Chad_A

What radion station? Might see if I can find it streaming online...

George Lowe would probably be at the top of my list. I've always been impressed with what I've read about him doing in Alaska (let alone the CDN Rockies, or anywhere else for that matter). Anyone that can get his cousin down off a route with a broken ankle, and get right back on to finish the FA, is certainly tenacious. Not to mention he went and did a new route on Foraker right after that. But, my true climbing heroes are the ones that I spend time with regularly (or, as regularly as possible) in the mountains, at the crags, or even pulling on plastic at the gym. Here's to you guys (and gals).

James, Shoulda taken a picture of the top. It was impressive...even with the hot temps, there was still a six foot wall of snow by some of the sheds. Crazy!

Here's a photo update for you- should give some idea. Took a slog up Defiance in the warm temps on this past Sunday- pretty views, but kinda hazy.

The impression that I get is that it's mainly focused towards the alpine climbers/guides of the Tetons. Could be wrong about that one.

FWIW, I bought a set of Kayland M11+s, and they have a really big toe box. Might want to check them out. Upon looking at them, they look mostly sythetic, but they have more panels of real leather on them than I thought upon closer inspection.

If you don't already have it, you should check out the chapter in "The Challenge of Rainier" by Dee Molenaar that covers this. It's more historical than beta-spewing, but it could give you a good idea of what to expect. They traversed above 7000 feet, I believe, for the duration of the outing, and started/finished at White River. http://books.google.com/books?id=V_9jjg7-VY8C&pg=PA197&dq=Dee+Molenaar&source=gbs_toc_r&cad=0_0&sig=oGZCUa8mg_Za17j9fputaE6jH38

Another person with interesting view of CrossFit. http://moynihaninstitute.com/

You can call it that if you like, but he's not simply using the CrossFit program. Maybe the basics, but if you read into the daily workouts, and the comments, he's definitely left that mentality.

Clean out the garage and organize to make room for the weight equipment I plan to harvest off of craigslist. Boulder at the Rock Gym. Check out Belmont Station to see if they have any new IPAs/Imperial IPAs. Tomorrow, training hike in the Gorge, then help friends move in the afternoon. Get ready for work the next day, and call my Mom. Wish I had the time to go alpine climbing w/ DPS.

Glad you made it down okay. EPIC!

Heh, that's probably true, and then again, I've heard that the left side of the Weeping Wall is the WI4 to do, so go figure.

I would say that, IMHO, the cheapest reasonably modern tools would suit you just fine. I own new Cobras, and love them, but there's people that climb much harder than I with straight shafted Charlet Pulsars in the alpine. One thing that I will say about the Black Diamond tools is that their griprest is a bit lower profile than the Quarks, making it that much easier to plunge with them, but it's such a minor point, probably not worth mentioning. I'd suggest putting together a list of features that really speak to you, and going for the best deal that fits that list. And if you're like some of us, you'll find a reason to get a new tool in the next year to satiate your gear habit. Have fun!

You can probably stop into Zarela's Hostel in Huaraz and pick up anything you could want there. She's really nice, and has Brad Johnson's book, as well as the topo maps that you don't see here in the states (I think they're Austrian). I couldn't tell you how to get there exactly, but I know it's one street over, to the right, from the Iglesia La Soledad, if you're going up the hill. That should point you in the right direction. As you walk up the hill, it will be on the left hand side. Ring the buzzer on the metal gate, and one of her employees will come and let you in. Good luck and have fun down there;) PS- Just found her address- La Casa de Zarela Julio Arguedas 1263, Soledad Tel: 721694 zarelazAThotmailDOTcom

Thanks for posting us up, James. Fun times!

It was a fun climb, but I am not sure it falls under the ultimate classic category. Too much walking inbetween pitches. Yeah, probably an overstatement. I let my mind bend the response due to the fact that people really talk about Guiness Gully as "the WI4 to do if you're in the area". The view from the top pitch is nice, though, if the weather is good.

Thanks for the post- I was wondering how things were up there. How were conditions on the walk up the Palmer, and/or when did the snow turn to waist deep crud? Thanks in advance-

I have this issue with mine- I find that I really don't have to screw it down that tightly, anyway, but if you have a heavy two liter pot on top of it, it might cause an isssue...so, I know in the past I took a set of channel lock pliers and GENTLY compressed the flanges together a bit. Seemed to help a bit.

Good to see you're still around, Justin. If I had the time to come up there, I would. Hope you find that partner! Cheers, Chad

Cool TR Thanks for enlightening us!

Maybe I haven't read closely, but has Jefferson Park Glacier and the NF of Hood been forgotten? As far as ice goes, I'd put Guiness Gully as the ultimate classic.

Thanks Mike- I'll look into running them a bit looser, and going back to my old insoles to rule that out as a possible cause. FYI- They're the Kayland M11+ boots, and they seem to be quite flexible. The sole definitely flexes visibly when I walk, and the upper boot has only two laces instead of three laces high, so I doubt that the boot is the actual culprit. My guess is that I screwed something up. Thanks for pinpointing it!

Not to be put under the usual umbrella term of "shin splint", but yesterday after 1000 ft of elevation gain while breaking in a new pair of boots, my right shin muscle (outside/lateral aspect) started aching horribly from mid-shin into the top of my foot. It radiates to the outside of my ankle. Per the usual textbooks, shin splints usually involve the inner aspect of the shin area, and the sudden onset seems to make this a weird thing for me. I've had sore shins from running in the past, and this doesn't seem like the same. This is what causes the pain to really show up: 1. pointing my toe downward, and leaning back, stretching the front of my leg/shin. 2. standing straight up, and bending down to touch my toes, without bending the knee. Ouch! 3. Grabbing my lower leg and bringing it up to my butt to stretch my quad, while standing upright on one leg. I have three theories what happened. 1. I had the front ankle laces too tight while hiking, causing the shin muscle to overwork itself. 2. I had just switched orthotics, causing a differing footpattern. 3. The heel of the new boot is higher (?) than I'm used to, causing the shin muscle, again, to overwork itself. Or, as a friend pointed out, maybe too much toebox room (above the toes), and the toes/shin muscle has to work extra hard to pick up the boot for the next stride. I'm hoping that someone on this board has some experience with this, or has some educated opinion as to what mechanics caused this and/or if they have a guess as to which muscle groups may be involved. I have a hard time thinking that the boots are unworkable, and I'm hopeful that a minor tweak will be all it takes to keep this from recurring. I'm confused that this only happened in my right leg, and my left leg was fine. Thanks in advance. For now, I've taped my leg to keep my foot from dropping, and I'm taking NSAIDs and occasionally icing.

So you're from the East Coast?

Well, what I was taught in my Ag. classes is that the problem with hops started when the process of preserving the useful part of the hop cone (lupulin) was put into practice. Farmers stopped growing hops because there was a glut of preserved hops that would supply brewers for many years out...less market (lower price) for fresh hops. It's kinda ironic that there's a shortage now! A lot of farmers in E. Wash. put housing developments (not corn) ontop their hop fields and made a lot more money off of them! I'm sure the beer "crisis" will get a lot more attention than any kind of food crisis and will be sorted out quickly That's probably a more accurate statement- I just know what the brewers and beer 'zines tell me. And that's one thing that's definitely true- the "shortage" will turn into an abundance once again, for sure. G-spot- you sound more bitter than the hops you're missing out on