Joshua Tree

This last weekend Julie and I headed out to JTree in hopes of wandering up some easy classics. We planned on camping but that was spoiled by this nasty weather we’ve been having. Luckily we started the day off on the right foot by fueling up at Crossroads Cafe. Anyways… after making our way to the Dairy Queen Wall we were stopped in our tracks by about 5 People on the Wall and Several others on the Ground. Together that group had the entire DQ Wall Top Roped, bumming Julie and I wandered around trying to find Playhouse Rock. A few miles later and what should have taken 3 minutes (provided MP had better directions to the wall) we arrived at the base only to find out that the line we were looking at climbing was also occupied by several others. Bumming we moved over to a fun classic that rarely sees any traffic…  The Playwright. Although there was only about 15ft of actual climbing it was fun to cruise and enjoy being outside.

After a miss communication that had Julie desperately trying to free a fixed cam… We eventually got back on the ground and I ran up Dress Rehearsal but had to lower 20ft from the top due to some anchor issues that resulted in massive kinking. 20 minutes later Julie and I had the kinks sorted out and started the trek back to the car. Fighting Daylight we scurried over to the Roadside Rocks and attempted a few problems but ultimately left in haste due to darkness.

Dress Rehearsal 5.7

Sunday was different. According to the Weather Service it was supposed to rain all day, but when I awoke it was sunny and not raining. Unsure of what to do I headed over to Julie’s and convinced her to go climbing with me at MCSP. During the drive we encountered the rain and decided to keep on going… after all its just rain, right? After making the muddy hike out to the Planet of the Apes Wall we/I was excited to find it dry due to its overhanging nature and was able to set a rope up on Gorilla Warfare. Despite the rain I made good progress on the route but didn’t send due to a combination of wet rock, wet chalk, flash pump, and tight tendons.

Stoney Point…

Two weeks ago Julie and I wanted to climb but really didn’t have the energy to deal with ropes. We figured it would be a perfect opportunity to wrestle with the pebbles at Stoney Point.

After the short drive we were awestruck to see all the parking filled. The entire mile stretch of parking was full bumper to bumper, not wanting to deal withe the parking I remembered that there was some fun bouldering up Woosley Canyon Road that Tim McClain and I had played on several years back.

After several wrong turns and near misses we found the “parking lot” and scrambled down to check out the problems and see how the area has changed since my last visit. Surprisingly many of the small bushes I remembered had grown into large thorny obstacles that had me confused and lost for a bit, but eventually Julie and I pushed through the thorns and found the main area. (Which also happens to be an Atv /Dirt bike track.) While wandering around I realized that most of the problems I had climbed years before were now overgrown and hard to get to. Realizing that there wasn’t much climbing to be done with out some serious landscaping we made our way back to the car and went back to Stoney Point.

After some failed attempts at some older classics I spotted the Kodas’ Corner and gave it several goes. (Julie was any amazing spotter and I feel bad I didn’t think to grab and photos of her that day.) I managed to climb up to the top but was afraid to commit to the top out with only one pad and a 15ft fall.

Julie not psyched.

When it was all said and done Julie and I had a fun day of trying some of Stoney Point’s more moderate climbs and look forward to going back.

Quarry Morning.

This morning was epic. I woke up early to go to the Riverside Quarry with Victor… I waited and waited but he didn’t show. I had this itchy feeling that I should go do something. So I drove over thinking I would just solo one of the slabs and call it a day. As I was walking up to the cliff I heard some chick call my name… it was Ali! We spent like an hour talking and then she offered to belay me while her partner was taking a break.

I had been hearing about this route called “Vertigo” (13a?) for some time now so I booted up and gave it a try. I managed to send it on my second go. We then moved on to the area classic “Tangerine Dream” and I was able to onsight despite the sustained nature of the route. For some odd reason I had no fear of falling this morning and decided to try something that would push my limits. I walked over to what one of the locals said was a 14a that Louie Anderson had put up but I decided against trying because the sun was baking the upper crux. As I was packing up to leave I was watching somebody try Tattoo (13b) and they were asking for beta on the crux. After watching the guy take a pretty crazy fall at the 11th bolt I asked if I could give it a go. To my surprise they said yes and even offered to belay. Unsure of what I had just gotten myself into… I cautiously climbed through the first two crux sections and took a long rest at the 10th bolt trying not to think about the epic fall I had just witnessed. I stood up and managed my way to the next bolt. The crux was long moves between shitty crimps… some how I managed to read the cryptic crux perfectly and made my way to the chains for my first onsight of the grade! I can’t wait to start trying harder routes and start pushing the limits of what I thought was possible for myself. Seems I’m more of a route climber than I thought.

3 Week Update.

Its been a crazy last few weeks.

3 Weeks Ago Julie and I went out to Joshua Tree to test our Trad Skills. I have to say… I am much more of a trad climber than I thought I was. Despite not having enough gear for the route (Read: Lots of back cleaning) we still managed to have fun. While at the belay I was starting to freeze, when we started it was in the high 50’s… but as Julie was making her way up the temps dropped and the wind picked up. Julie was smart enough to bring her down jacket… I wasn’t. I didn’t want to be hot so I scurried up only wearing a Cap 3 and a Shell. Ugh, Big Mistake. Well… I won’t do that again. (Julie had the privilege to watch me almost drop myself on the rappel from being so cold.) I still had the urge to climb… but it was getting dark.

5 layers on.. and still freezing.

We ran over to the barker dam and hopped on some really cool V1… It was nice at first. But as soon as the sun dropped. It got really really cold. I put on every piece of clothing that I had. (2 Shirts, R2 , R4, Shell) but was still freaking cold. (Julie on the other hand was nice and warm in her down jacket.) We ended up bailing after the rubber started freezing and wasn’t sticking to anything. We ran back to the car and cooked dinner with my new WhisperLight Stove that I got on ebay for $35.

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Fast forward to last weekend. (12/19)

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The Corpse Wall… Part 3.

I wanted to get in some climbing this weekend… but I didn’t want to do something that was gonna take up a full day because Julie was gonna fly home the next night. We decided to run laps at the Corpse Wall. The wall is really unique… its this massive slab 25 meters tall and 60 meters long with about 15 or so routes. After running laps on some of the more prominent lines we decided to explore some of the more hidden routes.

We ended up finding a really wacky slab route… The moves were soo crazy. Several times throughout the route your forced to mantle with almost no hands and minimal feet. After rehearsing the sketchiest moves… I pulled the rope and lead it first go. Feeling pretty psyched… I booted up and managed to crawl up one of the more developed 5.10s before the sun went down. In all it was a good day… We managed to do about 6 routes in about 3 hrs.

Well… Julie is home for the next few weeks so if anybody wants to go do something… Call me.

2 Weeks….

The past two weeks have been rather uneventful… So I’ll sum up the few exciting things that happend.

• Two weeks ago I went to Stoney Point and did the Johnson Problem on my second go.
• Julie went home and had an awesome time hanging out with her parents and her brother.
• I am now allowed to climb at the ARC again… Hopefully things will work out better than previous years.
• I have two weeks left of school and I hope I can snatch up a spot in next semesters’ EMT Class.

Thats about it… See ya.

Bishop In November.

I love this time of year… The weather doesn’t suck and there are less people out and about. Julie and I decided that we should go to bishop before she heads home before ThanksGiving. The drive up was more eventful than usual… We were about 200 Miles out and we saw a car that looked like Matus’s OutBack. After a while we passed the car and as it turned out it was Matus and he was on his way to Mt. Whitney to do the Mountaineers Route Solo. We talked for a bit, wished him luck and hit the road again. The drive was uneventful and eventually we ended up finding a campsite way back near the Bardini Boulders. (3 Miles back from the Peabodys.)

After nearly freezing to death… (The Temps dropped to the low Teens) I got up early and psyched. Only to find out that our stove had frozen and it was showing no signs of fixing anytime soon. To avoid the crowds we headed up twords Maze of Death and played around on several patina problems.

After a bit we finally made it up to Maze and I gave it some solid burns with new beta. (Doing a big lock off instead of the big reach) I got really close but no cigar. Next time for sure. (I feel way stronger on it this year compared to last year.)

As we were leaving I spotted some cooling problems… Which turned out to be The Beautiful And The Damned (V13) and This Side of Paradise (V9+) Those were some of the coolest looking problems I’ve ever seen. I hope to get on them later this year… with many more pads. We played around on several unnamed problems that would have been fun if it weren’t for the fact that they were in the sun and getting really greasy. On our way out Julie and I were shocked to see at least 20 cars parked at the Peabody’s. Its great and all but as we later found out they left trash EVERYWHERE! UGH!

Josh Staring up at The Beautiful And The Damned.

Once into town we mad the mandatory stop at Wilson’s and I ended up finding some nice new shoes that don’t hurt my feet. Then we moved down the street and stopped by the new running store. We were very impressed and plan on stopping by next time were up there. (and maybe get in some miles too)

It was soo cold that I was starting to protest camping… So we ended up staying at a hotel and stayed warm and cozy. That later turned out to be a wise decision. As we left to go climbing the next morning we saw many many climbers that bailed on camping and slept in their cars on random streets throughout town.

We got to the Peabody’s around 9ish and we shocked to find out that we were the only people there and continued to be for quite some time. Julie worked and finally sent Green Wall Essential and I worked on Ambrosia. I got pretty far up the wall before I ended up breaking a crimp… It was the last crimp just before the large hueco. I think it still goes but I’m not sure. It was getting hot and I took a stab at La Ballete, I tried it last year and almost flashed it… This time I didn’t botch the ending and sent second go.

Julie on Green Wall Essential Last Year.

This last weekend was a really good start to the bouldering season. I found new projects and learned a lot. Now I’m off to the Library to research court cases. Ugh.

La Sportiva Miura VS Review.

I have tried just about every shoe out there and I must say…. these shoes are some of the best I’ve ever worn.

I have been using them for about 9 months now and they have held up flawlessly. I have always been complaining about how my shoes are never comfortable, mainly due to the fact that I size my shoes as tight as I possibly can. I went down from a 44 street shoe to a 39.5 in the Miura VS. 4.5 sizes down sounds painfully tight and yet I don’t have the epic pain I have when I wear other brands as just as tight.

The Miura VS on their first day out.

I am also in love with La Sportiva’s P3  Platform which is something that they have incorporated into the Miura VS compared to the regular Miuras. It is amazing… for the fact that they have held they’re shape just as they did when they were new. (See photo.) I’ve heard many people complain about smearing in these shoes but I haven’t had any issues… In fact I prefer them over my regular Miuras on slabs. I may have less contact with the rock but I feel that I have more control over what I step on because I can feel the little dimples and such that I’m standing on.

Freshly Resoled. Yet they still have they’re downturned shape. The P3 Platform Works!

Foot Fatigue hasn’t been an issue either… When I use my regular Miuras and  I step on something small my toes may be on the foot hold but to support my weight my forefoot must flex. Where as when I step on the same foot hold in the Miura VS holds the shoes down turned shape it keeps my forefoot flat when I start standing on the small stuff, which in turn gives me more leverage on the smallest of foot holds.

Taking a burn on Wills a Fire in Joes Valley.

I’m one of those people that always has trouble with my heels fitting into shoes without massive pockets of dead space. I don’t have that problem any more… The Miura VS wraps your heel with rubber in a way that is super comfortable yet effective when it comes to heel hooks.

Heel Hooking Like Crazy on All this Time I thought I Was an Actor.

In all I think the Miura VS are a great all around shoe. I have found they preform beyond expectations in almost every circumstance. I however would supplement them with Solutions or Testarossas depending on the situation. If the situation calls for more sensitivity I wouldn’t hesitate to pull out the trusty Miura VS but If I needed more power I’d go with Testarossas or the Solutions.

I have no relationship with anyone at La Sportiva. I purchased my shoes with my own money and I am not receiving any compensation of any kind by submitting this review.

Wow. I’m really bad at this.

Blogging thing. I’m trying… Really I am.

The past two weeks I’ve been going to Stoney Point. I have found that you can escape the crowds and the graffiti if your willing to walk a bit. I found some problems that I had tried in the past and was able to send them without even thinking. Psyched, I walked around just trying anything that looked fun… Somehow I found this really cool arete and was able to do almost all the moves except for the last one. Turned out I had found the Johnson Arete (V8ish) which happened to be one of the few hard problems that Stoney Point has to offer. Its a really cool problem with big compression moves to a ok stance where you lock off to a sloper. This last weekend I was able to figure out the last move… But as I stood up. My foot Popped. I tried it at least a dozen more times only to destroy my shoes which in turn made it nearly impossible climb at all.

I’m hoping that this weekend is as fun as the last. Probably not… But maybe. As of a few hours ago Bugsy decided he really liked my Miuras and decided they’d make a great chew toy. With the help of my Mom I was able to get some shoes to hold me over till my Miura VS get back from R&Resole. (Thank You Mom)

(I’ll add Photos when I get them from Little Miss.)

More Motivation.

Le Tango Vertical from Film IT on Vimeo.

blACk MOunTaiN.

Saturday Sucked. Sunday was slowly getting better as the day went on. I had been hoping to head up to Bishop but that didn’t happen… So I was off to Black Mountain to find Cory and Climb some rocks. After some not so fun driving we got to the dirt road and somehow managed to drive the 5 or so miles back into the OK Corral and Boulder Basin. I had been to the OK Corral twice before and I was pretty psyched to get on some stuff that I hadn’t finished before. After warming up, Julie and I wandered around and eventually found Darkhorse. I was psyched… Only to realize I haven’t been bouldering in 6 months or so and I can’t crimp for shit since I started climbing at Hangar 18. But Julie somehow convinced me to pull on the start holds. I was sucking to say the least.

We started to realize that it was getting late and we still hadn’t seen Cory…. We drove around several not so nice dirt roads until somehow Cory showed up behind us. (Turns out he worked late and they didn’t leave till 12) Turns out they were headed up to the Rounded Boulders so Jon could take a stab at the SDS of Adamantium.

We made the not so epic hike up to the climbing and watched Jon make really good progress but he didn’t manage to send. Next time for sure, he was looking really strong and I think if he’d had a little bit more skin he would have sent.

Later… We moved on to Boulder Basin so I could try The Tulip and Transmaniacon. Feeling good… I walked over to Transmaniacon and gave it some awkward goes but I wasn’t able to send. Feeling pretty fucked I wandered towards The Tulip and some how I was able to do the crux but not the start. I was really surprised that I made it through that funky crossover thing and the match on that horrible sloping crimp, but when Jon, Cory and Joe showed up they had a lot of negatives, which in turn killed my motivation.

To finish off the day I suggested we all have a go at Big Greeny which is one of my all time favorite problems. Its this crazy 20ft  slab that is one of the coolest problems in So Cal. Cory being the beast that he is managed his way up in about two or three tries. Jon however was having issues over coming his mental block and even turned down $100 to send. I was still sucking so I played around at the bottom until we were ready to leave.

In the end I was excited to go climbing but was really bothered by the fact that I’m not as strong as I used to be.

A Special Thanks to Julie for being our photographer. Thanks, Love.