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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Mar 28, 2012 - 03:51pm PT
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Powell, Bob Kamps, Dave Rearick, Frank Sacherer and Royal Robbins really defined the freeclimbing game in earnest beginning at Tahquitz and venturing onto larger walls in Yosemite.
Mark did recently lose his leg due to complications from the original accident while approaching Arrowhead Arete and not from diabetes.
He is otherwise fit and strong for a man of his years.
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Don Lauria
Trad climber
Bishop, CA
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Apr 17, 2012 - 04:57pm PT
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Largo,
Hell, I'll be 80 this year. Mark was at least 80 when I saw him at the First Ascent of the Nose thing in Yosemite. Was that about 3 1/2 years ago?
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crunch
Social climber
CO
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Apr 17, 2012 - 05:58pm PT
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Has the interview material ever been published in a climbing mag? I can't believe stuff this interesting hasn't been available in print.
Well, sort of.
Steve Grossman kindly sent me part of his interview, relating to the desert trips of 1956 and 1957, and part of this found its way into print in my book Desert Towers. The ascents of Spider Rock and Totem Pole were supposed to be side trips for Powell, Gallwas and Wilson but things turned out differently.
Powell broke his ankle and his climbing career, as far as cutting edge new routes, was much curtailed. Gallwas went on to climb the FA of NW Face Half Dome, then was drafted. Mid-1960s, he began climbing again only to have a long fall (while tied into the rope direct--not good); this prompted him to decide to retire from serious climbing. Wilson embarked on an academic career in biology, developing groundbreaking techniques for photographing insect's wings, in flight, among other things. He still climbed, on occasion, but mostly free climbing in Socal.
So, as Powell admits, with a smile, in his interview, the desert ascents ended up being some of his more significant ascents. They were, methinks, for all three.
The interview footage I watched is fascinating. Powell is an engaging, amusing interviewee, with a clear memory of much that went on back then. Lots of great stories. Thanks Steve!
A fantastic era to be a climber, the mid-to-late 1950s; with El Cap still untouched, and the handful of Southern California climbers so far ahead of anyone else. So much was still wide open. The horizons must have seemed infinitely far away, the possibilities endless.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 22, 2012 - 12:36pm PT
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I am actively working a towards making my interview footage available to those people that appreciate history and will keep STers in the loop.
First hand accounts are always the most rewarding and illuminating historically.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 2, 2013 - 05:17pm PT
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Personality bump
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guyman
Social climber
Moorpark, CA.
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Mark Powell got me into climbing. I was lucky enuf to meet him right when he was having a climbing resurgence, 1973 after getting divorced from Bev.
He could still get after it on the rocks, but most importantly he could party like no one else.
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Tarheel
Trad climber
San Rafael, CA
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Apr 15, 2013 - 07:50pm PT
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Hey Steve, Thanks for posting this. Do you know what sort of larger pitons, if any, Mark might have had when doing the 1957 routes such as North Dome South Face? He mentions in his account that it was hard to set up a hanging belay 100 feet up one of the upper corners. While climbing the route recently I was actually puzzled how they could have got up with their relatively short ropes in cracks that are trending around 2-3 inches. This led me to your post where I read that he climbed Spider Rock during this period. My stereotype of desert climbing suggested they might therefore have had a few 1-2" or larger pitons on North Dome. Even if they did have some larger iron, their super fast 6-hour FA suggested to me they probably had a pretty small rack and a ton of courage in the rucksack.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - May 17, 2014 - 02:55pm PT
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Likely no pitons much bigger than 1" unless Jerry Gallwas was in the party as he was actively making pins by 1957 when everyone else was just getting their start. Wooden wedges were what was available commercially until about 1960 when Tom Frost and Bill Feuerer began making some of the first large alloy steel angle pitons. I should know when Dick Long first started shaping his big angles. I will have to ask him.
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jgill
Boulder climber
Colorado
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May 17, 2014 - 05:44pm PT
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I seem to recall Mark being 6 - 8 years older than me and I'm 77.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - May 17, 2014 - 06:20pm PT
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Did you two ever climb together?
Needles, perhaps?
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Jim Herrington
Mountain climber
New York, NY
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Mar 30, 2016 - 01:59pm PT
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Bump for history.
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Mar 30, 2016 - 02:26pm PT
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I heard from the fount of all BS, my lamented mentor Millis, that MP
1. Came from Fresburg,
Mouse, that isn't entirely false. He arranged to be stationed in Fresno so he could be closer to the mountains than he was in LA. While in the Big Raisin, he made the first ascent of the formation at the east end of Patterson Bluffs he called Balch Camp Flake. This is the formation that was the focus of "Balchfest" that Micronut put together not quite 60 years after Powell's ascent.
John
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jgill
Boulder climber
The high prairie of southern Colorado
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Mar 30, 2016 - 04:26pm PT
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Did you two ever climb together? Needles, perhaps?
In the 1960s a group would meet in the Needles during august to climb, boulder, play volleyball, golf, tennis and party around the campfire at Oreville CG. So I saw a lot of Mark and did some bouldering with him and Bob Kamps and maybe a little climbing although I can't remember specifics.
Mark must be around 87 now. He taught meteorology at a community college in CA for years. This probably came up earlier in this thread.
Soft spoken, but a dashing fellow!
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 8, 2017 - 04:06pm PT
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Bump for Powell and Robbins...
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Nature Boy
Trad climber
Portland, OR
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Steve is right, if you don't have Chris Jones' Climbing in North America in your collection you are really missing out. It is essential reading for any climber. Hey, what's this right next to me? Wow, a paperback copy of said book in Very Good-Fine condition! I will sell it for $20.00 shipped to anywhere in the Lower 48. This is cheaper than similar condition editions on Amazon. Can send pics if interested. I believe Mountaineers Books was the last publisher. The title doesn't appear on their website so perhaps it's out of print now.
Sorry for the injection of a little capitalism into this thread, but I recently found a signed hardcover copy in a thrift store and would like to get my paperback copy into the hands of someone you'll put it to good use. It really is an outstanding book. If interested please send an email to climberjohn AT hotmail DOT com. Thanks and happy climbing!
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