A novel form of training that we do once or twice a year ... CHICKEN HARVEST. Hock running the plucking station. We harvested 95 chickens and 20 very large turkeys.
Friday, September 30, 2011
Improving your grip for rock climbing
A novel form of training that we do once or twice a year ... CHICKEN HARVEST. Hock running the plucking station. We harvested 95 chickens and 20 very large turkeys.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Skiing On Everest
Fall is the time for watching ski movies, a harmless way to pass the time before ski season. As always at this time of year, every week seems to bring out a new crop of films, but with the advent of the Internet there are hundreds of old films to be enjoyed again. THE MAN WHO SKIED DOWN EVEREST, is the story of the 1969, overly large Japanese expedition which put Yuchiro Miura above the South Col for his ski descent. Enjoy.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Sunday, September 25, 2011
The Fall is the time for new ski films
However, rather than watch the premier of another Warren Miller film, or death defying footagin from an Alaskan Couloir, or even one of my former students skiing in an urban Meatballs production ... I went to the Steep Edge Films website an watched a movie comedy from the 1930s. A classic of the German genre of Berg Films - Der Weisse Rausch - starred Leni Riefenstahl, AND just in case you couldn't tell she had a big LR monogrammed over the left breast of all her outfits. Leni with her guide, and the Mutt and Jeff two-some (trying to learn how to ski from a book) make every beginner mistake possible. Of course, by the next season they are reeling off impressive gelandesprungs and doing sophisticated ski ballet steps ... all on the wood skis, and bear trap bindings of the 1930s ... PRETTY DAMNED IMPRESSIVE WATCHING HANNES SCHNEIDER, RUDI MATT, AND THE LANTSCHNER BROTHERS.
Produced and directed by Franck, set in the Arlberg, this is a beautiful piece of cinematography, and I only wish that I could ski as good with modern gear. What little dialogue there is, is in German, however the thin story line is pretty easy to follow without sub-titles. This is must see for a history buff.
The Perfect Peruvian Ski Descent?
Nine months from now we ought to be walking into the Ishinca Valley, with our mules carrying the skis into base camp. Urus could easily be skied, however I think Ishinca would yield a much longer run.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
QUOTE OF THE WEEK ... utopia
The picture is of a 16th century image from Thomas Moore's book UTOPIA. Oscar Wilde once wrote, "A map of the world that does not
Include Utopia is not even worth glancing at."
All this is on my mind as I listened to LOST HORIZON on my drive to Manhattan, and I have been skimming an interesting and highly unusual sort of travel guide, SHANGRI-LA; a travel guide to the Himalayan dream.
Friday, September 23, 2011
Best Alpine Climbing Magazine?
VERTICAL ... I used to buy it at the Saratoga Barnes and Noble for $12.99, now I can get it on my iPad for $3.99. Finally, an up to date magazine where I do not have to wade through sport climbing and bouldering articles? HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Greenhouse Gases
In Manhattan on school business and was I struck by the big digital bulletin board which updates how many metric tons of greenhouse gases are in our atmosphere. I will confess, I believe the climate change science, and I believe we ought to be doing something about it ... Even if there is a small chance we might be wrong, we need to act now!
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Skiing The South Face Of Denali
First ski descent on Denali south face by Andreas Fransson from Bjarne Sahlen on Vimeo.
PRETTY AMAZING ... thanks to Will Sim's blog.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Crag climbing at NCS
Last Saturday, a bunch of our students had the opportunity to spend a day at the crag. With perfect weather, Dave and Larry on hand, and routes from 5.2 - 5.11+ there was something for everyone. The short video snippet shows my daughter nearing the top of one of the easier climbs, named Buried Treasure. I ended up spending a couple of hours there in the late afternoon and did a dozen laps total on Hock's Blessing (5.6), Too Late Dave (5.6), and Unexpected (5.7).
Can we ever get enough of the Eiger Northface?
Eiger North Face HMG from Dan Goodwin on Vimeo.
A great little video of a recent conventional climb of the 1938 route in heavily snowed up conditions. (Please note, given increased rockfall due to climate change, most climbers opt for a Spring or Fall ascents these days.).
Of course, you can go to the Steep Edge Films website and watch SOLO by Leo Dickenson, which profiles Eric Jones and his first British solo of the north face, interspersed with re-creations of famous vignettes in eigerwand history. CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE TRAILER.
Then there is ALPS, the IMAX film version of John Harlin III book THE EIGER OBSESSION, as he finally tackles the mountain that had claimed his Father's life when he was a young boy. Available in DVD, spectacular videography, and an engaging story of a very special guided climb.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE TRAILER.
THE SWISS MACHINE about UELI STECK is awesome, and while the entire video from Sender Films is worth watching the YouTube segment on his Eiger speed solo is entrancing. CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE TRAILER.
Of course a quick Google search will direct you to videos like BECKONING SILENCE, NORTH FACE, EIGER SANCTION, OUT OF THE SHADOWS INTO THE SUN, and on and on ...
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Big weekend for the twins
A hike up Street and Nye, followed by a 5k run afterwards on Friday afternoon, and then a sauna at the fossil cabin to round out the day. On Saturday they covered themselves in glory, as the twins and their buddy finished 1-2-3 itheir age group in a very competitive half marathon race. After their race we headed out to the crag, and the fatigue started to catch up with the boys ... They did get up Unexpected, however it was definitely not a pretty sight.
Friday, September 16, 2011
Himalayan Climbing ... Mount Meru
Renan Osturk, Conrad Anker, and a bunch of other guys are heading back to make another attempt. This video profiles their 2008 expedition to Meru.
Samsara from renan ozturk on Vimeo.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
More on the recent Chamonix Rockfall
THANKS TO CHAMONIX INSIDER ... Yet another in a series of gargantuan rockfalls from the Dru happened this weekend when more than ten thousand cubic meters of rock fell causing tremors that were felt in the centre ville.
The first happened Saturday afternoon, the second on Sunday morning around 10:00 am, and the third on Sunday afternoon.
According to an article on LeDauphine.com, the series of three rockfalls was the biggest since 2005 when the west face released and took most of the Pilier Bonatti with it.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Andean Alpine Advice
My advice is to stay away from the roadside stands selling cuy on your way to the mountains. I am enough of a social scientist to know that it may not be a casual connection but only a correlation ... However Edward was puking his guts out less than six hours after this tasty snack. For those that have never had the pleasure of this Peruvian delicacy, cuy is a BBQ guinea pig.
ANOTHER BLAST FROM THE PAST ... jonathan waterman
I am re-reading Jonathan Waterman's IN THE SHADOW OF DENALI. Jon and I did a lot of climbing together in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He helped get me a job at COBS, we ice climbed extensively in the White Mountains and Kathadin, talked about climbing the Cassin Ridge in Winter (which he did), did some winter climbs in Chamonix, and as the humorous passage below reveals, did a bit of ice climbing in Scotland with John Thackray and Jim Balog.
"Once in a Scottish pub called the Clachaig Inn, John suggested I order an unfamiliar-sounding drink to impress the mob of Scottish climbers ... I self-consciously elbowed up to the noisy bar ... Shouted out ky order for a 'half pint of shandy' - I did not know that this was a concoction of lemonade and beer, widely considered a child's drink - and asked politely, 'Do you have any cold ones?' ... Suddenly a hush fell over the bar ... The bartender threw down his dishrag, smiled knowingly, and paused for effect before he spoke. 'And would you like a white staw in it, too?' From across the pub, Thackray's titter started a cacophony of laughter."
Monday, September 12, 2011
Nine months and we leave for Peru!
Just a short video to get you psyched! Pull out the guidebook and start making your plans.
BLAST FROM THE PAST
Cleaning out some old administrative closets, my staff found a cache of "ancient" mountaineering axes that I used when I ran TreeTops West and took kids out to the Winds for 7 weeks each summer. TTW was a ton of fun, and a couple of my former campers - Matt and Frank - are still good climbing partners.
Whatever happened to Mark Twight?
He's in the STYLE section of the NEW YORK TIMES. He and his wife Lisa have opened another Gym Jones site in Manhattan, for the extreme fitness client.
CLICK HERE TO READ THE ARTICLE.
MALLORY AND IRVINE ... can we ever get enough of that story?
Having spotted a recent article about a British expedition going to the Himalaya to search for Sandy Irvine's body, and a recent reading of EVEREST THE UNCLIMBED RIDGE, prompted me to revisit that fateful 1924 Everest expedition. As with many mountaineers, and the general public, the story of Mallory and Irvine continually captivates. (In college I studied at a carrel in the basement of the library right next to the mountaineering book collection. Of course, it is debatable how much studying got done.)
I started my revisit to the 1924 MEE with a viewing of the engaging video LOST ON EVERST. This video, which is just under an hour in length can be rented online from the Steep Edge Film website. I must admit I have always had very mixed feelings about this expedition to search for the bodies of the climbers. In my mind it seemed sensationalist, with more than just a little commercialism thrown in the mix. Happy to report the video is informative, tastefully done, and clearly portrays the spirit of the adventure as something of a quest for knowledge ... Sort of like a high-altitude archaeological
For all of my mountaineering life, I have to admit I was always pulling for Mallory and Irvine to have made the summit and hope that they had perished on the descent, maybe after an unplanned bivouac. I have to say that watching Conrad Anker free the second step in THE WILDEST DREAM, tells me they could have just maybe met the technical challenges. However, the fact that neither Anker or Houlding were still in period clothing and gear - as they were in the beginning of the film - tells me they knew they couldn't manage this bit and the summit a la Mallory. Still ... We will never know ... From LOST ON EVERST on to PATHS OF GLORYit is a story well worth revisiting
I started my revisit to the 1924 MEE with a viewing of the engaging video LOST ON EVERST. This video, which is just under an hour in length can be rented online from the Steep Edge Film website. I must admit I have always had very mixed feelings about this expedition to search for the bodies of the climbers. In my mind it seemed sensationalist, with more than just a little commercialism thrown in the mix. Happy to report the video is informative, tastefully done, and clearly portrays the spirit of the adventure as something of a quest for knowledge ... Sort of like a high-altitude archaeological
For all of my mountaineering life, I have to admit I was always pulling for Mallory and Irvine to have made the summit and hope that they had perished on the descent, maybe after an unplanned bivouac. I have to say that watching Conrad Anker free the second step in THE WILDEST DREAM, tells me they could have just maybe met the technical challenges. However, the fact that neither Anker or Houlding were still in period clothing and gear - as they were in the beginning of the film - tells me they knew they couldn't manage this bit and the summit a la Mallory. Still ... We will never know ... From LOST ON EVERST on to PATHS OF GLORYit is a story well worth revisiting
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Big Rockfall In Chamonix
Double pole technique video
SMS DP test technique 9/11 from matt boobar on Vimeo.
GREAT FOOTAGE AND STILLS OF ANDY NEWELL FROM THE USST, SANDWHICHED IN-BETWEEN PICTURES OF HIGH SCHOOLERS.Saturday, September 10, 2011
New Crag Record
Friday, September 9, 2011
156 Days Until The Canadian Ski Marathon
I am taking a team of 13-15 year olds, who wants to come join us ... As you can see from the video it is a ton of fun!
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Get Psyched For The Nordic Season
Who knows if all goes well (La Nina) maybe we will get on snow in late October or early November!
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Skiing and Avalanche Control In The Himalaya
Trials and Tribulations from Justin Abbiss on Vimeo.
I have always wanted to do a big ski traverse in the Himalaya ... Anyone one else psyched?
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
"IF YOU'RE LYING in bed in Huaraz on a June morning ... here are some of the sounds you might hear: A rooster with a throat infection. Distant tuba bands playing dirges. Pickup-truck-mounted megaphones blaring political slogans. And, without fail, the metallic jouncing of rebar being carted to construction sites."
Rob Buchanan
Saturday, September 3, 2011
Hard Bouldering ... The impossible dream
I posted this photograph just in case you are mistaking this short video for Yosemite Valley. The hurricane Irene has still left some of our Adirondack boulders seeping water from their cracks. Dave deals with this issue by some judicious use of a propane torch to dry key sections of the crack. As the video shows he has worked out the crux starting moves, and we anticipate his first ascent sometime this Fall. I worked on this problem for several years in the 1980s. When Russ Clune came for a visit - at the top of his game having just soloed Super Crack 5.12d in the Gunks - he worked it for an hour without nailing the crux, and left saying, "it will go at hard 5.13."
Enjoy.
Friday, September 2, 2011
Thursday, September 1, 2011
More Adirondack Slides Caused By Irene
Thanks to Adirondack Backcountry Ski website we have these great aerial shots of the Trap Dike on Colden and the new slides on Basin and Wolfjaws.
