Matt_Anderson

In an attempt to get people to talk about something vaguely related to climbing (as opposed to books, Sexy's gender or access (allright, access IS related to climbing, and Is really important, but is still really boring . . . ) and because I believe that one's dreams are 1) the foundation of who we are and 2) some of the most interesting parts of us, I propose this question: What is at the top of your to do list outside of the discipline that you commonly do? Most of us don't spread ourselves equally among the different discplines of climbing. Nonetheless, I'm sure many of us have some climb that totally capturess our imagination, but we are unliely to do it unless we changed our current habits and gain more experience in that venue. Or maybe its just a climb that you think you could do, if some experienced partner in another discipline was desparate for a belay and wanted to team up with you on it. Maybe some sporto really wants to get on the NE Buttress of Slesse. Maybe a boulderer carries a yen for K2. Maybe Terminal Gravity carries a torch for some bolted tufa route at Mt. Potosi (the chipping capital of the world) that clocks in at 5.blah blah. Maybe Dru actually wants to get out and climb on the weekend instead of resting from the feverish pace of his posts during the week. And tell us why, that's what makes it interesting. Me - I'm rock climber. I avoid Sloggin whenever I can. Do even less ice. Don't even own crampons. What ice I do get to do is frowned on by my fiance. So it's always easier to go do something else. I wanna go climb Drury falls. It's freakin' beautiful. Its got a boat ride. Plus, I've been ice climbing exactly twice. What was it Like? A romp. Just about the most fun I've ever had. Ice climbing is exactly what every five year old boy wants to do: Swing big sharp things into ice and then pull up on them. It's like climbing 5.6, cause the holds are always huge (tools), but instead of using your fingers, you get to swing things more commonly found in gladiator movies. Not only that, but Drury is local, so I'll be available anytime some ice climber is desparate enough to want to climb it with me. And I think I'll be good at it. A natural (come-on, it my dream, no reason to imagine myself as shitty). All my time doing hard multipitch rock climbs will pay off and I won't have to do an apprenticeship and actually gain the skills I need the hard way. It's beautiful, its long, its hard, its close, it seems like more fun than a barrel of Monkeys. If it forms and you're desparate for a partner, call me. If you convince me that you somehow have the perfect mix of lack of judgement (want to climb with me) and judgement (can keep us alive on the climb - I've set exactly four ice screws in my life), I'm there. matt

Skiing with the Hamburglar. That sounds like alot of fun. Way more fun than sking with Snuffleupugus of Big Bird. The Hamburlar is always dressed so snazzy. Plus, he always seems to have, well . . . a lot of hamburgers. Now if I could figure out a way to go climb drury with the beerburglar . . . beersickles . . . nummy!

and ehmic. ehmic gets it too. Those peaks look soooo sweet!

Allright sexy, get your own topic about bouldering. And everyone else, except lambone (although his post didn't tell us a damn thing about why he wants to) and Strickland, missed the point. Dru - "I want to ski" doesn't do it. Isn't there some bad ass coloir you want to descend? Or some 15 billion mile long powder snow field that seems like it would be a blast to spend the day schussing down? What makes it seem so cool? Pencil Pusher - "I want to do a route similar to the one's I'm doing now, but harder and longer and farther away" also doesn't do it. (although, I might be wrong about this one. Maybe you just started single pitch ice climbing and primarily do other stuff . . .) Mike Adam "Your dream is harder than you think, ice climbing is actually difficult - maybe even feels like 5.11, but if you want you can learn to climb 5.11 ice with me in Lillooet sp?" A generous offer, but for cryin' out loud, No shit I think it might actually be hard and require some experience, that's why I haven't done it yet. Half of what might make the responses interesting is hearing the mistaken impressions that inspire someone who's never or rarely done your own disipline wnat to do one of its particularly inspiring or difficult lines. Lambone - is jumping off just a lazyiness thing (also one of my ambitions and that is its motivation) or is there something else you're hoping for from it? matt

I heard the cheering, but did not see or belay the ascent. It happened at least a couple of summers ago. Matt And thanks, Semyass talkalot, I also like the name my parents gave me.

In response to the questoin about the total overkill stainless steel anchor set ups on a bunch of the trade routs at Lower Town. Justin (I can't think of his last name - he moved to Colorado a while back) put them up. He said some guy traded them to him for the token price of some old leaver biners that Justin had with the understanding that Justin would put them up on some anchors where they would be used. The ones up and right of Amandala were probably there because he used to bring friends out to belay him on Amandala. The usual deal is that he would lead Sagitarius and let them top rope it as long as they belayed him on Amandala.

Well . . . Yes and no. I usually just look at the "Today's Posts" screen to see what's going on with a particular post that I know was on that day. When I did it on my "cooler than anyone else" thread, it wasn't there. It is, now that I have run the test. So it seems that a post doesn't get on the "Today's Posts" screen unless it has been responded to. Mine simply wasn't there because no one had replied to it. So I figured out why I thought it was deleted, when it wasn't. But this just inspired a second question. My test reply (and your reply, caveman) never made it onto the "Today's Active Posts" screen of the Cascade Climber's main page the other place that I would have expected to see an post that was not, in fact, deleted. I saw posts show up on "Today's Active Posts" that were posted both before and after my test, but I never saw it on that screen. Is there a minimum number of posts before it is considered Active? I always thought it just included the most recent posts for the day. Next time I accuse that testy little foulmouth jon of deleting my posts (he's one of the administrator's right?), I wanna be right. matt

Just testing something . . .

Once again, a post of mine was deleted from this board. This makes two this morning. Here's a recap: Deleted Post 1: I reported on a topic of universal interest - the Moondance. I saw it. It was beautiful. I was in tears. This post was deleted with no explanation. Deleted Post 2: I sent out an inquiry asking why the original post was deleted. Someone replied to that post asking about the Moondance (confirming that it is a matter of intense curiousity for the people who read this site.). Nonetheless, that was not the subject of the post. I simply wanted to know why it was deleted. This post was also deleted without explanation. I recognize that the Moondance is a powerful even electrifying work of art. Surely, however, the personalities of those who post on this site are not so delicate that they cannot survive exposure to a post only tangentially related it. What's next? Deleting all posts with the words moon or dance? This would severely limit the quality of discussion on this site. Surely discussions of night climbing would suffer without mention of the moon? If someone broke out into dance due to the joy of having a completed a particularly beautiful or difficult climb, should that person be prevented from sharing that joy with an accurate trip report? I suggest that those who disagree with this heavy handed censorship protest by inserting the word moondance into every post they write. It can be done creatively: "Gee, I think your bolting controversy is boring, but as I was moondancing last night, I had a vision! The whole contrversy can be solved by . . ." It can be done without much effort: "So that concludes my trip report on climbing 5.18 at 14,000 feet in the Saharan Desert last summer. Moondance." It could merely be included in your signature: "Sincerely, Matt Anderson, President of the Moondance Mafioso" But it most be done. Register your objections to censorship absent self-restraint or accountability! Matt Anderson President The Moondance Mafioso Matt

I posted on a matter of (apparent) common interest: That I witnessed the moondance. Someone deleted it. Why? The post was accurate and true. It cetainly was not pornographic. A desire for accurate information about the moondance seems a topic of universal curiousity. Why????? Censorship without reason and accountability to the public is an ugly thing! matt

Because I saw the moondance. First Sexual Chocolate's wife gave a stirring rendition. Then the master himself. The footwork, the joy, Oh my. (someone could hurt themselves!).

Shortly after I started climbing, I went to an aid clibing seminar put on by Dan Cauthorn at the old Vertical World on Elliot (It was the Vertical Club then). I learned that aid climbing was not about rescuing other people (aiding (helping others) + climbing: get it?). Who'd a thunk it? That information was very helpful and saved me from a lot of confusion the following summer on Town Crier, Liberty Bell and Half Dome. matt

Hmmm. . . Dru and I should not aid together . . .

Two aiders, unless your climb is consistently overhanging. Extra aiders make you lazy and slow. They get in the way. Bringing the extra aiders encourages you to hang out in the aiders, making your poor belayer endure your lead far longer than he should. matt

Knew a guy who climbed on a 9 mil (or smaller) rope he found left on the descent off liberty bell. Looked like it got cought when someone rapped. This was definitely not a single rope (i.e. the knew 9.4s), just an ordinary double rope produced at least seven or so years ago. He used it as his main rope for a year or two, until I talked him out of it. Took many, many falls on it. Course, he was pretty damn light - 135-140 lbs. Not suggesting it, just putting the info out there . . . .

The Tika bateries do seem to last forever. The seem to get a good deal less powerful after 10 - 20 hours, but are still usable for most things. With new batteries, the Tikka is fine for free climbing - I've climbed gear pitches near my limit in one. Of course, the pitches were in a dihedral, route finding with a tika would probably bite. matt

Ditto all of the above advice, especially reading and rereading John Long - Climbing Anchors. Realize that there seem to be two types of trad climbers (and climbers in general, for that matter, but the difference is more pronounced in trad): 1) Those who climb above gear because they know they will not fall; and 2) Those who climb above gear because they have confidence in their gear and know that it will hold them on both a rational and emotional level. Often people are in the situation 1) because, allthough they know on a rational level that the gear is good is good, they have not actually trusted it by falling on it on a regular basis. If you just want to climb gear because of aesthetics, ethical superiority, or other reasons, the only real difference is that 1) seems like a scary life (and could be more dangerous if you turn out to be incompetent). If you want to be able to push yourself on gear, however, you should try to get yourself to 2). While hanging from gear (clean aiding, as discussed above) will get you to understand rationally that your pieces are good, Regularly falling on gear (combined with mileage and competent placement) is the only way I know to really understand it on an emotional level. Falling on gear desensitizes you to the irrational fear that makes you overgrip and ensures that your trad climbing level will never catch up to your sport climbing level (of course, rational fear like "my last three pieces are crap and there's a ledge below me" is another matter. . . ). Few, if any responsible climbers will tell you to start falling on your gear from the get go. While placing gear is not brain surgery (I'm a huge believer that common sense gets you through the vast majority of gear placing decisions) there are subtleties to placing gear and you would need a good amount of dumb luck in addition to common sense to survive if you decided to start trusting your gear without the experience to know if it is any good. Nonetheless, there are several ways to start leaning to trast your gear, the most foolproof of which is a top rope belay while gear and falling on it. Obviously, this isn't going to ge the first thing you do when you start learning gear. Just understand that if pushing yourself physically on lead is one of the things that you enjoyed about sport climbing, the only reason that your gear leading ability should lag behind your sport leading ability on a permanent basis is that you just like sport climbing better. Its bullshit to expect that you can't climb as hard just because you are above a nut. matt

Tried to respond to your email regarding Liberty Crack variation, but got a system administrator response - undeliverable. I have m_schaefera5@nospam.hotmail.com for your email. Is that right? Do you have another email? matt

Are y'all high? Snow sucks. Made me bail off a free variation to Liberty Crack on Sunday.

Shit, is someone else using better lures in my fishing hole? "not that i condone such actions but its kind of funny, "MOMMY there is 20 feet runout to the next bolt, we go home now!" Have the fish gone fishin? "So is Swim at Index upper walls considered a sport route?"

Actually, Si and 38 have far bettter rock than the crap at index or squamish. The granite might be solid, but the only way to get any decent moves on it is to put them there. At least with 38 and Si, the trad climbing is safe because the cracks are bolted.

Re: climbs left out: Vanishing Point on the Dolomite Tower on the N face of Baring. The approach is a grunt, but the business ascends the vertical and overhanging arete that divides the two faces of the tower. The position is fantastic, the rock is some of the best I've ever had on an alpine route. It's not in the books because it is recent and Burdo doesn't feel like he's finished "prepping the route/rappel route." Burdo intends to put out the information for general consumption on it next season. Also, the moves on the crux of the Independence Route on Liberty Bell are some of the most fun I've ever been on in an alpine setting. Beware the first .11 pitch - a long fall at the crux (unless the psychological pro holds). Finally, it is not particularly alpine, but Davis-Holland/Lovin Arms finish at Index is one of the best multipitch climbs in the state.

Never trust one of anything Granted, helmets are useful, but I would have titled this thread "Never trust one of anything", not "Helmets". It shouldn't just be a matter of hindsight, this is the only "law" (as opposed to safety factor) I teach friends when they are learning to climb and (imho) far more effective than a helmet at preventing fall related injuries (Whether to wear a helmet due to rockfall danger, of course, is a diffent question that should be decided based on a balance of: your risk aversion level, the comfort of one's helmet, what's above you, and whether or not you're trying to attract members of the opposite sex . . .) Aside from rockfall danger, if you combine this rule with an awareness of the factors that could lead to you getting flipped upside down I'd choose I'd chose two pieces to stop a ground1 fall over one piece and a helmet everytime. I see people ignoring this rule or ignorant of this rule all the time. It seems that the quality of climbing gear available and the number of times that people take falls on such gear allows confidence in the unbreakability of gear to dampen the self-preserving queasiness people should get anytime there is only one thing keeping them off the ground. Case in point: A sport climber clips into a single draw while hanging from the anchors and threading the rope. S/He feels comfortable because there is almost no chance of a well placed, quality bolt or the draw breaking. The danger is from stupid user error, not the gear breaking. I will make exceptions to this rule when I'm climbing below my limit. At least then, arguably, my body is the second "thing" that I am using. In the scenario that was the subject of this thread,its not totally clear to me whether he cratered or the rope caught him two feet above the ground. Either way, the scenario supports the never trust one of anything maxim more than the helmet maxim. If the rope cought him, it worked, obviating the need for a helmet. If he cratered, the climber fell twice allready and knew that his climbing ability wasn't going to keep him off the deck. He decided to trust a single unidirectional (apparently a tug upward or outwards from his hand dislodged the piece) anchor. Because there was no redundancey in his system, he cratered. Either way, he didn't land on his head. The lesson to be learned is never trust one of anything, not wear a helmet. (just the rantings of a climber trying to rationalize his aversion to helmets . . .)

People come up with their list of top climbs, and they get to glaciers that they have been on or slogs they've done, I get bored pretty quick. I don't say that to be condescending, its not that I'm a great climber. Its just that when I think about slogging that I've done, I can't come up with more than half-a-dozen that I've done. I like sloggin' sometimes, It's a good workout and it gets me to some pretty places. I just don't store the names of the routes or features. It doesn't seem very important to me. Anybody else feel that way or is it just me?

Sweet Bouldering in the upper enchantments near Asgaard Pass. Incredibly scenic. We've got some photos with the climber, an erratic boulder, a goat, dragontail on the left. Rember routes @ V0 to V5. Matt