genepires

If you don't feel like buying another belay device, you could add friction by adding another biner to the device. Connect it just like the locking biner you already use, so you would have two biners rope to belay loop. I have done this many times to add friction for rappels and it would seem logical to work for adding friction for belaying also.

wait till august, everything is buried.

Damn, I got to haul around 40#s! What about all my light weight gear? I can't handle that kind of backpack anymore. Maybe I should lay low till he can walk 3 miles in a straight line. He can do 3 miles now but he won't leave a 10 yard radius from the starting point.

Hey John David, the reason you get flamed is not the content of your message, but the presentation. Just a little FYI.

the road to n side baker TH should be melted out by memorial day weekend. Same for baker south side. If it is not melted out, you will only need to walk for something like 100 yards to get to the TH.

unknown classics- while it has been mentioned in this thread, the NW face of forbidden is still a "unknown" classic. Unknown classic being a good route that is not in a select guidebook. what about the w ridge on stuart? Fisher chimney on shuksan gets local traffic and love from Alan Kearney, but I bet that not many other people know this route is so good.

the swedish tent maker I was referencing is hilleberg and they make their tents in Estonia, not china. (unless Estonia is a provence of china) I don't think it is a trait of consumerism to want to buy one good tent. A trait of consumerism is to have many tents like a NF tent, several tarp tents and a wallmart pup tent. Wallmart is the capital of excessive consumerism and definately the place that lacks "common sense". "I'd certainly accept many exceptions to this statement, based on common sense. If you doubt that common sense is common, maybe it's due to misunderstanding the definition." ????????? Are you saying that since the masses buy this pup tent that it is common sense that it is a good or adequate tent? I never thought that most people who frequent walmart knew anything about camping more than 30 yards from the road.

are you suggesting we should put poop in the ikea blue bag? How much poop could fit in that big bag? NO really, it all looks very good of Ikea to do what they are doing. In the future, not using plastic bags is something that we will be wondering why it took so long to do. It looks like Ikea has done lots of good stuff to clean up there business.

better yet, what is the route John?

I like the idea of getting rid of the teeth near the head of the tool. I can't imagine cutting out and moditfying my axes to the extent that Dane is doing. Not that it isn't a good idea, just hurts to think that I would probably f^*ck up a $300 tool.

so what is your point? You think that just because people bash you for something you wrote months ago, that you can be a dick? Why not just be mature and offer good advice to a new climber? Did Wesley Laws wrong you?

rock climb as much as you can. Get real comfortable on the rock and the alpine rock will seem reasonable. I have seen some people get so excited about the alpine but not built the skills needed to climb safely and confidently. Also, don't neglect the simple backpacking skills. I would suggest lugging around the overnight gear and travel in the areas that you will want to climb in eventually. Get to know the lay of the land (sawtooths?) before you add the extra burden of climbing and hauling the gear. Never disregard a bad weather forcast. Test all alpine rock handholds. enjoy!

too bad there has to be one particular jack ass (from NJ) that is making this thread into a joke. I prefer a free standing tent but that is because I haven't found a cheap good non free standing tent. I am sure that there is some good one from europe (I forget the name but it is really light and strong). If you return your tent to rei, look at the black diamond single wall tents like the first light. You probably shouldn't be going out onto volcanoes with a bad weather forcast so a light weight single wall will do fine. And if the forcast is bad, the tent is good enough to withstand most of what will be dealt out. Guying out the tent is the most important thing regardless of how many seasons the tent is. Your rei tent will probably do fine if guyed out properly. Don't let the yahoo comments give you a bad impression of this site. Get out, and let us know how things go. The tr's from people starting out are great.

I was thinking of getting a new baby carrier as my free one sucks ass. But my boy is 2 years old (about 30 lbs and likes to run around frantically) and I was wondering how long others have had success with carrying little ones in carriers. Would a new carrier be a waste of money? thanks gene

The real life test sounds good but only if I can find a 200 lb test dummy from the local monroe gene pool. Sounds like a ground fall potential.

scary.

what is the difference in stretch between double and single lines? according to petzl website the 8.2 has a 34% elongation and the 10.3 has a 33.7%elongation. beal - 10.2 with 35% and a 8.1 with a 37% I don't feel like doing all the makers but with these two, the elongation reported is nearly identical for the single and half ropes. Dane, what did the two falls you saw look like as far as elongation goes?

It would seem like alpine falls would generate less fall factor (or impact force) due to the fact that one would probably tumble down. So it would seem like there would be less rope stretch regardless of diameter, maybe hardly any. Now the skinny ropes cutting over sharp alpine edges are a different matter. All in all, I would think the modern skinny ropes are not a bad thing. Agree with all LW gear that doesn't last long. I haven't bought anything new in a while so I must have the good heavy stuff. (as far as boots and packs) WHat packs and boots have you seen wear out so soon? (that way we can avoid them! )

I would hope that thieves are too lazy to hike up that far. I would hope that anyone able to get up to muir has good ethics. I think your skiis are fine if left at the hut. Maybe not if it was somewhere on a slope or hanging from bolts in exit 32.

while I don't own either, how about an opinion? I would think the aztarex is better for the alpine stuff than the viper. The viper would be better for the waterice stuff. You can arrest with either, just not as easy as a regular mountain axe. Actually, the feet matter most with self arrest anyway, so the axe is of less importance. While I am not that familiar with the routes you mentioned, seems like both tools seem overkill for what you are doing with it. All of the "bad ass" routes were done originally with long straight wooden axes.

there is a video about training for rainier from a local trainer. I "think" it may be available on netflix if you subscribe to that. http://www.bodyresults.com/p1rainier.asp The above advice is all very good. For long endurance training, which you will need more than power, how about trying long and hilly bike riding? You could ride for many hours to test your summit day energy levels. Your training looks pretty sound. I would bet that you will be much more physically able to get up rainier than the rest of the other clients. Probably the most important thing for someone like yourself is learning how (and doing it) to take care of themselves physically up there. Hydration is very important and easy to let slip. Eat drink and be merry. (and sunscreen) ENjoy rainier and let us know how it goes!

I have a couple draws with lockers on them for run out darrington or squish slab routes. (where the loss of one bolt/pro would mean a BIG tumble vs a big tumble) INteresting thought about a cam deep in a crack and the chance of the biner slapping the crack and opening up.

thanks!

with some use, the wiregates will seem as easy to clip as a bent gate. If you are strapped for cash, a set of hotwires are fairly cheap and cover a wide range of uses. (cragging, ice and alpine) Having a set of thick durable draws for cragging and a set of skinny mammut slings for alpine is a very good idea. You will probably want some longer slings (reg shoulder length) for the trad stuff too.

Seems early but does anyone know if the road is open yet? thanks gene