some video or at least photographic evidence. Aleve is all you could get your hands on?

Not so sure about the wisdom of hiring Sage Kotsenburg to be the company spokesman. Is this how all the kids talk nowadays? [video:youtube]6j3TxpHXIvg

Thought I'd share some observations since spray has been so quiet lately. Went to the Head and the Heart concert at the Paramount Friday night. Music was way too loud, flashing spotlights were annoying. I made the mistake of asking my wife and daughter if it would've detracted from the concert experience if the volume had been reduced 25%. Apparently these guys aren't even considered rock and roll. Super high speed violent double ejection ski wreck at Mission on Saturday. I haven't wrecked that spectacularly in 20 years but I don't remember it being so painful and embarrassing to get the wind knocked out of me, once I regained consciousness. GAUHHHHHHH! GAUHHHHHH! "Dad, are you going to be OK?" Sure, just give me a second, GAUHHHHHH! "Dad, if you get knocked out so easy, I may have to disown you." My witty retort - GAUHHH! Sunday had its issues with people driving faster than me over Stevens Pass. Anyone driving faster than me has no idea how to drive in the snow.

Good observation Pete, now that you mention it, the company he works for gives strong preference to hiring vets.

I think it's called the "Parachute" method where you strategically place some TP in the bowl before you sit down to gently catch the deposit and mitigate the splash factor. It's an old carpenter trick for using Sani-cans on job sites to avoid the blue splash of shame.

That yeti skis pretty good!

I have a Black Diamond version of that tool which is nice and compact for riding in the pack. I added a torx tipped bit for the mounting screws on my dynafits and usually carry it all in a small zip-lock bag because I bring more bits than will fit into the handle. Hope that helps.

Rob, I cannot be troubled to open a browser, zoom in and login to the website on my phone when there are buttons for other apps/distractions right on my screen available with one solitary click, like the TGR app. I am old and don't have a lot of time left. cough cough. Really it's probably something the brain trust has considered before and I'm not sure if its even feasible. I realize TGR generates a bunch of revenue with other parts of their business that allows them the luxury of doing stuff like that.

this really would be achieved by migrating to a forum software product that has a mobile app already in place. a couple of them do... Oly - Eh? LUCKY - I doubt we'd see people posting pictures of their quiche. More like being able to easily access cc.com (the matrix) from your phone if you had a few minutes to kill and see whats up with the 1%ers.

How difficult would it be to make a mobile app?

I was putting in a contact this morning in the office restroom and some uncouth Neanderthal just walked right past me to the stall and started pooping like I wasn't even there. Please try to keep the following protocol in mind at the office and take care of your business at home if at all possible. [video:youtube]gUEu0O_oo0g

I'm sure everyone has their reasons for not posting as frequently. Life is busy and I don't get out much. Also, as I get older, I'm realizing my comments are probably not as witty or important as I thought they were in 2001. I think racked up pretty close to 3,000 posts from whenever I registered through 2004 and now try to limit posts to what I hope will help someone sort through gear or provide what little route info my meager brain is able to recall. Not so much of the spray or "good job" on some anonymous person's TR. I greatly appreciate the opportunity to kill a few minutes reading up on the website when I can. Got me through some pretty boring days. Thanks to Jon, Timmy and Oly (and the rest of you rich 1% moderators).

Anyone have new stories? I've made out very well with the last several partners from CC.com but still have a couple from long ago: Over 10 years ago I had a couple of experiences taking "5.10" climbers to Index on separate occasions that were awesome. One involved an Iranian who insisted on belaying me with his figure 8 device in belay mode while he stomped on my rope. He was pretty convinced the Iranian Army was the end all be all of climbing instruction. I wasn't quite sure how to respond and feigned a stomach bug. The other one had never climbed outdoors (unbeknownst to me) and had a difficult time with the exposure on Great Northern Slab, which we climbed first. We then went over to the Lizard and he totally lost his composure on the roof/undercling while I belayed from above, oblivious and unable to hear his cries to be lowered until the train passed. I finally lowered him back to the belay and rapped over the roof to get him settled down and finish the rap. Kind of awkward ride home but he went on to climb a bunch of stuff in the ensuing years so it must not have been as traumatic as it appeared.

You could consider doing the Emmons Glacier (if you haven't already) to get the descent route dialed and see how your body is at over 14,000'. It sounds as if you've got some good experience in moving over scary (but not difficult) terrain that is not really prudent to spend a bunch of time looking for protection. I'd wager that physical conditioning and mental toughness are more important than technical climbing ability on Liberty Ridge. Any routes on Johannesburg or Mt. Index would be good conditioning and similar type of stress in my opinion.