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Washers are not necessary imo if you use glue, and the resulting structure is stronger with glue, but harder to remove later. Definitely use washers for a removable panel, but I have seen operable doors at gyms before too. I am not sure how hard a door would be to build. I built a modular free standing cave in my apartment in Walla Walla. It had a 1 inch crack in the middle. I reversed the complementary angles on accident (when the saw read 0 I was actually making a 90 degree cut, from a mathematical viewpoint) and the crack turned into a flare. I never finished the texture, you could jam it, bit it was raw wood. 7 panels in total; 4 sides a top and 2 bottom shims. The neighbors saw me building it outside and asked what it was. I told them a bookshelf. The landlord stumbled across it one day and said it was interesting. The thing was, I didn't get enough height and quickly became bored. It was good for pull-ups and practice rigging. I had an eye bolt thru the roof. But I think 9 foot minimum height is necessary and then still a 2 foot roof section would be nice to keep the vertical progress interesting. I got some holds I'd be willing to sell if anyone is looking (1 cubic foot box of mid to small - maybe a jug or 2 but not many).

I think their form of protection is called Work Position (or something similar); they have to be tied off to work, but can access the work area via free climbing (wayne posted a similar type of video). This type of protection system is common when erecting rebar assemblies. I am not sure towing a tool kit hanging below is legit. It does seems an unnecessary practice on a fixed ladder when there are currently devices on the market that protect ascending a fixed ladder (and these devices work work well).

Same deal for this weekend...

Just stop posting...

Thank for the great trip Ian. I have been wanting to do this for the past 2 years! Something like 39 hours c2c. Grade II, from where???

360 with a Stalefish grab.

I am looking for someone to climb with this weekend. I lead 5.8-ish and follow a little bit harder. I can drive or pitch in for gas, and willing to buy you a beer and burger afterwards.

Cool Joe! It has been a while. (Well actually only once before). I will shoot you a PM.

What I want to do is too mellow for you anyways. You would be like a caged animal! I guess I will try and make some calls tonight...

Thanks for the views. I am still looking for a partner, if someone is interested...

Looking for someone to climb SE Corner and possibly Right Gull. Could start around 7 am, but not really in a rush. Need to be done by 5pm. Looking for an easy, lazy day. Send a PM if interested. Thanks.

I recently bought a pair of 7.7 twins and really like them for climbs with double rappels. Although a tag line and single is more versatile. Twins also make it easier to split the rack evenly (both size and weight).

I saw those and decided to quote the "Gunks Classic Tour" t-shirt at 5.6- (truncated to 5.6). Not sure if that is accurate though... but it sure made me feel better. Ratings are so subjective! Whatever it is... it wasn't easy for me!

Do you think the south side will be open by freedom day? Take Dave out for some beers!

Seth drives in NYC no less. I am looking to drop sub-200 on weight soon. And within the last year I have found some who consider me 'regular'. Life is good! (someone else on High E.)

Trip: NYC and the Gunks - various Date: 5/26/2010 Trip Report: Last year during the peak of my weight and injury induced depression I call up my buddy out in NYC and ask when he’s coming to visit. I am jonesing for some climbing, yet out of shape, and having a hard time getting out. Partners I pick up are friendly and nice, but I sense they aren’t looking to add me to their ‘regular’ list. Seth couldn’t manage a trip out West, but asked if I could head east and climb in the Gunks. 3 weeks later I’m off for a 4-day trip… I didn’t tell him I had knee surgery 9 months prior and he didn’t ask if I felt gimp, so in classic style he puts me on the first open target of opportunity, V3 (5.7). As I start climbing I immediately comment on my discomfort with the rock and placing gear in it. Not more than 20 ft up my 1st piece… pops. I am at a rest. I place another piece and comment on the “weirdness”. Seth reassures me I’m okay and I slowly continue upward. V3 is fun in that the difficulty builds like a crescendo. There are 2 pitons in nice locations. You could probably skip them. At one point, I’m palming out left with my left hand, both feet on the right dihedral, my right hand is attempting to pinch and side-pull the dihedral’s right edge… I start to say (I mean hell), “I don’t know… I DON’T KNOW…” Seth hells back, “GET IN THERE!” I bend my left arm, slide my left shoulder into the corner, totally letting go with my right… and… I’m… SOLID! Looking back out at New Paltz. It’s an amazing view! I enjoy it… I put in gear, and grunt my way thru the final corner to the belay. I didn’t own the climb and was amazed I didn’t pitch… We climbed Shokely’s, Up Draft, Yellow Ridge, some other climbs the names I don’t remember, and various single pitches close to the parking lot. It rained. So, we went north and visited Lake Placid and the Adirondacks. We climbed the first 3 pitches of Gamesmanship. I met some of Seth’s friends, drank with locals, and then flew home thinking 4 days was nowhere near enough time for a visit… 1 year later Seth calls me up and to ask what’s up with this year’s visit. I tell him I am coming for 7 days, and he is down. I feel good and look forward to climbing. I arrive in JFK around 10 pm local and wait as everyone claims their bags but 2 others and myself. I ask about my bag (climbing gear) and am told to wait to see if it shows up. Slightly upset I request they check and see if my bag had made the flight. While I’m doing this, my friend’s fiancé is circling the airport waiting to pick me up. Seth is back home studying for a final… 20 minutes later I have my box, and Jen arrives with a cast! She injured her leg “climbing”, well… more likely… “falling”. So, she is out for the year. The next day I wait for Seth to finish finals and then I help around the house, and then Seth and I are off for 2 days of climbing, returning for a birthday, followed by 3 more days of climbing. I am stoked. And, it’s HOT! Remembering that V3 was not a warm-up for me, Seth agrees to start out easy. We begin with Frog’s Head (5.5). It seemed hard, but short pitches. Maybe I wasn’t warmed up. Back at the base, we start up Maria (5.6). The 2nd pitch of Maria is ABSOLUTELY DREAMY!!! It felt like the easiest pitch I climbed, holds everywhere. If you know of 1,000 feet of continuous climbing like that, PLEASE LET ME KNOW! The last pitch is insecure on the crux move, but Seth styles it. We move over to the base of The Arch (5.6). I don’t feel well and take a 20-minute break. I start to feel cold, like I am going to begin shaking. I lie down, and get up feeling, “okay”. It’s freaking HOT! The temp is only 86F, but sweaty! I start up the Arch. The 1st piece of pro is behind a flake that probably won’t hold, then up to a ledge with good options. Traverse right, followed by a bit of confusion, leads into a conversation with this guy who praises us for how well we matched the ropes. He says, “Now that’s style!” It was hilarious. I am wearing purple. Seth has matching Blue. And we didn’t plan it. Seth didn’t see the ropes until after we left the car. We wore the same shirts last year, before I had the ropes. We were dressed as a team, with the rope as our centerpiece. Others noticed it too… We all laughed… Eventually I returned to climbing… (Picture taken last year) And then it gets real. I thought for a moment I was going to have to pull the 5.9 roof. I’m looking for the exit right. I call down, “do I climb thru the roof?” “No, go right”. “HOW!!!” I responded? Seth mumbles something like, “i don’t know, just go right…” And then I’m back on focus. Crimping 2 blocks that look like they are glued to 2 blocks that are glued to 2 other blocks, I slap and then transfer my weight onto them, and then step down and over. Secure, I weave 2 pieces together within the cluster of blocks and add a screamer, just in case. While grunting I transfer to a side pull and extend around the corner, and am greeted with a nice edge. I move out and around the corner, and then onto a ledge. Is this the belay? I want to get some gear. It is a ways around that corner, and I don’t like those blocks. Nothing??? Really… nothing??? There is something at my feet, but it is still part of the mass of blocks. I don’t like it, but I take it. I spend forever rigging a sling into the floor and finally climb up to a tree while calling for slack. There is a lot of drag. I get to the tree. What is this (tiny) ledge? I would rather be down on the blocks. I rig the tree and lower back down, tie-off, and belay Seth up. It turns out that the ledge belay is “optional”. Just past the tree it gets easier. I should have continued. Seth gets the bullshit fix-this-fucked-up-mess pitch, and I get 1 more real pitch. Following chalk and avoiding lichen I (unintentionally) opt out of the final crux roof. I eyed the shit out of it, and then convinced myself it was off route. It wasn’t (according to the guidebook). Seth thought it was off. It didn’t look recently climbed. Oh well… After feeling shaky and getting mental on the Arch, I tell Seth 1 more and I am ready to call it a day. What to do? I still haven’t climbed High E. We could always get on it tomorrow. Seth decides on a single pitch 5.8 for the final climb. We take our time. We have plenty. Eventually Seth starts up, looking solid. First piece is placed high off the ground. The 2nd piece is available at eye level with the 1st piece at his feet. He eyes the placement, then suddenly falls… no wait… just a slip… he caught himself… but he is on the rope... How is that possible? I give a little slack… Okay, he caught himself, but his right foot is on the rope... It was like the heel flipping issue, but only the toe, and he didn’t fall. Then Seth looks down at me and says, “I just blew out my right shoulder.” What!?! I am not sure what just happened, or how I could’ve done better. Trying to protect against a grounder I was conservative with slack. Seth didn’t understand what happened either, and didn’t realize his right foot had slipped. It moved about 10 inches. I hung a sling and he down aided, and then we slowly policed up our gear. We took our time. He mentioned his shoulder might be better tomorrow. I knew it wouldn’t. It wasn’t. It gradually got worse. 5 days of climbing turned into 1. He offered to try help find partners and to use his camping gear. I said I might try RC.com or Gunks.com. But, I didn’t feel it. The trip took a turn; Seth is out for a year… What to do now? We go to the Comedy Cellar the following night. Fucking hilarious! Colin Quinn, Jim Norton, and 3 other funny guys whose names I don’t remember as well as the MC. Hilarious... I snorted multiple times in laughter… We didn’t have tickets prior so we did standby on the 1st show. Afterwards we head to dinner... Over dinner we talk about the birthday and they ask if I might want to do my own thing for a day. I have a sister in Allentown I haven’t seen in 9 years and the birthday party is in Lancaster. It works out great. Sis says come down and spend the night! Once there I meet Alaina and Kaityn (4-year old twins) for the first time ever! They were both shy and almost wouldn’t eat while I as at the table. But, by the time the slip-and-slide was set up, they had warmed-up. Alaina likes to stare while touching noses. It was fun. I enjoyed the visit and was sad to leave… The next day Seth and I head off to hike Breakneck Ridge, in a thunderstorm! At the base of the hike I say, “Are you sure you want to do a ridge route in a thunderstorm?” And Seth replies, “It will be okay.” I said while pointing, “That Mountain is going to EXPLODE!” We start out and are quickly soaked. But the water was warm so it was like swimming. The gully turns into a creek and we climb thru the middle. With socks and sandals I climb rock covered water. Seth is doing fine with 1 arm in a sling while carrying our pack! (What was I thinking giving him the pack???) We opt-out of most of the harder opt-ins. There is 5th class climbing possible. We choose 3rd and 4th. As we reach the ridge the skies began to clear and we are hot. We drink a little water, discuss taking a break, and decide to try and summit under the current hole in the sky. We hike to the summit and rest. The clouds are crazy. It seems like every kind is present. Long wispy clouds have cauliflower growing thru the middle of them, and a wall from a front is just sitting there, churning. It is awesome. I wish I had a camera… We surveyed the collapsing hole above us and decide it’s time to go. Soaked again on the way down we heard 2 ground strikes to the summit we just left (< ½ sec flash to boom). At one point I jump on Seth’s back! (oops sorry) I am glad to be in the trees. Back at the car, I change shirts, dropped the undies and socks, and load up for a humid fogged-up-widow ride home. During which the Gods piss over everything, HARD! We’re driving 30 mph on the highway, we can’t see shit, and I’m concerned! I ask, “Are we okay?” Seth responds, “I don’t know.” It takes forever… I wipe the window constantly… Eventually, we are home! 2 days before my return Seth goes to see the doc. I’m off to do my own thing. I decide on Ground Zero. I’m not a big tourist type, but feel I should go see where so much pain generated… I am amazed… THERE IS NO PARK! It is literally a city-block sized construction zone. There are memorials close by, and they are nice, but they do not capture the magnitude of the event. I circle the entire site taking my time. I purchase a hot sausage and a coke. (not a sausage dog, I was wrong to call it that!) I roll a couple smokes and enjoy them while contemplating the whole deal. I cross paths with a tour guided by 2 older gentlemen, 1 wearing History Channel logo on his shirt. They seemed well informed. However, their explanations for why 3 buildings collapsed… seemed… insufficient, and superficial. It was like saying, “Once something starts. It doesn’t stop, until it’s done.” Whatever… I run across another guy with a different take on things standing in front of building 7. I didn’t realize I was standing in front of building 7. I took my time and surveyed the layout. It’s weird, 7 doesn’t feel like it is part of the reconstruction. And, it’s not, according to the billboard just 15 feet away. Building 7 is not part of the “future” diagram! Building 1 is the first building to be reconstructed, completion expect within the next 3 years. However, 7 re-stands! I guess 7 isn’t good enough for the diagram. There are many tall buildings close by... The whole thing feels weird… I am ready to go… Seth texts me, he will be longer than expected. I take the A-train to Central Park. WOW. Absolutely WOW! Talk about contrast… With a freshly altered mind I sit in the park just off the path leaning against a tree watching 4 out of 5 ball fields in use; Lots of people walking their dogs; One owner cleans up his pet’s shit... I think to myself, “How great is the demand for this resource?” There is bouldering nearby… I watch but don’t climb... I think to myself, I wish I were home… in Seattle. However, in Seattle, I can’t sit in a park and stare up at skyscrapers, in what seems like, every direction! It is crazy. I stare at the building-sky. I don’t think I’ll miss it. I meet up with Seth and we head back for dinner… The next day I decide to take the subway early to JFK. I end up in Lafferts (3 stops too far) because I didn’t transfer at Rockaway. Trains with the same letter sometimes have different destinations. I should have verified the destination. I needed the train to Far Rockaway not Lafferts. Others make this mistake too. I return to Rockaway and transfer. Then to Howard Beach, and transfer to the JFK Air train. I bump up a flight and almost miss it due to lost time checking baggage. The Delta crew were nice. Once aware, they helped me bypass lines… Thanks Delta!!! On the flight I made a credit card purchase with the stewardess for a gentleman who only had cash and am awarded a free beer. I listen to Eminem while switching video between “How the Earth Was Made”, My Map, and CNN’s coverage of the Gulf oil spill. Back home, I shower and go to bed…

Damn meetings.... Use Buckingham's Pie Theory and you don't need no inversly proportional spring relationship shit... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buckingham_%CF%80_theorem I am waiting for someone to "discover" the "other" significant non-dimensional numbers currently not used in climbing!

Thanks Paul. I thought for a moment you weren't using trigonometry... Page 2??? Come on page 3!!!!1111

Please explain. I was previously led to believe that only the 30-60 and 45-45 triangles can be calculated from knowledge of the length of 1 side. Otherwise 2 sides were necessary and thus the angle irrelevant.

Want to: yes. Able: no. But I am off to see Seth in NYC for 7 days staring Wednesday. My 2nd trip to the Gunks!

This thread is in the CRG forum so it pretty much is a private message. Thanks for your efforts Joseph.

I have an Arc'teryx (Targa I think) harness from a couple years ago. I liked the model so much I bought a replacement. I thought I fit an XL (38 inch waist), but I didn't (harness was too big). My original harness was an L not an XL. So, the XL has only been worn once for 6 hours. Stored in dry shade since. There is nothing wrong with it. Like new condition. It is yours (free) if you want it. Local pick-up or you pay shipping...

I would love to take that #5 off your hands, but doubt it is still available. Great prices!

That is next weekend May 14/15.

Public parking, camping, and /boat launch sites should be free imho. So should community college through an AA degree. What is the nightly rate? Curious since I am going this weekend.