Lambone

I like classic climbs, I hope to do as many as possible. Although more obscrue stuff is cool too, but for a different reason. Just don't go on a weekend during prime season. And if you do then don't complain about the crowds, cause it was your choice to be there.

Phish- UIS Pavilion, Chicago 1994 I was 16 and it blew my freakin mind... Harpua ...I've been hooked ever since. Can't wait for summer tour. Laugh and mock if you want, but there is magic happining when those four guys are really honed in on stage. Oh, and Trey is a Jedi...Yoda lives!

Cracked, So were you using the Eiger or the S? I'm not saying that the S is the best boot for Waterfall Ice climbing. All I can say is that I tried them and was very happy with how well they worked. I didn't notice any flex in the sole while frontpointing at all. But your right, with less ankle support they do require more calf energy. This didn't bother me until about the 4th day in a row of climbing in them. They are perfect at places like Marble Canyon where there are lots of "footholds" hacked in the ice, or steep pilars that have lots of mushrooms and steps and slots for your feet. They are not great on smooth WI 3-4 flows where you end up frontpointing on every move. Its a lightweight boot that works well for dynamic ice climbing, nothing more, nothing less. Oh, and they need to be dried out each night, so I wouldn't use them for anything but "Ice Craggiing" when they can sit by the heater while I'm at the bar

I like Sterling Marathon ropes. The sheaths are very durable, and it seems that most ropes get retred just cause of sheath damage when the cores are stil perfectly ok. However, they do have a stiff hand, and higher impact forces...

I loved my S's with G14 crampons on steep water ice pillars, so I guess it's all relative. They feel like ice climbing in rock shoes...

flaland, A friend of mine did it in aproach shoes (some sort of 5.10's) and said that traversing the snow was scary. Your'd probly want something that is sort of a compromise between a Boot and rock shoes and some aluminum crampons.

Crackbolter, Not sure what makes you think I am a "great" climber...more like fat and lazy after this winter. Anyway, this is a good question, although hard to answer...if there is a right answer. I own both Featherd Friends gear (Volant coat) and Western gear (a Puma Dry-Loft). I love them both. I don't use either very often, but when you need some super cold/save your ass shit, you can't go wrong. I have also sold Western Mountaineering gear at several specialized outdoor shops, and sat through many clinics givin by their reps. When working in Cali I also toured their factory in San Jose. There is no doubt that WM makes quality stuff. Yet the same could be said for Feathered Friends. And I like that FF has their own shop with employees who are well educated about the gear they make. When your chosing a $500 dollar sleeping bag, good customer service is crucial. If you really want to see the differences between the two companies, you are going to need to start investigating the particular materials and construction techniques that each uses. Needless to say, both companies use some of the best materials and design techniques. Which is THE best, is highly debatable and subject to opinion. One of the most important factors to consider is the quality of down feathers used. WM sources their down from England (I belive) from people who specialize in producing high quality down. Whether they call it is 750 or 800 fill is irelevant, because these numbers are only an aproximation, and typicaly an under-estimation of the actual loft. Look at inches of loft per bag, this is a better indication of warmth. One thing I like about FF is that they make some nice bags that are specialized for climbers. I don't know the names, but half bags, and bags with sleeves and drawchords at the feet, etc. These bags get good reviews from people that use them on serious routes. They also are very good about making customized bags that will fit your specific needs. WM sticks to the more traditional designs, but they make some really light weight bags as well. Personaly I think the Epic fabric, or the WM micro fiber is the best way to go. And if you need more protection, bring a thin GTX bivi. I have a Dry-Loft Puma, and it really limits the amount I can use it. In a snow cave I still need a bivi anyway, but DryLoft and GTX bivi is not a good combo, too much condensation. My Volant is Epic and so far I dig it, although it will eventulay get wet in a pissing storm. Everything is a compromise when it comes to the right gear. Just think about when you are going to use it most often and buy the bag or coat for those conditions. If you buy a bag for the one time you will need a super warm bag, then 99% of the time it will be sitting in your closet. You can allways add stuff to a bag to make it warmer, but a 20 below bag doesn't have much opportunity to be used around here. Oh and one more thing, I am not sure I trust the paper thin materials that bosth of these companies are using now. a super light bag won't do you much good if all of the feathers are spilling out of it. i'd stick to the traditional ripstop nylon. I hope this answers some of your questions, good luck!

Charlie, I have a pair of the S's. I think they are great! So far I have used them for everything Glacier slogging, WI 5 Pillars, Aid climbing, and just hiking around. They kick ass. Only drawback I have noticed is that they don't seem very durable. And they are not waterproof, this is a bit limiting, especialy around here. ...oh wait, just realized you got the other ones, what kind are those anyway? Hope they work out for you!

I had my rack, and shoes...and everything else stolen out of a parking lot once. It was sort of my fault, cause I got stoned and left it on the ground beside the car...but still, we had talked with the only other climbers/people around that day. Bogus, luckily my folks homeowners covered it.

El Cap- The last two summers I've gotten on her and been shut-down, on the NA and Tangerine... Not much to say about the reasons why, mostly just not strong enough as a team. If I had been alone I probably would have been too stubborn to turn back and had a fine sufferfest to the top. This spring will be different!

Dude, your question is a good one, but your thread title isn't very informative for all those other people who are wondering the same thing... Sorry, can't help ya. I have the same problem with my coat, and most other coats that I have tried. I deal with it, or if its really cold/wet on the ice I use a glove that has a bigger cuff. Taker sleezy

Expensive, yes. Overpriced, not necesarily, it depends on what you are willing to pay for quality. The mark up on certain things, like gloves and stuff is too high, but thats common. Over rated..., I'm not sure what you mean. I think BD gear deserves the praise it gets. I know I like all my BD stuff, alot. The only thing I don't like about BD is how much of their stuff gets recalled.

If the rope was found dangeling, my guess is that he was rapping from the top and went off the ends(only a guess). I thnik a 60 meter rope comes about 20 feet shy of the ground, give or take a few. Still a long way to fall onto boulders. Thats terrible, hope he recovers to climb again! Eric, is this a friend of yours?

I spent 5 winters in Montana. I'd like to do more winter suff, just been to busy with school to take full weekends off. We went to Ama Dablam and the Lang Tang...fun place. Bag was perfect up high. It wasn't that cold but we were burning alot of calories so the extra warmth kept us stronger.

that'd be cool, I've allways wanted to paintball the shit outa someoe, but how we gunna pic teams?

I have also heard the crease theory, but don't know if I believe it, and have never seen any evedince of it. To be safe you could fold it just a bit differently each time. I'd think that stuffing it would just create more creases in the Todd-tex. Seam grip should help protect any wear on the seams. Perhaps keeping it in a loose stuff sac would help more than anything. Bibler stuffsacs are generaly oversized.

Not to rain on your plans, cause it is good to shoot high... But the DNB seems to be one of those routes that folks do after spending a month in the valley ticking off all the standard grade IV's first. The Reg Route on Half Dome in a day would be a good primer for the DNB if you hope to avoid a bivi. You definately won't want to come down the gully in the dark, if you are crazy enough to go down it at all http://www.supertopo.com/rockclimbing/gallery.html?r=yomceast&n=2 If you're feeling strong then go for it! If not your probably asking for an epic as many others have. As for me I've only heard the stories. I've spent hours in the meadow looking at it and am not even sure I have found the line. I imagine the route finding is serious buisness. The NE But on Higher is a super fun chalanging rout with sound rock and straightforward route finding(except for the last 3 pitches ). If you only have a short time I'd recomend it over the DNB. I apologize if you knew all that already, just trying to help set you up for a good trip.

yup

bchaps, for pitches like the Big roof on LT, I would rap the haul-line down to the bag, cut the bag loose and clean while jugging the fixed lead chord. This would be much less of a stuggle then trying to pull yourself back under the roof. But you could maybe clean some of the other pitches on rappel. You would never have to do the big "cut loose" while soloing this route if you didn't want to. I think doing the friction moves up to Guano is the scariest part of the route. I've done it twice and both times had me totaly gripped with bogus shoes, sweaty hands and hella rope-drag. You can link 1+2, 3+4, 5+6, 7+8 or 8+9 or 9+10 easliy with a 60meter rope, especialy if soloing. The hauling is cake.

Great list, for 1 day routes you will be fine, things like Sons and Reeds get a full days worth of Sun so even if it does rain some you should get to climb them. Last year we wen't down over spring break in March to do a wall. We arived in 8 inches of snow and passed out in the car, only to awake with a full foot on the ground. My partner was pissed cause he thought we'd wasted alot of time and $. I told him not to worry. We drove over to the Leaning Tower and it was toataly dry! The next few days we climbed it in stellar weather, with huge sheets of ice crashing down all around us...it was surreal. LT is an awsome route, easy to solo and you can link almost every pitch, to make it only 6-7 pitches. WATCH OUT on Middle Cathedral. Check the route beta on http://supertopo.com for the East Butress. There was MAJOR rockfall in the Decent Gully. It is supposedly a hell death trap now with constant rockfall, loose scree, and broken bolts. People have almost gotten killed in there since then. I woudn't go near it for a couple of years, which sucks because the East But is so stellar. I'd recomend the routes on Higher Cathedral as an alternative. Braile Book is awsome and the North East Buttress is the best multi pitch 5.9 I've ever done, a true full day. Have a blast man I'm jealous, April/May is a great time to be in the Valley.

WOW...they are unloading a ton of stuff, thats more than i have ever seen there. Where did you see that it ends on 4/4?

Hey haven't seen any posts from the Law Goddes recently, wonder if Jim baned CC.com at his shop!

Well, I may be wrong about the minumum order thing, but I know for sure that usualy a shop can only get the special deals on stuff if they order in bulk. I always just half paid attention to the buying stuff, while reading climbing mags and leaning on the counter

But what about REI? One thing that I remember our buyer allways struggeling with at the last shop I worked at was filling the minimum order size through BD. It was a good chunk of inventory.

It's snowing right now. My folks have a foot in Tahoe, but it will likely melt off by the weekend. Thats how it is down there in the Spring. The Sierras can get hit with nasty storms one day and have 80 degree temps and sun the next. Generaly it has been a very dry winter, so you might expect more spring storms, but who knows, it may stay dry. Point is, if you go you are likely to get some awsome climbing in because the temps can be great at that time. But be prepared for violent spring storms that typicaly only last a few days. Good news is that south facing stuff dries out VERY fast, and there is a ton of stuff to climb in the sun. Have fun! What routes you lookin at? Check http://supertopo.com for more info.