Route setting

It's official, I will be joining the touchstone route setting crew as early as the end of august. No more front desk for me. Psyched!

Failing

In the past month i haven't gone running once, i only climbed routes once, but i have lost a few lbs i managed to gain this spring. Basically i've been failing at the sumer of fitness program but i am feeling a bit stronger so i guess it's ok. i think it's time to try to get back on the program, lose a few more lbs, get some endurance back and be a little more structured about training. On a positive note Trinity Aretes was freaking rad! Although our trip was cut a day short Natasha and i had a good time figuring out some routes and coming close to finishing up some hard lines. Natasha worked all the moves of Spliff 13c and i did all the moves on Smoke Signals also 13c but very different. Spliff is a 80 foot endurance test where Smoke Signals is a 40 foot boulder problem. both very cool routes that fit our very different styles of climbing, Tash can hold on for the long haul and i do much better on short bouldery routes. i was very surprised i enjoyed Smoke Signals so much since it's pretty much solid 12c/d for the first 3 clips then it turns on at a VERY crimpy v8ish crux. Overall this is an amazing crag and i'm psyched to go back there and finish that route.

Summer Time

Summer is here and it's pretty much to hot to climb outside for me, so that leaves me with training in the gym and my new found hobby of trail running. I started out the summer drinking a shit ton of beer and eating a a shit ton of BBQ, that has all changed now, it's time to get fit. in the next 8 weeks i need to shed the 8 pounds of body fat i gained drinking all that beer and eating all that food. my plan; run a bunch, climb a ton of routes and watch my diet very closely (all of this applies to monday - saturday, sunday is the "eat anything you want day") i'm cutting out nearly all beer, dairy and processed foods. 3 by 4's here i come, gotta get that endurance back. Regular 7 to 10 mile trail runs are also in the line up. Summer of Fitness 2010 has begun. On another note i'm going up to Trinity Aretes soon for some fun sport climbing, really psyched on that.

Found the Psych!

After a pretty discouraging spring session in The Valley and the distraction of sport climbing to heal a nearly busted shoulder i've found the psych again. In the past 10 days i've bouldered on plastic 4 times which just about doubles the total number of boulder sessions since my shoulder started feeling fucked 4 months ago and i have to say i'm pretty surprised at how quickly it's coming back. As long as my shoulder doesn't explode i'm ready to get back at it and train fucking hard this summer. It's gonna take A LOT of hard work and dedication to obtain my goal of climbing V10 by the fall but i'm down to make the effort. PSYCHED!

Surf Safari

Dan and i decided to head out to Surf Safari 5.13d/14a this morning thinking that it would be perfect since the weather is so good but we were wrong. The holds were all wet which made clipping a bit nerve wrecking especially in the first couple bolts. We basically ended up doing a couple aid pitches instead of actually sport climbing. Being that it was my first time out there i didn't care that it was wet all that much, i really just wanted to figure out beta and make a few moves which i did so i don't feel like it was a total waste. I'm psyched to get back out there and try it again with drier conditions.

routes vs bouldering

apparently i've become a route climber and my bouldering has gone to complete shit. 6 months ago i could not have imagined myself climbing pretty well on routes but for some strange reason i'm fucking psyched on climbing the longer ones right now. i really wish i could get back into bouldering shape but being that the spring season is looking to be a bit of a wash i might just keep roping up and see if i can attain my goal of climbing 5.14 by the fall. who knows, i'm hella indecisive about shit right now. either way i need to start training hard and STOP eating candy.

Yosemite Round 2

Once again i spent the last weekend in Yosemite Valley and with far more success on the blocks. After a quick session late Saturday morning to work out some of the moves, watch Dan send and fall off the infamous mantle, i went back that evening for better temps and sent Midnight Lightning first go. SO FUCKING PSYCHED! I think i'm kinda starting to get the hang of climbing in the Valley, and can't wait to get back out there and try some harder shit.

Yosemite

Dex and i went to the valley this last weekend for some bouldering with little expectations and it reminded me that i am NOT a good rock climber. I got shut the fuck down by every problem i tried including things i flashed in the fall. Basically i spent the weekend blowing off rocks and bleeding all over the place. It appears to be time to train really hard,try to learn some technique and try to find some psyche being that i for some reason have none at the moment.

First 5.13!

I spent at least 4 weekends working on this route and kinda beat it down till it felt easy. On saturday i came about as close as possible to sending it until i missed clipping the chains and took the BIGGEST whipper i've ever taken, i fell a good 50 feet before Natasha was slammed into the first draw de-camming the grigri, thank god she's an experienced climber and knew to hold the break end of the rope. After a good nights sleep we went back to the crag on sunday and after 2 warm-up burns i got back on Cell Block and sent it. So psyched! Natasha killed it out there as usual sending the 13a Toe to Toe and the 12d misdemeanor both 2nd go. Over all a super fun and exciting weekend.

It looks like the valley is gonna be dry here real fast and i can't wait to get back to bouldering on that bomber granite.

For now it's a rest "week", my shoulder has been really bothering me and i believe it's time to rest it up and get it back to 100% before the valley season comes and goes.

The definition of punting

Wednesday Natasha, Ethan, Ben and i headed up to the house for a little rock climbing. We woke up early, got an early start, and somehow still managed to be hours behind our friends Dan and Vian. Weather wise we couldn't have asked for a much better day, it was cool and cloudy with the sun poking out from time to time. after "warming up" on the usual 11d Natasha and I headed over to a 12b called Whipping Boy (named for the 20 foot run out from the last bolt to the chains), Natasha hiked it as expected and with her complete spray down i managed to flash the route. After a few more routes and getting just the right amount of pump it was time for Natasha to get on her project Assassin 13d which she fucking crushed just after Ethan did. Then it was my turn. I've been working on Cell Block for the past few weekends and have the thing pretty damn wired. I basically walked up the route with no problems, then, with 2 moves to go, i fucking PUNTED, the last 3 moves are fucking easy if you do the sequence in order. But I decided i was gonna forget how it went, move up right hand instead of left and blow off. I PUNTED! Ethan on the other hand put down 8 pitches that day with ease and Ben and Natasha were killing it.