Chopi

Precisely! The ones that make it past the alcoholism, depression and suicides to a ripe old age all owe it to the fish oil. Did you have a point? I lived in Norway for 19 years. You?

You live in Ballard? Just go to Olsen's and get the bottle with the liquid stuff. You can even get it with a subtle lemon flavor to cover the fishyness.

Ever been to Northern Norway? There, fish oil is a way of life, consumed by the can (well, almost). A visit there will give you all the data you need to take fish oil, either in liquid or capsule form. Forget about the scientists! The trick to avoiding the 'fish burp' is to take your fish oil before you eat your breakfast in the morning. Works great for me.

I'm in the process of moving and have cleared out a pretty complete collection of Rock&Ice from 1999-2006 and some volumes of Climbing Magazine from around 2000-2002. Instead of recycling these immediately I figured I'd see if anyone here is interested. They are yours if you pick them up in Fremont (Seattle). Post a reply here or send me a PM.

Reagan was a hell of a lot more deserving than Gore, and the absence of his name from the roster tells you more about the ideological precommitments of the folks in Stockholm than it does about the actual merits of the nominees. Wow. This is a new conspiracy theory just waiting for someone to tackle it. Socialists in Stockholm applying undue pressure on the socialists in Norway who actually decide who gets the Peace Prize! Is this possibly the first left-wing conspiracy?? Wait, maybe JayB doesn't know which country's borders Oslo lies within... (Everyone knows it's CzechOSLOvakia...)

Wow. 5 stars? Your blood is a bit richer than mine.... This is more my level: Petit Velan

I have bags from both companies (Valandre and Western) and like both. They fit quite differently, so I would recommend trying before buying. Workmanship on both bags is great. I don't own any Feathered Friends products, but the stuff I've seen and played with is in the same class as the two others. If you live in the Pacific Northwest, get a FF bag to support a local company.

Ahh, Switzerland. Good times are always to be had there.

Come on KKK, I know you don't like George W. that much, but at least he actually got a majority of the votes last time.

Is this another "take the attention away from how stupid our President is" thread?

I was considering posting about this very same issue a month or so ago when I first discovered 'made in China' BD cams and shortly thereafter found a bunch of other Chinese-made BD hardware. I've worked in the computer hardware industry for years now, and have had the chance to visit plenty of Chinese manufacturing operations (including companies in Zhuhai, where I believe BD's products are manufactured). It's a mixed bag for me, I've come to terms with nearly all tech products being made in China, from the components to the final assembly. However, it still struck a chord seeing the 'made in China' label on BD gear. I've spent many dollars on BD gear over the years (I've bought lots of stuff directly from Jeff, he's a great guy), some of it on stuff I knew was Chinese-made (tents). BD gear has been some of the most durable, well-designed gear I've owned. I don't doubt that BD has "moved" their quality to China as well, stuff made in China is as good quality as the company making it wants it to be. If the goal is cheap, they'll do cheap; if the goal is good, they'll do good. However, I am still uncomfortable buying Chinese-made climbing gear. I'm sure I'll come around eventually, either by choice or because there are no other options. As irrational as I know this is, my money will go elsewhere for the time being. (I also will not buy Chinese-made skis.) As a side-bar to this thread, when a company opens a manufacturing operation in China it is usually the first step in series that culminates with the vast majority of work moving off-shore. As someone else pointed out, the supply chain is often next in line to move, and then most new investments go to China because the costs are lower. The transfer process often happens under the auspices of "expanding where our growth is," and then ends up as the same old "low cost manufacturing" for all markets.

"Conquistadors of the useless" is great. Other good ones: "Starlight and Storm" by Gaston Rebuffat "The worst journey in the world" by Apsley Cherry Garrard "The mountains of my life" by Walter Bonatti

Does KaskadskyjKozak get paid for posting on cascadeclimbers.com? Dude, you must have made a million $$ today alone.

Wow, Norwegian spoken on this board?? Impressive. The real phrase one should pull out in Sweden while drunk (and foreign) is this: Tjenare tjeien! Jag har kuket i handen! Try it and report back.

Anyone been up the Chimneys lately? Thinking of heading up this weekend and curious if anyone has a recent conditions report of the route. Thanks!