Western States 100 Trail

Any hour after I arrived in Squaw Valley I ran the first 5k of the original race trail. It was great to see Mark, Liz, and Hannah, and I look forward to seeing Cali as well. Fantastic to be back in the Sierras ... Rock climbing tomorrow.

Teton Mountain Run

Jenny Lake - Cascade Canyon - Alaska Basin - Death Canyon ... Seems like a must do trail run for your bucket list. CLICK HERE TO READ A TRIP REPORT.

Jon's new roomie

Bookmark this site ... inspiration for trail runners

CLICK HERE.

They handicap the Dipsea ... Do I deserve a handicap?

I observed that the top ten female runners (in the 20+ age group), where on average about 14:20 faster than the comparable male finishers in the 60+ age class. Added to that, Cali lives in Squaw Valley and I am coming from sea level, she is likely to be on the podium while I am likely a back of the lack finisher. I THINK SHE NEEDS TO SPOT ME 17 MINUTES IN A HEAD-TO-HEAD COMPETITION. Another way to look at it is that a 17 minute handicap is approximately 30 seconds per mile per age difference ... doesn't that seem fair? Now the harder question would be how to handicap a Hock v. Mark, or a Hock v. Liz, or even a Hock v. Danny event? Of course, I have to be sensitive to conversations around handicaps, seeing that I won the Owens River Gorge handicap event two years running ... and was roundly criticized for gaming the system!
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The Last Ice Merchant

BLAST FROM THE PAST ... mugs stump

A recent Patagonia blog - The Cleanest Line - talked about Mug Stump Award winners. However, it also included the 1993 article that Michael Kennedy wrote and published in CLIMBING. It is well worth a read (again) ... what an amazing guy. CLICK HERE TO READ THE DREAM (scroll down a bit).

Alex Honnold crack climbing on the green river

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE NORTH FACE VIDEO.

Can you get too much exercise?

A recent New York Times blog summarizes the results of a new study gauging the impact of exercise upon skiers who have participated in Sweden's 89k Vasaloppet for over a decade. CLICK HERE TO READ THE BLOG.

Summer frost

A few days ago the temperature plummeted. In places on campus we had a light frost ... Pretty damn unusual for July!

Sorenson - Eastman Ice Climb

This is a popular, hard trade route when it comes in condition in Chamonix. I know Todd Eastman (from days playing lacrosse, caretaking the Harvard Cabin, and socializing with Ski To Die members). As you watch this video from last February, imagine how much harder this route would be with 1970s gear. Tobin and Todd were obviously climbing very hard back in the day. CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO.

Climate Change ... a new study about the impact on southern california

READ THE SUMMARY OF THIS RESEARCH

Remember mountaineering is dangerous ... be careful out there

The story and analysis of an unexpected fall into a crevasse while skiing. CLICK HERE TO READ COLIN HALEY'S STORY.

Dolomite Skyrunning ... fantastic 22k mountain race with 1700 meter climb

Getting ready for the sierras

Bouldering in the morning, and fast 4x5minute hill repeats.

The Great Range

Lucy hiked up Big Slide via The Brothers with NYSEF yesterday. This is a high volume - 14 hours - week for these nordic skiers. Tomorrow she does a morning strength workout at the Olympic Training Center, and then a 90 minute roller ski in the afternoon.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK ... from the Eiger Sanction

Watch this old Clint Eastwood flic while rowing I came across this gem ...

Jonathan Hemlock: If you hauled beer up this rock you're insane!

Ben Bowman: I may be insane, but I'm not stupid. I didn't carry it, you did! It's in your pack.

OLD STYLE ... Patagonia gear

I must admit, I loved the pullover fleece, and still own two (sized to fit over each other) from 1983. I also loved my cagoule back in the day, and bivvied in it many times.

Climbing along the Green River

Another video of Daniel Woods and Alex Honnold crack climbing. CLICK HERE TO WATCH THIS SHORT NORTH FACE VIDEO.

Sky running ... a cross between hiking-running-mountaineering

CLICK HERE TO READ AN INTERVIEW WITH ONE OF THE FOUNDERS.

Turning 61 ...

In our family birthdays, holidays, and special events are all about giving books as presents!
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Truer words have never been spoken!

Randy Udall Memorial

I knew him - just a but - from my days in the late 1970s at Outward Bound. He passed away (heart attack) on a solo backcountry fishing trip in the Winds. His memorial service was held at the Marble Basecamp of the Colorado Outward Bound School (pictured above). CLICK HERE TO READ ABOUT RANDY UDALL AT WILD SNOW.

Avalanche Beacon Review

CLICK HERE TO READ THE WILD SNOW ARTICLE.

HEADING HOME

El Presidente is back

Scratching rock for the first time in 18 months ... Yahoo ... I am coming out in three weeks.

Last two days in Guatemala

A superb ending to my trip. A rustic cabin in a great setting on Lake Attitlan, ringed by volcanoes. I did two great trail runs, and a nice hike up Cerro de Oro. (This peak is what influenced the sketch in the Little Prince)

Flora and Fauna

There were an amazing number of species on the lower flanks of the volcano ... A naturalist's paradise.

Guatemalan adventure park

The kids loved it, everything from roller skating to a a mechanical bronco, from a ropes course to bouldering and a very fine climbing wall. Needless to say I stayed off the bucking bronco and did laps on the wall and bouldering cave.

Volcan de Pacaya

Yesterday we hiked up this 2500 meter volcano. Unfortunately since the major eruption in 2010 they do not let you go to the top, as it is still quite active and unstable. (Some of the steam vents were just the right temperature to crawl into for a natural sauna.)

Volcano Agua and the city of Antigua

A full day of sightseeing in this old colonial town, which was one of the original capital cities if Guatemala. Tomorrow we will do an easy hike up an active volcano. Volcano Agua in the picture is 4000 meters.

Guatemala

I had a very busy first day. After a very long day of travel I arrived at my hotel at 2:00 am on Tuesday morning. At 10 am, Margarita one of my former students gave me a tour of Guatemala City, followed by a late lunch at her brother's house, a quick trip back to the hotel to change, and then the Delgados helped host a reception for alumni and friends. The evening ended just after 10:30 and was very successful.

80k du Mont Blanc ... amazingly scenic

Teaser 80km du Mont-Blanc from MOUSS PRODUCTION on Vimeo.

Early bird catches the worm

The rain showers were forecasted to start mid-morning, so I got out early to took advantage of yesterday afternoon's good drying weather. Quick hike up Owls Head, third class laps on a 45 foot (5.2) corner, and then some bouldering on the summit block ... all in approach shoes ... a well spent 75 minutes.

Chamonix video ... digital crack 8a+

A commercial for Millet, however the footage, setting, and ambiance of the Grand Gendarme on the Cosmique Arête are pure Chamonix. Wishing I was heading there this summer. CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE SHORT VIDEO.

Cross country ski adventures in Norway

Summer has just started but the heat and humidity have me thinking about snow already. CLICK HERE TO READ ABOUT SOME POTENTIAL NORDIC ADVENTURES I AM THINKING ABOUT.

Maurice Wilson ... soldier, mystic, mountaineer, and eccentric

I continue to thoroughly enjoy the novel, ABOVE ALL ELSE. My only quarrel thus far is her misuse of history, to convey a concept that is commonplace today, but unheard of in the early days of Everest.

The author has Maurice Wilson illicit climbing on Everest in between George's 1922 and 1924 attempts. Of course this quirky guy - who believed fasting and meditation would cure all the worlds ills as well as get him up Everest - did not fly his plane from Britain to India until 1933. Eric Shipton's expedition discovered his body and buried it in a crevasse.

The habit of leaving dead bodies sitting in the snow in Everest is a new one, and more a consequence of heavy traffic and guided expeditions. To have Sandy Irvine wanting to see Maurice's body, and to be hovering around the frozen corpse, would be a definite misreading of the ethos of climbers from that era.

BLAST FROM THE PAST

We pulled some old photos out of our archive since I am heading down to Guatemala. Here I am coaching my nordic team ... in my vintage barn coveralls

Wet, hot, and humid in the 'dacks ... yearning for dry rock

CLICK HERE TO SEE A VIDEO OF ALEX HONNOLD'S CLIMBING/RAFTING TRIP ON THE GREEN RIVER.

Packing for Guatemala

On Monday I head off for a week to visit NCS alumni in Guatemala. My former students are wonderful, lively bunch, many of whom have their own families now, and have begun to send their kids to camp or school. I am looking forward to seeing Luis, Alejandro, Alex, Rodrigo, Maria, Isai, Yustin, Margarita, Alina, Irene, Alfredo, and Martin. However, i am also looking forward to some trail running, some hiking on the many volcanoes in the highlands, as well as a chance to see some Mayan ruins.

Climbing all around the world?

ACCIDENT INSURANCE PART II.

Lucy Dryland Training

Half her time is spent running the summer St Paul's cross country team workout, and the other half is focused on Nordic skiing ... she is getting pretty fit.

ALPINIST editor-in-chief

CLICK HERE TO READ AN INTERVIEW WITH HER ON THE MOUNTAIN LIBRARY WEBSITE.

Historical fiction ... Mallory, Irvine, Norton, Somervell, Odell, and of course Ruth

I am a few chapters into this well researched, well written, and engrossing novel. Here is a little - true tidbit - from the manifest it was discovered that the expedition brought "17 bottles of Macallan whiskey, not less than fifteen years old."