Timber to Tibet from gocoolthokar on Vimeo.
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Monday, November 28, 2011
Sunday, November 27, 2011
The Snow Is Melting
However, Lucy and I had a good 60 minute ski, with the downhill on the East Mountain loop being a little spotty. The picture is taken on the infamous "Russian Hill," of the 1979 pre-olympics, for the past decade or so it has been formally known as Harry's Hill in honor of Harry Eldridge, former NCS headmaster.
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Setting goals ... look at two time Olympian Andy Newell goals from when he was 15!
Perusing the new Nordic coaches manual, and seeing what Andy Newell did when he was 15, prompted me to get my nordic team to do the same ... Of course I couldn't resist doing a goal pyramid. (Notice, some of my goals only make sense if I am retired and training more, if I am still working a zillion hours a week, I am not likely to be getting a medal in anything except fundraising.)
Friday, November 25, 2011
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Nordic skiing in the Adirondacks
Just before Thamksgiving we got our first significant snowstorm - 12 inches of heavy wet snow - and so Lucy and I got several early morning, and late evening tours under our belt.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Getting ready for the NCS Nordic season
Our Nordic team has been doing dry land training for the past three weeks, and has gone on a number of long hikes. Here is Lucy on the summit of Big Slide last weekend.
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Mountaineering History ... Mugs Stump
While re-reading Krakauer's "Eiger Dreams," I was reminded of Mugs Stump's unsuccessful solo attempt on the Eiger north face. Which prompted me to do a quick google search to refresh my memory ... Emperor Face on Robson, Moonflower Buttress on Hunter, East Face of Moose's Tooth, and a one-day blast of the Cassin Ridge. He was an amazing guy and a true believer in the fast, light, and hard school of Alpinism.
Hiking the Porter Mountain Loop
Reggie and I took advantage of the spectacularly warm November day to hike around the 10k loop, and exit at the South Meadow Farm pastures.
USST off to a good start
Marit and the Norwegian gals dominated the 10k, however Kikkan had her best every distance finish (8th), and Stephan finished in the top 20, even occupying the leader's seat for awhile. CLICK HERE TO READ THE COVERAGE IN SKI TRAX.
Something we climbers do not think about enough
Water and its present and projected scarcity is a huge issue in the places we go to climb .... Whether in the American southwest, Peru, or as talked about here, the Himalaya. The major rivers of Asia start in the Himalayan mountains, and as this essay mentions there are already significant border disputes and more to come in this region, over who controls the flw of water. Will the subject of water rights have two nuclear powers squaring off in the future?
CLICK HERE TO READ THIS SHORT ESSAY.
Friday, November 18, 2011
Fossil Weekends Coming Up In One Month
Last evening I hung out in the Cabin testing all the systems: cabin stove and lights, sauna, single malt, outhouse, and book collection. Everything is good to go for December, now all we need is a bit colder temperatures and some snow. After the sauna I had a good yoga session in the cabin, and then read some of Gary Snyder's Cold Mountain poems.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Monday, November 14, 2011
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Blast From The Past
A couple of Nordic skiing ads from the late 1970s. Do you remember when you got your first pair of fiberglass Nordic skis, or when you had your first pair of non-75 mm bindings? Do you remember the wave of excitement around Bill Koch's Olympic silver medal? My first pair of non-wood Nordic skis were the white pair of Fischers pictured in the ad, and yes I did own a pair of the 38 mm Adidas blue racing boots.
Saturday, November 12, 2011
First Time On Snow
A full day at Killington - good man-made snow an nice weather - I even skinned up some laps at the end of the day. I will probably do this again if we continue to have no snow.
Friday, November 11, 2011
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Chamonix ... What to do on a rainy Fall day
Folks head over to the gigantic roofs outside Sallanches, and go dry-tooling. Most routes are already equipped with quick draws, the huge overhang ensures that you stay dry, and the rock is choosy so you are not doing any harm! The enclosed picture is of an M10+ trade route. CLICK HERE FOR SOME BETA AND A TOPO.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Getting anxious ... no snow in the East
Despite the amazing Nor'easter of October, it seems that there is no Nordic skiing in the East at the moment. Of course, we also do not have a ski tunnel like this one pictured in Sweden where a bunch of the USST are training. I may go to Killington to do some turns and skin up trails if they let me. (Or, if Brian is free maybe I will climb in the Gunks.)
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
The Cathedral Traverse
North Ridge, Grand Teton via Cathedral Traverse from Mark Smiley on Vimeo.
Over the years having done all the individual peaks and pitches, of the Cathedral group, the thought of putting them all together in one traverse would be pretty exciting.
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Friday, November 4, 2011
What sabotages your training program?
For me, it is close proximity to the NCS kitchen. Whenever a taste treat comes out of the oven, there is always someone in the kitchen offering a sample ... needless to say I have no willpower.
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
The Alpine Trilogy
In the past alpine season - Barmasse - father and son roped up to open three, classically hard routes on: Mount Blanc, the Matterhorn, and Monta Rosa. CLICK HERE TO READ ABOUT THE MONTA ROSA ROUTE.
North American Ingenuity
While North America does not have the all year-round, refrigerated, ski tunnels that Europe has, however we do have Yankee ingenuity and so a few places stockpile, and store snow covered by hay through the summer months for Fall training.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Black Dike ... Game On
The Granite State classic test piece was climbed last weekend. Most of the gullies in Huntington Ravine were climbed as well ... It looks like the season has started.
Not a sleeping bag cover but A Real Bivy Sack
I was thinking about purchasing one last year before I headed to the Alps, however I could find no retailer to talk to, or any climber that had used them so, I brought along a standard issue US style sleeping bag cover (aka bivy sack). With Dane's review, I put it bak on my Christmas list for Santa.
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REVIEW FROM COLD THISTLE.