dfrost

Can't get that much anymore... you can buy the Fixe Aliens new for $67 on Mountain Gear.

+1 to Kai and keen's answer: there is no such thing as a waterproof leather glove. There are, however, lots of work-arounds. The cheapest is a pair of insulated work gloves from Costco or Home Depot lathered in Sno-Seal. I rotated pairs of these through 5 years of ski patrol work, and they seemed as good as anything else but cost 80% less. Once the leather gets soaked, it takes a night to dry, so I try to keep it from getting to that point by rotating gloves with one pair in my jacket to warm and "dry" a little. It works most of the time.

Scott--that's the accident that occurred on Serendipity Arete. It was widely mis-reported as Liberty Bell.

Using an autoblock on the rappel is never a bad idea; you can go hands-free if you need to sort tangles or set up an ascending system, you are backed-up in case you lose control... the added benefits of using one outweigh the extra minute it takes to set it up.

Maybe I'm missing something, but aren't there grizzly in the North Cascades already? I seem to recall confirmed sighting and tracks just a few years ago.

My C3s have been solid for the last 7 or so years; I'm on my second set. Probably use the Metolius MasterCams over X4s though: cheaper and lighter. Nothing wrong with the Aliens, but I haven't come around to the Totems yet... probably haven't used them enough.

Since the majority of climbing accidents occur on rappel, it seems like any discussion regarding why or why not to use certain techniques is worth it. 6mm accessory cord is not rope. It's not even really a "tag line". Accessory cord does stretch, but has neither the strength or durability of dynamic rope or static line. Sure, it's breaking strength is somewhere around 8kN, depending on manufacturer, but that makes the margin for error very small. I think it's important to be totally up front about what equipment we use and why: rapping anything using 6mm is a VERY advanced move, requiring some honest discussion about the limitations of the equipment. The last thing we want to see is a bunch of people out there on rock routes thinking there's no concern about rappelling on their 9.2 with a length of 6-7mm accessory cord.

Although the discussion of the v-thread has been beaten to a bloody pulp, I'll kick it one more time for good measure: If you've never used a "tag line", bear in mind that accessory cord (6-7mm) is much LESS durable than climbing rope. Inspection and replacement of thin cordage should probably be done often (every trip, or every rappel if your cord snags). I'm assuming this is why Dave says that his tag line is "much longer" than the 30m, 8mm line he used: so he could cut the tag line and still have a 30m rap?

I'd go here and talk to Adam Vognild; I met him a few years back running in the Methow, and I'm sure he'd be happy to show you the local haunts... http://theinnercirclegym.com/

Leor Pantilat did Olympus in 2009, and said his was the FKT at 11h6m... link

I'm still looking for a reason to vote No: Thus far in the thread, I've read 2 sentiments: 1) Labeling GMO foods is information that is unnecessary, and 2) It will make food more expensive. So that said: 1) Why is more information (even if it's "this food is yellow") a bad thing? If people don't want to eat GMO (or yellow) food, let them decide if they care. 2) Won't it confer (most of the) additional cost to GMO foods? Is this undesirable somehow? It's not clear that there would actually be ANY increased cost; though I admit assuming there won't be doesn't make any sense.

I had surgery for a Grade 3 separation in my non-dominant shoulder when I was about your daughter's age. Although it sounds like a posterior labral tear is a different injury, the recovery time sounds similar since I required 2 procedures. I have no lasting affects from the injury 20 years on. Advice? Take it slow after surgery; follow doctor's and PT's advice. Do your research on your PT and find a well-referred one as this can be the difference in recovery. Set a conservative timeline and expectations and be psyched if your daughter exceeds them.

It sounds like this is an excellent opportunity for the WCC and AAC to draft a position with the local guiding companies to support fixed rap stations in certain locations. A perfect analogy is the rap station off the top of the O-S on the Grand Teton; it certainly hasn't promoted "sport climbing" there, but it does make the descent safer and more attractive... Unless someone's decided to chop it, in which case, ignore the analogy.

If you're talking about the Trango Extreme EVO, then the major difference is the last--Batura is wider than the Trango. I can wear the former, but not the latter.

Picked up the guide this past Sunday at the Erie store, where they said they'd sold almost 200 in the last 2 weekends! Fantastic job on the book: well-indexed, great pictures, good trail maps, and easy to use. Thanks for a fantastic product!