boatskiclimbsail

Anodizing is a process by which the outermost 0.002"-0.005" of surface metal is artificially oxidized. It's an electrochemical reaction that in the case of carabiners makes the (relatively) soft aluminum into harder aluminum oxide. Since this is uniform and it extends below the outer surface it doesn't look like corrosion. A fringe menefit is that you can ade dye to the electrolyte when you treat the metal, making all sorts of shiny pretty colors. This process doesn't change the strength of the metal either way, or the weight, or stiffness, etc. It gives a tiny extra bit of wear resistance because the surface metal is harder. Most stone is harder than AlO2 anyway so it will still scratch and wear, just slightly less quickly. Good things are thet it's prettier, you can see scratches and gouges more easily and it will make you feel like your gear will last longer Bad things are they it it adds 10-20% to the cost of the part and your gear won't match when you lose one and replace it with a different batch. For those of us who are colorblind and gainfully employed, these two don't really matter much anyway.

I'm mainly looking for long multipitch routes (is it high enough for 4+ pitches?) in the .10-.11 range. Cruisin

I'm going to be spending some time in Hell's Canyon in mid April on the Snake and will have a few days on either end of the trip. I did a search and found some folks on this boar (or at least who used to be) with some route info. I understand there is no printed guide to speak of. Can anyone point me in the direction of some locals or anyone who could knows the area? Thanks!

Placid/Keene Valley is more than two hours south of Cornwall. Poke-o is about the same. Both are spectacular climbing areas, as is the Gunks, but that is about 6 hours south of Cornwall. The guidebook to get is the Don Mellor book, pick it up at any EMS in the area or the Mountaineer in Keene Valley. The folks at the Montaineer can give you whatever beta you need. Stop to get pie at the NMD (Noonmark Diner) on your way home. Delicious.

No, you've only spent $100 with the prospect of spending $500 in the future. Should you decide to continue (and it's not for everyone!!) you've spent $600 on TWO pairs of ice tools. Assuming you did get addicted enough to drop 500 bones on tools, you're probably going to be raving about it a lot to your friends, to whom you will be able to easily sell your old tools too. Also never hurts to have a backup for when your nice tools get stolen or you have a newbie in the group. Just my opinion, feel free to blindly invest $500 in something you've never tried. I agree borrowing is a good idea, especially if you're going to spend the big bucks but you'll climb better on your own tools, however crappy they may be.

I would buy used (and therefore cheap) tools if you've never climbed ice before. _Any_ tool will be just fine and take you all the way through WI4 or so, which will take you about a year to feel comfy leading if you're ambitious. If you get the addiction, maybe then drop $500 on a pair of nice tools which will give you a marginal performance benefit. No sense spending that when you can get something that will perform just as well for the first year or so for $50-100 a pair... Hype hype hype

Yeats: The tower's old cook that must climb and clamber Catching small birds in the dew of the morn When we hale men lie stretched in slumber Swears that he hears the king's great horn. But he's a lying hound: Stand we on guard oath-bound! There in the tomb the dark grows blacker, But wind comes up from the shore: They shake when the winds roar, Old bones upon the mountain shake. Yates:

If you're climbing laser-cut perfectly parallel cracks like out in the Utah desert or something they'r great (bigbros). Anywhere else I've tried to use them (Gunks, Daks, NRG, RRG, Seneca, etc.) they were just about useless. I sold mine years ago. Now that I'm out west I wish I had them every now and again but usually make do anyway.

My partner and I over the course of several weeks proved that it was possiblt to open a beer with any and every piece of gear on the rack. That being said, get nuts 4-13 and hexes 4-9 and climb every 5.8 you can find with those before you waste your money on cams. You should be able to remove 98% of your placements without a nut tool, but you might want one anyway. Tran yourself not to reach for it immediately!! Nothing is worse than having a second fiddle with a nut tool for a half hour when a quick yank in the right direction will pop it free. *gets off soapbox*. Glad to see you moving over from the dark side.

I've had a rack and a half of forged friends for years because they're super cheap and super light. It's no additional hassle while you're climbing to place them in horizontals, so long as you've slung one of the top holes with cord and not just the bottom one. The cord loads over the edge like it's a tricam - no problems. They've been in use all over the world for years and years.

I second that. Once you get a teeny bit of mildew, it won't ever go away ant will probably start to spread. Just dry both pieces (if it's a 2-layer) completely, or dry the outside then turn it inside out (if it's 1-layer). As long as she's dry you can keep it however you like.

Hey! I've got two of those old buckets in yellow They're what I give to partners without helmets, they usually buy a real one after a day of looking like a spaceman:

But does it have the Boney M music video?

They don't work nearly as well as duct taping 60 grit sandpaper to your socks. Talk about lightweight!! *sniff sniff*

Besides being a very suspect phrase when it comes to rock climbing, I've had to bring ropes up to more parties than I can count on one hand because they dropped their flippin rope through the rap chains. This extra "overly safe" step takes less than 4 seconds (a figure 8 in the tail of the rope - which you should be tying anyway for a rappel) and will save your would-be rescuer a half hour of grief as well as the embarassment of hanging from a set of chains while someone rescues you from a bolted climb.