JayB

When I was there last weekend it seemed like the sun was off of 3:00 rock by early afternoon. I was wondering if this had something to do with the name... I will most likely be there tomorrow myself to investigate the matter further.

"Oh... I've also been working hard to get Washington people to support local farms and local food- making sure farmers can continue their way of life and that local folks have access to safe, healthy food." Serious question. Exactly how are you promoting these objectives?

Singles in hand sizes in the best cams that you can afford. Double your coverage in hand sizes with hexes. Cover the rest with 1-2 sets of nuts, and add some tricams in the sizes between hands and fingers for a bonus.

Word. I've crashed there in my canopy a few times with no hassle, and on the last trip one of the guys even slept under the truck. We usually arrive late and leave early so that may help.

So are you the guy on the right or the left?

It would be interesting to compare the basic stats on professional rugby players versus the atheletes in the NFL. The rugby players are definitely good at what they do, but I wonder how they would stack up against 300 pound offensive linemen that bench 500+ and run a sub 5.0 40. The other thing that I always here from commonwealth folk is that their sports, whether A.R. Football or Rugby, is that they are tougher because they don't wear pads. I think the first year that no one was killed playing football in the US was 1992, and I wonder how the fatality/paralysis figures stack up vis-a-vis rugby. I always figured that the sports that require pads are the tougher ones. You see hockey players wearing pads but not figure skaters or ice-dancers.

The two pitches top out in the mid 50 degree range, and the total length of the pitches probably 350 to 500 feet (roughly two ropelengths). It all depends on your comfort level, but I suspect that the average party will be fine with 2-4 pickets and a couple of ice screws per team, and a third tool to accompany the standard ice axe. This should cover you in just about any conditions that you will run into, and most likely be overkill a good percentage of the time as the chute often has steps kicked into it the whole way up, and the conditions are usually a far cry from alpine ice. Even if were to run into blue ice the gear I suggested would probably be a bit on the light side unless your party is composed of reasonably proficient ice climbers.

First or second weekend in October in Icicle would be cool. My niece and nephew are old enough to go now and I'd like to take them climbing with other kids.

I'm sure she'll find a way to cope...but the spectacle of a bunch of single climbers - quite possibly one of the loneliest demographics outside of prisoners and trekkies - spouting off about how their standards are such that they would never even give a chick like that a second look, when in fact most of them would be stuttering and sporting wood if she so much as batted an eyelash at them is too much to take without calling it for what it is.

I made sure that the Toyota I bought was made in Japan... One of the other things you might want to take a quick look at on a truck of that vintage - same year as mine but mine's the V6 are the boots on the axles up front and the integrity of the ball joints. I think there's an outfit that will look up the vehicles history and have a mechanic come out and do a full eval for $100.

I don't think she'd get kicked out of your dorm room if she showed up Paul... I've seen this too many times - guys spouting off about how "that Heidi Klum is just way too primped for my tastes" or some other BS - and its usually to show off their sensitive, real, deep side that allows them to see beyond the exterior and appreciate a woman's inner beauty to the chick that's sitting next to them, who is 1/50th as hot as the woman they are dissing, who they are nonetheless attracted to mostly on the basis of their looks since they just met like 5 minutes ago.

I have heard this thing before, but when guys get a chance to walk the talk with a chick like this the truth comes out. Especially if we are talking climbers, who have been known to swoon over chicks in Chumstick after a long weekend in the woods. Bottom line is if she's snuggling up to you at a campfire there'll be no quibbles about the face. Most dudes that post on this site would be doing cartwheels all the way back to the tent.

I manged to teach a SO how to ski this winter and it turned out to be a net plus in the relationship, but the slopes are littered with the remains of many couples who never quite made it. I never thought it would be possible, and still would absolutely advice anyone who is thinking of doing so to reconsider. Much better to give the college kid $50, take the pain, and save the relationship IMO.

The bottom line is that if she gave 99.9999999999% of the single guys on this site a second look they'd be whupped for life. End of story.

Last Installment...

Also - Spliffy - this is a very new group - the idea is only a couple of months old and this will be the first public meeting - so that is probably why you haven't heard of it. My sense is that the WCC is/will be an independent entity that will work with/make use of the site to further its objectives. From what I understand, some of the people involved in setting this up are frequent contributors to the site, some are not. The impetus for forming this group came from a very recent threat to climbing access in this state, the nature of which prompted a number of people to conclude that climbers needed to form an effective lobby of their own to work with land management agencies, etc. Anyone directly involved with the WCC should feel free to chime in and correct this info if I am off base though.

Hey Michelle: Will this be an informal "open mic" sort of a meeting, or will there a specific agenda? I plan to attend in any event, but if there will be specific issues on the table it would be helpful to get a sense of what they are so we can think about them a bit in advance and provide more constructive input.

I think that your ratio is still a bit skewed towards the optimistic side. But hey - at least its skewed in your favor if you do find someone you like. If you are a guy trying to find a compatible climbing/life partner while climbing, I have a piece of advice for you. Kill yourself.

Not quite in Washington but there's the NE Buttress on Slesse. Grade V 5.9 - Not sure how many pitches but I think you'll get your 20 in for sure.

There is a stunning disparity between the response when an Arab regime slaughters its own people in the thousands - which is usually a shrug or no response whatsoever - and the outrage that erupts over something like the French banning headscarves in schools. This is striking because the vast majority of all of the misery and repression in the Arab world in the past 60 years has been entirely self-inflicted, yet they continue to lay all of their problems at the hands of their colonial experience. These two tendencies are part of a larger set of problems associated with the ever-growing disparity between their own power and that of the Western world. The ironic thing about their anger is that the more millitant they become, the farther they'll fall behind. The angry/violent "Arab Street" will be a geopolitical certainty for all of our lifetimes, at the very least.

I bought some pants from Beyond Fleece, and will buy from them again the next time I need another softshell - which might be a while as the ones I have already have been pretty durable. The service was excellent, the fit/workmanship was great, and they were in my hands one week after the order. The price is comparable to mass production stuff, and the fit is way better so there's really no choice IMO. Plus you can customize the options - something else you can't get with the mass market merch. If you are looking for an all-around pant, go with the Schoeller Dryskin fabric. Dryskin Extreme and other variations will be too warm for all around use.

I'd say that a very high percentage of the people doing condition dependent trade routes check here for information, though I would wager that about 90% are lurkers.

Is that Oats from Hall and Oats on the right? Too funny - a decidedly less than stunning female (on the right) preemptively screening out another fraction of the meager population of men who happen to be drunk enough to be interested in buying her a drink...