MOVIE OF THE DAY ... episode 27 - skiing mt moran

I have done a couple of routes on Moran but never the skillet, and never on skis. It is an incredible line ... however I think my days of hauling sleds are behind me. 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=cgM2YLFtKKY

Short hike, spectacular views

A 15 minute hike gets you to the summit of Owls Head and the views - Cascade, Porter, Pitchoff, Jay, Giant - can't be beat. The summit is often busy, it is on private land making weekends off limits, so go early or late in the day.

I had a spectacular morning yesterday bouldering on the summit.

MOVIE OF THE DAY ... running on empty

My climbing buddy Mark and his family, are good friends with Rory. I have met her a few times, and we were part of her cheering squad last year, at the UTMB race in Chamonix.

This is a superb 15 minute North Face video documentary of Rory Bosio running the 125 mile GR20 trail across Corsica.  This is one of the greatest treks in the world with 46,000' of vertical.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TgyOQK9gX8E

A morning spent hiking, skinning, and making turns

A spectacular day, following 24 hours of mixed precipitation. 

So, Stash and I hiked 3k over to Boreen and Excelsior on Whiteface and had a blast, skiing up and down the mountain on heavy wet snow. Today was my 115th day on snow, and a nordic ski racer's training year ends on April 30th, so this may be the final tally for the 2019-2020 season.  

MOVIE OF THE DAY ... jean-claude killy’s three olympic gold medal runs

The technology, technique, and training was not what it is today, but those three runs, on this three minute video look pretty damn impressive today! (This is one of many gems I found on the Skiing History website.)

Ski season cut short? Stuck inside? Dreaming of skiing next season?

The Journal of the International Skiing History Association, is a great magazine, as well as a website where a ski aficionado could get lost for days on end.  Click on the link, and sign up for a six month, free - digital only - membership, and access over a decades worth of issues.

https://skiinghistory.org/

MOVIE OF THE DAY ... american road trip with adam ondra

  Visually exquisite, short, and wow, I so want to get in the Hockmobile van and do a climbing or skiing road trip. Unfortunately that urge will have to wait.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=emb_title&v=ubmy3raJFYI&time_continue=201

Hilary Gerardi’s reflections on pain v pleasure in endurance sports

What would your graph look like?

Chouinard’s Earth Day Letter

You may not agree with Yvon all the time, however it is always worth cogitating on his ideas.  The enclosed link brings you to the full text of his letter, the verbiage in the picture is just from the PS in his letter.

https://gripped.com/news/yvon-chouinards-message-on-earth-day/

The Adirondacks, yesterday, today, and tomorrow

Yesterday, was a spectacular spring day and among other things, I did a wonderful 90+ minute run on the Taylor Pond Trail. Today it will rain cats and dogs, so I snuck in an hour run to check out a crag (needs scrubbing) before the deluge. Tomorrow it seems likely I will be skiing up the Toll Road ... spring in the north country!

MOVIE OF THE DAY ... cerro Kishtwar



Incrediby hard aid climbing, at altitude, on an unbelievable wall.  We are talking about a sufferfest here ... thirty minutes with English subtitles.

https://vimeo.com/409706145 

MOVIE OF THE DAY ... backcountry film festival

Almost two hours of video, in ten great films. The initial six minutes is a thanks to sponsors and shoutouts to key advocacy groups: Winter Wildlands Alliance, POW, and all worth watching.  The first film Can't Ski Vegas, is a rafting trip in the Yukon, to scout out and ski some big lines just across the border in the states. ENJOY.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=izmUwFuwKqE&feature=emb_title

Climbers Training For Muscular Endurance

On Tuesday, I talked about my muscular endurance - power - workout plans. So, I thought I would pass along a fuller explanation from The Uphill Athlete folks. 

https://www.uphillathlete.com/vertical-beast-mode-what-is-muscular-endurance-why-it-is-important-for-any-alpinist-or-mountaineer-and-how-do-you-train-it/

MOVIE OF THE DAY ... the long way - trans alps ski adventure



A record breaking ski tour, across the entire alpine chain, and ending at the ocean in Nice. It took 36 days, almost 2000k, and just under 90,000 meters of climbing.  An engaging film, with true hardcore athletes, but what it is not, is a "how to do group dynamics."

https://vimeo.com/401522895

Where and when is our Spring?

Four or maybe five of the last ten mornings have looked like this!

MOVIE OF THE DAY ... five days one summer



a full length motion picture, available from Amazon, YouTube, and iTunes for a small fee. It is a complex romance set in the Swiss Alps, with authentic 1930s climbing action, and spectacular photography.  The 1982 critics panned the movie despite strong direction from Fred Zinneman who had also done From Here To Eternity, The Day Of The Jackal, Julia, and High Noon.

The movie was inspired by Kay Boyle's short story, "Maiden, Maiden."  As you can tell from the Amazon reviews, the movie is a gem. 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7AcdEFMz2ys

Training for alpine climbing

I will ski as long as I can, but mentally I am transitioning from a skier into an alpine climber.

In the next 3-4 months before I head to the Sierras I plan to use the following as my tune-up regime:

- lots of running and hiking vertical; supplemented by some biking and ergometer;
- two hard strength workouts a week
- two, maybe three bouldering or climbing sessions;
- a weekly uphill time trial, where each month the distance-vertical-pack weight increases. (Today it was 3k-600' with a 15 pound pack.)

I have not started route discussions with Mark but Shasta, Dana Couloir, and North Ridge Conness are all on my mind.

MOVIE OFTHE DAY: choices with steph davis

I'll never really understand the base-jumping and wingsuit crowd, but this gal is the real deal, and hardcore climber/alpinist as well. Great footage, and a very engaging story.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mtLegY2QVDk

A good spring ski

We hiked for 2.5k to the snow, and then Lucy skated on race skis for 45 minutes while I skied up on my waxless AT gear.

MOVIE OF THE DAY ... ski history of tuckermans ravine

While the virus has put it off limits for this year, enjoy the archival footage and dream about spring 2021.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=RfIh9vvvMCw

Scratching anorthosite

First day top roping on Pitchoff practice slab.  You could hear the ice routes tumbling down at the other end of the crag. Maybe spring is coming to Lake Placid!

MOVIE OF THE DAY ... best nordic race finishes ever

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6gi1BEi0ceY

Maybe the ice climbing season isn’t over?

I have been hauling out rock gear in anticipation of spring climbing in the Adirondacks.  Of course, a week of very cold weather has made my decision - to put away crampons, ice tools, and screws - as perhaps a bit premature.

Snowing again ...

Almost every night, or early morning this week it has snowed. Just under an inch each day, and melting off by mid-afternoon. No accumulation, so not enough to ski, just enough to make cycling or trail run less fun.

But after all as I remind myself, this is the Adirondacks, and we are no strangers to April snow.

MOVIE OF THE DAY ... marcel remy ... 94 and leading 5.10a (5c)

Stunning scenery, inspiring story, and just plain mind-boggling to think he is doing these pitches at his age. I guess at 67 I better stop whining!

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sqnDztcwKLc&feature=emb_title&time_continue=742

Checking out Whiteface slides

A good hike this morning; I was fully packed to climb the slides, and maybe see if they are skiable. The bottom picture is where skiers exit on a good snow year. I made the mistake of using it as a climbing entry ... too low, too much water ... next time I will keep on trucking up the lift line.  

Also, I will remember to bring my skis when I walk in from the flume parking lot, as Wilderness and Mountain run look awesome. 

Another Adirondack dirt road ...

A wonderful 80 minute run, with nobody in sight and great views of Dix on the way back.

MOVIE OF THE DAY ... days like these

Three women getting after it running on alpine trails. A reminder, that some day soon maybe we will all be back out, getting after it. An uplifting 90 seconds.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nH3dyIzilrU&feature=emb_title&time_continue=77

MOVIE OF THE DAY ... grand traverse skimo race

Well the race was cancelled this year, and in 2014 because of avalanche conditions it had to be re-routed, but I am banking on great conditions for 2021. It's time to organize your training plan. 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=z5OYIiBnHpU

Survivor’s guilt and alpinists

An interesting essay from the New Yorker magazine. (Staff writer Nick Paumgarten has written many excellent articles profiling skiers and climbers including Mikaela Shiffrin, Yvon Chouinard, and Ueli Steck.)

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/03/02/survivors-guilt-in-the-mountains

MOVIE OF THE DAY ... 2018 Olympic Team Sprint

You know the ending, but it's still guaranteed to bring a small to your face. 

https://www.olympicchannel.com/en/video/detail/women-s-team-sprint-final-cross-country-skiing-pyeongchang-2018-replays/

Social distancing, staying healthy, and a good week of training

Running more Adirondack dirt roads.  Lucy gave me a 4K lead, and she still beat me to the top of the long uphill. Oh well, not fast but the totals still are pretty good ... 

- 50k skiing/running and almost 4000'

- easy bouldering session

- two strength sessions

- two short yoga sessions

- five (30 minute) workouts on the ergometer

MOVIE OF THE DAY ... sharing the line



From Black Diamond, a very hard alpine climb in the Tre Cime area of the Dolomites.

https://youtu.be/LceKIFARnbY

Taking advantage of an Easter snow

Skied up the Toll Road today and yesterday. Happy Easter and Passover; stay safe.

Training For The Uphill Athlete



As I regularly dip into this book every couple of weeks, and visit the website weekly, I thought I would just plug it ... a fantastic reference.  The true endurance nerd, or top flight athlete will find this book invaluable.  While there is too much detail and complexity for an endurance newbie, the writing and photo layout are engaging, and so even those new to these uphill endurance sports will get a great deal out of the book.

The link below is the preface to the book ... enjoy.

https://www.patagonia.com/stories/nose-to-the-wind/story-72310.html

MOVIE OF THE DAY: fuel your crack climbing addiction

I missed this April Fool's video, but still worth watching a couple of weeks late.  After all, since we are sheltered in place, not many of us are sinking hands into splitters!

https://m.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=272&feature=emb_title&v=vuo5GdeSAv0

Three ski tours since Sunday

It has been snowing off and on since late last night, although the promised 3-6 inches has not materialized.  I am hoping for another inch and a skiable Whiteface Toll Road. However, I have skied almost 30k on those three tours.  (Of course, spring ski tours always include a bit of hoofing it.)

MOVIE OF THE DAY ... a fine line



A beautiful and very short video of a "run" up Tower Ridge, one of the classic rock climbs of Scotland.  You could wait decades before you have weather and trail conditions as good as this!  Fantastic aerial views.  Makes me want to go back and do the Tower Ridge in the summer.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Nv2gLejArQ0

Tuckermans, Huntington, and Cutler River Drainage Closed



https://www.powder.com/stories/news/tuckerman-ravine-closes-to-skiers-after-crowds-ignore-cdc-guidelines/?utm_campaign=later-linkinbio-powdermagazine&utm_content=later-6309565&utm_medium=social&utm_source=instagram

MOVIE OF THE DAY ... kilian jornet’s impossible traverse



Kilian Jornet attempts to ski all seven summits of Romsdalen in Norway, in a day. This engaging video is a bit under 15 minutes.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=i2ZllErtdLE