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Marcus Smith
Mountain climber
Kooskia, Idaho
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Jan 15, 2010 - 04:33pm PT
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Don Jensen was my cousin, son of my mother's sister, Francis Cook Jensen. I had no idea he left such a legacy on the climbing community until I read this post. I don't remember a lot about him honestly. He was older and away at college or off climbing when I was a child. Never-the-less, I followed his adventures and read, "Mountain Of My Fear" over and again, and he was an influence on my subsequent career in the outdoors. I couldn't believe it when he was killed on a bicycle after all the "outer edge" pioneer climbing he had done. FYI, his elder brother, Lin, is still alive, residing in Quebec Canada. If anyone wishes to contact him for legitimate reasons, I can be contacted for his address. Thank you, Don, for all the adventures you left us to live for you. See you on the summit someday.
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jogill
climber
Colorado
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Jan 15, 2010 - 06:01pm PT
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Any relation to Bert Jensen, who climbed the upper section of the ridge bearing his name on Symmetry Spire in the Tetons in 1938?
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Marcus Smith
Mountain climber
Kooskia, Idaho
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Jan 15, 2010 - 07:35pm PT
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Hmmmm.. no relation to Bert Jensen, that I know of -- Don was the only mountaineer in our side of the family. But then, Don's father was Irv Jensen, one of the builders of the Golden Gate Bridge. Could have been some related climbers in his paternal lineage. Might have to check with his brother and get back to you.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Jul 24, 2010 - 04:36pm PT
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Jensen Bump!
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BooDawg
Social climber
Paradise Island
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Jul 24, 2010 - 06:03pm PT
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What a GREAT THREAD! Thanks to Doug for starting it off, to all the contributors, and to Steve, once again, for another of his bumps that show the newcomers to the fire what's gone before here on S.T.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Jul 25, 2010 - 07:24pm PT
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This is one of the memorial gems in the ST crown. A very big talent back when the landscape was uncrowded.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Sep 17, 2010 - 08:25pm PT
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Far from the madding Bump!
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guido
Trad climber
Santa Cruz/New Zealand/South Pacific
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Sep 17, 2010 - 11:30pm PT
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Good Bump Mr. Grossmen, Sir. Memorable memorial gem indeed and off to my database of classics.
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hooblie
climber
from where the anecdotes roam
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Sep 18, 2010 - 12:14am PT
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up thread there's a picture of a crew that includes pete carmen. i'd be interested to learn some context and stories about him. i traded for a simple sack BITD that was credited to him. there was a denim panel that felt better than cordura when shirtless. it was set up for hauling and had a flat lid with one long strap threaded through a steel spring loaded buckle.
i always liked the way that strap would swing rather merrily while chugging up the trail. best plan was to carry the rope and rack and fall in behind the gf with the jackets, shoes, water and lunch in that sack
and enjoy the hypnotic effect of the whole kit and kaboodle
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Sep 18, 2010 - 01:06pm PT
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I bet DR has some PC stories...or other than PC stories! LOL
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Peter Haan
Trad climber
San Francisco, CA
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Sep 18, 2010 - 03:34pm PT
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DR is on the Eastside again, Stevie. It won't be good DR hunting until October and even then the dance card has some foxtrots in it as well. He has a new lady friend that is kicking his ass all the way up and down the Rang of Light as we speak.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Sep 18, 2010 - 07:57pm PT
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Love will do Range things to a man ^^^^^^^^ ^@^
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oldgear
Mountain climber
Olympia, WA
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Hello everyone! "Better late than never, right?" I noticed very belatedly that my website re: Rivendell's history was mentioned by Doug back on March 26,2009. My name is Bruce Johnson and I'm a person lurking in the shadows of several of the comments. I know Don Wittenberger and Larry Horton, for example. I've been in Eric Hardee's pack workshop in Monroe, Washington. And the poster named Fat Ba$tard (Alan)has been my long-term collaborator in my self-titled "History of Gear" project. In fact, the picture I am posting today of the Bombshelter ultimately derives from Alan-- this was his Bombshelter, which then went to Larry Amkraut, and now Larry has loaned it to me so that I can add to my history.... Now, on to the picture I've posted: the concept was to compare the classic Bombshelter to another highly-rated assault tent, the Sierra Designs Tiros.
I asked tent designer Bob Howe for his opinions and he nominated the Tiros as one of the strongest tents. Bob had designed a geodesic dome that would have competed with the North Face Oval Intention had Snowlion not gone bust in 1977(Bob's tent the Meridian was about to be introduced by Snowlion; their last catalog featured it). So my picture sets up what is arguably the strongest A-frame mountaineering tent ever made with what is arguably among the strongest of the new generation of geodesic dome tents. I wanted to show the differences in size, which is one reason why the person was included in the picture. Note also that the Tiros is set up on pavement, with no stakes, whereas the Bombshelter requires nine stakes. The Tiros is a pleasure to be inside, whereas the Bombshelter feels cramped, and would be terrible for two big climbers caught in a multi-day storm. Nevertheless, my guess is that ultimately the Bombshelter is the stronger of the two tents. Before I forget, here is the link to the entry page to my site about The History of Gear: http://www.oregonphotos.com/Backpacking-Revolution1.html (--- there are now over 45 pages and over 50 of the old classic companies).
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Nice Post!
The Bombshelter had to be the best straight pole design out there, hence the name!
I had Sierra Designs 3-Man that I loved to death!
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Doug Robinson
Trad climber
Santa Cruz
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Topic Author's Reply - Jan 1, 2011 - 03:36pm PT
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Hi Bruce,
Thanks fro your historical website, and glad to see you here.
That is one sweet Bombshelter! Way tight construction from Larry Horton. His execution of designs was always to be admired.
The Bombshelter is indeed tiny, but way more bombproof in blizzard winds than any geodesic in my experience, especially the VE-24 which I used quit a bit. Mind you, I have no complaints about the VE-24. It is traditionally thought of as the most, uh...bombproof out there. And they always stood up fine for me in rager conditions. But the Bombshelter is just hunker-down solid!
Likely I mentioned taking one to ski 36 days along the John Muir Trail in 1970. Cut it myself and modified our ski poles so it would set up with just the addition of a ridgepole. Two pounds for bomber shelter for two people. Pretty cramped, though, the third day in a snowstorm!
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Swifter
Social climber
Flagstaff, AZ
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Hi Doug! What a great thread. I was introduced to your writing avatar in Ascent...Mt. Lyell in the Shadow of T.S. Elliott or similar. Keep that typewriter clicking! (I'm losing everything these days, most recently a photo of Don's wedding reception that I uploaded, but I don't know where it went. If S&R can locate it, it was meant to go here.
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Doug Robinson
Trad climber
Santa Cruz
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Topic Author's Reply - Jan 6, 2011 - 10:58pm PT
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Hi Bob!
In the fullness of time I'm sure you'll find Don and Joan's wedding photo. I would love to see it. I still think of them every time I walk by the Banquet Boulder -- most recently in September -- and I wasn't even at the wedding.
I was just thinking of you and Don as I wrote a long piece about Smoke Blanchard. More about the Buttermilk Rock Course than the Palisades, but those times all blend together. It's going into a revival of Ascent -- which is pretty amazing in itself -- in March.
And I was up to the East Face of Whitney (actually the Buttress) again in October, and was recalling guiding a second rope behind you in, I think, 1967. Nearly down, I fell in the talus, laid my shin open, and you took me to the hospital in Lone Pine to get stitched up.
Cheers!
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Rivendell Jensen pack trivia note:
Al Givler was wearing his, very carefully packed I might add, when he fell
from a helo on a downed aircraft rescue in the Cascades. He fell 250' and
landed flat on his back onto a hard crust of about 2-3" overlying a foot or so of
cold and dry. He didn't exactly walk away but he was walking in a couple of days!
He attributed his lack of injuries to his carefully packed Jensen in addition
to the perfect snow conditions.
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Swifter
Social climber
Flagstaff, AZ
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Doug Robinson
Trad climber
Santa Cruz
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Topic Author's Reply - Jan 9, 2011 - 10:37am PT
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Thanks, Bob! Glad you found it.
Joan looks quietly radiant. I know you're supposed to say stuff like that about brides, but she really has a serene presence.
Wish we could see more of Don.
I can't believe Lin's shoes! The Banquet Boulder is a mile and a half and a thousand feet above the roadhead. (The old roadhead -- it's a mile further now.) I hope she hiked in tennies and brought those heels in her pack, just like they do in Manhattan.
Sweet little gathering. Somehow, I always imagined more people.
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