OCK

How does it go- its hard to teach an old dog new tricks? Tom that method i mentioned really works very well. But- you don't have to listen to my advice. I have done this string method many times with just the string and its much quicker, but it is hard to get around the hair everytime. I am averaging anywhere between 3-5 ticks per weekend on me & my dog. Between me and my partners the tick count goes about double or more. This has been the case in the Icicle since early March of this year. We have been gardening out alot of new cracks this spring, so as a result we get allot of dirt, grass & ticks on us. I get allot of practice as you may gather. I have tried polish, solvent, oil, matches,and you name it. The string method is by far the easiest & fastest way that I have used. Also, regarding the dog laying still. I don't know about your dog, but my dog is an acomplished hunting dog, and when I tell her to do anything she willingly does it on command verbaly or hand signal. In the process of training my dog, I have never once laid a heavy hand on my dog, instead I reward her. She trusts me. She will even pee or dump on my command. That's also pretty handy. Since you did not like my advice on the tick extraction, My suggestion about the dog will probably not hold water for you either. But, It's simple to train you dog if you start when they are a puppy. The training depends on your consistency and commitment to get good results. The best thing to do is to towel dry the puppy off every time that they get wet & spend a little time grooming the dog. They love it, and later, when you need to cut the dogs nails, pull a tick, feed them medicine,a shot at the vet, etc. Put a towel on them, They trust you and lay still for you while you fix the problem. Why won't your dog lay still? What's up with that? Do you think that's normal? It simply means that your dog is not working with you, or does not trust you. Maybe that's too much work too? Good luck! Ock

the Muira's absolutely rip!!! they are worth the money. I use the muira's for thin cracks & steep face (typical style of many Squamish routes). I put the Muira's are in my pack every trip these days (insurance). I was taught to size them really tight when you buy them, they will stretch about 1 size and then they are perfecto! I use boreal ace's for longer multi pitch crack climbs. and I am using a pair of cobra's for shorter sport misc. good luck! ock

I suggest that when you are alone in the bathroom & you get dirty thoughts like this, that you start counting backwards from 100. ock

Hey, i just yarded another blood sucker out of my dog. I wanted to tell you about this really awsome way to get them out that i learned about. Maybe you already know this method. You use a straw and slide it over the tick. Then take some dental floss and make a granny knot. Slide the loop down the straw to the head of the tick. pull the string tight. Pull the straw away. Pull the two ends of the thread easy..., and Bingo! that is absolutely the best way i have ever done it. The critter came out 100% and i did not squeeze any of the critters spooge into my dog. Sounds like you guy's might need to know about getting the cooties out if you plan to climb much in the icicle this spring! see ya! ock

Does it seem strange that many climbers in general can reguarly handle super scary shit, suffer massive hardship, hate fest,drink enough alcohol to kill a moose and fight like a dog. But a simple violation from cooties, hay fever, hang over's, a mean wife, etc. it topples a former hard man to his knee's in a newyork second? What's up with that? ock

Here is one report on the situation in washington state. http://www.geocities.com/HotSprings/Spa/6772/washington.txt Seems like there are several real bad things you can get from a tick bite. In the past two weekends I saw ticks, a huge spider, posion ivy, a bear in the icicle and a cougar in town last week. I just need a rattler when I am topping out and then I have a grand slam. ock

Bummer! I was at careno that same weekend. We are pretty active in the icicle and we have been getting somewhere between 2-3 ticks on us every day we climb. We check ourselves out freqently, and as a result we have not had very many stuck in our skin. The same week as your friend was bit one of our party reported that when he got home a tick had burned into him right next to his grommet. We were in the same area as your friend. I recently read that up to dec, 2000 there were 183 verified cases of Lymes disease in Washington state. I have heard of four cases now this spring on the eastside. ock

Here is the one I use. www.whistler-blackcomb.com/weather/forecast/realforecast.asp regards, ock

Dane, sorry to hear about your accident, I came down behind you guy's after I wrapped up. You had already moved on to Bathtub by the time I got down to the lower routes. Steve had mentioned that you guy's headed over there just before I came along on the trail on my way to the car. I was really bummed out to hear you got hurt when I came into work the next morning. Steve (the skinny guy on rappel) saw you doing cartwheels down the thing with a birds eye view of it. It made him scary sick just watching. he said you looked like a rag doll tumbling, and everytime you hit it was on your shoulder head down. They were pretty relived that you were alive. Bravo! I know that you do not post here often, but it was the only way I knew to check on you! Sorry for the pub. I passed the word along that your OK. thanks for getting back! P.S. we got 4 ticks! see ya Ock

Did anyone hear any new information on the climber who fell 50-60'into the ground on Sunday? Did he make it? We hope that he is ok. Ock

Around 3:00 or so my partners saw him cartwheel down the face, hit the ground and he was out cold. After a moment he came to and my partners helped him, I guess others took some gear down for him. Amazingly, he got it together enough to walk and his partner helped him out. One of my partner's came into work this morning all bummed out about it. So that is how i learned about it. I had spoke with the party of the climber who fell earlier. In that discussion I learned that they watched this site. In any event I was sorry to hear about the accident this morning. Seemed like a nice fellow, and I just wanted to see that he made it OK. ock

Hey chuck, I climbed that route in 1970's and Mitch is right about all the bolts not previously being there on that route. Below, there were a couple of well spaced 1/4's on Dan's. P.S. On a seperate note;I heard tale of someone recently retro sport bolting Dan's historical test piece? And for what it's worth - Andy, regarding the upper pitch of the standard route on careno, I did not see a fixed pin up there 2 weeks ago, but the pin looked like it was missing on the route to the right. ock

Hey Mitch, You and I know some pretty fun blind drunks. Since we keep repeating the process with them does that make these blind drunks an instant classic? Also, I hear the rap into the girls dorm in Chenny is a classic. By Erik's definition that certianly qualifies it as a classic. I heard the chicks dug it. What's your take on this, I heard you had the second repeate on that route? Where there any blind drunks involved? see ya! Ock

we just checked my dog, and we struck pay dirt! we just sent one of the little devils to tick heaven. I hope the rest of its buddies are not crawling around my house..,

In 1979 I was doing the outerspace route on snow creek wall. It was spring. I lost count of the little buggers after 28 sightings on my body. They were crawling out of the handcrack up my arms, on my eyebrow's, rim of my helmet etc.No escape. We looked like a pair of monkey's grooming each other on each ledge after that. We get them on us all year long in the icicle, especially if it is a mild winter. This sunday we were up at Condor Buttress and we took 6 ticks off of us,the ticks were on our legs, necks, hair etc. They were all over the walls. The week before we counted about 14 of the little devils. A couple of friends who climbed near the same spot as us in the icicle had them all over them as well, one of them had ticks burned into the back of his head. I have not checked my dog yet from sundays foray,she wanted to get on the bed last night and I just had to say no way! She usually is a tick magnet. Currently, all of my gear & clothes are in tied up plastic bags waiting to be de loused tonight. It looks like a bad tick season around here because it never got too cold this winter. Its all part of the outside game this early in the season. have a good time out there! ock