Long Overdue

Yeah, I know. I lagged. I got lazy and let it pile up and now a lot has happened in the meantime. The more I neglect this blog, and the more that happens in my life and in the world, the less ambition I have to update. In the coming weeks I will try to blog more frequently… It is time for me to rise from my grave and blog again!

Since so much has happened in the past few weeks (yet sadly so little has changed) and I could go on and on, but I’m going to keep my dribble to a minimum, and just give you a quick update. I’ll save the juicy for next time.

On the climbing front, I’ve only climbed outside one day since my return from Canada. It was a beautiful day at Donner Summit, during a brief cold snap a couple weekends ago. We started off bouldering at the saddle boulders, which have a handful of fun climbs, especially the dyno (which I can’t recall the name of) on the far left side of the Saddle Boulder. The problems were really fun to climb on, and if felt great to boulder outside again, on some taller stuff, and not worry about my foot at all. My main objective of the day was to red-point Fathers Day (14a), a really classic hard line on the right side of the Star Wall that I had tried, and came very close to, one day previously with kevin Jorgeson back in June. I fired the route without too much fumbling of the gear on the lower pitch, after going up it once to remember the gear placements on the lower half and remember the moves at the crux. Needless to say I was very pleased with the effort, and it had already been a packed day with the bouldering and ropes, but I decided to give a flash attempt on Taste the Pain (13c) before leaving. With a full on beta-spray down from fellow Ethan (Schwartz) I was able to send the rig on my first go. We hit a minimal amount of burning man/labor day traffic on the way home, and weeks later found out that the reason we couldn’t get Austin’s car in reverse was because there was a piece of wood stuck (obviously thrown up under the car when we were mashing through the old train tunnels on the way to the saddle boulders) in the transmission. Oh yeah, and besides getting a piece of wood stuck in his transmission, Austin also sent his proudest boulder yet, the Classic Midnight Train V7. J’yeah! It’s funny because he has the strenght to climb V9 boulders, but his technique… well, needs to catch up a bit.

So besides the one day out at Donner, I’ve mostly been training in the gym quite frequently and getting out to the ocean as much as possible to surf. My pulled hamstring is still causing me some problems, I can’t heel hook with my left foot and some foot moves where I have to toe in and puul hard on far away footholds are scary. I went to a chiropractor in Noe Valley who specialized in ART (active release technique, and no it has nothing to do with happy endings) and got some rather expensive work done, but it didn’t seem to help much and the adjustments he made on my back were scary and seemed unhelpful. So I went to a spa downtown where I got a friendly discount (thanks you!) and got an 80 minute deep tissue massage. Let me tell you. I’ve never been able to really say this before and actually mean it, but I felt like a million bucks. I don’t know if it really helped my hamstring, but it didn’t matter. My feet, hands, forearms, back, shoulders, neck and biceps all got the royal treatment. The massage therapist really dug into the knots in my back and my arms, and I was so relaxed when I left that place I felt like I was floating.

My friend Kevin Newell who works for Five Ten stopped in SF on his way back to Redlands, where Five Ten is located, and showed me the process of how to apply extra sticky rubber to my climbing shoes. It’s a pretty scientific precess involving Barge Glue and recycled rubber shavings, but the finished product are shoes ready to take on any toe-hook or crack the rock throws your way. Five Ten is leads the charge with rock-shoe technology, and is working on making a product, a kind of sticky rubber glue that will hopefully come in a squeeze tube, that can be applied to any surface a climber wishes. Should prove to be pretty revolutionary.

Well, what else is new… We still have two months to impeach the president!!! Kelly Slater has won 5 of seven events on the WCT this year and is sure to clinch his 9th world title at the next event in France. Hurricane Ike came through Texas and wrecked shop, also prevented me from going to the RRG this weekend to give a slide show. People are getting bit by sharks left and right, and everyone has a f#@&!ng iPhone now (including me, yes I conformed. Don’t look at me like that, it was only $200!) And the world still turns somehow. All I can say is that I’m damn lucky to have the life I do. Even with all the privileges I enjoy, like climbing in beautiful places 9 months out of the year, and having nearly no responsibilities, I’m still the type of person who gets easily overwhelmed. But I just have to take a step back and a deep breath and remind myself that I am blessed and there are people out there who know suffering every day that I, or anyone who reads this, can’t even begin to understand. So if your stressed, just take a few deep breaths, smile and give thanks you are alive!

I’d just like to make everyone aware that a good friend of mine, and a person who has been a fixture in the bay area climbing community for over a decade, Rowan Jimenez, was diagnosed with a heinous disease, Scleroderma. Rowan is one of the most positive people I’ve ever met. I went to visit him some ten days ago at his house in Richmond and even in his extremely weakend state, he remains up-beat and excited. I first met Rowan probably about 11 years ago at the gym. He was one of the first people I ever bouldered with and he has DJ’d at almost every comp in the bay area in the last ten years. He is a really good climber, and a wonderful artist and musician. Check out his blog, learn about this wonderful friend of mine, buy one of his t-shirts (there really cool) and make a donation. Send him your good vibes!

Lastly, I’d like to say congrats to Matty for finally finishing off the Cobra! It was a long time coming for matty on that route. He showed the up-most patients on that route by waiting out multiple storms and after some 15+ odd days on the route, sent on his last day he had on the route this season, leaving just in time to make it back to boulder for the premier of the new movie The Sharp End, which he is in. Good on ya mate!!! You deserve it! And of course, congrats to Chris for Finishing up the Clark project! Well done mate! What is there left for that guy? A truly impressive feat, not to be topped by anyone, anytime soon I’m sure.

Well, tomorrow morning I’m off with friend Scott Cory to meet Dave G and JoeK in Rifle to climb at the fortress of solitude. By the sound of things coming from Joe, those guys might have already sent Flex before I even get there…