mtngrrrl

if i had a cube (no job - sniff), i would put up Evil Dragon, devil dog of Ballard. jules, you are a post-post-modern picasso. that dog kicks ass!! it's my new screen background. otherwise i'm looking at a batik of mt. kilimanjaro and an african mask over the computer and a poster of les aguilles de chamonix viewed from the lac blanc.

quote: Originally posted by hikerwa: Actually, you can buy all of the "high-tech" materials Gore-Tex, Polartec and all that can be found easily, but it is very expensive to buy 5 yards of Gore-Tex, fleece is a little cheaper. I once made a fleece jacket from Polartec I bought in Seattle, worked pretty good, but I don't think that I could sew up and heat tape a goretex jacket.... Where did you find the fabric? I live in Seattle, and the standard fabric shops I've visted only have crappy fleece, not Polartac.

Like most people, I have a mix of everything. I have to think to come up with the manufacturers because I really don't give a rat's ass. I think the sidewalk crowd will buy whatever they notice as being cool. As long as climbing mountains is considered mainstream cool, so will be looking like you climb mountains. I'm not totally "anti marketing/captialistic", but ever since TNF became the sorority uniform, even I've gotten annoyed. Fake TNF is quite the thing to wear in Nepal, btw. My friend bought some "genuine TNF" fleece pants from a Tibetan trader. They're black, but the inside of the pockets are leopard print. Maurice, I can sew, and you're right. It takes a bit of time and it would be difficult to make a quality piece of gear. Beyond the stitching, we ordinary consumers wouldn't have easy access to high tech fabrics and for that matter, fabric is also pretty pricey. So are industrial sewing machines. I've made my own ski bags from felt and nylon, but I wouldn't venture into anything more technical.

I carried a canister of the stuff while bike touring in Alaska. Though I saw grizzlies, I was never in a threatening situation. Later when I got back home, it was killing me to know if the bear spray would have helped me. It cost me $60 at a camping/fishing store in Anchorage, eating quite a portion of my budget for the trip. Anyway, one night there were a couple of raccoons going at it outside of my apartment window. Woke me out of a sound sleep (baaaad idea) and scared the cat. So I grabbed the spray, flung open the window, pulled the pin, aimed true like Annie Oakley and pressed the trigger. All my anticipation had built up over this spray, only to see it fizzle in front of me. (Hmmm, sounds rather metaphoric. ) Anyway, it was very disappointing. The raccoons laughed. I can't remember the brand name, but the can was white with an orange nozzle, and it looked like a small fire extinguisher. The label said the spray would go 30 feet. More like 1.5 feet in reality. I came to think of it as a mere condiment that a bear would use to spice up human meat. On the plus side, the can was the right size to double as a billy club which you could use with varying success to beat the bear as she wraps her jaws around your skull.

and if one is a fast woman?

I have to agree with DCramer about leading on a TR. If a person needs exposure to placing gear while climbing, and needs to learn about stances and sequence planning (now that I have this lovely piece in, where o' where will the next one go?), this could be a beneficial way to do it. True, it might seem dull since the lead aspect is removed, but it sounds like Don may have done some leading already so he knows about that. You will also get good experience by setting up trad TR anchors. I wholeheartedly agree with placing AND cleaning as much gear everywhere while you're on the ground. Then you'll learn that deep placements aren't ideal. I learned that the hard way belaying my friend up one of my early leads. I couldn't figure out what was taking him so long, until he good naturedly explained this concept to me once he was topside. I would suggest sticking with hexes and nuts to get going, then moving into cams later. Save on the bux and learn the basics. And this might seem like obvious advice, but lead waaaaay below your sport abilities. Make your first lead something you will succeed on, will enjoy, and will have some room to learn because no matter how many books you read (Long's are tops), you'll make mistakes along the way. And as they others said, sew that puppy up! Then take a picture of it to chuckle at later.

daisy, if you're looking for something to use in a tent, i can recommend dedicating a nalgene bottle. the trick to no drippage is that you have to make contact with the top of the bottle. nalgene bottles have wide mouths, so they work well in the tent. one comment though. make sure you mark the bottle, else you end up peeing accidentally in your water bottle, which i have done. and NO, boyz, i did not then accidentally drink it, but i sure was pissed. good thread, btw. i'm going to have to practice the techniques from the website ted posted.

they probably don't mark up any further for several reasons. for one, they probably pay less than american retailers. just like consumers are a different market, so are the retailers. black diamond may cut their prices very low in order to penetrate the european market, which allows european retailers to sell bd stuff at a price comparable to local brands. in bd's eyes, this would be worth it since a) americans are still paying top dollar and b) europeans won't give bd a try if they can buy local brands for hundreds less. another thing to keep in mind when comparing prices is the extremely favorable exchange rate for the dollar right now. maybe in a year barrabes won't be such a sweet deal, and it will have nothing to do with their prices, just the exchange rate. this is a great topic that we've been talking about at home. i'm willing to pay more for goods in the u.s. we're a rich country with dough to spare compared to most places. (big words coming from a currently unemployed person. ) but i'm not willing to be financially fleeced. i'm glad that info about bd's tactics to threaten retailers has made it down to "our" level. keep that info flowing.

my friend and i were trying to find the trail into "drapel", a crag in switzerland. after bushwacking for about an hour, we were about to give up when we spotted a climbing-looking couple walking up the hill. we caught them and asked them if they knew the way. the guy was really friendly and even recommended some routes after flipping through our photocopies from the guidebook. meanwhile, as i was checking them out, i thought the woman looked familiar. after walking with them for a while, it dawned on me that she was a climber featured in some of the photos in the book. turned out he was the author of the book, claude remy, out climbing with his wife, christine. not quite the same as asking beckey for directions, but it was cool at the time. i also met bobbi bensman at devil's lake, wisconsin of all places.

i have the air tech racing axe, and i really like it. the lightness was a key factor for me. some folks have asked me if it's too lightweight and questioned if it could really dig in. i've only used it for ordinary glacier travel, no problems. it works fine for me in self-arrest practice. agreed that the teeth aren't terribly sharp. you can always sharpen them, which i've seen other people do on this particular axe. the teeth on the raven don't look very tough either. out of curiosity, how does ordering from barrabes work out? do you have to pay much duty when you get the shipment in the u.s.? how long does a standard order take to arrive?

the mother load of information. thanks, tedserres.

I did not attribute the lovely stories to anyone in particular. We all saw who wrote them. The point being made, and has been clearly made by many, is that there are plenty of rude Americans, climbing here and abroad. Why call attention to non-Americans for their rudeness, then brag about about how you pissed in their tents? Sure, I would be freaked about someone clipping my pro as well. Sharing an anchor, not so much. My question remains, have neither of you two ever run into rude Americans? (Highly rhetorical here.) I wonder what Americans are notorious for? blah blah blah. wah wah wah. spew spew spew.

C'est vrai, RURP! Combien de fois les Américains faire le grimper dans d'autres parties du monde sans apprendre jamais Nepali, Français, Italien ou Allemand? LB, sounds like you have a little ethnocentric [Lame]bone to pick. Never run into "rude vile" American???!!! Putain! Sure don't have to go far to run into them around here... "We call down profanities and around 8:00 or so we'd crawl out of or bags whip it out and give them a pissing contest!" "I bet that puddle of piss I left in their tent while they were gone the next day was a fun discovery." Why ARE you so intent on telling us all your damn furriner stories if you meant no offense? As far as soloists, I say, pass on. Be careful. More power to you. I guess I don't think I have the right to LET or NOT LET someone pass. I don't own the rock. YOU don't own the rock.

according to BD, most people (~80%) die from asyphixiation or suffocation. only about 10% of victims die from trauma, like being bashed into a rock. not sure about the other missing ~10%... heart attacks?

good point AJ, something i hadn't thought of. being a shortie myself could work out ok with a shorter probe. thanks to crazy t for weighing in since no one else above seems to have used the ortovox probe.

Nepal info: GDP: US$27.4 billionGDP per head: US$1100Annual growth: 6%Inflation: 2.1%Major industries: Tourism, carpet, textile, small rice, jute, sugar, oilseed mills, cigarettes, cement and brick production, rice, corn, wheat, sugarcane, root crops, milk, water buffalo meatMajor trading partners: India, US, Germany, UK, Singapore, Japan i don't really get how mules or llamas are a better portering method than paying some porter to do a job he or she would not otherwise have.

just to recap, i have an ortovox tranceiver, and i feel very comfortable with it. having tested both the m2 and the tracker, i prefer the m2, no question, but ymmv. yes, i have a shovel as well. and i'm well aware of the virtues of practice, practice, practice, but thanks for the reminder. as far as how much i'm willing to dig, well i would probably keep at it for a LONG time knowing it's my partner's life down there. (this is all rather depressing, isn't it?) so far it sounds like there isn't a good explanation on the length, which is the real info i'm after here. fern, the mathematician, had some intriguing, if sleep-inducing, answers. i guess it boils down to, longer probe = longer probe-ability. on a new topic, i've also seen that the avalung has dropped way down in price. it must have been in a recent issue of climbing that i read a pretty favorable review. anyone out there ever tested one of these? it looks like an impressive, easily integrated device, if it works as well as they claim. well, hey. i just toggled over to visit avalung.com. very cool site, but i also found out that "the statistical average burial depth is about 1 meter."

hey there, i'm looking for opinions on avalanche probes. i like ortovox's equipment in general (i have an ortovox shovel and tranceiver), but i noticed that their probe is on the short side at 2.4 meters. it's also cheaper and lighter, natch. of course i hope i never have to use a probe in dire situations, but i'd hate to have to live with the idea that if i'd only gotten the longer, heavier, more expensive probe, things might be different... any thoughts on probe length? is 2.4 m on the short side? is 3 meters more than one needs? why 3 meters, anyway?? is there some science behind these measurements? thanks in advance.

in response to haireball, it is certainly easy enough to go to the himalaya without having the maximum impact. rice IS grown in nepal, all over the place. the standard "sherpa diet" is often dal bhat takari: lentils, rice and vege stew. you can refuse to use wood and pay someone to carry fuel and proper equipment instead. most groups do this anymore. furthermore, burning wood is a way of life to the nepali. plenty of people are collecting wood to burn in their own homes. you're at a cultural cross roads. we westerners dislike deforestation. but who are we to march into the nepali's back yard and tell them to stop cutting down the wood and making fires to cook their food and warm their homes? and i'm not talking about sherpas working with a climbing group, but about families who live in the hills. when we aren't in their backyards, what is the right answer?