catbirdseat

Whether it's a troll or not, it's funny as hell.

That's AID climbing, Rudy. In aid climbing, an inattentive belayer is a bigger risk than ripping all your gear out. Just because a GriGri makes sense in that context doesn't mean it's the best choice for free climbing in general.

No 5.10c sport. I've only ever led one 5.10c and it was at Vantage where the ratings are a bit soft. But I have gotten a bit stronger since that day at Erie. That was a long time ago.

I didn't know Sultan had an Ixtapa. I know Monroe does.

They were put out by ClimbAxe, were they not?

I'll lead up to 5.10c and follow up to 5.11a. I need to be back by late afternoon though. PM me if interested.

Hey Colin! We have a pretender!

In alpine situations you have two worries. One is pulling out gear. The other is hitting something when you fall. I want MY belayer to lock me off. Let me worry about getting pro that will hold. I'd rather not hit a ledge.

That trail is pretty nice. Once we got him onto that he was able to do pretty well.

Thank you, Dru. I simply didn't have the vocabulary to express myself so succinctly.

Liberalism is a mental illness Liberalism is a manifestation of the neocortex. Conservativism is a manifestation of the limbic system.

KK did you intend to say anything?

In response to DMuja, I'd say that R&D is hardly the route to ask people to "get creative". It is very popular with beginners because the moves are mostly easy. The route already has plenty of accidents. If you read the Sharkfin Tower accident report as I did, you wouldn't be so glib about slinging boulders.

The only rack you'll need is a set of draws unless you are going to the Bobs. There are a handful of trad routes up there.

I know that some of those rocks were kicked down by goats. I saw where they came from and it was up to the right of where the rope was. It's possible the rope knocked some too. I guess the idea of the long lowers was speed with fewer anchors to build, but your point is well taken.

Heavens! Don't call him "run of the mill"! Popular and exceptional. He wrote some very difficult piano pieces. I still remember my college room mate trying to master one of them and the expletives that would come out when he made a mistake.

So long, and don't drive like my brother!

If you look at a new BD Guide you will see the surfaces are not super smooth. I think they could tumble the thing more than they do before anodizing it. The Guide does seem to get a bit smoother with use, but fat, fuzzy ropes still bind in it. If they had made the internal dimensions just a couple millimeters larger, it might have made all the difference in the world. Seems like they were catering primarily to those who climb on skinny ropes.

If you do decide to belay from a boulder like that, sling it low- as close to the base as possible. Belay off your harness from a seated stance.

you mean I will be able to climb more than I do right now? If you body holds up, yes. Are you spending enough time with your kids? I recall all the Saturdays I spent at swim meets.

The fact remains that our health care system costs more and provides worse care on average than most of the world. If you are rich it works out just fine, but otherwise you are screwed. Mr. Moore is trying to light a fire to promote change. There is nothing wrong with that. We need change. Talking about Cuba is guaranteed to ellicit a response from Bob same way talking about road closures will bring out Fairweather. Those who hate communism aren't willing to credit Cuba for anything it does right. Despite its many faults, it does health care right.

The damaged bolt on the whaleback is still there. One could get a sling through it but not a carabiner. It's not needed by experienced climbers who wouldn't even rope up for that section, but it can make novice climbers feel a lot better to be roped there. And if you're roped, you are better off having a point of protection. The fact that it is needed was driven home by the rap slings on the little tree just below the summit. It's an easy downclimb, third class, but someone felt they needed to rap. Anyone needed to rap there would probably also need a belay on the Whaleback. Speaking of which, you see rap stations in the most bizarre places. On the SW Rib there was a nest of slings at the "rabbit ears" on the second to last pitch. Just before that there is an easy 4th class descent into the gully with protection. Then in the gully there was a cordellette with rap slings around a block where someone rapped into a dreadful cleft leading to the dirty main gully. A short 5.2 pitch led to the summit and the easy S. Arete walk off.

I wasn't belaying. I was on the summit and could hear the fall. The account provided by Dru is not quite accurate. He did pull out all his pieces which included a Green Alien and a medium nut. He fell about 30 ft hitting the ledge and then bounced off and was caught by the rope, not exactly a FF2 fall because of the ledge. The belay held. The fallen climber was lowered the remaining distance to the floor of the gully. The belayer rapped down as soon as the climber was able to untie from the rope with one hand. He broke his thumb in the fall. He is recuperating at home and is expected to make a full recovery. Why the gear pulled out is probably a combination of user error and one or more expanding flakes. He's a novice trad leader. He says he plans to get back on the horse.

Raising another clutch of kids. Don't get me wrong- I love my kids dearly, but now I am enjoying the freedom to go climb more often.