stillcrankin

ivan you bad dog!! What's shakin??

Love these things….. They can turn A3 into A1 (until they fail, then they turn A3 into A-see-ya-later).

Sweater vest??? Day-am, yer good. I think it actually was a sweater vest. Don's fashion sense ran between Sasquatch and Yale-preppie, usually leaning towards the Sasquatch side of the scale...

Don Brooks=tough as nails Don on Leaning Tower in 1973, moments after he caught his beard in his rappel brake and ripped a chunk out....

I was one of the guys over to your right on the Muir. The storm that night was incredible. Fortunately we had a Fish ledge with his whup-ass rainfly and managed to stay mostly dry. The thunder and lightning was awe inspiring. The wind whipped us around in the ledge like we were nothing. We spent 18 hours in the ledge without venturing out. When the storm finally broke we wandered out and saw what must have been you guys trying to get to the fixed ropes. It was getting late and it looked like you guys were having trouble. I'm glad you made it down. We stuck it out and topped out on the 4th of July.... At least it wasn't freezing.....

Plaidman-good work! That video was frikkin' awsome! The whole time I was watching I was thinking, "You gonna climb that wall or you gonna whistle dixie?" Did your ledge really dump you twice??

Dave Davis in 1986 on "Stoner Ledge" or whatever it's called. You can see the plaque on the right.

What a cool place to be. Pictures like that make me homesick....

The upper valley can be a very cold inhospitable place in the winter..... Camp 4 Christmas Eve 2008 But it can be PERFECT in the lower valley...... Midterm, Arch Rock-December 31, 2008

Very, very sweet! How were the first two pitches?? (never mind-I just re-read your post)

Pretty cool place to be.

Thank you Mr. Hands! And thank you Mr. jshamster- you clever little rodent stuffer.....

Any routes to the top of the NNB other then Doorish's?

Good on ya fer tryin'. Can't remember what we used-knifeblades to 3" bongs, I think. Used some hooks and nuts, also. Put in a few bolts along the way....... The last pitch doesn't really stand out in my mind so it couldn't have been too bad.

Do yourself a favor: don't just roll off your mossy northwest couch on to El Cap. Do something shorter first like something on Washington Column or Leaning Tower. You'll be thankful you did....

That's frikkin' burly! You must have spent half of the 12 hours taking pictures. Long distance mountain running is a total inward journey of commitment and determination (pain is somewhere in the mix, too). Nice job!!! ---

[font:Arial]Mr Plaidman Sir, Having climbed in The Trench for almost four decades, I would consider myself somewhat of an expert at getting spanked by the Yoswide. If you really want to be the spanker and not the spankee you should try spending several months there. Within a month or two, you’ll be the one flashing by the gumbies as you put in little or no gear. There’s really no other way. Being a weekend warrior doesn’t cut it. Being a gym whipper doesn’t cut it. You can come out of a gym pulling down 5.13 plastic and get totally shut down on a Yosemite 5.10 crack. I’m speaking from experience (the shut-down part, not the 5.13 part). If you don’t take a chance, you’ll never know the feeling. You’ll feel the ebb and flow of weekend gumbies coming and going. You’ll learn where not to go on the weekend and avoid the crowds. You’ll feel the seasons change. Take the chance. Take the time. It’s something you’ll have with you for the rest of your life. [/font] ---

Can't tell you how glad I am to see Jim still at it. Is that a Whillians harness he's wearing? No helmet, no filter, 4' ice axe, typical Langdon-you just gotta love that guy. Now HE'S older than dirt, unlike the rest of us mature Washingtonians. I saw him at the Washington survivors picnic at Woodland Park several months ago-not the new wave climbers picnic, but the old timers picnic (Langdon wasn't nearly the oldest one there). Hadn't seen him in 35 year or so. Say hi to him from Don the next time you talk to him..... --

Get strong. Good luck.

Fewer people will snicker if you put it this way... Whatever, Mr Bitch...... -----

Not now....I was in Seattle last weekend for an old-timers (survivor's) climbing picnic at Woodland Park. It was pretty cool, people were there that I hadn't seen in 35 years: Jim Langdon, Frank Tarver (and Annie), Scott Davis (1st ascent of the Heart route on El Cap), Joe Firey, Carla Firey, Dave Davis, Dave and Diana Dailey, Ed Gibson, Karl Kayala, Carlstad, and many, many others. If I'd known you were around I would have dropped you a line. I did go climbing at Index. Love that place. Makes me want to buy a house out there. Oh wait, I forgot about the long winters. I'm still trying to get a handle on the Bachar thing. Like you, I knew him pretty well.

Dick-you in the area these days??

Burly looking crack. Looks like something that would definitely support a bad crack habit. How much farther does it go past where you are in the second picture? I'll ask Pat about it the next time I talk to him....

Well done, my man!! Great TR. I just about blew lunch on my keyboard at some of your descriptions. Burly pretty much describes the Steak-Salad. Sounds like you were treated to a full serving.....

Where's Godzilla?? ---