|
|
|
|
vegastradguy
Jul 17, 2004, 7:30 PM
Post #1 of 12
(2696 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Aug 28, 2002
Posts: 5919
|
Another Valley Story…..
This is going to sound weird, and I can’t really explain why I felt this way before this last trip to the valley, but I did. I had this aversion to climbing any route on the Captain until after I climbed one of the walls on it. Like, I didn’t want to soil the experience or I wanted my first climb on the Captain to be a big one. Silly, eh? Well, in truth, this is how I felt. Of course, since I’m the only person in the world who wasn’t exactly excited about climbing the most pristine granite in the world right at that moment (since I certainly wasn’t ready for a wall), imagine my excitement when, on a perfect Monday morning, I found myself trudging up to the base routes west of the Nose.
I had spent the day before warming up at Swan Slab with Kate, climbing some easy to moderate routes to get a feel for the Valley again, since it had been a year since I had touched Valley granite and I needed a refresher course. It went well, no falls, no trouble, so Kate proposed that we spend the next day working on the base routes at the Captain with her friend Paul. Paul was stronger than us, so he could set a top rope for anything we didn’t feel or weren’t able to lead.
So, back to Monday. We head up to the base of the Moby Dick area, only to find it nicely occupied and it didn’t look like it was going to open up anytime soon. This was supposed to be my first lead of the day. Yeah. Let’s go see what else we can climb. Continuing up the trail, we arrive at Sacherer Cracker, 5.10a. If you haven’t ever seen this climb, you should. It’s beautiful. It’s also way out of my league.
“Well, I think I’m going to TR this thing first, and if it doesn’t kill me, I’ll have a go on lead.”
When it comes to the Valley, I’m never too proud to TR something before I lead it, especially if it’s 5.9 and up.
So, Kate’s up there annoying herself on this thing (but doing quite well) and Paul and I are just chatting and the subject of multi-pitch comes up and I mention that Kate isn’t very excited about doing a long, tough route (she had just climbed Zodiac and was currently more focused on torturing herself on short, tough routes) but she mentioned that Paul might be up for something. First thing out of his mouth-
“What about the East Buttress of El Cap?”
Wow. I didn’t even have the words. It’s one of my dream routes. Mostly because it’s a free line within my capabilities up the biggest formation in the Valley. With an actual topout! Woo! I told him I’d think about it. (Like the moron that I am!)
So, Kate’s done and Paul’s scrambling up this thing like it’s a 5.6. I mention his offer to Kate and she looks at me like I’m an idiot for saying anything but ‘Hell yeah!’. I hang my head in shame, but before I can do anything else, Paul is down and its my turn on Sacherer Cracker.
It’s good at the bottom, but it’s certainly no joke. I love that its rated 5.7. In Red Rocks, this would be 5.9+. I overcome the offwidth at the bottom and wander up to the base of the real crack. I get three moves in, and the barn door rips me out of the crack. Bah. Back in the crack, move through the weird thin fingers section into the goodness above. Up we go, moving right along. Get to the base of the famous offwidth. Stupidly, I take a rest. I don’t know why. I get up onto the chockstone, pull into the offwidth and 2 minutes later, I’m at the bolts. Not bad. I set the rappel and a shortly I’m on the deck. Good stuff.
“Alright Paul,” I say as I touch down, “Kate told me what an idiot I am, so what time tomorrow for EB?”
“Early,” he says.
“Fine with me,” I’m used to early risings. Besides, I’m camping. No one in Camp 4 sleeps anyway. Although I would discover a week or so later that Curry Village on a Friday night is ten times louder than Camp 4….how people go to bed at two in the morning only to rise again at four thirty for their hike up Half Dome is beyond me.
So, Paul and Kate go work on La Escuela (well, Paul works on it, Kate belays) while I pack and sort. I wander up there and watch Paul work on the crux moves and conquer his fear of falling. He gets up to the anchor, and calls down to us.
“Either of you want to try this?”
Kate looks at me and shrugs. “I will.”
She ties in, I check her knot, and she hops on it. Up she goes like one of those little lizards you see down climbing 5.17! She gets up to the rest with few (if any) problems, and after a couple of rests, she tops out. She’s my hero, this pitch is 5.11b. I think she surprised the hell out of herself. I’m impressed, but not surprised.
I pass, since I want to save my energy and various body parts for the climbing tomorrow. We pack up and head down the hill.
“Hey John, you need to lead something today, all you’ve done is top rope” Paul says to me on the way down.
“You’re right, I really should.”
“How about Pine Line?”
“Sure, why not?” Nothing like climbing the first pitch of the Nose to top out your day. Didn’t I mention something about not climbing on the Captain at the beginning of all of this? See the resolve?
We get to the base and there’s a wall climber sleeping. We drop gear and rack up. Kate suddenly has a great idea.
“Hey John, why don’t you lead this on passive gear only?”
I look at her and shrug. “Alright.”
So, off I go. A set of stoppers and a couple of cams (just in case). I set a hybrid alien as my first piece for directional (no sense in zippering the pitch if I fall). I probably could have used opposition with two stoppers, but eh, that’s work.
Here’s something to know about climbing on the Captain, at least as far as I’ve experienced so far. 5.7 really means 5.7. It really means it. All of the climbs I got on were serious for the grade. Pine Line, while mostly moderate, was no exception in a couple of spots. However, like all the other climbs, it was also excellent for the grade and a great climb, and I actually managed to keep all of my cams on my rack and placed nothing but stoppers (save the first piece).
Kate seconded and soon we were down. While I was climbing, Paul was racking for the next day. We decided on using his rack and my double lines, since we’d need two ropes for the East Ledges anyway if the fixed lines weren’t in place.
Off to Curry Village for pizza and desserts, and Paul and I agreed to meet at El Cap Meadow at 6am the next morning.
Normally, at this time in the climbing season, I’ve just come off two or three months of solid multi-pitch training. I’m wired in both my efficiency on the wall and climbing ability. It’s why I come to Yosemite when I do…when I’m at my peak. This year, though was different. I climbed a fair amount up until my ascent of Moonlight Buttress, and then due to partner issues, I was more or less banned from multi-pitch with the exception of Dark Shadows and Solar Slab, not exactly good training for the East Buttress.
I was however, climbing strong. Spending time cragging with Kate had pushed my onsight level up from 5.8ish to solid 5.9 and some low 5.10’s in a matter of weeks. I was probably ready for 5.9 earlier, but I didn’t have a partner to give me the motivation needed to push through. Kate, being the awesome partner that she is, doesn’t allow me to wuss out, she requires that I lead at my ability.
So, I’m sitting in Curry Village with the pre-flight jitters. I’m a little concerned about my efficiency (we use doubles, and they require more work and I was a little rusty, and rightfully so as it would turn out) and general energy level for a climb this big. I’m not eating as much as I should, but I force down a small pizza and a root beer before trudging back to Camp 4. I had learned my lesson on Moonlight about my tendency to not eat enough when I’m having jitters.
It’s fair to say that I don’t sleep at all that night. All night I think about the difficult climb ahead and worry incessantly about it. Finally, 5:15am arrives. I step out of the tent, and *poof*, just like that, the jitters are gone and I’m amped. Time to climb!
I meet with Paul at the meadows and we rack up. He grabs the rope, I grab the rack, and we’re off. We head up the Zodiac talus field, chatting away and occasionally stopping to awe at the monstrous sea of stone looming above. It just gets bigger….spooky.
About halfway into the approach, we both realize that we are lacking nut tools. Hrm. All cam ascent today…should prove interesting. Especially since we were thoughtful enough to bring two sets of stoppers that we couldn’t use. Fun. We make pretty good time up the Zodiac talus slope, but apparently not good enough time. We stopped to chat with a party getting ready for Zodiac and then wander off to the base of the route only to find a party of three in front of us. The leader was already up and belay was on for them and the two seconds were climbing at the same time, so they weren’t moving at a glacial pace, but Paul was worried.
“Hrm, this doesn’t look good. Let’s do the first pitch and let you have a go at the crux on lead, and then if they are slow, we’ll rap off and go climb something else.”
Being the non-leader of the expedition, I reserve comment. I’m amped about this climb and I don’t really want to huff back down the talus field. I want to go down the East Ledges (sans haul bag, of course!). I put my shoes and helmet on, put my backpack on, and I head up the chimney. It starts out tame enough with some 5.6ish moves up to a ledge, then you step into the real chimney.
For those of you not familiar with Yosemite Chimneys, they are a special type of hell all on their own. The thing about chimneys is that usually, you’re not going anywhere if you fall. You’re inside the crack. This is good. However, get into the 5.9-ish range and that starts to change. So, I start to get into this thing and I place a piece, move up a bit, place another, because I didn’t use any before the start of the real chimney. Soon, it dawns on me that just like the little hell that is the start of the Royal Arches, this beast is not going to lighten up.
The topo calls for chimney, then some squeeze, then a ‘wild stem move.’ It wasn’t kidding. I’m sliding upwards (and sometimes down just a bit, but no falls!) and that party ahead still hasn’t moved (I’m a little worried). Then, I’m about 20’ below them and ‘WHAP!’ their rope hits me in the face!
My first thought is ‘WTF?’
My second is ‘YES! They’re retreating!’
I yell up at the guy, tell him to wait to toss his lines until I get up there. He yells down something I cant understand and pulls the rope up. Okay, that was a little weird, but hey…whatever. Soon, both him and his friend are climbing. Makes me wonder why the rope hit me. Especially since it was the end of the line that kissed my face.
So here I am, 2 feet below belay at the ‘stem’ move. My feet are stemmed way out, and I see where I have to go, and I realize I’m six inches too low. Crap. Okay, gently move the right foot up. Gently move the left foot up. Marvel at the stuff that is sticky rubber, grab the jug, haul up onto belay. Okay, so that’s pitch 1. Fun. Tough, though, and pretty spicy for those of us who don’t climb granite on a regular basis.
I’m thinking, okay, I get some breathing time, this will take Paul a little while. Even if he’s fast in the chimney, I left the entire rack in there, so it’ll slow him down a bit. As it was, I could barely keep up on belay. The whole pitch took him about 5 minutes. Well, at least this will go quickly, I think.
Paul sets himself at belay, grabs the other cam and the stoppers from me. Reaches out and places a yellow alien in the pin scar to the right of belay. Gives it a good, sharp tug or two. Clips it. Climbs up a bit, puts his foot on the wrong thing and suddenly, he’s falling.
Did I mention this is my first leader fall catch as belayer on trad? Well, it is! Good thing he has that yellow alien in, otherwise…oh, look, the yellow alien just blew out….and suddenly Paul’s head is at my feet.
“You okay?”
“Yeah.”
“Wow, I thought that yellow alien was good.”
“Me too, it looked good,” he shrugs as he hauls back up to belay.
Paul places the alien again, then tugs on it. Holds. Yet Paul is a smart man and does not trust the placement he cannot see again. He stows the yellow alien and grabs his green alien and tries a pin scar a bit lower. Tugs it, clips it. This time he gets up and pulls through the move no problem and disappears around the corner. Neither of us know if that green alien is any better than the yellow. At least this time we didn’t have to test the theory…
Suddenly, I’m panning out rope like he’s walking. I pan out about 150’ and Paul calls off belay. I get onto the move, ease up it, balance, balance, trust, trust, reach….there! Whew! Didn’t really want to fall on that move. Alright, I get up and around the corner and I’m looking at this weird trough with a tiny crack in the middle of it. And 100’ with no gear. Topo says 5.9. It felt like 5.7, but it was really awkward. I cruise up and arrive at belay. At this point, we switch to block leading. This will give Paul the exposed, scary pitches and give me all the fun, well protected ones. I have no problem with this at all, although I do lose out on the ‘arête’ pitch. Oh well. Remember, we have no stoppers, which means cams only. Makes for longer, more dangerous run-outs on this climb, not something I’m really into on this type of granite…stuff is like glass.
Paul shoots up the arête and I follow behind. He is kind enough to work the doubles magic and I get a top belay more or less for the whole pitch. Next couple pitches are mine. I wander up the 3rd class to the base of the big gully. Topo calls for 5.7 with some thin 5.8. No problem. I’m off and enjoying this pitch. It’s wandering, and really reminds me of Red Rocks. I like it. I also like the fact that the party above has picked up speed and is way ahead. The parties below are slow, so we pretty much have the climb to ourselves. Nice.
The next pitch is also mine with the 5.6 and 5.7 with the 5.8 ‘roof’. Yeah, it isn’t a roof. Not really, but as soon as you’re trying to climb by it, it suddenly becomes one and you really need a good hold. Luckily, its there and I’m soon at belay. Of course, because I’m rusty on the doubles, I’m paying for it and rope drag is killing me. We’re also getting some love from Horsetail falls at this point (Paul thought someone was relieving themselves on us, but thankfully that was not the case!), but not enough to be annoying.
Up next, two pitches of 5.9. The next pitch is this scary lie back thing that I won’t even try to describe. It’s just weird. It’s also bad for the follower since the pitch is only 30’ long and goes up diagonally, I was looking at a nice fall if I popped. I struggled a bit on this, but managed to keep from falling and I worked my way up toward belay.
After a bit of rope management (sorry Paul!), Paul was off again up the only corner pitch on the route. This was the part of the climb where you want a #3.5 camalot, but the Supertopo says you don’t need it. I think most people step left onto the 5.9 face here, but Paul and I are suckers for a nice corner offwidth, so you know the story…
So, I’m belaying and suddenly I hear a shout down below and I look down to the last belay. The guys behind us are catching up. He asks where the belay is. I tell him he’s at it. He doesn’t like that, and wants to come up. I tell him, no, it’s a hanging belay (sort of) and there’s no room. I guess he didn’t hear, and he starts climbing.
I return my attention to Paul since he’s moving through the crux. After Paul clears the crux, I look down again and this guy is halfway up the pitch.
“Hey! There’s no room for you! You’re going to have to wait for a few minutes until I can clear belay!”
He gives me this weird look and, since theres no stance or place to ‘hang out’ for 5 minutes, he clips a piece and lowers back to belay. They elect to pull rope and do some weird rope things and I looked up to see how Paul was doing.
Paul had pulled through like a champ, and soon he was looking around for belay. This belay, by the way, is weird and tough to find. Look for the fixed gear for a decent stance. It was at this point that the wind decided it would be funny if it stole his hat. So off it went and his hat starts to fall of and left of the climb.
“HAT!!!!” I yell to no one in particular. Hey, no one wants to get hit in the eye by a stray hat.
I watch the hat tumble down, and there’s no way I can grab it, its 20’ to my left. Damn, that sucks! Right as it was nearing even with me, the wind picked up and blew it like a little rocket right into the anchor cordelette, 3’ in front of my face. Sweet! I reach up and grab it and clip it to my harness and then head up the pitch.
Paul takes the next easy pitch and then the one after that, saying that I can have the last two pitches. Fair enough. I would be really happy about this in about 15 minutes, although I think I would have liked the easy pitch before the crux, even with the bit of a run out.
After a short, easy pitch comes the psychological crux of the climb. The East Buttress goes at 5.10b. However, the 5.10b is the first move of the second pitch. The psychological crux is rated at 5.8. Which is true, it is 5.8…fairly easy 5.8 at that.
Yet, it starts out menacing. Yeah, I would like to say tame, but it really wasn’t. Of course, it wasn’t my lead, so let us go back to Paul’s portion of the pitch- the lead.
So, Paul scampers up and around the corner out of sight, leaving me to wonder what he’s doing, then he gets to the end of the traverse and pops into view again about 20’ away.
“Hi Paul.”
“Hi John.”
Then, he steps right, and vanishes from view and heads up the pitch. Soon he’s at belay and calling down on the walkie talkie that he’s secure. The rest of the rope disappears up the pitch, and after some adjustments (doubles, remember), I’m off.
Another traverse and Paul has me on a good belay with the doubles (this would suck without them, those who do this on a single line are brave souls) and I’m pretty happy. Our radios are making it easy for me to make sure he doesn’t yank too hard on either line, but still is able to keep me snug. I pull up and over this little pillar thing and I almost puke. Remember the last time I almost puked? Yeah, we all remember that, don’t we? If you dont---Moonlight Buttress TR
I hate to ruin the climb for those who haven’t done it, so let’s call this a 5.7 hand traverse with decent feet for about 20’. It involves up climbing and down climbing, both actually lots of fun and not too tough. The traverse is outstanding and airy. The exposure is immense, but it’s all there. Shortly, you’re below the crux.
100’ of 5.8 knobs that are slick as glass and very little pro looms above. The pro that is there, for the most part, are stoppers. Gee, makes you really wish you hadn’t left the nut tool in your car, doesn’t it? As it was, Paul clipped two pitons and one cam for that entire length. Good job, Paul. You are a braver man than I.
I should interject here before I get to the riveting conclusion of this report. See, its not really the run-out that bothered me, I’m fine with those as some people will attest to. Its how vertical and slick the rock was. Even if you’re paying attention, you could still slip easily on that stuff. The 1500’ or so of exposure under my ass probably wasn’t helping much, either, but hey, you live and keep climbing, especially when on top rope. I still wonder that people solo this thing all the time…that’s just spooky.
Soon, I’m at belay and after a short rest, I’m off. I cruise up easy ground, with a couple of exceptions, pull around the big boulder thingy, and I can see the top. It’s 3rd class with a trail for the rest of the way. Paul starts simul-ing below me and I go until I find a crack and a good place to belay. I put a piece in, and bring Paul up, since rope drag was killing me (wandering pitch and lots of bushes). We untie and I walk to the summit while Paul takes some pictures.
The summit. El Cap. Now, I make no claims to have summitted El Cap via a wall. I’m not talking about bragging rights here at all. No. That’s not it. I’ve climbed my share, but I’ve never been on top of a climb that brought me to tears. This one did.
The East Buttress of El Cap is a multi-pitch that is pretty much at my limit as far as how sustained and mentally challenging it is. The climbing wasn’t that bad, but it did force me to keep on my ball the entire time.
Standing on the top, I could finally release a bit and it was a bit overwhelming. What an amazing achievement. Less than 2 years of climbing outside and I’ve managed to climb the East Buttress of the Captain. Flash for me, repeat of the route for Paul...but hey, I didnt fall! How cool is that?
Now, lucky for me, I have AT&T Wireless, which means I get cell reception in the valley. Full reception when standing on top (sort of) the Big Stone. I called my fiancée, my mom, and Kate from the top. Hey, how often do you get to call your mom from the top of a climb?
After some more sniffling and some pictures and a few moments of reflection, we headed down the East Ledges. Part way down, I realized I left my climbing shoes up top. Dork. I ran back and got them and joined Paul at the bottom of the slabs. We hopped on the fixed lines (well, Paul hopped on them, I cursed and fought with them a bit, since my brand new Reverso didn’t like the huge, fat lines) and headed down to Curry Village and pizza. I bought Paul both pizza and beer for leading the scary stuff and thanked him again profusely.
After that, it was back to Camp 4 for a well-deserved night of sleep and a couple days of laid-back reading and climbing. Yet, this was definitely the highlight of the trip and probably the newest pinnacle of my brief climbing career.
Special thanks to Paul for being an outstanding ‘expedition leader’ on such a spectacular climb. His lead head, speed, efficiency, and concern for safety definitely made this climb as enjoyable as it was. Thanks Paul!
I’d also like to thank Kate for inspiring me (and sometimes badgering me) to push my limits as a climber and to get on the climbs I dream about…that way I can call those climbs outstanding memories rather than just far away dreams. [I should note that I managed to talk Kate into a long, moderate route later that week, which we did in good style and had a ton of fun on. I would reveal the climb, but I’m sworn to secrecy! :D ]
Final Note: Okay, after doing the East Ledges, which was no worse than many other descents I’ve done as a trad leader, I have to say this to those who do it with 90lb pigs on your backs. You people are insane. I’m not sure I would DARE do that descent with a pig on my back! Makes me almost not want to climb the Captain via the walls. Almost. But not quite.
edited for consistency.
|
|
|
|
|
deleted
Deleted
Jul 17, 2004, 9:23 PM
Post #2 of 12
(2693 views)
Shortcut
Registered:
Posts:
|
it sounds like you're on your way to climbing things that are actually worth reading about...good job
|
|
|
|
|
maculated
Jul 17, 2004, 11:13 PM
Post #3 of 12
(2696 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Dec 23, 2001
Posts: 6179
|
Hmm. You make me feel almost vindicated for freaking out on La Cosita left during my trip. I still don't understand why people freak out at Valley ratings. To me, it's really 5.7, other places it just might be easy.
Good showing, John. Too bad we never got up Crest Jewel.
|
|
|
|
|
vegastradguy
Jul 18, 2004, 1:34 AM
Post #4 of 12
(2696 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Aug 28, 2002
Posts: 5919
|
thanks, Mac!
ps- sacherer crackers first 20', although 5.7 is sort of like the last 15' of the it (which goes 5.9), sure its what it says it is, but not everyone can climb that particular style at that grade, which is why it spooks many! oh, and La Cosita...looked scary and interesting...probably a healthy mix of both!
|
|
|
|
|
holdplease2
Jul 18, 2004, 5:21 AM
Post #5 of 12
(2696 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Dec 18, 2002
Posts: 1733
|
Hey John -
Its great to read the details of your fun on the East Buttress. I remember your voice was shaking when you called...I thought it was because you were tired or scared...little did I know!
Thanks to you and Nelita for sharing some of your vacation with me, it was such a pleasure to see both of you.
And for the record...I bailed off of Sacherer Cracker, from the chockstone. Those of you who climb with me know this doesn't happen often, which tells you just how badly beaten I was. Too tired to try? Yup, you bet. I'll go back when I'm a better climber.
Hope to see you soon!
-Kate.
|
|
|
|
|
enjoimx
Jul 18, 2004, 6:04 AM
Post #6 of 12
(2696 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Feb 23, 2004
Posts: 378
|
Oh man that sounds like soo much fun. Congratulations on that ascent. I CANNOT wait untill i can do big stuff like that.
|
|
|
|
|
karlbaba
Jul 18, 2004, 6:57 AM
Post #7 of 12
(2696 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jul 10, 2002
Posts: 1159
|
Thanks. I've done this route so many times I can't count but still enjoy it (and have only recently learned to free that tricky 10b move consistently) A couple weeks ago I did it again so it was fresh in my mind as I followed you pitch by pitch up the route.
I'm not sure about Red Rocks but, in my experience, if you are careful placing your nuts in granite, you rarely need a nut tool to remove them. A good yank up on the sling will do it.
Congrats on not letting your preconceptions of how you want your climbing to unfold get in the way of reality.
peace
karl
|
|
|
|
|
vegastradguy
Jul 19, 2004, 6:15 PM
Post #8 of 12
(2696 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Aug 28, 2002
Posts: 5919
|
thanks for all the kind words, everyone!
karl- we actually did use two stoppers, both in anchors, but we went sans stoppers on lead. truth be told, if i had needed a stopper, i would have placed one for sure and spent the $8.00 or whatever to replace it if Paul had not been able to retrieve it (i also assume Paul would have as well).
kate- eh, next time you and I will go get our redpoints of Sacherer Cracker no sweat! (truth be told, that thing really is a tough climb, because it does test all types of crack climbing, which allows it to have a different crux for everyone!)
|
|
|
|
|
ropeburn
Jul 19, 2004, 8:34 PM
Post #9 of 12
(2696 views)
Shortcut
Registered: May 19, 2003
Posts: 594
|
Great TR,
But I'm a little confused, you say that you caught your first lead fall on gear, and then say neither of you fell.
Not that it really matters, just caught me off guard consistency wise.
|
|
|
|
|
vegastradguy
Jul 19, 2004, 9:01 PM
Post #10 of 12
(2696 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Aug 28, 2002
Posts: 5919
|
woops. sorry...i'll go back and edit that! i didnt fall, but Paul logged one fall on the route.
this is what happens when you dont have someone else proof your reports. thanks!
|
|
|
|
|
ricardol
Jul 19, 2004, 9:30 PM
Post #11 of 12
(2696 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Nov 11, 2002
Posts: 1050
|
nice TR ..
-- ricardo
|
|
|
|
|
addiroids
Jul 20, 2004, 8:45 PM
Post #12 of 12
(2696 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Oct 11, 2001
Posts: 1046
|
In reply to: Final Note: Okay, after doing the East Ledges, which was no worse than many other descents I’ve done as a trad leader, I have to say this to those who do it with 90lb pigs on your backs. You people are insane. I’m not sure I would DARE do that descent with a pig on my back! Makes me almost not want to climb the Captain via the walls. Almost. But not quite.
Nice TR dude. Glad to hear you are still out there pushing yourself. And to overcome the problem of the 90 pound pig on your back:
1) Speed climb.
2) Have one person rap down with no pig, then have the other rap with both pigs. This is especially important if you are tossing ropes. We (I) learned the hard way on that one. Rapping with 2 pigs is no harder than with one and it clears up the first guy/gal to deal with rope snags with nothing on him/her.
3) Air mail.
And just to clarify that I was definately NOT the Paul leading La Escuela. 11b is a couple of years away for now. Makes for a nice aids climb though.
I will be in the Valley during late Sept to late Oct every other weekend getting closer to our goal of "30 by age 30". If you are around we should hang out and maybe you could even join us on a wall as a third.
TRADitionally yours,
Cali Dirtbag
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
