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kevin Fosburg
Sport climber
park city,ut
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Apr 19, 2006 - 04:30am PT
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I love this thread. Grug, how is the Flakes? I'd like to try that this year.
Something I've noticed about that place in the few times I've visited is that the average age of the climbers seems to be about 40. Last year I ran into Bob Robertson (who should probably hook up with E and T2 at some point for a novelty FA), who I hadn't seen in about 15 years. Old dads getting after it in adventure town, nice.
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Grug
Trad climber
Golden, Colorado
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 19, 2006 - 08:16am PT
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Kevin. The Flakes is a good one - apparently it does not get done much. I did it in 1992 with a guy I'd just met the week before, climbing in Boulder. I don't know that I'd recommend this, but we did it by starting on the north rim, hiking down the SOB gully, and crossing the river to get to the start. After topping out, we did a short hike to the next downstream gully, and bushwacked down that thing (with one rappel), crossed the river again, and hiked up the SOB. The route has some memorable pitches. As long as you feel solid on 5.9 wide (like free-solo solid), it's not all that scary.
When I was going to the Black with Clean Dan in the early '90s, we used to run in Bob Robertson and his daughter, Carrie (I think) semi-regularly. I was always amazed - she was only 14 in 1990 or 91, and here she was climbing some big bad route out of the Black...with her DAD!
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BrentA
Gym climber
estes park
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Apr 19, 2006 - 12:15pm PT
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this is more of a bump, have to go do some work stuff...
I was better for a while, but now I'm fuqed again....lol.
Early ascent of No Pig Left my partner and I are simulin a block down low when nature's call hits HARD. In desperate need to release the monster duece I climb a little faster, pull up a bunch of slack, release the beast (while belaying), zip up, and fall back into rhythm with no missed beat. This is one of that partners favorite stories to laugh at me about.
I knew the Black was the real F-in deal when Tom Pulaski mentioned "putting the rope on our backs" in a midstream discussion of a second ascent on the painted wall as well as "chasing down that damn Kor"....
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bob d'antonio
Trad climber
boulder, co
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Apr 19, 2006 - 01:02pm PT
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One could only wonder what was going on in Jimmy and Earl heads when they when to do the FFA of the Cruise.
Had to be be one of the most historical ascents in American climbing history.
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BrentA
Gym climber
estes park
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Apr 19, 2006 - 06:55pm PT
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Indeed Bob,
Or Earl's solo....Visionary, or truly "touched"?
I've freesoloed two routes down there, on the same day...I stopped 3 times on the drive out telling myself "NO, don't do it"
I can't imagine what the shape the Cruise was in back in those days...but mutha f'er....almost seems "touched" to me.
Proud work that Springs crew put in down there.
I got ALLLLL fubarred with Leonard one night and listened to him drop some stories on me...that place is just proud, plain and simple.
I hope it remains that way FOREVER! I, however, fear that is not the case.
I'd stack Boulder's Million dollar crew up against any set of dudes in the world...they are THAT badass. I just a puddle of dung compared to how those boyz roll.
Good on 'em...carry that torch HIGH!!!!!
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bob d'antonio
Trad climber
boulder, co
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Apr 19, 2006 - 07:44pm PT
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Brent...don't know if you knew Earl or not? He was a wondedful and kind person. One of the nicest I have met in the climbing world.
Earl and Jimmy made quite the pair. Climbed with Earl a bit when I lived in C-Springs. I first met Jimmy back in the late 70's and still keep in touch with him. His first solo of the big stone (El-Cap) was an amazing feat by an amazing climber.
I agree with your assestment of some of these way talented climbers these days. It's great to see these folks taking over where past generations left off.
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Grug
Trad climber
Golden, Colorado
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 19, 2006 - 08:28pm PT
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Those Colorado Springs climbers - Jimmy Dunn, Earl Wiggins, Leonard Coyne, ... I'll bet most of the folks at ST don't even know of them, in spite of the fact that their accomplishments stack up with the best of the Stonemasters'.
So Brent, if you don't mind me asking, what are the two routes you soloed?
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bob d'antonio
Trad climber
boulder, co
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Apr 19, 2006 - 08:51pm PT
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Greg wrote: Those Colorado Springs climbers - Jimmy Dunn, Earl Wiggins, Leonard Coyne, ... I'll bet most of the folks at ST don't even know of them, in spite of the fact that their accomplishments stack up with the best of the Stonemasters'.
Earl solo Outer Limits at the age of 16 or 17. Jimmy did the first solo ascent of El Cap via a new route. Anyone with a sense of history know of Earl and Jimmy.
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kevin Fosburg
Sport climber
park city,ut
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Apr 20, 2006 - 03:46am PT
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Bump
The second BC route I tried was Stoned Oven. It's a long way down to the base of that route and it's like looking up Half Dome or something when you get there. At that time I was (still am actually) trying to figure out the right shoe strategy for that place. The plan that day was hike in the super-comfy Madrock Frenzys and break out the tight Muiras for the hard pitches. So, it's way huge looking and intimidating and in the nervous rush to get going I don't bother switching shoes for the first pitch, rated 5.10. That was a mistake, that pitch is not so easy. I wound up hanging and got an immediate case of snail-eye to which my partner readily concurred. If you're ever shamefacedly hiking up the Cruise gully, a good option is the route Midsummernight's Dream.
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flamer
Trad climber
denver
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Apr 20, 2006 - 05:05am PT
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Dude!! There ain't no room for 2 pairs of climbing shoes when all you've got is a rope, a rack, and the shirt on your back!
My second trip to the black saw Me caught in a nasty snow and rain storm all night at Fantasy Island. Sure wished I had a rain fly for the ledge at about 2am when I realise I was laying right in the path of a small waterfall.
The Weather gods gave us about a 3 hour reprieve the next morning to bail. When we hit the deck the sky opened up once again for the slog up the Cruise gully. I'll never forget climbing out the upper rappel in the heaviest rain of the storm. Reaching up for holds and having water streaming down my arms. Round 2...The Black 2..me wooped twice.
Both times were hell'a fun though....
josh
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BrentA
Gym climber
estes park
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Apr 20, 2006 - 10:25am PT
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JOsh,
Call JJ and drop your Vegas number on him, I'll give you a call. LEts get it on, but maybe a Wilson lap first?
Bob, didn't know Earl. Know a fellow named Doug Snively (Estes old school hardman) that worked and played with Earl for years. All my stories filter through him.
Over too much kind nuggage on the drive down one time I managed to scarf a 3lb bag of red licorice (solo), from Boulder, not the Gunni chapter of life. Atop the OW on the Cruise (again) natures call was too much...I BLASTED azz off that little stance with my partner taking photos the whole time (one won some contest at CLimbiing mag), at this exact moment some other friends poked their head around the corner from Scenic and it had to look like some third rate fetish porno shoot...me squatting, Ryan documentiing the moment...HEARTY laughter by all parties involved.
Ryan and I are sharing our first rope in the Black together on Escape Artist, leading the first 60 feet of the pitch after Vector Traverse the skies OPEN up and hail like MAD. So bad I barely downcliimb to belay to look for a rappel escape. No dice, we only had the one cord and the odd geometry (sp?) of that spot looked to not allow it. In good style we simuled to the top in a GNARLY hail storm...I mean GNARLY.
Good times...Keep the stories comin....
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Grug
Trad climber
Golden, Colorado
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 20, 2006 - 10:36am PT
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Kevin, the Stoned Oven is a pretty stiff climb for a second outing. I'd have to say it's the hardest one that I've done.
As for the shoes - I've always hiked down in the shoes I've worn on the climb. Do not enjoy having ANY extra baggage when climbing out.
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BrentA
Gym climber
estes park
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Apr 20, 2006 - 10:53am PT
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I'm all about "less is more", but I've never descended in my rock shoes....yuck. I can only imagine this being "borderline" viable for N. Chasm routes, hiking to the Paintd Wall in Steath rubba would cripple me, and I'm already a borderline gimp.
Heard of flip-flop descents, but I always wear normal shoes, and just try to chinese downhill down those gullies.
There is an older thread that some of the boyz and I schmack talked pretty well on, just funny, nothing informative but the birth of the term..."inbred A5 soldier" by Robbie Williams....tooo f'n funny.
http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=182#msg100570
Edit-looking at the date, this was now 5 years ago....lmfao. Ryan is expecting his first, I'm missing five toes, Robbie is out chasing benjamins...we all STILL jones and plot as hard as ever to get down there. Where does the time go? Oddly, our stories haven't gotten any TALLER, but jeez, do I feel like the high school QB talkin bout the glory dayz....
Good thing I'm still livn this shizzle or I'd slit my wrists with envy.
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golsen
Social climber
kennewick, wa
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Apr 20, 2006 - 11:20am PT
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When I was living in Kansas in the early 90's I used the Stoned Oven as a training climb for a One Day ascent of the Salathe Wall on El Cap. I knew that the Salathe on-site in a day was a big undertaking and that if I could get on some longish route in the Black that our chances on the Salathe would improve. It was not at all clear to me after completing both of those routes which one should have been the training for which...I may have been confused as to which one should have been the trainer (LOL)...Of course on the Stoned Oven we freed the whole thing and we french freed much of the Salathe and broke out aiders on the real hard pitches. Fact is, route finding, setting your own anchors and the adventure level felt harder to me on the Stoned Oven than it did on the Salathe in a Day. On the Salathe it is the length that is difficult but you can climb much of it on auto-pilot. hahaha
I have lost too many toe nails from getting off El Cap without descent shoes, in the Black I always took other shoes for the descent...
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flamer
Trad climber
denver
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Apr 20, 2006 - 11:26am PT
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Brent,
Will do. I'm head to Cali. for the weekend to surf. Will call next week.
Wilson lap sounds about right, I'm feeling strong!
josh
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bob d'antonio
Trad climber
boulder, co
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Apr 20, 2006 - 11:32am PT
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When I did the Goss-Logan it was just my partner second route in the Black. I don't know what made me do the route ( we were going to do the Scenic Cruise) but we went for it anyway. We got a late start and started down the gully at 6:50 am. It was a beautiful late September day, not a cloud in the sky. I lead the first couple of pitches of the SC and then go left to G-L. My partner leads one pitch and then decide she had enough. Like an idiot, I say ok and kept forging upward. My partmer drinks most of our water and by pitch 10 I start to lose it. No escape from the sun. No water and five more pitches left. By pitch eleven I want to kill my partner for drinking most of the water but will do that dirty deed when we reach the rim. I need her to belay for now. It funny how you like someone at the start of a climb but hate them with a passion near the end of it. By three o'clock the sun goes left around the wall. I get revive and reach the upper pitches of the S-C. We top out at 6.20 pm and I flop on the rim like a beached whale. I belayer my partner up and then run to campground for water and beer. Life is good again and I don't kill my partner.
I done a million routes but these climbs seems to stand out as some of the best climbing and best times I have ever had.
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Grug
Trad climber
Golden, Colorado
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 20, 2006 - 11:42am PT
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Pretty funny thread Brent - I should have searched for that.
Now that I think about it, I always argued with my partners about the shoe thing, and generally, I was the only one wearing my climbing shoes down the gully. Seems like I've always done BC climbs with a very small pack - enough for water, a couple of light jackets, a little something to eat - and MAYBE room for one pair of shoes. A little stoicism never hurt anyone.
Bob. I'm with you, man. There have been years when I've only done 3 or 4 climbs and 2 of them have been in the Black. Most everything else seems like practice.
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bob d'antonio
Trad climber
boulder, co
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Apr 20, 2006 - 12:09pm PT
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I have always tried to emulate the style of Dunn, Wiggins, Webster, Becker..etc when climbing in the "Black".
It's not if I got up the route...but how I did it.
The place asks a little more out of you.
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Jaybro
Social climber
The West
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Apr 20, 2006 - 12:53pm PT
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I always wore Tevas for the descents, a little dicey on the feet, but a low profile package on the harness.
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Fry Guy
Trad climber
Bondale, CO
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Apr 20, 2006 - 01:18pm PT
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The dog story was classic. In those days Brent and I would get in the truck in Gunny, indulge in our medicine, and drive like bats out of hell straight to the rim never saying one damn word to one another. Since then we laugh at how little we knew about each others personal lives after so many adventures. All we knew was that we could get up some sh#t together.
Anyways, not a word and all of the sudden the crazy lady literaly jumps in front of our truck. "Guess we better see what's up". That dog didn't really like being thrown from ledge to ledge. Then that bastard tried to claim our fame. Shit!
I definately hated Brent by the end of that day. I take the first block on the H-wall, Brent takes the second, I finish off the third to the belay below the massive roof and we're still moving pretty fast. Still lot's of time but we're running out of light. Brents lead and I must have hung there for 3-4 hours shivering. I doubt he had a single bite of food and probably little more water that day. He's bonked. Finally we make it to the 5.9 groove and he decides he's done. WHAT! Sh#t, my mind was very content with the fact that I was juggin to the top and now I gotta lead some runnout crap pitch.
"You've been here Brent, where does it go".
"Uh, up man, Uh, I don't really remember"
"Well isn't there supposed to be a bolt or something? Does it go up the wide chimney on the left or around into the choss groove on the right? "
"Uh yeah it should be up there somewhere. I don't know man just take us to the top."
"For F*&^%*&^$Ks sake, look out I gotta put on my shoes, you BIATCH!"
After crying my way up the sketch I choose the choss gully on the right. Then get rope drag and have to belay early off some choss blocks. Out of water, out of food, hallucinating, cold. We were full on yelling at each other on those last two pitches. No love there. As always though it was back to normal by the time we reached the campground popped a brewski and started scheemin on the future possibilities. When you get up something in the Black you definately start to think of the possibilities you have in less demanding areas.
Stratosphere has always been on my list too. We'll get there some day.
Brent won't talk about his solos because he's trying to forget. Those are the kind of days that make a man quit our sport and take up poker or chess or something. The Black is a lonely place with a partner! Scary things happen down there when your by yourself. It sends you home with a slightly out of this world look on your face that lasts for a few years. I remember his.
Ryan J.
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