Rock Climbing Company

Monday, January 11, 2010

Back in Action

Jane and I went bouldering at the SPOT bouldering gym in Boulder, Colorado. The weather was nice outside but, there is nothing like a good training session on plastic and lots of new problems to figure out and climb.

What is this you might ask? I finally had a chance to make some of my mothers home-made pasta sauce here in Colorado. Although I lacked a few special ingredients and after browning this Italian sausage it turned out great. I think the handrolled meatballs were the hit of the meal! Thanks MOM.

Jane and her brother Clay just days before he was stationed in Japan in the United States NAVY. Thanks Clay for taking care of America. We all went bowling where the balls were flying off the bumpers a few too many times.

Jane painting one of the wooden pieces I made for the house. It is a step stool for the kitchen because everything seems out of reach. Anyway it is beautiful now that it had some paint splashed on it. Plus the color makes it easy to see, I haven't kicked it once with its bright yellow paint job. Thanks Jane : )

I am really glad that you have visited my blog.
Thanks and I hope to see and hear from you soon.
Rob Pizem

And last but not least, don't forget to check out my favorite sites:

http://www.scarpa.net
http://www.arcteryx.com
http://camp-usa.com
http://sterlingrope.com
http://ColoradoMountainJournal.com
http://www.wunderground.com
http://climbing.com
http://rockandice.com
http://deadpointmag.com
http://urbanclimbermag.com
http://andrewburr.com
http://ladzinski.com

Friday, January 8, 2010

Pledge for Endless Ascent

Will Gadd's "Endless Ascent" at the Ouray Ice Festival begins tomorrow. He's going to climb the same route over and over, for 24 hours straight, to see how many vertical feet he can accumulate. It's a mind-blowing effort.

But this isn't just a Red Bull athlete's latest wacky stunt: It's also a fund-raiser for the vital work of the dZi Foundation to support remote mountain communities in Nepal and Sikkim. Will's effort won't mean nearly as much unless he raises some significant dosh. I've pledged 0.5 cents a foot. If Will reaches his primary goal of 11,429 feet (the gain from Everest base camp to summit, or 77 trips up the Pick O' the Vic route at Ouray), I'll give $57.14 to the dZi Foundation—an amount that will be matched by a challenge grant. What will you give? Visit the Endless Ascent website to make a pledge and track Will's progress.

UPDATE: Will climbed the route 194 times in 24 hours, starting at noon on Saturday. That's about 25,400 feet of ice climbing. Surely this is a Guinness record? Congratulations, Will!

You can see a great gallery of James Beissel photos from the Endless Ascent at Colorado MoJo.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Oh. My. Gawd.

Looks like maybe Zion to me. Anyone know for sure? Man, these two were lucky to get out unscathed. (I'm assuming they were OK: You don't usually say "Hooolly shit!" and keep filming when you get hurt. You say something else entirely.)

If it is Zion, I can attest to the nastiness of those approaches and descents. Once you get off the well-beaten paths to the classics, that ground is loose, loose, loose. And don't forget the ticks.

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Retire Those Ropes

Black Diamond's QC guy, Kolin Powick, has published some scary test results on a rope he had just decided to retire—and those results prompted him to test other old but still-maybe-OK ropes around the BD office. One of the working ends of Powick's trusty 9.4mm broke at just 6 kN of force, and not at the knot. (A figure-eight knot reduces the strength of a rope by around 25 to 30 percent.) That figure compares to a range of around 13 to 16 kN for the new 9.4mm he tested. In subsequent tests, other ropes broke at less than 7 kN—the kinds of forces that can be generated by a short slamming fall. Picture a cliff with an overhang at the bottom and a crux move at the first or second bolt—a very common scenario.

Sure, we all know ropes need to be retired when they start to look old and worn, right? But it's so tempting to hang onto a rope for just a few more pitches. Particularly for sport climbers, Powick's tests should serve as a real-world warning: Sport climbers beat the hell out of the ends of their ropes through repeated falls, hanging, and winching, and sport routes are more likely than most climbs to have crux moves close to the belayer. It's a double whammy.

Bottom line: A hard, unsentimental look at your rope, combined with your personal knowledge of how much work it has seen, is the best guideline for deciding when to retire your cord. Don't be cheap: If it looks bad, it ain't safe.

Monday, January 4, 2010

More Mexico Photos and Information

The middle feature has a 1500 ft route called El Sendero Luminoso a 15 pitch 5.12. We didn't get a chance to try the bearutiful climb due to some rain during our trip. Some day I will get back to the park to give it a try.

Market day in Hidalgo. They sell fresh meat, veggies, fruits. You can buy clothes, electronics/CD's (old), art, house supplies, tools... you get the picture! It only takes about 10-15 minutes to walk from your camping area to the market. (market days are tuesdays and fridays) It's a great place to try some food, try speaking the language and to meet some of the locals, they are sooo kind!

Mike and my bunk beds. If we weren't climbing or eating than mike was on the internet doing work from the campground. The shower was hot, the water is safe to drink and the beds are comfy!

Mike following me up another beautiful multipitch route in the Potrero.

Mike and I heading up Space Boyz early in the morning. We got special permission from the local government to climb/inspect the wall for rockfall damage because I am trained as a Geological Engineer. Unfortunately, there is a ton of loose stuff above a couple routes on this wall. If reopened you should wear your helmets and be aware of massive rockfall possibilities.

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Truer Words Were Never Spoken

Climbing.com reader Jeff Weinberg posted this great "Overheard" quote, from a man giving his son a pep talk at the Philadelphia Rock Gym: "The beautiful thing about climbing is, everyone sucks at their own level."

New Year's Weekend Time Waster

Kelly Cordes makes a margarita for Tommy Caldwell, courtesy of Kelly Cordes Dot Com:

[Hey, you kids, what are you doing watching videos all weekend?! Go outside and play!]