tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67486317801935317422024-03-05T00:58:22.276-08:00!!Pawel's Travels!!Pawelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01918921717127212969noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6748631780193531742.post-75444381992552251992013-09-04T14:43:00.000-07:002013-09-04T14:43:25.899-07:00To Kevin, you will be missed.<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
<o:AllowPNG/>
</o:OfficeDocumentSettings>
</xml><![endif]--><br />
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:View>Normal</w:View>
<w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom>
<w:TrackMoves/>
<w:TrackFormatting/>
<w:PunctuationKerning/>
<w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/>
<w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>
<w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent>
<w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>
<w:DoNotPromoteQF/>
<w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther>
<w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian>
<w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
<w:DontGrowAutofit/>
<w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/>
<w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/>
<w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/>
<w:OverrideTableStyleHps/>
</w:Compatibility>
<m:mathPr>
<m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/>
<m:brkBin m:val="before"/>
<m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/>
<m:smallFrac m:val="off"/>
<m:dispDef/>
<m:lMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:rMargin m:val="0"/>
<m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/>
<m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/>
<m:intLim m:val="subSup"/>
<m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/>
</m:mathPr></w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
DefSemiHidden="true" DefQFormat="false" DefPriority="99"
LatentStyleCount="267">
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="0" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Normal"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="heading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="9" QFormat="true" Name="heading 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="toc 9"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="35" QFormat="true" Name="caption"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="59" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" SemiHidden="false"
UnhideWhenUsed="false" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
</w:LatentStyles>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;}
</style>
<![endif]-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
It has been a few days since I heard about the accident.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A few of us had gathered in southeast Idaho,
climbing outside of Arco.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a standard
relaxed morning, waiting for the walls to go into the shade, when another climber
named Ian turned to me and asked me if I knew a Kevin Volkening.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I replied that of course I did, I had in fact
gone to high school with him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ian’s
reply to this was the last thing I was expecting, the news that he had died in
an accident.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Things fell silent; it was
the worst thing possible.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Climbers are a strange bunch.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To someone who doesn’t climb, it is
impossible to explain why.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is
dangerous, it has no social benefit, and can largely appear to be entertainment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But for those who do climb it is just the
thing that more or less controls our lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Somewhere between religion and obsession, we find ourselves directing
our lives so that we can climb as much as possible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It drives us to improve and explore and
challenge ourselves in a way that other pursuits haven’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So like most climbers this Labor Day weekend, Kevin headed
to Wyoming, and I had headed to Idaho, both of us more than excited to get an
extra day this weekend to get away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
is the thing we both loved to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
then…</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Every time an accident such as this happens it is felt
throughout the climbing community.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is
a small community, and the more time you spend climbing the more you realize
this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everyone knows everyone, and it is
impossible to not feel grief because even if you didn’t know them directly, at
least some of your friends did, and you know that they had been bitten by the
same climbing obsession that drives you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Nobody goes out to climb wanting to die, they just want to feel fulfillment
in life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I never climbed with Kevin thought, I knew him from
before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had heard he’d started
climbing a few years ago and from the first time I read his blog I could tell he
was hooked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When he moved to Salt Lake
City I was living in Logan – a mere 90 minutes apart – and we even talked about
getting together and climbing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But as
things go, we both had jobs, we both had our own climbing goals we were
motivated by, and we never made it happen, never knowing there wouldn’t be
enough time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The first thing I remember about Kevin is laughing with
him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was hilarious and rambunctious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Always a positive presence and always excited
about life, he loved it and he knew how to live it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I miss you more than words can say.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’ll share a belay in the next life. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
Pawelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01918921717127212969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6748631780193531742.post-74155882696937212672013-05-28T08:06:00.001-07:002013-05-28T12:27:41.432-07:00Come together.Last Thursday marked the end of a year long saga. Never before had I
failed so much. The obsession, insanity, hope and ruthless devotion
finally has concluded. This doubt that filled my mind for so long has
lifted, or is starting to because what happened hasn't sunk in quite yet.
All I can think is how this all came together and nearly fell apart so many
times. Climbing is such a selfish pursuit but this ascent would have been
impossible without several things or elements coming together. Behind
each of these is a person or people who helped me, and I hope I can give that
back to others in the community.<br />
<br />
This all started right
about a year ago. May 1st, the first day of grad school here in
Logan. What a shock after being free and just climbing for really the
previous 3 years. How can people enjoy this life??? This isn't what
I want to write about though. We started exploring the crags up Logan
canyon, and were instantly impressed by Rodent Ranch. For anyone
visiting
the area, the 12c up there "Basted Pikas" is amazing, would be a
classic at any crag. There is also a mint 11c named Pika Angst, and the
12d and 13b variations to Basted Pikas are both super fun. Then there
are several other routes from 5.10 to 5.12 that are all worth doing.<br />
<br />
Looking for a project I
tried a route that shoots up the right arete of the main buttress that was
named Rad Race. First go I shamelessly stick-clipped up most of the route
and could do a couple of the moves, but was mostly convinced that it had broken
because there were several sections with things I didn't imagine were
holds. A few days later we returned and the route’s first-ascensionist,
Matt Cupal, was there and informed me that the holds were still there.
The problem would turn out to be that Matt has probably an extra 10 inches of
reach on me, so I had to come up with my own beta or get taller. Turns
out probably either would have taken the same amount of time;) I eventually figured out some beta, but soon
it got hot and I didn't visit the route for a few months.
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0khXhyphenhyphen1NUbb0pNDqZj1ObGzjXUkM8rUXQhrrH0rJxk0U1gfQ02aT4H_z1VBgRj0SkmCv9SASFlmFMDAi6azR3rCC5tt7V_ni5sNXgOuaGeYRDjjef13O4MCTzDJzQ5SXvIPOrfVeAxqY/s1600/IMG_7947.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0khXhyphenhyphen1NUbb0pNDqZj1ObGzjXUkM8rUXQhrrH0rJxk0U1gfQ02aT4H_z1VBgRj0SkmCv9SASFlmFMDAi6azR3rCC5tt7V_ni5sNXgOuaGeYRDjjef13O4MCTzDJzQ5SXvIPOrfVeAxqY/s320/IMG_7947.JPG" width="240" /></a></span></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">The first two holds off the rest ledge leading to the stunning arete.</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Eventually fall rolled
around and I remembered the route. I returned to it and this is where the
nightmare started. I felt like I was climbing strong, but was getting
owned! Sometime in the fall I remember talking with one of my friend Jonathan
who climbs miles harder than I do. We were discussing the V-grades of
moves on routes. He joked how routes don't really have that hard of moves
very often, but when you are climbing some high grade, no one wants to admit
that some V3 is kicking your ass, and say it feels like V8 or whatever. I
reflected on this thinking and applied it to Rad Race. Maybe the moves
weren't so hard. More weeks went by, I kept trying the route, links got
longer but never close to long enough. I went bouldering at stout and
soft areas, I worked on my power. I did some pretty hard boulder problems
(for me), came back to the route and wanted to say "hey, these moves are
easy."<br />
<br />
But that moment never came, the thing was brick hard and
boiled down to three boulder problems in a row, with two holds good enough to
clip from. Here is how it went: The route starts with a two tiered giant
choss pillar, in fact you stick clip the first bolt which is about 25 feet up
standing on the first tier, just to mount the second tier which is about 20
feet tall. Then you climb probably 30 feet of 5.11+ to sit/crouch on a
tiny ledge, which turns out you can get a no-hands rest on, but it would pump
my legs silly to hold the position, and if a wind gust came I'd come close to
falling off. Here the business started: a 7 move V5/6, clip, a 7 move V5,
clip from a sketchy heel hook, to a 9 move V7. The V7 was the kicker,
after desperately slapping the arete for so many moves you pull into a nasty right hand
undercling, and toss to a slopey crimp. The feet here are terrible and
the core tension to even pull into the position to throw from always left me
moves earlier.
No rest, some of the
worst foot holds I've ever used, hand holds I didn't think existed other than
the tickmarks to point to them, but the sequences were perfect. Every
move packed full intensity, always pressing or compressing or opposing, never a
second to go straight arm, no jugs to comfortably clip from.<br />
<br />
Fall was ending and
winter starting. I was obsessed. I skipped classes and work, the
route controlled me. A huge snow storm was rolling in and Melissa joined
me for one final chilly morning to try to send. I gave the route a half
dozen goes, falling off a couple move from the top go after go. I was
broken. A day later the snow hit and all hope was lost.<br />
<br />
Then real winter.
Training. I messaged my friend Ryan who I had heard became the beast he is from a
hangboard routine he'd been doing for a few winters. I tried it, stuck to
it and hoped for results. I campused, tried to reduce my donut addiction
and thought about the route almost daily. Funny how a mind can work, how
so much emotion can be attached to something so lifeless. Around the
middle of the winter I went bouldering and did something to my Achilles falling
too many times off problems. What a pain in the ass, “I can't have
surgery now!” I thought. But I also
couldn’t wear climbing shoes or go running, the two things keeping me sane in
school. Facing months of physical therapy, I desperately looked for another option. And once
again the climber network led me to someone who had had the same problem, and
they told me some key stretches (and to do them a lot), buy a massage roller, and ice.
It worked well enough, and still I am getting by today.
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjShkuOc1yIiet0khCBA4QTIYItAA1mhJ8c1MPdQJitYVRSjWaXO34sH7LAqDOpOS0XTPjUu5O2AuB83G8Zx8ZzmqgzfSAafuW7RHgm1CxDBdSkhEnjExXHYOWdC0UVKpA9WugyrEaCVJk/s1600/IMG_7553.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjShkuOc1yIiet0khCBA4QTIYItAA1mhJ8c1MPdQJitYVRSjWaXO34sH7LAqDOpOS0XTPjUu5O2AuB83G8Zx8ZzmqgzfSAafuW7RHgm1CxDBdSkhEnjExXHYOWdC0UVKpA9WugyrEaCVJk/s320/IMG_7553.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">As part of winter training, Kevin, Eric and I won the Tour de Donut in Logan.</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
Finally Logan thawed
out. We drove up the canyon and my first day there I did an easier
version of Rad Race called Myoptic Vision, which basically avoids the V7 and half the previous
V5. It felt easy, and it was nice to clip some chains. A week later
I returned and tried Rad Race proper. I figured out better beta for the
first crux after talking with Matt Cupal over many beers that winter. I
dumbed it down to probably V4. I made it to the big throw that afternoon
matching my highpoint. For the first time in probably 10 days of working
on the route I looked forward the next day here.<br />
<br />
The next weekend one of my
best friends Kevin came up to climb and I got on the route. I sat on the ledge
and tried to relax. I had heard another Logan climber had gotten on
Myoptic Vision (the Rad Race variation) and I wondered if he had left any tick
marks that might confuse me. I was pretty sure it wouldn't be a problem
as I felt closer to an underpowered robot than a human at this point on the
moves. I stood up grabbed the first two holds went for the third and "FUCK!"
Broken hold. Broken dreams. Not only could I no longer do my new
easy beta, but I couldn't return to my old beta either. It was pretty
devastating. The nightmare continues I thought. The dread, lack of
psyche, the failure, I wanted to end it. Melissa would say "don't do
it if you aren't having fun." But I felt like I needed to close this
chapter to move on in life; feel like I had progressed and not accepted
failure. I figured out a new way to do the first boulder problem, which
now involved holding a nasty barn-door, and made the boulder problem much more
taxing than either of my previous two methods.<br />
<br />
Back to work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The next week I was at work exchanging emails
with Chuck and he was telling me about how his wife had just sent her hardest
route. It was completely unrelated to the epic I was having, but Chuck
said he is proud of his wife because few people could stick with something so
long, and in the end what is the worst thing that can happen if you keep
trying? Not red pointing, nothing else. I thought about this a lot
the next few days and after a rainy week away from the project we returned last Thursday.
I didn't have much heart, didn’t have many expectations, but felt like I had
control of my emotions for once.
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD3KqHbKKh971AvygA4iHgp2vXi1f9EKIlnF-1lFlTTI70_ANVsZnjVE0YhvJJp4kEXrX6MinDrpH8kRTnAGyUTBuuHa7If869SR0spbImIG-9s-5zy5PJsoICza4huhCD_zDDX5G4Aag/s1600/IMG_7933.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD3KqHbKKh971AvygA4iHgp2vXi1f9EKIlnF-1lFlTTI70_ANVsZnjVE0YhvJJp4kEXrX6MinDrpH8kRTnAGyUTBuuHa7If869SR0spbImIG-9s-5zy5PJsoICza4huhCD_zDDX5G4Aag/s320/IMG_7933.JPG" width="240" /></a></span></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">The sidepull/undercling leading to the throw that eluded me for so long.</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
First go went well, but
I felt so far from success. I remarked that it was funny how there was this physical
limit, how I could do the same 18 moves over and over, but never 19. Then
I roped up for my second go.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My mind was
drifting around during the start of the route.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I thought about how the heat was coming and how this might be one
of the
last good goes of the spring. Maybe in the fall I'll be stronger I
thought. I made it to the rest, tried to focus on how beautiful this
place was, and how silly my obsession was, even though I knew that I was
addicted and would surely be in this situation again. I executed the first
two cruxes perfectly, got to the undercling and locked it down. This
was
it I thought, this was the moment. I got my feet up and went for the
crimp that had eluded me for a year. Latch, the pump was building but I
kept focused, precise smear after smear up the finishing moves, slapping
holds,
and the final rockover to the jug. It was a crazy feeling, relief and
happiness. I clipped the chains and just laughed. This is the
greatest way to live, all the pain and obsession and blindness, I
wouldn't
rather be doing anything else.<br />
<br />
I am ashamed to admit
how dramatic and stupid I was at points leading through this saga. My girlfriend
Melissa was this constant pillar of support, and at times I surely didn't
deserve her kindness and optimism. I love this girl; she stood by me
during my ugliest and most helpless times. Thank you. And thank you
to the rest of the climbing community. So many people played little parts
to make this happen, with their advice or support, or heckling to try to remind
me of how silly we can be. Thank you everyone!
Pawelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01918921717127212969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6748631780193531742.post-53320128602951806272012-03-30T16:25:00.003-07:002012-04-01T22:50:15.229-07:00Roadtrippin'It has been about 4 months since this roadtrip started and it has been the best. In sharp contrast to last year, we've been doing a lot more driving, but as a result we've managed to see a lot of the western country. Melissa has put up with me everyday, and I love this girl. Huge thank you for putting up with my 'mantrums', sub-par cooking, donut addiction and patient belays.<br /><br />We are currently stationed at Smith Rock in Oregon, and besides the weather being subpar it has been great. However, I think the best way to recap the journey so far, is to highlight the best thus far.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">1. William. </span><br style="font-weight: bold;">We've named our faithful van William. So far, he has performed without a hiccup and been a fantastic home. He carried us twice over 11k feet, once through snow, when traversing through Coloroado, handled the dirt roads to get us to our crags and campings, and kept us comfy through all sorts of weather. Thank you William. Please carry us through our closing month and then I promise I'll love on you a lot.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizr0DtGLxBAnCDmAipR8tGK_umylfegFtn0GaER5XUAMhnkpp8xNzbbBc9-TuDdvUHLxJStgt0TpclWr6rLun5ewTNym2XQ7gdv1-SUGCXMgcho8kTutpPOKgnc8jDhQi0iTK9WIz0q1Q/s1600/169.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizr0DtGLxBAnCDmAipR8tGK_umylfegFtn0GaER5XUAMhnkpp8xNzbbBc9-TuDdvUHLxJStgt0TpclWr6rLun5ewTNym2XQ7gdv1-SUGCXMgcho8kTutpPOKgnc8jDhQi0iTK9WIz0q1Q/s400/169.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726673241533424626" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Home sweet home. </span></span><br style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">2. Kings of Rap.<br /></span>I hadn't tried Kings of Rap in over three years, but the last time I did I'd fallen on the closing moves, for about the tenth time. This trip I returned, and was intimidated to get on the climb again. The moves down low were powerful, leading to an insecure roof section and finally the pumpy headwall I'd never been able to link. One of our first days here I got on the route and hung my way to the roof. It was cool to remember the moves, and look at the foot holds that terrified me before; the moves felt easier than I expected and the dreaded smears looked decent. The next day I decided to give it a go, and taking Melissa's suggestion of "just try and see how it goes" I found myself pulling the crux, getting through the roof and suddenly on the headwall with no real beta. I remembered a hard high step lurked somewhere, and something about a cross move, but other than that I was clueless. I surprised myself when I clipped the anchors. This route was perhaps the biggest unfinished chapter in my climbing life, and to have closed it so easily was a huge relief. It is nice to see progress.<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdfNMbq2bsAUM72mSTMRTfhlmRs31zdDjdFGpKGLg0-jSkysTQPOlcGiXvDJCru-uDYJ9cDF3vwi2aLUO2v0VT0PqBeX7Ouq9OfbQ0wdV5zIXJrEgZHQswEsS4RhfaR_3fjqYj_SA2tJQ/s1600/PA110943.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdfNMbq2bsAUM72mSTMRTfhlmRs31zdDjdFGpKGLg0-jSkysTQPOlcGiXvDJCru-uDYJ9cDF3vwi2aLUO2v0VT0PqBeX7Ouq9OfbQ0wdV5zIXJrEgZHQswEsS4RhfaR_3fjqYj_SA2tJQ/s400/PA110943.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726674357156899394" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">On Kings of Rap over three years ago; past the roof and milking the rest at the start of the headwall. </span></span><br style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">3. Nevada desert.<br /></span>I love the desert. This year, when traveling between the VRG, Saint George, Las Vegas and Red Rocks I feel I got to see a lot of it. Camping in the desert and waking up to the perfect panoramas is something that will always bring me back. After our stint at the Promised Land we also took the Extraterrestrial Highway over to Bishop. Such a desolate part of the country seems an impossible contrast to the bustling Las Vegas that lies less than two hours away. <span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE13F3xpavU93Kaud-KD1p5XHctnfza6zmldJsyMaXNKA127R-P0KttnM5X29wAG7qbKyWRCwXhpdXdcHrKtaMeftWcNUipOO8knEvNF0Bolv4ZRX7x07B4UU-sJKXRigIi2_FN8ou9Oo/s1600/246.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE13F3xpavU93Kaud-KD1p5XHctnfza6zmldJsyMaXNKA127R-P0KttnM5X29wAG7qbKyWRCwXhpdXdcHrKtaMeftWcNUipOO8knEvNF0Bolv4ZRX7x07B4UU-sJKXRigIi2_FN8ou9Oo/s400/246.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726674084455420994" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">The view from one of my favorite camp-spots. The cows get to wake up to this everyday!</span></span><br style="font-weight: bold;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiusnAnD1wxe8kpCYci4CdWyd5GUrS_1OrCUpwEbz3ydEcgZRZi_SdbC6TCeWoVxIBnev1A5QDXpgTTriRSnHk2O4mso4wWuYaK4oRz7FfinXaD2eYXquB6ZzCUTeqQXhQtvEpJJVPpXHU/s1600/006.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiusnAnD1wxe8kpCYci4CdWyd5GUrS_1OrCUpwEbz3ydEcgZRZi_SdbC6TCeWoVxIBnev1A5QDXpgTTriRSnHk2O4mso4wWuYaK4oRz7FfinXaD2eYXquB6ZzCUTeqQXhQtvEpJJVPpXHU/s400/006.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726673216835160018" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Entering the extraterrestrial highway</span></span>.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">4. Melissa sending Erotic Jesus.</span><br />This year's VRG season was fantastic. First we visited the sunny side, which was nice in January when everyone was freezing in the shade, and then when we returned in February, we were treated with the warmest February anyone could remember. Some days were slimy, but the good conditions were there when needed and both Melissa and I managed to put down our projects. Melissa chose to try Erotic Jesus, a beautiful line on the right side of the Blashpemy Wall that has a reputation of being a major sandbag. The route took a few days, and early on there was a move that was shutting her down but I tried to convince her that eventually it'd come together. A few days later Melissa styled the thing and even 'man'd up' and skipped a clip when she found herself linking the crux. She got to the marginal rest, and kept her cool to finish the remaining 30ish feet of tricky, insecure climbing. I am so proud of her, she didn't take nearly enough credit and tried to brush it off as no big deal. <br style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">5. Family get-together.<br /></span>My whole family got together about a week ago in Smith Rock, Oregon. This usually only happens once a year at Christmas, so this was a nice treat. Smith holds a special place in my heart, and I think this is partially because my dad took me here when I was young. At the time my dad did some climbing as part of the WSU Alpine Club, and I remember swinging around on a rope at Granite Point with my dad and some of his friends. We went on a trip to Smith and did some hiking, but I remember seeing the huge faces towering everywhere and being mystified by them. To now be able to spend time here to just climb and get to know all these faces is incredible. I believe my dad loves this place too and it was uplifting for him to return as well. Thank you dad for the early memories. The rest of the family, my mom, sister and two dogs seemed to enjoy the trip as well, maybe we can make this a tradition... I love my family, we have our issues but as a whole I think we are the only family I'd ever want. <span style="font-weight: bold;"> <br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh18__855gVoyavS4wTk2J5CsR8BBPgVpZwTQwLi4jlh4b_M9cxEGBJevUkCQVNFMd-iyi0cK4HDF4L3MwOHcaiXVQyIrVUvRHX36ymiWczO3wj7I8E8uJqoed9nO9nFQg3ag7OCbWdMc/s1600/421.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh18__855gVoyavS4wTk2J5CsR8BBPgVpZwTQwLi4jlh4b_M9cxEGBJevUkCQVNFMd-iyi0cK4HDF4L3MwOHcaiXVQyIrVUvRHX36ymiWczO3wj7I8E8uJqoed9nO9nFQg3ag7OCbWdMc/s400/421.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726674104150909858" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">The family.</span></span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh7Ppx08bwUK-QM_Mqc_mBu6MRnUjVLu-HvOGCzVhcOzrhXx1yTJXnmjRPI-VuvDypYrepiryvaptM3_8NuquvuZpF0bFjrVpz7KmtNP21DmuoQJGDOBkFx9hi2FRKQR7ew5nqG47OV8U/s1600/349.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh7Ppx08bwUK-QM_Mqc_mBu6MRnUjVLu-HvOGCzVhcOzrhXx1yTJXnmjRPI-VuvDypYrepiryvaptM3_8NuquvuZpF0bFjrVpz7KmtNP21DmuoQJGDOBkFx9hi2FRKQR7ew5nqG47OV8U/s400/349.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726674095453320962" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Entering the irrigation tunnel at Smith during one of our hikes.</span></span><br style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />6. </span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Rude Boys.<br /></span>Just yesterday I managed to redpoint Rude Boys at Smith Rock. Much like I was mystified by Smith Rock as a kid, I was mystified by this route when I first climbed here. I never imagined I'd be able to climb this thing, and remember being on Dreamin' to the right and thinking it looked deadly difficult and scary. This trip I unlocked the cruxes low, and only needed 9 tries to find myself at the chains. The windstorm and threatening rain added to the excitement. One off the lifetime list...<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">7. Visiting the Freese's. </span><br />Back in Colorado when we were climbing at Shelf Road we took a break from the rocks, escaped a major snow storm and visited Jarred and Hannah Freese, along with their new additions Noah and June. I hadn't seen Jarred in a couple years, but when he lived back in Pullman he was a bit of a big brother to me. As always it was nice to talk to him and Hannah about life, how it changes, and how it goes. As an extra bonus we also had a fantastic snowball fight in the 14 inches of snow that fell, and we were introduced to Carcassonne, potentially the best board-game ever for two people. <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXSqlM91gz1pFYQlZMMMyqXtqU4RWeOXzGEPgFr7jbs-YwEBlKoFgxcsqbEKEIlPBpGsBV0_QwPL4g3a52HfxP36GXXPvMimhUxyyFksGZdgOF2B95xBG9vy8sonMLS84SgwVmbGt5nYQ/s1600/128.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXSqlM91gz1pFYQlZMMMyqXtqU4RWeOXzGEPgFr7jbs-YwEBlKoFgxcsqbEKEIlPBpGsBV0_QwPL4g3a52HfxP36GXXPvMimhUxyyFksGZdgOF2B95xBG9vy8sonMLS84SgwVmbGt5nYQ/s400/128.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726673234029091026" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Noah, Jarred and I face-off in a snow ball show down.</span></span><br style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">8. </span><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Promised Land.</span><br />High above Red Rock's sandstone sits a little chunk of perfect limestone known as The Promised Land. This area is seldom visited, and those who do usually come for one route: Confrontation, a superb pitch with perfect rock and wild moves. This crag also involves hiking over an hour to get to it and little in the way of easy mileage pitches. Huge thank you to Melissa for hiking up there with me so I could take Confrontation off the lifetime list as well. In the end, I don't know who was more excited when I managed to do it my second day, and didn't need to hike up there again. <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJfTuWKVpHJsvWGBHULfrx_3kFEebxBxFMPUdVm84hX51F-ib_z5XLqti-8srPk1CenuxJmG5Xnjx_qgIR7HJPPqCyYuMFL86hBPKQWcXgZWp890lUhudwkmibaqKhl-6m14__GhFks20/s1600/005.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJfTuWKVpHJsvWGBHULfrx_3kFEebxBxFMPUdVm84hX51F-ib_z5XLqti-8srPk1CenuxJmG5Xnjx_qgIR7HJPPqCyYuMFL86hBPKQWcXgZWp890lUhudwkmibaqKhl-6m14__GhFks20/s400/005.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726673209403004194" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">The Promised Land. Beautiful rock...Confrontation takes the fat light blue streak on the left side. </span></span><br style="font-weight: bold;"> <span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="font-weight: bold;">9. Community.<br /></span>The climbing community is fantastic. First, huge thank you to Greg for letting us crash in his driveway right now. <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSmQ0gmYReEl3RcepjLqrsTJlkCC60Otza0_u4ki74lrdKeu2k9FK9mWDoIUx90dCinyBQOE0_Z8X7NWQeVT6jYKh2SaduDWO_7B1HbRdGiOVgduFAmwnXYXXrzenygnRSwIJwUiFQUqo/s1600/073.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSmQ0gmYReEl3RcepjLqrsTJlkCC60Otza0_u4ki74lrdKeu2k9FK9mWDoIUx90dCinyBQOE0_Z8X7NWQeVT6jYKh2SaduDWO_7B1HbRdGiOVgduFAmwnXYXXrzenygnRSwIJwUiFQUqo/s400/073.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726673226784193874" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Melissa has made friends at Greg's place.</span></span><br />Everywhere we go we see faces we know. Sometimes we plan to cross paths, sometimes we are equally surprised to see each other. Just this year, I saw Conrad, an old friend from Pullman at Shelf Road, and Josh from Moscow at Owens. We've crossed paths with Clay and Rosie at the VRG, then Clay, Daniel, Luke and the Canadians in Bishop, Mark Rohr at Shelf Road and then Vegas, Lindsay in Vegas, Ben and Tiffany in Smith, Django at the VRG, at countless other faces. Sometimes it is like seeing old friends, and sometimes neither of us can remember where we've met before, but continually we are reminded that the community is small, but thankfully it is a great community. These people help to keep us psyched and it has been great seeing all of you. <span style="font-weight: bold;"><br style="font-weight: bold;"></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">10. Bouldering. </span><br />And lastly, Melissa and I went bouldering in Bishop. Usually the transition between sport climbing and pebble wrestling is difficult, but with the amount of amazing problems in Bishop we had a bunch of fun doing the easy classics. Melissa did manage to put down 'Bachar left' at the Buttermilks, and problem so heinously crimpy that I swore it off along with Clay and others. Maybe sometimes we'll return for a proper bouldering trip. Bishop is beautiful and we loved our time there.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCY-kfEyWgxuQgeSAclUFFxErQfOxH7RsHXPoBx2NVA4_IGZLFCrvAmA8jLgHLxo7eEpjKulaRJ9wOAzyVNarJViz1hkqsFGgtWBO8wOHAifxTLCY_xoGKmeV8fH6iSbv6bjVtMshYAxs/s1600/212.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCY-kfEyWgxuQgeSAclUFFxErQfOxH7RsHXPoBx2NVA4_IGZLFCrvAmA8jLgHLxo7eEpjKulaRJ9wOAzyVNarJViz1hkqsFGgtWBO8wOHAifxTLCY_xoGKmeV8fH6iSbv6bjVtMshYAxs/s400/212.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726674079478542658" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Melissa with a crashpad, a rare sight!</span></span><br /><br />And this about covers all the highlights. Pictures coming next rainy day...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7nvX9_QDpHHemC0HbZxiZhyphenhyphen5wZ797SJ6INJEe7XxrwV-oyu_mFKDy8D7tbGJv4jYof0hAWtAWySyuyXHLCadNwNuElAI0nQDxodS0PfFFNILNuca_LLEotncgMZteEoeUYY7uoEVqwY4/s1600/449.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7nvX9_QDpHHemC0HbZxiZhyphenhyphen5wZ797SJ6INJEe7XxrwV-oyu_mFKDy8D7tbGJv4jYof0hAWtAWySyuyXHLCadNwNuElAI0nQDxodS0PfFFNILNuca_LLEotncgMZteEoeUYY7uoEVqwY4/s400/449.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726674114059378130" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">My sister lowering at Smith! Yeah sis!!!!</span></span>Pawelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01918921717127212969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6748631780193531742.post-12038947075649724922011-04-09T10:08:00.000-07:002011-04-09T13:10:44.416-07:00Workin' Man!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2PKsRBX_8mdYgxlNhrsca6pmvmbnXQsjMatYVw4Vt33gGwMe99UJGYrnTtCQz0Fa-uZFDbPO8PusoPBTePy06LmvYSpXRMJnRD7_wD4owdzyzGdSgEHcaCFzev00D_mooYYRiC3qOKIA/s1600/298e.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2PKsRBX_8mdYgxlNhrsca6pmvmbnXQsjMatYVw4Vt33gGwMe99UJGYrnTtCQz0Fa-uZFDbPO8PusoPBTePy06LmvYSpXRMJnRD7_wD4owdzyzGdSgEHcaCFzev00D_mooYYRiC3qOKIA/s400/298e.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593675000429373650" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Looking down at the Wailing Wall and surrounding desertscape.</span><br /><br />Well it's true...time to return to work. After almost 8 months of climbing, traveling and loving life it's time to once again return to the world of alarm clocks, regular showers and uniforms. Yes, the reality is daunting, and I'm hoping to make the most of my last week and a half of freedom and put down my project: <span style="font-style: italic;">The Cross</span> at the Wailing Wall.<br /><br />Since last post Melissa and I have finished off our Red Rocks streak, went to Washington, returned to do a couple weeks of projecting at the Virgin River Gorge, and now become psyched on the Cathedral/Wailing Wall area. There is so much amazing climbing in this small little area I can't believe it. If the temps could be like they are now year-round I don't think I'd ever leave.<br /><br />As for work, Melissa and I both ended up getting jobs at the Zion Lodge and as a result will be living the summer in Zion National Park (since both of us are working at the Lodge we'll get to stay in the employee housing). Originally things were a bit uncertain because Melissa had been offered a job but I needed to find some sort of employment and then we needed to find housing. I managed to land a job my first day, but housing turned out to be difficult. What we could find was usually somewhat inconvenient based on location or layout, and cost upwards of $800 a month. One day a phone call came and Melissa needed to commit to taking the position or not; she ended up telling them our situation and that as a result things were up in the air. One thing led to the next and suddenly I was being offered a job too. So now I find myself also a Lodge employee, scheduled to work the coffee bar two days a week, the beer garden two days a week, and the full service bar one day a week. Thanks Mel:)<br /><br />Other recent highlights include watching Melissa send <span style="font-style: italic;">High Flames Drifter</span> at the VRG and <span style="font-style: italic;">Sound of Power</span> in Red Rocks, two of the hardest 12c's I can remember, having my sister come out for a visit from Ohio, and finally putting down <span style="font-style: italic;">Monster Skank</span>, surely the hardest route I've done in my life.<br /><br />Thank you for reading. Looks like I've been taking mostly non-climbing shots recently so please try to enjoy.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxmgecGlEADhNU8Aun6zzh0TUCfSv4F0ikJG_DrT3g097TYJyxLS8QWWA_AJdNQKCQuwlPVdqqkLgUj7WfV9czxobe70JwpcSloT4rbW0wmDy-kEKL_538_i5ns3S1z0gkLF1htkoWD8U/s1600/290c.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 287px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxmgecGlEADhNU8Aun6zzh0TUCfSv4F0ikJG_DrT3g097TYJyxLS8QWWA_AJdNQKCQuwlPVdqqkLgUj7WfV9czxobe70JwpcSloT4rbW0wmDy-kEKL_538_i5ns3S1z0gkLF1htkoWD8U/s400/290c.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593674995352969970" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Beautiful sunsets at the Wailing Wall courtesy the Utah/Nevada desert.</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhED24hW-EYUAmLwumLH5cHvuocxuwvEHghWbMuAytq2ywm9H2EBpxkeZnv7FjY22EmusCyJjMktRxpoi3c9lUXKGyf7wwSimIebXcuV6RwYRJ3PhdW_dKTgwtwYMngJ7vZiFMFaXCD4k4/s1600/262c.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhED24hW-EYUAmLwumLH5cHvuocxuwvEHghWbMuAytq2ywm9H2EBpxkeZnv7FjY22EmusCyJjMktRxpoi3c9lUXKGyf7wwSimIebXcuV6RwYRJ3PhdW_dKTgwtwYMngJ7vZiFMFaXCD4k4/s400/262c.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593674129629744514" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Beautiful desert colors...</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYbzchbIYqHI3QqHdephVTBZtmDlK329Cf9kYs8mh8R3BzK-oU4KDiqJ6TTg3B78wuDpLpE8Q-H51tmJXMSn8cr2yA3vF7NBm6Ljhbs_rWEoefBHghVwEQtQNcM3flUG94vAVa0xYw7TM/s1600/234c.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 184px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYbzchbIYqHI3QqHdephVTBZtmDlK329Cf9kYs8mh8R3BzK-oU4KDiqJ6TTg3B78wuDpLpE8Q-H51tmJXMSn8cr2yA3vF7NBm6Ljhbs_rWEoefBHghVwEQtQNcM3flUG94vAVa0xYw7TM/s400/234c.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593674117342203922" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Be free tumble weed, be free! What else can you do in a windstorm?</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIAgD7fbeMoDZOEDOW1fE3XPRXfdVfSQFnWdX3_ldtnI2i3eOQ0GXF2OhZi_Jf-z-P3DKEYQ2kXFiO6c6F3UWph9ATBChpvLZWzcTKE1uB3XHmUnFwCSDtzxQvt1L5sT6MdJ1rxcEKQdk/s1600/227c.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 178px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIAgD7fbeMoDZOEDOW1fE3XPRXfdVfSQFnWdX3_ldtnI2i3eOQ0GXF2OhZi_Jf-z-P3DKEYQ2kXFiO6c6F3UWph9ATBChpvLZWzcTKE1uB3XHmUnFwCSDtzxQvt1L5sT6MdJ1rxcEKQdk/s400/227c.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593674115058409794" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Watching the Joshua Trees go by while exploring the Nevada desert with my sister and Melissa.</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbho5RL-_f7XrVRzApASGnk0DEDQ-7P3G6TButX7uJOwF13A-1TiR710QVHZoV4yv5TKYtIOmrbvLEvZl6KT2-BfJX0xJLg6YiX4mz8pmgsll5jP1fbA6eiKCCnNMsOmWlTjLf3Synjxg/s1600/304-06.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 130px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbho5RL-_f7XrVRzApASGnk0DEDQ-7P3G6TButX7uJOwF13A-1TiR710QVHZoV4yv5TKYtIOmrbvLEvZl6KT2-BfJX0xJLg6YiX4mz8pmgsll5jP1fbA6eiKCCnNMsOmWlTjLf3Synjxg/s400/304-06.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593675009840398290" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Swamp Cave in Arrow Canyon. Lisa on the far left, and Eric on the far right. The winds that day were horrendous and we all bailed after one route. Hopefully returning soon because this place is magical.</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw8YGTlP6WpIjUTYAcSwOwjz7Y1PdDpn6nPEhtSJfFSxqtqDi_LdsfOv4SjPPHTMLrVN6njvWQEG7MFCBZh6W9E8kNAhtsalsY4CGRbInfmL7ibMmbiVmaB0CB0BeQGtUW9OJqRw_Jbko/s1600/199-203.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 170px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw8YGTlP6WpIjUTYAcSwOwjz7Y1PdDpn6nPEhtSJfFSxqtqDi_LdsfOv4SjPPHTMLrVN6njvWQEG7MFCBZh6W9E8kNAhtsalsY4CGRbInfmL7ibMmbiVmaB0CB0BeQGtUW9OJqRw_Jbko/s400/199-203.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593674111581661122" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Action photography courtesy Ula, my favorite sister ever;)</span>Pawelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01918921717127212969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6748631780193531742.post-79874794298796378852011-02-05T14:11:00.000-08:002012-11-09T13:53:55.684-08:00The New Year<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOu8U7PjoWcf3AiJ2s8Z09tdQ0ToEiYmMbcFZ4nI3Z0IYvR_Jqg0tJ0GCSOLHlhfj2eVeruOGrCA2la0GkdLVz7mK6GUodyOjrFVUNhT2iAnOiqEcQXjZ9WdKayQSG_CUitrvx8_TXIEU/s1600/001.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570338708460406242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOu8U7PjoWcf3AiJ2s8Z09tdQ0ToEiYmMbcFZ4nI3Z0IYvR_Jqg0tJ0GCSOLHlhfj2eVeruOGrCA2la0GkdLVz7mK6GUodyOjrFVUNhT2iAnOiqEcQXjZ9WdKayQSG_CUitrvx8_TXIEU/s400/001.JPG" style="cursor: pointer; height: 300px; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: 78%;">First day in Red Rocks. Didn't climb but did admire the views. Since then I've seen zero snow and managed to get a good tan going.</span><br />
<br />
Winter is here! December came and went, January ran along too quickly, and I now find myself surprised to realize it is already February! I've managed to score the most fantastic accommodations here in Vegas, and can actually say I'm 'living' here without having to add the small print that I'm living in a van. Yes, local climber Heather has graciously let me rent out her other house and Melissa and I have been living the dream there since the start of January. Currently (the real) J-Starr and Kristen are enjoying the luxurious life too. With features like a shower, electric fireplace, 5 burner stove and hot-tub, we find ourselves sad to have to move on here shortly. Yes, it truly is a miracle, and for the price I've now earned the distinction of dirtbag guru according to some people. Haha!<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHn9iF5yjhg-lXLbO7bMcQpg_Mw83uFem1x0XEAiFSZUijHYuIHW5NcuDlbnvBJZHwYT6cIfXUcolG9ouL_EFArtwU1MttGIeC_2GoPRw-4MVivGagT1rkAIx4M_HU9XcRLqGpXftwBao/s1600/006.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570336171984831922" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHn9iF5yjhg-lXLbO7bMcQpg_Mw83uFem1x0XEAiFSZUijHYuIHW5NcuDlbnvBJZHwYT6cIfXUcolG9ouL_EFArtwU1MttGIeC_2GoPRw-4MVivGagT1rkAIx4M_HU9XcRLqGpXftwBao/s400/006.JPG" style="cursor: pointer; height: 300px; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: 78%;">My landlord Heather on Nothing Shocking at the Gallery.</span><br />
<br />
Not too much to complain about in life. I ended up taking December off due to a bumming elbow but it still hasn't healed and as a result I'm only climbing every other, or every third day. I'm trying to send a route named Monster Skank here in Red Rocks and it is hard! Everyday of work has ended in me feeling beat up and destroyed. Small links are coming along, but all-in-all my hopes are a bit low. I think I summed it up best after one of my goes: "The Skank has fucked me silly." All worth the effort as it is one of the best routes I've ever tried.<br />
<br />
<br />
In other climbing news Melissa has been crushing! Everyday has been sweet, and I'm constantly getting super psyched watching her figure things out and then progress. So far due to sickness and an unfortunate scrambling incident that left me gimpin' for a week we've only managed to do one long route together. We're trying to get everything on track though and tick at least a couple more long things before our days are out.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNsSATM9yg_4RyxiN84g3Yiv4_8uHmb4ebbbTAvFjO4mj0n39j1rYKvBdREVWC0lmZq-8IxDgNgdHF6sgiLtpubHwnA8K8RhWHcL5iHCA9RdqndkkEiHQo0jXvWNP32QUoTGwub3fLDM4/s1600/IMG_2503.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570340352626287458" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNsSATM9yg_4RyxiN84g3Yiv4_8uHmb4ebbbTAvFjO4mj0n39j1rYKvBdREVWC0lmZq-8IxDgNgdHF6sgiLtpubHwnA8K8RhWHcL5iHCA9RdqndkkEiHQo0jXvWNP32QUoTGwub3fLDM4/s400/IMG_2503.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; height: 400px; width: 300px;" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: 78%;">Melissa on-sighting Running Man at Red Rocks. Made it look easy!</span><br />
<br />
And Kevin has been here bouldering on the weekends and wowing all of us. Climbing with Kevin is like watching a climbing video: hard problem, lanky skinny guy, show progression, send. And it's been taking Kevin sub 15minutes to send some testpiece boulder problems; most impressive feats include sub 30minute send of Stand And Deliver (V11), sub 10minute send of Progressive Guy (V10) and second go effort on Fear of a Black Hat (highball V9). This last weekend we did burn out a bit on bouldering and decided to embark on a mission to do Rock Warrior, a route that is supposed to be bold and 'only' 5.10b. Long story short we started up incorrectly, Kevin linked Rock Warrior into Sandstone Samurai, creating a 5.11 slab crux about 50 feet up with no gear, and then linked back into Rock Warrior creating another exciting, insecure 30 foot traverse from a bolt. And all the effort led to me getting half way up the second pitch, about 30 feet up and 20 feet left of the last bolt, only to get get hit by hail and snow and have to make a ball-shrinking downclimb on wet rock. We bailed, but it was a sweet adventure, and hopefully we can return soon to finish it up.<br />
<br />
Besides that there is not much else to report. Life is pretty simple. Climb, eat, drink, sleep, repeat. Soon I'll have to work though I think, so maybe the next post will have something to do with that. Whats next? Probably a little Bishop and Owens River Gorge, and then maybe Smith, maybe the Red, maybe Washington...? Life is sweet. Thank you for reading.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivrCA-_5v0rRo6oAvuM4u3HMqmOud_wlkTwYZy7kESRrWXamO_6jcH5YJzSI-QVKLFcUIYmmL5ZiStKJCT_XIdXqyWHQUk6YKAF_0pxjGp4y4c5zKm3rxQZuD3kGuGIXMVcBO7B7Xvdlo/s1600/IMG_2424.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570344662491849954" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivrCA-_5v0rRo6oAvuM4u3HMqmOud_wlkTwYZy7kESRrWXamO_6jcH5YJzSI-QVKLFcUIYmmL5ZiStKJCT_XIdXqyWHQUk6YKAF_0pxjGp4y4c5zKm3rxQZuD3kGuGIXMVcBO7B7Xvdlo/s400/IMG_2424.JPG" style="cursor: pointer; height: 300px; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: 78%;">The life! Crashpad sofa, camping furniture! Big screen plasma TV and surround sound! </span>Pawelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01918921717127212969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6748631780193531742.post-68369839442197377642010-11-30T13:36:00.000-08:002010-12-02T06:57:00.764-08:00Still in Kentucky. A bunch of thoughts are bouncing through my head but they are all rather abstract and hard to explain. Life has been both moving forward and staying still. I'm not sure if I'm really making progress and this has been a bit draining. The fall has been amazing, and it seems I've escaped the winter up to this point here in Kentucky. Tomorrow brings December and fittingly for the first time we might get some snow.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6F1TjZ_7T9hrB7cWnRyU_XBoAdSXDugneH4F6ES5fV9gS5ojPj1xUC8oZladJUMlfcA7cXz5QHHSwCixclvTpsXPfDoBoY2SN7_R6OtFzl8lzUa-hv_JtjZ014PyL9T3Wwl-3GPN6Ym4/s1600/003.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6F1TjZ_7T9hrB7cWnRyU_XBoAdSXDugneH4F6ES5fV9gS5ojPj1xUC8oZladJUMlfcA7cXz5QHHSwCixclvTpsXPfDoBoY2SN7_R6OtFzl8lzUa-hv_JtjZ014PyL9T3Wwl-3GPN6Ym4/s320/003.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545544915218833650" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Returned to Logan for a little bit. Still pretty and still doesn't feel like home.</span><br /><br />Since last post: went to Utah and did a little work, and got to climb some amazing pitches. Unfortunately I didn't get any photos of climbing but I did manage to log many days at my one of my favorite places, Blacksmith Fork. I even logged one day of bouldering with one of the best people I know, Kevin Todd. Kevin graciously supplied the most premium beta and spotted me during a headlamp session on Matt's Roof up Little Cottonwood Canyon. This boulder problem is itself amazing, but something about piecing it together at night was magical. After many layers of skin and being so close to folding the pads up I managed to stick everything and found myself pressing out the last move. A spectacular evening.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYwR5GVJu7PbjjHXRkfFFuobQwfGxxU06Og4wBWMp38J5lE4AvleD3FMuGC2tIAb-9DcDhnjef-qAI8L5RUJKXA7PU7KjmarE0GsZxPFIS9zhcEl1X8fIB2OXED1031giqc7wO-0qV1NE/s1600/IMG_1756.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYwR5GVJu7PbjjHXRkfFFuobQwfGxxU06Og4wBWMp38J5lE4AvleD3FMuGC2tIAb-9DcDhnjef-qAI8L5RUJKXA7PU7KjmarE0GsZxPFIS9zhcEl1X8fIB2OXED1031giqc7wO-0qV1NE/s320/IMG_1756.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545534397326644290" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Melissa hiking into Zion.</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0WC46lba85HfJlKjncCnp1NhZrrjXinawEDfi3qEqxmaObSYjdHFRk1G7AS2hspRSL49TsfFadi3VBWxaxlXFYWlw_UXJJAe8mTsbCp50_L-30KJ_MEIvUCJ_59voO4GFpSn3lZMhYfU/s1600/35_37.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 133px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0WC46lba85HfJlKjncCnp1NhZrrjXinawEDfi3qEqxmaObSYjdHFRk1G7AS2hspRSL49TsfFadi3VBWxaxlXFYWlw_UXJJAe8mTsbCp50_L-30KJ_MEIvUCJ_59voO4GFpSn3lZMhYfU/s320/35_37.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545534408048229986" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Zion. Beautiful.</span><br /><br />Also made it out to Zion to finally do Huecos Rancheros, a route that has been on my lifetime list for quite a while. It was an unforgettable day up the canyon with Melissa to do this route and unfortunately I don't have the words to do the day justice. It was an incredible day; one of the best I can remember.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGVpvy-evD4xjDGqd0BowxWYnIdJ0m0RARCXpNwszGaJ3vgXMNWsNtUTf3J4MWiRooV4oc6clCpiNA7iuN4QlqetOqxUhOsAXGrgFY5p_XWQMz-OzOdd3vyc82LN4O5jAXN_vUDt5_oTA/s1600/100.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGVpvy-evD4xjDGqd0BowxWYnIdJ0m0RARCXpNwszGaJ3vgXMNWsNtUTf3J4MWiRooV4oc6clCpiNA7iuN4QlqetOqxUhOsAXGrgFY5p_XWQMz-OzOdd3vyc82LN4O5jAXN_vUDt5_oTA/s320/100.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545534419860774626" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Bolting the beauty...</span><br /><br />I bolted the line I'd been dreaming of and after a little work I'm guessing it will land in the mid 5.13 range. It was the only thing left in Utah I was hoping to do this year, so even though I was hesitant I left it behind and headed to Kentucky.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlI_U7uOP2LF6QYW1f-HP3KxlbFSj9rsXD5xeyJjA1DpOju5B1nPf5iUKbnPnFD48Kz4wyXqMYzdKXQEPEAEp9dMB0of-gxfPPOEKowrUx2c2LSX2a9J5EMIHU1rNTu70KW5X0u-ypYAg/s1600/002.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlI_U7uOP2LF6QYW1f-HP3KxlbFSj9rsXD5xeyJjA1DpOju5B1nPf5iUKbnPnFD48Kz4wyXqMYzdKXQEPEAEp9dMB0of-gxfPPOEKowrUx2c2LSX2a9J5EMIHU1rNTu70KW5X0u-ypYAg/s320/002.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545534423293523474" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Andrew on Hot For Teacher at the Motherlode.</span><br /><br />I haven't been climbing especially strong since I got here, but I have had the chance to do some of the greatest climbs I've ever encountered: Swahili Slang, Soul Ram and The Legend to name a few. The season is almost over here, but I have to tough it out until the 15th because I'll be roadtripping back to Washington with my sister who is up in Columbus, Ohio going to school. Most of my favorite people have now left; huge thank you to Elliot and Andrew for all the laughs and times over this season here at the Red. The number of people left at Miguel's is below 10 and with that comes a bit of relief from the crowds, but its also a bit depressing: maybe its time I should move on too. My elbow is currently bumming and it would probably be healthy to stop climbing for a little. Life is good though, and I'll end this with four thoughts that remind me how much I love it: 1) There is an endless supply of amazing music in this world if you look for it. 2) I have no clue what I'm doing with my life. 3) Today I ran on the most supreme trails through the most amazing forest in a most premium rain storm. 4) I met the most beautiful girl I ever have, and got to cuddle with her.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnnXIBaV2MgEuVb_vdOc_wOCobjiYOjLL31jnoua09VoMM8bncOGNI4vlGIyaZZWNVoeYhqcd9uKmZnanOAPRPE8bEiUlIpnSWoXWt471VpiFGiq6Edm_TLkGS-VQEvyWxhLOdhJqllsI/s1600/023.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnnXIBaV2MgEuVb_vdOc_wOCobjiYOjLL31jnoua09VoMM8bncOGNI4vlGIyaZZWNVoeYhqcd9uKmZnanOAPRPE8bEiUlIpnSWoXWt471VpiFGiq6Edm_TLkGS-VQEvyWxhLOdhJqllsI/s320/023.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545534433525352962" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">How many different kinds of Stouts can you buy at the Party Source? Andrew and I found this many.</span><br /><br />Thanks for reading.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrZzh5hB-X7XFkym4jMxlU5q4w3cTmXGkA34pbgvmdwxXkVi5ynQCn44Ekx-xTB4gHpS719oLvECJdm-aYjKLOHpl1kxiTT46G7FpgrwtI1hTAPFarvvx6WuMcyYcN5tnGIMnqsp9sJX4/s1600/005.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrZzh5hB-X7XFkym4jMxlU5q4w3cTmXGkA34pbgvmdwxXkVi5ynQCn44Ekx-xTB4gHpS719oLvECJdm-aYjKLOHpl1kxiTT46G7FpgrwtI1hTAPFarvvx6WuMcyYcN5tnGIMnqsp9sJX4/s320/005.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545540455708765586" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Fall at the Red...as good as it was made out to be.</span>Pawelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01918921717127212969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6748631780193531742.post-90223313727304741272010-09-15T10:08:00.001-07:002010-09-15T10:38:53.479-07:00<span style="font-size:85%;">Returned from Alaska being very sure I was not born to be a fisherman.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Although the money was nice, I just didn’t enjoy it one bit; felt like I sold my soul and happiness.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">It wasn’t that the work was hard, it was just extremely boring.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">I didn’t understand what drove people to do it, and the best reasons I could come up with (the drive to kill, the notch on the belt, the feeling of being manly…) just aren’t things I need to prove to anyone.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Or maybe it is because unlike most people I met there, my ‘regular life’ back home is actually my dream life, so why would I want to leave it and do something ‘extreme’ like fishing?</span><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinyu85fIR4TQ9cGLIs8bEUCo8l0moQWZqlKfgatrdkpkLA_260KJVYKyfq8Kd-70cyuzYV5mpsUy9mhEIvhLtpPDFhFPZ8L2DI_lwA3bcQWXd4cB48vnBo5mfq6e9aGZmzx68G_VB9ed8/s1600/266.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinyu85fIR4TQ9cGLIs8bEUCo8l0moQWZqlKfgatrdkpkLA_260KJVYKyfq8Kd-70cyuzYV5mpsUy9mhEIvhLtpPDFhFPZ8L2DI_lwA3bcQWXd4cB48vnBo5mfq6e9aGZmzx68G_VB9ed8/s320/266.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517189723930576962" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDijzaoyli2zk9v5jar5MB5i0zn5jHne5rRrDp5L37u-GRz4w-A82XkQHosqxlAwDnacuzHbk9JDz03w7MXSwDtg-IgP_F7_PF83_JEIiLEXYBtRnlcnuh0zLQcy3b2IARQwn4tE-qQUU/s1600/163.JPG"> <span style="font-size:78%;"><br /></span></a></p><p style="text-align: justify;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;">My view for 31 days.</span><br /></p><p style="text-align: justify;" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDijzaoyli2zk9v5jar5MB5i0zn5jHne5rRrDp5L37u-GRz4w-A82XkQHosqxlAwDnacuzHbk9JDz03w7MXSwDtg-IgP_F7_PF83_JEIiLEXYBtRnlcnuh0zLQcy3b2IARQwn4tE-qQUU/s1600/163.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDijzaoyli2zk9v5jar5MB5i0zn5jHne5rRrDp5L37u-GRz4w-A82XkQHosqxlAwDnacuzHbk9JDz03w7MXSwDtg-IgP_F7_PF83_JEIiLEXYBtRnlcnuh0zLQcy3b2IARQwn4tE-qQUU/s320/163.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517190043104742658" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;">"...and I caught a fish this big..."</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;">I returned, and immediately returned to climbing (literally got off the plane, got in the car, and went to the crag).</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">The frustration of being out of shape was painful, and besides not climbing for 6 weeks, I also managed to gain 15 lbs on the boat.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Ouch.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">I soon got back on Russian Arete, a spectacular line in Deep Creek that I had fallen off from the last hold about 90minutes before my plane left for Alaska.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">A few days of work and I managed to put the line down.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Felt great to have it done, even though it was a route where every go was a blast as the route is aesthetic and the movement flawless.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;">This whole time in Pullman I was building my mom a patio, and this one week project ended taking up almost four, but I managed to escape in under a month.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Next destination: Canmore and the climbing in Acephale.</span><span style=""><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUWCq8EK6sGYmSY6Nbt6JPqEYAEG_khKO4haP0frwwgCjMMdWjy_kvSh7gM3YiJ-U8A5fxrEukV0QSBWkY_GaUjnv-npmHOKIUr-mj748jUqH6nfDT8cihTbbAQGXMowSCIG6p04aiYnk/s1600/005.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUWCq8EK6sGYmSY6Nbt6JPqEYAEG_khKO4haP0frwwgCjMMdWjy_kvSh7gM3YiJ-U8A5fxrEukV0QSBWkY_GaUjnv-npmHOKIUr-mj748jUqH6nfDT8cihTbbAQGXMowSCIG6p04aiYnk/s320/005.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517191024635001618" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;">Living the dream. Jai's house is the red one, I have the gold one.</span><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;">I showed up in Canada to climb with Jai who I’d met at the Red.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">The first few days were perfect, and I managed to tick the few 11’s and 12’s at the upper crag, so it was time to move onto a real project.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">The crag is stacked with hard routes, but watching my friend Axel on ‘Army Ants’ sold me on it and the project was chosen.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">The movement on the route is phenomenal and rare; moves I likely won’t find on another route again.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;">It took 5 days to just do every move, and it seems every day involved some improvement in places, but an equal amount of decline in others.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">I soon realized that a couple extra inches of reach would have helped me on three moves on the route, the three that happened to be the hardest for me.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Linkage was happening sometimes, but sometimes it wasn’t.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">The most frustrating part was that the top of the route, which wasn’t supposed to be that hard, involved a stab to a pocket that no matter how many times I practiced always felt desperate, and on link was only happening about half the time.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Missing this hold would mean falling one move short of the anchor.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;">The temperatures were getting cold and it was starting to rain periodically making things muggy and friction terrible.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">I started having a lot of doubts about the route.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Should I bail for better weather?</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">If I stay, can I even do the route, maybe it is just over my head?</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Jai was equally frustrated with the conditions and after climbing with him on a Saturday he decided to head back east.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">That night a fairly strong storm came through, and waking up Sunday morning showed snow in the mountains just a few hundred feet above town.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">The day was drizzly, and that evening I decided to hike up to the crag to see if all hopes were lost.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Things looked bad: the upper half of the route was completely soaked.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;">Woke up Monday and met up with Ben Gilkison (who is roadtripping with his wife, Tiffany, for a year so I’m guessing we’ll be crossing paths again soon here, he’s got an excellent blog at bengilkison.blogspot.com) to go climb.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">I was ready to bail; I brought up my stickclip thinking I wouldn’t be able to get to the anchors to pull my draws.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Ben tried to make me optimistic but I wasn’t having it, and after almost two weeks falling off the same route, I wasn’t really psyched to try something new (and dry); I was ready to go south, and not have to light fires at the crag to stay warm.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;">We arrived at the crag and much to my surprise the route looked mostly dry.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">It is hard to try to get repsyched after having accepted defeat, so my first go felt very half-hearted.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Before the day was out I had managed to stick the first crux three times, something I’d never managed to link even once from the ground.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">First time I stuck the crux I popped a foot making the next clip, so a big thank you to Ben for keeping me off the ground as I wasn’t very high up and had a big armful of rope pulled up; the next two times I stuck the first crux I peeled off the upper crux.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">I decided to stop trying because I found the top of the route to be filled with wet pockets and I couldn’t get through.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">I thought about it, and decided to return for one more day.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;">So Tuesday rolled around and I came armed with a blow-torch.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">The pockets were still wet but with a little prepping I managed to make it climbable.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">My first goes of the day did not feel good, things weren’t as cold as the previous day, but the humidity was depressing.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">I felt like I was climbing poorly and the optimism left me.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;">When I was tying in for my last set of attempts and I was more focused on whether I should pull my draws and bail or try to cross my fingers for more good weather.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">So tired of being cold, and so close to sending, but close isn’t doing the route.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">This was a mental cluster for me because Army Ants was the first 13c I’d put much work into, and even though I try to not focus on grades as they are very personal, this “13c wall” had stood in front of me for a long time and not taking it down would have definitely caused doubt down the road.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">First go I fell on the first crux which is probably only 20 feet up, lowered, and as a joke put on my Polish Rocket shirt that I’ve decided to unretired.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Next go was terrible, grabbed everything wrong and generally felt so bad I think I actually said the forbidden word, “take.”</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Lowered, was about to call it a day, but what the hell, one more go I decided.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Suddenly things flowed, I stuck the first crux, remembered to squeeze with my left hand on the second crux (my left hand had blown off the previous three times I’d gotten to this point) and made it to the rest.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">The top had still been a bit wet and definitely harder than usual early in the day, but thankfully everything came together and I found myself clipping the anchors.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_VSycOudd3LCciXIXyQiyFd42NKVQs0KZuvOEKZGhe9Ej-rqkn7MOxR-z8EKkI9CGTz-bcjrr5qs9ZOdfiqYAbKcXC2o5NmcW5WWP1OiVPu3UamqjMh23nOCZjLgo_yOHRmZQ7wCw_O4/s1600/1.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_VSycOudd3LCciXIXyQiyFd42NKVQs0KZuvOEKZGhe9Ej-rqkn7MOxR-z8EKkI9CGTz-bcjrr5qs9ZOdfiqYAbKcXC2o5NmcW5WWP1OiVPu3UamqjMh23nOCZjLgo_yOHRmZQ7wCw_O4/s320/1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517192155692298162" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiucRVOZAAdDr81NIwNW0nagdEL3zjBDTzOS0N3vkdkAp-ctCtypg4GNO4SB801NX_4KelzS0bfzjLtvN04YeaJ-rJRPRoz_IrVzjMJbYt_Hbte1Dk6W2I4fQfQN2yLloFqB50v9v_KLGA/s1600/_DSC0432.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiucRVOZAAdDr81NIwNW0nagdEL3zjBDTzOS0N3vkdkAp-ctCtypg4GNO4SB801NX_4KelzS0bfzjLtvN04YeaJ-rJRPRoz_IrVzjMJbYt_Hbte1Dk6W2I4fQfQN2yLloFqB50v9v_KLGA/s320/_DSC0432.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517192148142121810" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9KrfQN45R1AupXpgmkkMUo2hwtj_nyupFBjkbAcfaz2lA9-B-j872KPKtLk5G9CviU5FaorjAATCzmA57Ifbq3VKR_7kvuIVioW1BbJIwbRYZw_WpNVnxl0j3G7UK_6HTVY5RSGPos5c/s1600/7.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9KrfQN45R1AupXpgmkkMUo2hwtj_nyupFBjkbAcfaz2lA9-B-j872KPKtLk5G9CviU5FaorjAATCzmA57Ifbq3VKR_7kvuIVioW1BbJIwbRYZw_WpNVnxl0j3G7UK_6HTVY5RSGPos5c/s320/7.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517192174734021570" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;">First crux; squeezing with the left for the second; the upper portion.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZOWHRY43R2qGzskfsBxcCyZm9_pV4HvELYcKRrpoZZ8sRnQre-yKzpbLl-GH1dHKbFk5LgT255MGAOdfCjpwrfiIkhC2Pvi03aCdgendGuIrJxh3qprINIEGa2-dxJOosEJLDf0bcRC8/s1600/3.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZOWHRY43R2qGzskfsBxcCyZm9_pV4HvELYcKRrpoZZ8sRnQre-yKzpbLl-GH1dHKbFk5LgT255MGAOdfCjpwrfiIkhC2Pvi03aCdgendGuIrJxh3qprINIEGa2-dxJOosEJLDf0bcRC8/s320/3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517192163921193282" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;">End of the first crux, amazing sequence of holds.</span><br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;">What a relief, man I was happy, this huge weight off my shoulders.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Ben is definitely the most supportive climbing partner I’ve ever had, and his mentoring along the way was crucial.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">This is the second time Ben has helped me with a breakthrough in my climbing, as the same happened at Smith last year.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">I feel like he’s gone through what I go through, and now is wise enough to know how to transcend it and look at it from outside, while I still get obsessive, hasty, greedy and impatient.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Maybe one day I’ll be wise too.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiofG34aA5o4Yhu7EghPBUzJgYcR-rtbWU3ceUU9OPXWA0cYQnMpqxmwy-aurdw8-gTJsKR-2-DAF6VqehU3uFRXiZwVEWNBbDticvfpI7ECVVB4r43NMfcr58LrkhRGdR6q53k1jib1nQ/s1600/147.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiofG34aA5o4Yhu7EghPBUzJgYcR-rtbWU3ceUU9OPXWA0cYQnMpqxmwy-aurdw8-gTJsKR-2-DAF6VqehU3uFRXiZwVEWNBbDticvfpI7ECVVB4r43NMfcr58LrkhRGdR6q53k1jib1nQ/s320/147.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517195519944936882" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;">Canada is beautiful.</span><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;">Left Canada now and after a quick trip to West Washington to spend time with my friend Aly I’m heading to Utah; almost there, just spending a couple days with some great people here in Boise.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">We’re going bouldering in an hour, so I’m getting ready to get destroyed.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Bouldering is hard when you climb routes, and routes are hard when you boulder…</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;">Thank you for reading.<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Pawelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01918921717127212969noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6748631780193531742.post-15577495148938363842010-06-01T20:43:00.000-07:002010-06-01T21:23:58.911-07:00Life has surely been interesting. I'll try to keep this recap minimal in words, and provide a few pictures along the way.<br /><br />Drove out of Utah early April heading for the Red River Gorge. After a quick two day stop in Colorado to see some good friends and attempt to climb at the Monastery - a day that will go down in as one of the coldest climbing days I can remember - I pushed eastward and found myself at the Motherload for the first time less than two days later. Driving across the country went smoothly, and first impressions of the east were that it was...boring? I quickly came to the conclusion that I had always taken for granted the size of the mountains in the west, as the 'Mountain Parkway' that led to Miguel's was surrounded by hills not any bigger than the hills that surrounded Pullman, Washington, the town I grew up in. Expectations were low, I couldn't imagine that these tiny hills could hide as much rock within them as they do.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc3H-iNtRRCaF-QtaGSbHYURYNT7zdWCCBAsrt92RqFMbrfwz3nhpDfA-vLQusR2pmN9nT3W49-u5y10-_j8GMUY2BHJBbDjM4Xh7CIb7-RbJH_4OYyzDsZzmZ0z2meLkAPptZ9xVoEH8/s1600/001.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc3H-iNtRRCaF-QtaGSbHYURYNT7zdWCCBAsrt92RqFMbrfwz3nhpDfA-vLQusR2pmN9nT3W49-u5y10-_j8GMUY2BHJBbDjM4Xh7CIb7-RbJH_4OYyzDsZzmZ0z2meLkAPptZ9xVoEH8/s320/001.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5478018624250759730" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">The Monastery.</span><br /></div><br />As for climbing at the Red I showed up in pretty poor shape after not climbing routes in months, and having been served numerous 'good-bye' meals in Utah. The endurance came along and just as I started to feel strong(er) the poor conditions began to intensify which led to a bit of frustration (apologies to my belayers who experienced this). I did manage to climb many amazing routes, and tick a few routes that gave me a great challenge. The route Skinboat gave me heaps of trouble, and will go down in my mind as one of the hardest routes I've personally done, as well as the most unexpected send I've ever pulled out. The climbing is amazing, and if things roll as they have then I hope to the Red soon.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqAii2y9GxuAQOXFgMtg4ZdrS-mV9c-W0efJcN_0Jp27-SXov1gwZHB2sQmuPSH138Ej3-aMdEgFDau2pyLSrWFoRWe0TIKGQNFt29LuUdT1rvFxr_es5Vg78BzBL1KQ26X6qIHKXf62A/s1600/060.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqAii2y9GxuAQOXFgMtg4ZdrS-mV9c-W0efJcN_0Jp27-SXov1gwZHB2sQmuPSH138Ej3-aMdEgFDau2pyLSrWFoRWe0TIKGQNFt29LuUdT1rvFxr_es5Vg78BzBL1KQ26X6qIHKXf62A/s320/060.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5478022031854391794" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;">Gray's arch in the Red region.</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5t0eB0M3cmhp8NU7luSPAon1W358He2K8HnQ8gJlGnepB-k4MaWwxUZ4BIhjok2yIM5TlUh-SpXRyNIk-ZdeLh3ekKohrM8JhXBo3AM6Y0zMPHdmhU13Q8uQ0fy-CTOEgDXxeKae4nO0/s1600/039.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5t0eB0M3cmhp8NU7luSPAon1W358He2K8HnQ8gJlGnepB-k4MaWwxUZ4BIhjok2yIM5TlUh-SpXRyNIk-ZdeLh3ekKohrM8JhXBo3AM6Y0zMPHdmhU13Q8uQ0fy-CTOEgDXxeKae4nO0/s320/039.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5478022054533676370" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;">Climbing at Purgatory.<br /></span></div><span style="font-size:78%;"><br /></span>I have to take this moment to give a HUGE thank you to David and Marci, Laura, Brent and Melissa for the good climbing times in the Red. I think I spent pretty much everyday climbing with at least one of you and it was always good. Hopefully we will climb more again soon.<br /><br />So now I've departed from the Red; funny how fast the time went. A few things made me want to stay, but c'est la vie. I find myself currently sitting in central Canada in a small town named Falcon Lake. I managed to pick up some painting work, even though I wasn't expecting to work until in the fall; it seems work never comes along when you need it to so I decided to jump on this opportunity. I'm painting with two great people I met in the Red, Jai and Marin, and it has been quite the time. They are full of energy and excitement;I feel they know how to enjoy life. Refreshing to meet such people, and just being around them and listening to how and why they voyage through life as they do has been mind-opening. It's been great to think about it, and try to figure out myself by hearing what they have done. It has been a very productive time in my mind, hatching out a bunch of useless ideas. Unfortunately the three people in life who know me well enough aren't here and I can't afford the international cell phone bills to call them to bounce ideas. Oh well, I've got many, many car hours coming up on the drive so I'm sure we'll get a chance to ponder them.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz1u5UrHlvZJ2mb74hntgxOPxzXpXAe9cEeZfAiQsks0iSbKueUoluWbNBGgslPc2GjnYAInCqL6U_j_pZ5y1kAhPdzl7YqKZPR4PPucYG7AIZfw8Zfyg9ePQ_fEI0kq6SWZMVgy8Ppjg/s1600/202.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz1u5UrHlvZJ2mb74hntgxOPxzXpXAe9cEeZfAiQsks0iSbKueUoluWbNBGgslPc2GjnYAInCqL6U_j_pZ5y1kAhPdzl7YqKZPR4PPucYG7AIZfw8Zfyg9ePQ_fEI0kq6SWZMVgy8Ppjg/s320/202.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5478022038747825234" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;">Jai and Marin, during one of our lake adventures.</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAoEhpQaYu7tEINOaLfK8xNwy1DBoDREu7x5V_Us950XAEoRniJKncnI2j6vVI27E__LKzOPonCo_Lx2JTsjJuXy3mqPoKUJDNx9a_D5WgpWQekVZVCjFbHISSGl5IfiQdb5ITx0Dyoh8/s1600/013.JPG"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAoEhpQaYu7tEINOaLfK8xNwy1DBoDREu7x5V_Us950XAEoRniJKncnI2j6vVI27E__LKzOPonCo_Lx2JTsjJuXy3mqPoKUJDNx9a_D5WgpWQekVZVCjFbHISSGl5IfiQdb5ITx0Dyoh8/s320/013.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5478022048071494626" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:78%;">Climbing outside of Kenora, Ontario.</span><br /></div><br />After this painting stint, I'm off on a plane (first plane since I came to the US 17 years ago, yikes!) to Alaska to salmon fish for 5 weeks. Up until a bit ago I was somewhat unready to go at this even though I had agreed, but now I think it will be good. I'm hoping to fit in a couple days of climbing in Spokane once I return to Washington. Deep Creek is a place that will always remind me of the good old days, when things were simpler, I was younger, and the place I fell in love with climbing. Thankfully the reigning Crag Sheriff and Route Police Captain are some of my favorite people I know, and the routes are the best I've done so I'll always love the place.<br /><br />Things have been a roller coaster so far this year, and I guess I've become content with the fact that this will never end. Thom Yorke said something along the lines of "if it's getting too predictable, it's time to fuck things up" and I guess that is how I feel about life at this moment. Things are beautiful, and I'm sure when I return things will continue on this perfect, disastrous path, but I'm feeling really content about this. Off to sail the seas. Take care everyone and thank you for reading.Pawelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01918921717127212969noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6748631780193531742.post-3509729081247808132010-04-02T09:05:00.000-07:002010-04-02T09:28:32.254-07:00leavin' on a previa-plane<span style="font-size:85%;">Last day here in the office. <br />Besides the temporary frustrations with slow-USB transfers and the the fact that I-80 has been closed in Wyoming life is amazing. As soon as I get a few more things done I'm off to climb...for about five months. Hopefully this blog will stimulate my photo taking, as last summer's roadtrip yielded a total of 30ish. <br /><br />Time in Logan has been and gone - I'm surely ready to get out. I had the pleasure to meet one of the best people I have, a person that I must admit understood me. Isn't that rare? Feels like it is always easier to write people off by saying they don't understand you, because it makes it far easier to disagree with what good advice they have. You never have to justify your actions, because the problem isn't on your side, but the fact that the individual who has processed and responded with their wisdom doesn't understand you. But this individual did understand me, and as a result has definitely had an impact on how I view life and how I will continue to try to live it. Greatest thank you to this person, I hope they know who they are, even though knowing them they would tell me I am wrong about these preceding sentences. <br /><br />No more seriousness. Utah, I will return. To all the people that have kept me sane here (I guess this is mostly a list of people who actually climb outside) I will look forward to crossing paths again.<br /><br />Kentucky. Here we go.<br /><br /><br /></span>Pawelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01918921717127212969noreply@blogger.com0