sobo

Answer: As I said above, I'll be climbing with a n00b who's never done multis. But I still think that four 3-pitch climbs a day will be doable. I'll be doing all the leading, and I've got all the routes we'll be doing wired. So I figger 2 hours per route, and they're all close together. Hit the rock at 8, off by 6. Approach is trivial. Some right from the road, all the others are 5 minutes or less from the car. One of the many reasons I love this place. Answer: I'll be replacing webbing, and most of the rap stations were never installed with rings. If they were, someone booty-ed them long ago. Yes, peeps have been rappelling with ropes on webbing up there. Don't get on me about it; that's why I'm bringing chain links. Answer: I won't.

E: Good point; right again. Way easier to pull the rope with a three-link arrangement. bcd: I live in The Palm Springs of Washington, Crackima, Yakivegas, ...take your pick; it all sucks.

Thanks E, that's some info I needed to know was what is the best size. And I hadn't even thought about the need to do this as two-links!! But after I read it, it immediately made sense. Thanks. PS: I've got a friend in the hardware store biz here in town. He'll take the time (or get one his people to do it). Thanks to all who responded. If I can figger out how to post pics, I'll set up a Distel-style slide show when I get back.

Blake: Would you go with just one of those as opposed to two rap rings? I've always doubled up rap rings, cuz that was how i was taught years ago, and they just look a little too dicey to me to go single with them. It would seem to me that a single chain link would be fine, but what about single quick-links? Any difference there?

Jake: You must be referring to Huddleston's Bluff, about a mile upstream and across the river. Yes, that's quite impressive. Or are you referring to The Dorsal Fin, that "shark fin" lookin'-thingie directly across the river from LD? Just so you know, John also has a Hyperspud here in The Palm Spirngs of Washington. He's been here for about 4 years or so now. Class act that guy. cluck: I can make you a copy of my topo. That should keep you out of trouble, eh?

Well, Dru, I'm looking at it this way... It's a multipitch area, with an average of say... 3 to 5 pitches per climb. Let's go low and say it's 3 pitches for every climb we do. I'll probably get in 4 or 5 climbs a day, cuz I'm fat and I'm taking a buddy who's never done multis before. So on the low end, that's around 12 rap stations per day if all goes according to plan. We'll be there for about 4 or 5 days. Let's say we get bored after 4 days. That makes for somewhere around 50 rap stations to be replaced while we're there. With two rap rings (redundancy) per station, that's around 100 rings. At your estimated prices, there's a differential of about $0.75CAN/ring. So that's 100 rings * $0.75CAN/ring * ~$0.70US/$1.00CAN = $50US potential price difference. To me, that is some serious coin of my own that I'll be dropping. As I said above, "Weight won't be an issue. Money is." Thanks for your comment, though.

Dru: Weight won't be an issue. Money is. Jake: Lightning Dome. Anyone from WSU or U of I will know where it is. You should, judging by your "Loc".

OK, so I'm getting ready to head out for my week-long season closer. I'll be heading over to Idaho for some granitic bliss, to an area that doesn't see a lot of traffic. Seems like I always need to replace some rap slings and anchors when I go there, and I was wondering... Instead of bringing a bunch of ($fancy$) rap rings, is there a legit substitute for same? Simple chain links from the hardware store? Quick-links? Anything else that would be acceptable to the climbing community at large that runs on the cheap side? What sizes are most acceptable (diameter of the link, not the hole for the rope, silly)? And yes, I will be bringing "camoflauge" webbing.

faux pas

Here ya go, Ralph: Biggest ash blast yet at St. Helens 12:56 PM PDT on Tuesday, October 5, 2004 From KING, NWCN Staff Reports and the Associated Press MOUNT ST. HELENS NATIONAL MONUMENT, Wash. - Mount St. Helens sent up what appeared to be the biggest blast of ash yet Tuesday morning since the mountain began its most recent period of restlessness. Scientists nevertheless said Tuesday's venting was still not the biggest event to be expected and won't be likely be the last of its kind. "Mount St. Helens has begun a period of eruptive activity. It may last weeks. it may last months. I think people need to get used to the concept," said USGS volcanologist Jake Lowenstern. Lowenstern said it appeared the the ash and steam now were coming from multiple vents inside the crater, which now contains some ponded and boiling water. The prevailing winds of between 20 mph and up to 40 mph were expected to carry the ash in the direction of the Yakima Valley, Wenatchee and Cle Elum but would not arrive for about four to six hours, according to weather forecasters. The plume rose to an estimated elevation of about 13,000 feet and the National Weather Service issued an ashfall advisory for the south Washington Cascades. In Randall, Wash. about 21 miles from St. Helens, residents reported the ash as a thin cloud moving overhead about an hour after the Tuesday blast. As Tuesday dawned, scientists were paying close attention to a large area of swelling on the mountain the previous 24 hours, a growth of 150 feet in an area covering about 150 football fields on the southern side of the lava dome. By noon, SkyKING aerials showed the uplifted area even bigger than before with a large area of ponded muck inside what has been the most active and violent vent so far. The 600-foot-deep glacier behind the dome, and one of the few advancing glaciers in the country, is now one of the many shades of gray that make up the inside of the crater. Scientists speculate the pressure pushing up the dome could be from magma, volcanic gases or a combination of both. The volcano's large steam emissions came from the area of swelling. "When you get that kind of deformation at that rate, plus with this high and tense seismicity, it does seem to indicate that something is imminent, something will happen fairly soon," said USGS scientist Jon Major. "But there's still a chance that this could all quiet back down, so at this point it's still a little bit of a guessing game as exactly when and what is going to happen." USGS scientists also discovered Monday an increase in sulfur dioxide, hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide, gases associated with magma, inside the crater. Small earthquakes within the 2.0 to 3.0 magnitude range occurring three to four times a minute continued to rumble the volcano Tuesday morning, but subsided again after the Tuesday eruption. Scientists continue to monitor the volcano and hope to gather more data from two new GPS system devices air dropped into the crater Monday. As Mount St. Helens continues to vent steam and ash, communities in Washington and Oregon are readying contingency plans. That includes making sure emergency vehicles will be able to operate even under heavy ash fall. Clark, Skamania and Cowlitz counties will coordinate local road closures and cleanup and are prepared for possible health effects that might impact local hospitals and possible disruption to electrical service. Emergency officials say residents near the mountain can prepare by having 72 hours' worth of supplies, including canned and dry food and drinking water, on hand. The mountain’s alert was raised over the weekend to Level 3, the highest possible, meaning an eruption is imminent. Some volcano experts had said an explosion would probably happen over the weekend. But as the time passed, others cautioned Monday that volcanic activity is difficult to predict. “Right now, we’re thinking it’s about a 70 percent chance that it will erupt and a 30 percent chance that it just might go back to sleep,” Pierson told NBC’s “Today” show Monday. Pierson said a buildup of earthquakes since a plume of steam was released on Friday indicate that pressure is still mounting within the volcano. Geological Survey crews also observed a shift in the crater floor and on part of the 1,000-foot lava dome that essentially serves as a plug for magma, he said. “Cracks are opening up so we know something is pushing up close to the surface right now,” Pierson said. Scientists have also detected elevated levels of carbon dioxide and other volcanic gases, including the rotten egg smell of hydrogen sulfide, that reflect changes in the volume of magma rising within the mountain.

See link.

Oh, wait! That was pot pourri! Doh!

I get a paraffin wax product with a citrus juice carrier at the local bicycle shop. Smells like orange juice with a candle in it. Can't remember the name of it, tho... I think it's probably the same stuff to which Dru was referring.

I'm guilty of #1 and #2, but I don't give a fuck. My feet sweat like a Hustler centerfold, which makes it so I can't get my shoes on or off unless I use a polypro liner sock. So there! As for shorts over polypro (SOPP), fuck y'all on that score as well. Wearing white capilene long johns on sunny glacier slogs with stiff winds and ground blizzards can't be beat. Not too hot in the sun, don't get chilled from the wind or ice shards blowing around. And it saves on sunscreen as well. But mind you, I only do SOPP on glacier slogs. Never at the crags. So go ahead, call me old skewl and call me a fashion loozer. Oh, and I quit wearing spandex when my ass got too big!

Hi rob. I was waiting for someone to come up with something clever like that. But given that he said "Friday", it must be in 2006...

Any bets on how long it will take before this thread gets moved to Spray?

"What happened to the 10,000-bottle wine collection you had?" "I drank it."

Greg_W = Navan Johnson???

Christ! What's next? That is so suck!

Completely! But I still want to know: what is a steaksauce? And what is the significance of steaksauce?

Yes, I did Brad. See up there a few posts where I admitted that I had been hacked? What is it with this "steaksauce" and "steaksauce" thing? Fuck, did it again!

Greg_W is black??? Now that has some serious implications...

I just had to post this from an e-Bay auction. It just cracked me up. The poor guy is really suffering some serious angst! Read the description all the way through, plus his updates. Fahq'n hilarious!

Crikey! I've been hacked already! ^^