Sunday, February 26, 2012

Sunset Ski Tour



Hock and Lucy with skins and ski mo gear doing the 3k, 300' loop around our ski hill ... Great for practice laps and training.

Blast from the past ... was he the greatest alpinist ever?



A must watch video, Werner Herzog's documentary about Messner and his traverse of Gasherbrum I & II. This was from back in the day, when he was nailing the fourteen 8,000 meter peaks, and doing fast, light, solo ascents everywhere.

Saturday, February 25, 2012

Stellar dendrites, snow physics, and avalanche dynamics



Lucy has just finished up her 8the grade earth science unit on the mechanics of snow. This course taught by Larry is equivalent to a Level 1 or 2 avalanche course. Along with significant reading and lectures, there is much practical work analyzing snow pits, and running search patterns with beacons. The culminating project is a research presentation on a significant avalanche event, reviewing everything from meteorological history to neglected warning signs and human error. Lucy's presentation was on the Hatch Peak avalanche in the Talkeetna range during March 2011. She took this picture while observing snowflakes through her microscope.

Dawn Patrol



I took out the ski mountaineering gear to get first tracks on our ski hill ... Conditions were perfect as it snowed all night. Later in the day I managed another hour of skiing while Lucy was racing at the Dewey Mountain Nordic Center.

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

New Winter Route Activity On Cannon

Pitchoff Right



Gary was up to do some work on his cabin, so I left work earlier, and we did laps for a couple of hours ... No wind, warm, and soft plastic ice ... a great little outing. Oh, and I test drove the used tools - first generation quarks - that I just bought, and they are awesome.

Tracking the White reindeer

Tracking the white reinder from hamid sardar on Vimeo.

Skiing the Trap Dike

2/20/2012 from ADKBCSKI on Vimeo.

Skiing in Kashmir ... Unusual coincidence





Last night I just finished reading a early 1950s murder mystery/spy thriller. Many of you may know M.M. Kaye and her delightful novel Far Pavilions. I have always been interested in novels about climbing and skiing, or novels set in mountain towns and regions. Moreover, the Gulmarg region has always been a place I have wanted to climb and trek in. Hours after I put the "whom-done-it" down, I came across this short video about the burgeoning ski culture and business in Gulmarg.

Is he the best ski alpinist?



CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

Sunday, February 19, 2012

Avalanche Air Bags



Given that these are the worst avalanche conditions in the Rockies in over 30 years, there has been a significant amount of journalism devoted to the subject. The enclosed diagrams are from a recent article in the Denver Post. (CLICK TO ENLARGE THE IMAGE.)

Online Guide to Teton Rock Climbs



CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THIS FANTASTIC DATABASE WITH TOPOS, APPROACH AND DESCENT INFORMATION, AS WELL AS CLIMBER COMMENTARY.

The Legendary 1960s Climbing Road Trip



CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE SHORT DOCUMENTARY ABOUT THE LEGENDARY CLIMBING (AND SURFING) ROAD TRIP TO PATAGONIA IN THE LATE 1960s.THE FUN HOGS INCLUDE: Yvon Chouinard, Doug Tompkins, Dick Dorworth, and Chris Jones.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

EXERCISE PHYSIOLOGY ... new research


CLICK HERE TO READ THE NEW YORK TIMES SUMMARY OF RECENT STUDIES THAT ANSWER THE QUESTION: HOW LITTLE AND HOW EFFICIENTLY CAN YOU EXERCISE?

Skiing to the South Pole



One of the greatest ski racers of all time - Vergard Ulvang - skis 1300 kilometers to the South Pole to commerate the 100th anniversary of Amundsen's expedition.

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

A fossil feeling his age



Just a comparative photographic record. After skiing 68 hard kilometers last Saturday, Lucy and her ski buddy Hannah, look like they just came from a walk in the park. I on the other hand, look like I have just survived Napolean's retreat from Moascow!

Monday, February 13, 2012

Training for ice climbing

Eisprinz - Chapter one (with Markus Bendler) from Berni Kogler on Vimeo.



This guy is a serious stud ... Trying to remember ... Back in the day did we ever work out that hard?

The Western States 100



My knees are shot, my belt size is too big, and I am not really running anymore ... when I was marathoning this was always on my hit list ... guess it will have to wait until my next life!

2012 Canadian Ski Marathon



Good conditions, sunny but very chilly weather (lows went from below zero to a high of 12 degrees), enabled us to ski 100k in six sections. The girls tied the 1989 NCS record for the most sections, however they broke the record for a single day ... 68K in four sections! Let it be known, that the coach, the Hockmeister, the coureur de bois was dragging by the end of Saturday's tour. Hannah and Lucy are clearly way stronger, fitter, and more technically proficient than last year. I recovered well, and thoroughly enjoyed the 30K tour that we did on Sunday.

Ueli Steck ... Light is Right

UKC/UKH at ISPO 2012 - Ueli Steck and Mountain Hardwear from UKClimbing.com TV on Vimeo.

Friday, February 10, 2012

Thursday, February 9, 2012

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Will Gadd Sounding Off



The stuff we climbers do not talk about so much, click here to read "The Grand Delusion."

SCIENCE OF THE Winter Olympics



Click here to watch this short NBC video about Nordic endurance athletes and VO2 Max.

How to sharpen Ice Screws ... and I thought there were only two options send them out to a professional or buy new screws!



As most of my buddies, climbing partners, spouse, kids, and students will attest ... I am hopeless with mechanical objects. With the possible exception of working on my nordic racing skis, there is very little that I can do with hand tools. No doubt, with this "how to" video even I could manage to get tHe job done.

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Final easy ski sessions

Self Belaying Essentials



Even though I use a soloist system when I self belay a top-roped rock climb, Petzl has performed a very useful service with their analytical essay. CLCIK HERE TO READ THE ESSAY, AND BE SURE TO WATCH THE SOBERING VIDEO AT THE END.

Messner Speaks Out

CAFE ANDINO



Should have known they had a Facebook page ... who is on for a summer Andean trip?

Sunday, February 5, 2012

My 50th Day On Snow This Season



I took some NCS students to race a paintball biathlon, and manged to ski about 10k while coaching. Lucy skied fast, however one of our students Sam cleaned all 20 targets, and came away with the best overall time. DESPITE THE CRUMMY WINTER I HAVE BEEN GETTING OUT.

Adirondack Ice ... Endangered Species

Endangered Species OR from Bayard Russell on Vimeo.

Saturday, February 4, 2012

Saas Fee world cup ice climbing comp

Ice Climbing World Cup in Saas Fee 2012 | Official Movie from UIAA - Mountaineering & Climbing on Vimeo.

Tuning up for the Canadian Ski Marathon



A nice 15k ski, including a lap on the Ladies 5k race course, and a trip up Harry's Hill in the picture. Hoping to log 100-120k next weekend.

Friday, February 3, 2012

American nordic women continue their fine season



All bundled up after the sprint in Moscow where the temperatures were just barely above the legal racing minimums. The gals finished 6-7-12-39th. Next up two World Cup races in Rybinsk. GOOD LUCK.

Can you trust that ice anchor?



An in-depth analysis done by the staff of the Glenmore Lodge. CLICK HERE TO READ THIS IMPORTANT ARTICLE.

Avalanche airbag deployed



A PRETTY GOOD REMINDER THAT THIS MIGHT BE A GREAT NEXT PURCHASE FOR AN AVID SKI MOUNTAINEER.

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Blast from the past ... Back when I was fit, fast, and scruffy

What a difference 24 hours makes!



Yesterday was superb Nordic and alpine skiing. I had a wonderful time with students at Whiteface, last night a chinook wind moved in, and as you can see we have standing water in the Olympic Nordic stadium at Mount Van Hoevenberg. UGH.

Hard Mixed Climbing ... second ascent of a Colorado M9

Silver Surfer Second Ascent from Rock & Ice on Vimeo.