Furry Murry

No, I’m not at the Olympics.

The ice is plastic, the snow is stable, and the temps warm. Any warmer and it would be downright dangerous. It doesn’t get a whole lot better for a week of ice climbing in Canada. We’ve been staying at the killer Fireweed Hostel in Field. This place is nicer than a lot of hotels I’ve stayed at, tough to beat. I’m a little down with the sickness today, I felt it coming on but tried to avoid a day off. For the sake of pushing it hard on something big tomorrow I’m taking the day to recuperate. I hate losing a day on a short trip, particularly with this beautiful weather, but hopefully it will pay off tomorrow.

Day one we intended to get up Gibraltar Falls but decided to bag it in light of the warm temps. The ice at the top is not always bonded to the rock super well, and we were afraid it might all come down on top of us. Instead we spent the afternoon messing around on some easy, short business in Hafner Creek. It was nice to swing the sharp stuff and get a feel for the ice again. I didn’t take any pictures, but here’s a photo of some sick toproping in Hafner a couple years ago to give you an idea.

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Monday a couple fellas and I took a run up Guinness Gully. I climbed Guinness last year in freezing misery, so it was nice to do it in more pleasant weather. Since we had plenty of Read more…

The 2010 Ouray Ice Fest was a pretty sick time. Slideshows, New Belgium beer, superhero parties, demo gear, and sick ice and mixed climbing were just a few highlites. Having a hotel room within walking distance of the Ice Park and all the events in town didn’t hurt one bit either. Bronco, Cass, my old friend Shipman and I bunked up tight at the Victorian Lodge and took in the full weekend. We got to do some fun toproping, and after demoing a pair of Lowa fruitboots I got a taste for how fun hard mixed climbing can be. Once I live somewhere its more accessible, I can definitely see that becoming a worthy pursuit. Its like sport climbing with sharp pointy stuff all over your body. Sweet, eh?

The best part of our weekend was probably watching our friend Sam Elias crush in the Mixed Climbing Competition for a 2nd place finish. Sam went around mid day, which put him about halfway through the field, and up til then no one had topped out on the route. He climbed slow and steady, looking super solid the whole way. As he approached the final ice curtain set a ways out from the last rock face he paused and tinkered around, trying to figure out how to transition across the void. Finally he got a tool set in the ice, and pulled out to set his other tool next to it. By this point the 20 minute time limite was running out, and he was visibly WORKED. He struggled to pull himself over the lip of the overhang, and then the pump was visible as his tools bounced off the moderately angled ice which comprised the last few feet. (Ice climbers call this “stupid arm” – you are some pumped that your swings are off angle and so rather than sink into the ice your pick just pings off to the side.) The crowd began counting down the final 10 seconds, and Sam literally scrambling up the ice, abandoning his tools, and dove on the finishing flag, with 2 SECONDS LEFT! Definitely the most hair-raising, exciting climbing I’ve ever witnessed.

More on the ice fest later, now its time to keep crushing limestone at Shelf Road!

Bronco showing off his Shelf-approved toe socks and doing something in his pants...?

Been back in Oklahoma now for almost two weeks, and I’m developing a serious case of cabin fever. Thankfully the cure is realized as I am writing this from the gate of my flight to Montrose, CO, where Bronco will pick me up and we will disappear for the weekend into the haze that is that Ouray Ice Climbing Festival, followed by a week at Indian Creek (unless the weather in the desert sucks, which it looks like it might…). Nonetheless, the Ice Fest is gonna be radski – a good selection of pals from the climbing world are converging, even the warm blooded Emsmelly is gonna try her hand with some sharp and pointies!

Let’s backtrack a second though. I feel as though I may have payed Oklahoma a disservice. There were some definite highlites, but given the holiday season combined with the massive snowstorm it was tough to get out and train, or do much of anything. Nevertheless, there was some creamy center. Hide and seek, fedoras, frozen rocks, stupid running, fancy food, and Israelis, to name a few.

First order of business Read more…