Marko

Glad to hear it! Enjoy!

Hey Matt how did the bag treat you?

I'm 6' and it easily cinches over my shoulders around my neck.

20 oz, hoodless, Epic fabric, 800 fill upgrade, 3 oz. overfill, proven down to 30°F without a parka. Stuffs down to the size of a microbe. Very low miles, no tears or scrapes. 150 bones -Mark

The Becky route's got decent rock, not great but decent. It is amazing how shitty the summit area is though. My hat's off to the 2 parties (any others?) that have done the Nooksack-Shuksan traverse! We had planned to the traverse but looked at what we'd be rapping off into and chickened out.

Holy crap! Inspiring trip gents!

Bomber! But heavy I seem to remember.

So Skykilo that was you guys who left those great tracks! My partner and I started up there on the 29th and used your tracks all the way up to where you turned around. The approach was cake because of your tracks! We ended up getting shat on a couple days later so it was all for naught. Thanks anyway! Mark Y'know for what it's worth, I'd be pretty surprised if Serpentine hadn't gotten done in the 70's or 80's.

Any shallow angles?

Yeah, the MSR windscreen works great for the Pocket Rocket with the added bonus of helping to keep the canister warm (dangerous, but what isn't?). A windscreen made of 4 layers of aluminum foil works almost as good and is much lighter. One problem with the little stove is its tippiness when cooking in a tent( dangerous, etc.) on a foam pad . A solution for this problem is setting the stove on a ziplock baggie 1/4 full of instant rice. Push the stove down onto the rice bag to create an indentation for the canister. This works great until you've eaten all the rice. Definitely a good stove.

Good job gents! That route doesn't get done in winter too often. Must of been a blast. Cheers for sure!

It was completely snow covered as of March 5th. About 1 ft deep at the beginning.

Zion or Death Valley? Abso-freakin-lutely ZION without a doubt! One of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. Routes in Red Rocks? Folks have given some great info on this site, try a search. Have a blast!

As I have no style, I am not in their jurisdiction! I've actually hung on the umbi maybe twice. Now the rope on the other hand...

Gotta work some tomorrow. Sunday 1/2 day?

Umbi's were good while placing Snargs or the old Chouinard screws, as Mr. Parker mentioned, it was nice to be connected to a tool while you're sweating in gear. I still often use an umbilical of 9/16" webbing with bungie cord inside on one tool on long routes. It's nice to know you can't lose the tool even when you place it in some mank and are fiddling in gear. The bungie helps keep the tether from catching too bad. On pure ice it's even kinda comfy to be connected to a well-placed tool when twisting a screw in. (Like ice climbing is supposed to be comfortable!)

Hey Pat, I see you're in Kent too. I've got the normal Sat/Sun off, but let me know if you want to go riding or running in the evenings. Also, I've got a (computerless) friend that has Tue/Wed off and is looking for partners. If you're into it, I'll give you his number. Mark

Weekdays after work, mtn bike ride around Lake Youngs, trail runs, whatever. Gotta get fit to keep up with partners half my friggin' age! Mark

Way to get at 'er Youth! And the girlfriend got her Valentine's day after all...

You're doing the rest of us lackies (speaking only of my over-worked self) proud! Prosit!

Thrift stores!

Well, I didn't actually say "absorb" but if the screw flexes at all, then it does actually dissipate energy. In fact anything in the system that flexes, stretches, or heats up is dissipating energy. I did simplify the system a little I guess. More energy dissipaters: Knots tightening, harnesses stretching, climber's beer gut sloshing around, crampon catching on ice and shattering ankle, rope whipping through carabiners, rope slipping through belay device and belayer's gloves, belayer sinking onto anchors, cordalette stretching, pins shifting in manky rock, etc. The point is if there's a screamer in the system and it activates at all, it will reduce the energy, and therefore the shock loading, imparted to the pro. Yeah, 9% maybe isn't a whole lot, but like you say it could make the difference...

Naw. You're falling and hit the end of the ropes with a certain amount of energy. The ropes dissipate some of that as they stretch. If there's a screamer, it dissipates more energy until it fully zippers and then the screw and surrounding ice get to deal with the rest. (Or not.) If there's no screamer, the screw and ice get hit with whatever energy the ropes haven't dissipated.

A friend of mine is about to switch to Tuesdays and Wednesdays off and is looking for partners for alpine, rock, ice, and/or slogging. PM me if you're into it.