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BASE104
climber
An Oil Field
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Hey Steve,
Ask Mimi about Dale living with Bobbie in his bread van next to Robinson's house in forty acres.
He built the first climbing wall that I ever saw. It was 12 feet high or so with four overhanging sides. The holds were rocks that he hunted for and epoxied on with that highway glue that they put reflectors on the road with. Not sure how he scored that.
The holds were smooth and like little buckets. You would just traverse around and around and up and down until you totally burned out.
On each corner he put overhanging crack machines that were each different sizes of off fingers. I wasn't a good crack climber, so I was lucky to get my feet off the ground. He would just cruise lap after lap. I had never seen anyone that good on cracks before. I was kind of put on slave labor helping him build it.
He also had a horizontal machine of perfect hands that he would just get on and do lap after lap after lap. He would only come down to turn the tape over in his boom box and get right back on. He tried to train me, but I was untrainable on the off-fingers stuff.
He seemed to eat nothing but spinach. He was so tiny, but it was all muscle.
The inside of the bread van was like a 4 star hotel. He seemed to be kind of a perfectionist. Nice guy. Kind of quiet.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Jan 9, 2008 - 11:08am PT
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A little technique can take you a long way.....
I think that Dale's wood wall was the first climbing structure that I ever set foot on long ago. I knew these guys were getting mighty strong and it all made sense when I saw the thing. I went on to design and build a few myself up the road.
Mr. Robinson's house up in Happy Valley was a crossroads for a lot of climbers and always a house of good cheer! And Elvis really is an attractive blond gal who stayed for a while and brewed some mean suds! Actually, the brewers were a couple and their names have escaped me but not their faces. The many faces of Elvis......who is everywhere and everything or at least that's what Mojo sez.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Jan 9, 2008 - 10:31pm PT
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And now a little Roots Basic Rockcraft for the old timers! RR on fundamental crack technique. Illustrations by Sheridan Anderson.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Jan 12, 2008 - 12:30pm PT
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Rockcraft Bump!
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 28, 2008 - 11:04pm PT
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Bump for a pump....with Yvon!
From the AAJ 1970. Tips from the boss!
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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Sep 29, 2008 - 11:01pm PT
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Steve
Were you at Facelift?
If so, I'm bummed I didn't get to meet you.
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tooth
Mountain climber
B.C.
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Sep 30, 2008 - 08:10am PT
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bump
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 30, 2008 - 10:31am PT
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Not this year but certainly 09! I hope it was a big success.
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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Sep 30, 2008 - 10:35am PT
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Steve
Well, I'm relieved that I didn't miss you.
Hope to be there next year myself. What an incredible
occasion, and the Chicken Skinner is just beyond awesome!
PS
Thanks for your continued history!
(you were mentioned in the Alpinist silver issue on
El Cap)!
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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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Sep 30, 2008 - 11:30am PT
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A bump in the night.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 30, 2008 - 12:27pm PT
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Did you find my contribution to Alpinist 25 interesting?
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scuffy b
climber
Elmertown
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Hey, thanks for posting up the Chouinard article. Raises a question: what the heck is he wearing on his feet? He was probably pretty stoked about them.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 2, 2008 - 10:23am PT
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I can't ID the boots but they sure look crack friendly!
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 24, 2008 - 01:05am PT
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Pump bump....
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marty(r)
climber
beneath the valley of ultravegans
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Oct 24, 2008 - 01:13am PT
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Steve,
I definitely enjoyed your Alpinist piece. Still waiting for a Muir Wall write up. Also seems like time for a second-coming of Dale. Any word on what he's up to these days?
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Stephen McCabe
Trad climber
near Santa Cruz, CA
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Oct 25, 2008 - 03:53am PT
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Going way back in the thread: I know Bob “Bob-o” Locke (R.I.P.) set up a top rope on 10.96, getting there using a perhaps somewhat hairy or roundabout third class/fifth class route that one of the crack climbers of the day had shown him. He did climb with Dale, but I don't know if it was Dale who showed him the way around to that TR.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 25, 2008 - 05:30pm PT
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Thanks Marty,
Too damn bad about the fate of Alpinist! Now that they are gone, I may very well tell the tale of the Muir hammerless on the ST. I sure hope Alpinist rises again because the mainstream climbing mags would have likely have little interest or my support.
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Jingy
Social climber
Flatland, Ca
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Oct 25, 2008 - 05:41pm PT
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wow
i feel as thought i've been given the holy grail.
now i can do anything
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 12, 2009 - 09:38pm PT
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The power of positive posting......
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Leavittator
climber
san diego, ca.
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Feb 13, 2009 - 10:42pm PT
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I think the climber in the 1096 photo posted early in this thread is Max Jones - one of the best all around climbers of that day.
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