Reverse Face Out Traverse

Got up very early Saturday morning to have a go at my latest nemesis, combining King Conquer Traverse V6 into Reverse Face Out, hard V7. This problem requires keeping it together on very small holds at the end of a 30 foot overhanging wall. After some fussing with beta, I did it 3rd try this morning, maybe 4th day of attempts. Since it felt significantly harder than the Undercling Traverse, I am proposing V10, maybe on the easy side of the grade. I'm happy to be done with it, although the full loop, going down the regular Face Out and finishing left, is waiting. Maybe on a cooler day.

I also looked at an interesting potential project on First Overhang, starting out of the cave and heading right to join First Overhang. Could be V11, looking at the holds and the angle of the wall. I wonder if it might be time to terrace and flatten the landing below the boulder. The hardpacked dirt is like a skating rink now. It might be worth staking down your crashpads here to ensure their staying put upon impact.

Back to the Park (100th post to this blog!)

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Hot Summer Indeed

While I am chickening out and going to the Spot--even dawn patrol is too warm now-- some crazy things are going on in the world of hard climbing.

First Paul Robinson's 2 hour repeat of the Fred Nicole V15 testpiece Amandla. Go to his blog for more. This was Nicole's ultimate route and suited Paul's style perfectly

Second Tyler Landman has been killing it in Switzerland with fast repeats of New Baseline V14, Danse de Balrog V13 2nd go, Radja V14 (both Nicole problems and likely the first of the grade in the world). He also flashed a V13. Go to Moonclimbing for more.

And another 8c+ onsight and this time it's in France at Pierrot Beach, Presles, near Grenoble. Paxto Usobiaga did Home Sweet Home, a 40 meter route that looks similar to the enduro testpieces of Spain. Details at 8a.nu.

Here's a video of a 9a route from the same cliff, Nice to Eat You, by Michael Fuselier.

Amazing stuff going on everywhere... except in the Front Range. Katherine Parr aka Flannery Shay-Nemirow repeated Bierstadt V10 at Evans with crazy beta, documented at Kelly McBride's blog. I haven't heard anything else recently really worthy of note. With Ty, Daniel, and Paul absent, the field isn't quite as strong as it was. Olson, sadly leaving for BC in a couple of weeks looked pretty strong in the Spot on Sunday, even with a knee brace.

Some interesting Items

A few things to stir the pot here a bit while the Front Range bakes under the heat:

First, I recently encountered a boulderer working on the Automator in RMNP and in between burns, dousing the crux holds in rubbing alcohol. Personally I think if you're adding anything but chalk and effort you probably should be trying something else. Anyone know what's up with this practice? Seems to me it should be strongly discouraged. This climber was not a local.

Second, I noticed that the right start hold for Gang Bang seems covered in something that refuses to be brushed off. I heard from another climber that pof or resin may have been deployed in the area. Anyone else heard this?

Climbing Media Watch Item:

A lengthy interview on Climbing's website with and short article in the print issue by Matt Segal regarding his repeat of Mike Patz's gear-only ascent of China Doll (5.14a R). I have commented elsewhere on the non-newsworthiness of this ascent and the suspect journalistic aspects regarding its media placement in the Alpinist. It is disheartening to see it resurface in the pages of Climbing. I can only speculate that creating controversy is sometimes part of being a "professional" climber but I find it irksome that Segal is quoted as saying that there are a lot of climbs in Boulder that deserve to be chopped.

"C-note: (Caroline Treadway) If you could chop the bolts on any climb, which would it be?
Matt: A lot of climbs in Boulder deserve chopping: China Doll, Deadline. I don't think there should be bolts on either of those routes."

It is ironic that the editorial " Why we don’t need to fight" in the most recent print issue of Cimbing, commenting on the recent deaths of Alan Nelson and Steve Dieckhoff, seemed to be aimed toward leaving this kind of rhetoric behind. Why Matt is talking like this is beyond me but I would like to ask his sponsor, The North Face, "How do you feel about your athletes advocating bolt removal in a public forum?"

Ironically for someone who went to Naropa University, where he studied Buddhism and double majored in Religious Studies and Eastern Psychology, here's a quote from the extended interview:

Matt: There's a line I really like in it, (from a TV show called "Weeds) "thugs don't have to say sorry." I'm over tiptoeing around people at the moment. Like right now, I'm gonna go in the Trident and not tiptoe, I'm gonna stomp and sh**, make a point.

And there you have it... Thugs be stompin’ at the Trident. Which, if you know the place, is actually pretty funny and I hope that’s Matt’s intention. However I would prefer to see more about climbs like Tommy Caldwell's incredible one day ascent of Magic Mushroom which is like climbing 20 China Dolls in a row. Maybe even from Mike Patz who actually first freed China Doll. Not to mention the many other climbers who are doing something new and not getting the coverage they deserve. Climbing is urging me to resubscribe but if this is where the magazine is headed then my subscription may have to lapse again,

Taurus Video

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Photos of Secret Splendour

Shannon Forsman took a few photos of me on Secret Splendour, a V12 just left of Nuthin' but Sunshine. I think Ty Landman did it first. Shannon has a show at the Dairy Center for the Arts in Boulder titled "Flesh and Stone". It's up until August 1 so check it out soon. It's one of the very few times you're likely to see climbing photography in a regular public gallery.