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Grug
Trad climber
Golden, Colorado
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Topic Author's Reply - Mar 4, 2006 - 10:48am PT
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With respect to Boulder 13, I can't remember doing it except during that bouldering contest. That house was constructed right near it in like 1976, and it seems to me that it is on their property. Can you climb there without permission?
I did do it without any true offwidth moves - kinda feels like cheating. I just made my fist as big as possible (by sticking my bent thumb out) for the last two or three moves.
So far from the responses to this thread, it would seem that Undertow, Gregs Crack (or whatever), Boulder 13, and MS are the contenders. I can think of about 4 other offwidths that are at least 5.10. Damn, Vedauwoo must have 200 of 'em.
mtwoodsonguide - maybe I will look you up when I'm down there. I don't know any climbers from that way any more.
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Klimmer
Mountain climber
San Diego
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Cruel and Unusual Punishment
My core group of friends in my church HS youth group in Poway were very competitve. We would challenge the rest of the group in activities we were good at. One of them was into competitive indoor Volleyball and spanked all of us. The youth minister was a very good alpine skier and spanked all of us at Big Bear and Mammoth. Then it was my turn and I spanked all of them (including me) on Boulder 13, Mt. Woodson. I told them this was a typical Woodson climb. I sand bagged them before we even got out of the car. I think I won. I spanked every single one of us. This was before the house was built.
Photo by GHS/Realm of Light
As far as I know Boulder 13 is not on the property of the home owners, but you do have to skirt around now to get there. I need to revisit that climb too.
Greg what was the year(s) of the first Woodson contests and who was there? My first contest was the one at Magnolia Boulders, in about '78?
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Jaybro
Social climber
The West
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yeah, greg I don't know how much time you've spend up at @ Vedauwoo since living in golden, but that's the place for weird o.w probs. I think you know scarpelli (he's the one that told me about your generator mishap)get him to give you the tour He know more strange things up there than the rest of us can imagine.
most are unnamed, but;
University of Mars
nat's
Some new thing called 8oz is supposed to be the uber-off
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Grug
Trad climber
Golden, Colorado
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Topic Author's Reply - Mar 4, 2006 - 04:08pm PT
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That first climbing contest at Woodson...and I think it was the first one ever in So Cal was held, I think, in 1975 but it could have been 1974. I won an 11 mm rope back when I don't think I owned one. Like I said earlier, Werner Landry organized it.
Yeah, I know Scarpelli, Jaybro - my hat's off to a superior wide crack climber. Clean Dan introduced us and would refer to us as the offwidth king of ca and offwidth king of wy. I am going to make a point of having him show me around after I get myself recovered and back in shape. I think I still have a Lucille in me in spite of the approaching fitty thing.
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Jaybro
Social climber
The West
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Too funny! And, All roads lead to clean Dan.
I know you do! Fidy is just a number.
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John Vawter
Social climber
San Diego
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Greg:
If I recall correctly, the first "Great Western Bouldering Contest" was at Mission Gorge in 1972, and was organized by Tom Compare, owner operator of A Striving After Wind, the climbing shop in PB. I think there was a climb off between Rick and Werner (?) at Trash Boulder. Pretty sure Rick won the rope.
Next year's was at Santee, October 29, 1973, to be exact. I have a few photos, but no scanner. I think this was the first one Werner organized, or he and Tom did it together. Weren't you at the Santee contest Greg? I thought you and Rick were in the finals with Dennis and me, and Mike Wise, a few others, seven in all. I wore my RR's and went from last to first by flashing the Bullet Hole face. A local kid won the rope on that squeeze chimney/ow problem just uphill from the Light Bulb.
I don't remember what years it was held at Woodson. I was a roving judge at the one at Magnolia in 1979 (?).
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Grug
Trad climber
Golden, Colorado
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Topic Author's Reply - Mar 4, 2006 - 06:46pm PT
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OK. I give up. Every single date-related thing that I've stated in ST is open to suspicion because I can't remember sh#@$t! I just ran across some old climbing rag that clearly had my Lost Arrow Chimney climb at 1978, not 1979, as I stated on another thread. Oh, well.
I DO know Werner that organized the first Woodson contest that I was in. I Do know my name. I DO know that I am. Unfortunately, that still leaves a lot potentially in the other camp. We need some other folks to weigh in here. I'm pretty sure that Rick P was not in the two that I won (otherwise, I probably wouldn't have). John, I did not participate in the 1972 and 1973 contests. I'm also now wondering whether Bachar did California Night and Rick did I Hear My Train A Comin' in a 1974 contest at Woodson. That would fit in with my original thought that the first one at Woodson that I was in was 1975.
After the two Woodson contests that I've referred to, I remembering participating in the one at Magnolia in 1979 and another, later one at Woodson.
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bones
Trad climber
San Diego
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Can anyone tell me how to get to this boulder 13? Not that I have any business on it now, but I'd like to work up to it.
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Klimmer
Mountain climber
San Diego
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Walk up the road. Just before the 2 practice boulders at the bottom, look across the backyard of the nearby house (looking SW). See the large flat looking boulder that is split in 2? That is boulder 13. The opposite face is the climb. DO NOT GO THROUGH THEIR BACKYARD TO GET THERE (as tempting as that might be). GO AROUND WITHOUT DISTURBING THEM.
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bones
Trad climber
San Diego
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thanks klimmer
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bvb
Social climber
flagstaff arizona
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my recollection of the great western bouldering championships:
#1: '72 or '73, at the pink boulder (or was it trash rock??), in mission gorge.
next one i can distinctly remember was '77, there was a climb-off at the end between bachar and yaniro on the (at that time) unclimbed aid crack across the drainage from the black dot problem?
'78 -- the first magnolia contest. i think cameron won? i know he was the only guy to do the right-to-left arching thin crack problem...?
and bachar was the only guy to do this horrendous inch-and-a quarter roof..
the next g.w.b.c i can recall was at roubidoux, in '80? ron fawcett CRUSHED the competition.
then the next one was back at santee, '81 i think, this was the year that the "20 point porblem" first appeared....
i know i'm missing another santee g.w.b.c., where watusi was wearing a clown costume...
the last one i went to was organized by carmel schimmel, woodson march '85 (or '86?), kauk crushed in the "stonemasters" category.
there was another wooodson comp where "werner's wish" was introduced, can't remember the year.
been to too many of those fukkking great western bouldering championships, they've all blurred together.....
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Klimmer
Mountain climber
San Diego
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This bouldering contest history is good stuff . . .
Apparently I can't remember sh@* either.
The ones I went to are:
'78/'79? (What year was it???) Magnolia Boulders. I only knew the local boys, did not know Bachar was there.
---I was gone from sunny SD for 4 years.
'86 "California Bouldering Championship and 1st Annual Stone Masters Free-climbing Competition," March 29, 1986, at Mt. Woodson. Organizer: Yep, Carmel Schimmel (she was working the climbing section at Sports Chalet up in Escondido at the time). I still have the flyers from this comp. True, Ron Kauk totally spanked the competition. He did his circuit early and beat everyone before they knew what ever happened. My girlfriend at the time and I, were up there 1 or 2 days before the contest and Rick Piggot was giving Ron the intro to all the classic master test pieces. Got to chat with him a bit. One thing I remember was Ron walking around in levis and wallabys (looked like he stepped right out of the seventies). That was one of the best bouldering comps I attended. Lots of well known climbers in attendance.
'90 "Southern California Bouldering Championship" Dec. 2, 1990 at Mt. woodson. Again, very well organized and very well attended. Nice t-shirt. I do not remember who won the contest though. I still have the flyers from this comp. It seems to me Rick Piggot was very involved in the contest of '86 and '90. Perhaps he also helped co-organize the events.
All good stuff. Wish something like that would happen again. But, I would want all the same old-timers to return. They would have to have the old-time masters event . . . Must have climbed in one previous GWBC to compete in this category.
Artificial Contests:
'89 Then there were 2 artificial climbing wall contests, one sponsored by Sports chalet in 1989 called "Rock Till You Drop" on May 14, 1989, at the Point Loma store parking lot.
'90 Another at the Del Mar Fair Grounds called "1990 San Diego Indoor Climbing Championship" sponsored by A-16, Black Diamond, and Aquarius Adventures.
Both were fun, but it just isn't the same as the traditional bouldering contests. At the bouldering contests, you could climb a lot more before you would be eliminated, or even keep climbing unofficially afterwards.
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Grug
Trad climber
Golden, Colorado
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Topic Author's Reply - Mar 5, 2006 - 10:41am PT
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bvb. You must be thinking of someone else, as I definitely did not win the first Magnolia contest.
Rich history. It does appear that between John Vawter, bvb, klimmer, and myself we've accounted for most of the contests in the '70s and '80s. I don't know why I was completely clueless about the first two (oh wait, I DO know why). The big question for me is was the first one I entered (presumeably in 1975) the first one at Woodson.
That aside, those were good times. To me, the climbing contests provided an avenue for rubbing shoulders with other San Diego climbers, as I tended to hang out only with a close group of friends (Poway Mountain Boys).
Another thing, more in keeping with the topic of this thread...Woodson is a great place to train for Yosemite cracks in general, and offwidth cracks in particular. I can't tell you the number of times I have climbed with guys who were much better climbers than me in all other categories except wide cracks.
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bvb
Social climber
flagstaff arizona
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right..i think bachar won it. but i almost definately recall (ok, we were smoking a lot of reefer that day so i may be geting this wrong) that you were the first guy to crack the sequence on the right-to-left arching thin seam problem (in the pic above...)
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Splater
climber
Grey Matter
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Anyone ever do the offwidth on the NW slope of Cowles Mtn, just south of the summit of Mission Gorge Rd? old chains on top.
Also,
if anyone wants to give any route info to DK, - ASAP, he is doing a new guidebook to the county. Constructive comments ? or just entertainment value spoutations?
MtWoodsonguide? or are you still working on your own guide?
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Klimmer
Mountain climber
San Diego
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I know Dave Kennedy, although it has been awhile since I’ve seen him. Tell Dave to read the following article: "The Guidebook Problem" by Lito Tejada-Flores & friends, from Ascent, Vol. 2, No. 2, 1974. It will always be a timeless and important article. These are yesterday’s issues, these are today’s issue, and they will be tomorrow’s issues. The issue will not ever go away.
I am not anti-guidebook, I collect them. But they should be done with local consent. The shot-gun method of just writing up anything and everything, no matter how the climbers’ feel who took the time to find and discover the new site(s) and who would like to see an area develop slowly and steady, rather than overnight by publishing the site, needs to be addressed. And the renaming of climbs because the first ascsensionist didn’t want to say in attempt to keep it out of a guidebook also needs to be respected especially if it is a new area development, and previously unpublished. You don’t ever go and rename climbs -- period. I feel strongly about these issues especially here in San Diego County, since it is where I learned to climb and often explore.
I prefer to keep my mouth shut and enjoy newly discovered areas to climb and share them with friends or people of like mind. It is always a hoot to see an area discovered by a guidebook author and then later come up and say, sorry that was already climbed and the name of the climb is, and here is the proof. Instantly the book is out of date.
Things have changed so much since the 70’s especially the number of people who climb. New areas can change rapidly overnight and often not for the better. Case in point, the current local war that is going on over “The Wedge” on El Cajon Mtn. with lots of hurt feelings, falling out friendships, or worse.
In another thread I said, I wouldn’t go there about guidebooks. Oops. Mybad? Flame away. I have my fire retardant underwear on.
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mtwoodsonguide
Big Wall climber
San Diego
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Holy crap grug is Greg Cameron.
So anyways
there are tons of offwidth up on that hill, plenty in the 5.10-11 range, but mostly short. Only Vice Pricipals Office (wide, but not that wide), Undertow (full on) have been called 5.12.
I've got a bunch of offwidth boulder problems in the B1 range though, alot of them are 2 boulders up against each other or sitstarts.
If Woodson should be known for anything, it's flares, where you can only get one hand back to the perfect hands and you have to use alot of chimney tech.
Hate to say it but the stuff out in Utah is way harder, it's such a mind f---, when you got to go a hundred feet looking down at a tipped out big boy and a tube chock.
Anyone ever notice most of the stuff up on that hill is right side in, really screws me up, because I aways want to go right side in.
So a guidebook, I think I just fell into something with a co-author but were only doing santee for right now 320 problems + 160 variations (yeah I know I'm a freak).
Yo, BVB you down for doing the intro and history?
. When I finally get around to Woodson I think it will break 1000 routes and problems (and not like this Santee guide where every 3" is something different).
So a bouldering comp at Santee, I've been thinking about it, I've got about 20 projects in the V6-V10 range, and wouldn't mind seeing some big boys get spanked on some of the established stuff. You know those things you look at and say yeah, no, maybe in another lifetime, were going to tell the mutants that stuff has been done before, and only V3.
Hey, you guys know your sandbaggers right, I'm just realizing 5.11 is actualy like V6.
Oh yeah, no ones mentioned Right Longs Crack, right up there with 13, Greg's and, Mother Superior, and probabally requires more technique then the others.
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Ed Hartouni
Trad climber
Livermore, CA
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here you go:
[url="http://home.comcast.net/~e.hartouni/doc/Guidebook_Problem.txt"] The Guidebook Problem by Lito Tejada-Flores and friends[/url]
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bvb
Social climber
flagstaff arizona
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mtwoodsonguide: let's not forget the ogre -- has some 5.11 offwidth as i recall.
i mentioned this before, and i don't know how this rumor got started, but the ain't no OW on the VP's Office. it starts with flared, technical fists in a really overhanging corner (for me -- and i've got small hands) then steadily gets smaller, winding up as thin hands.
and i must say, maria's ofwidth will put some hair on your chest if you go on-sight it without a rope or pads, like all up on it back in the day n' shite. it's high with a scary overhanging chicken-wing crux -- staring down past your feet at the hard sloping landing 15' down -- right before you can pop into the sanctuary of the squeeze chimmney....
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Off White
climber
Tenino, WA
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The left crack on Mt Everest Boulder doesn't qualify as a "hardest" woodson offwidth, but I like the image.
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