Back to the Ten

     Awww, Wasssup!!!! Whirlwind, that’s the perfect word to describe the last two weeks. I'm not much for words at the moment but I thought I could recap on a few moments and share a few pictures of some events over the past few weeks. After finishing up the massive bolting escapade in the Borderlands and I was able to put several routes together before my parents rolled in last week. It was a welcomed surprise to have them in town for a few days and my mom and dad were both super syked to not only come out to the new crag but also to see some of the amazing country that the Big Horn mountains have to offer. Starting in Salt Lake, they covered over 4,000 miles in their two weeks out here and they definitely had a blast in the 3 days that they got to spend in Ten Sleep. 

Pops on belay!

     

     

     After their stay and a mini-epic, 14-mile search and rescue mission, I was back to the Borderlands for the weekend to finish bolting the remainder of the routes I had there and to climb for a few days before heading back to Ten Sleep. Saturday we were greeted with rain but Sunday I was able to get out for a morning session and do a rad little 13a before heading back into town. For the next 2 days, I was either sleeping or watching shows, wrecked from the weekend and getting ready for a week in the Ten Sleep Canyon proper, which I had only actually climbed in a few days this season. We headed to the Superratic on Wednesday, funny because I thought that I would be spending most of the season at this area but in reality had only spent one hot afternoon in June, warming up and then leaving. After warming up on the super cool Insect (12d), I jumped on the Hellion to finish some business from last year. After ludicrously punting from the top once, I sent! The next day we headed up to the Jungle Gym, a cool little area situated on the opposite side of the canyon and characterized by shorter, steeper routes with crazy moves on water-polished pockets. I was able to flash Put it in the Ting Ting (12d), send Gorilla Tactics (13b), and finish up the day with a link up between the two in the fading light. Time is winding down here and it looks like next week is going to be the last hoorah up at the Borderlands before spending the last week in Ten Sleep hanging and cranking with the fam. Peace!

Best. Show. Period.

Development, Crazy Woman, 'Merica!!

Crazy Woman, No?

     Things have been fairly busy around here as of late...New Crag, new people, new syke. With the absurd amount of rock here, I've found it super hard to focus on one thing, area, or route. As of recently, the fam has been up at "Borderlands" (In reference to the slightly addictive ps3 game that has occupied us more than climbing in the past month) which is just one more gem in the vast Big Horn range. 

Boarderlands, WHAAAAT!!!!!

This wall features untouched, slightly steep, Ceuse-like streaks, and all-day shade making it a primo spot. We've been able to bolt over 20 new routes among the 4 of us; pretty much giving rise to a new area overnight! My skin has been total crap this trip; not callousing and pretty much shredding and sweating at the first taste of rock. I spent the last 7 of the 8 days out there bolting and cleaning from morning to dusk in hopes of being able to devote the remainder of my trip to climbing these burlesque beauties. With 8 routes down, it looks like I'll have my work cut out for the rest of the summer if I hope to put any of them together to send. These rigs are long, steep, continuous, and for the most part, over my head making it that much more fun to see what will happen in the next month. I'm hoping to head back out tomorrow and get to work trying to piece these rigs together and also to get back up into the mountains into the cooler climate. The 4^th was great down in the valley though; super cool to check out the little town of buffalo and chow down on a bison burger and some blueberry pie all while chilling out by the pool, in Southern Steeze style of course! Alli has been able to snap a few photo’s of the area along with some of the awesome nightly happenings around camp and such. Anyways, these routes are sick, we’re syked, time to pull down!

Good 'ol Buffalo: The Busy Bee is a killer 20's style
diner that serves up some of the best bison in town

Level 69 Proj.

Enter Ten Sleep

            Wow, its crazy to believe how fast time has been moving this past year and currently this summer. The past year has been packed full with ups and downs from school to life to climbing. For those who care, here’s an abridged recap of some of the things that have happened since last fall. I started my second year at UAB, moved off of campus and in with homedog, the Big Mac C, Mr. Hamiter. As soon as fall temps began to come in, I headed straight for Kentucky to visit Kevin and Alli and enjoy the first small break of the semester which ended up just being filled with schoolwork and studying both on the drive and at the crag. Regardless, it was great to be out again in new territory and I was able to climb a lot of new things as well as just have a mental break from the busy-ness of home life.

Alli Rainey Photo

     After The Red, it was go time in the south; most of my focus being concentrated on trying to build as much power as possible before returning out west the following summer. Fresh off of the end to a long-term relationship and the semester, I spent most of my time in Chattanooga and surrounding areas and was able to tick some lines not only at one of my favorite crags, but I was also able to visit new-to-me bouldering areas like LRC and others. I was beginning to get deep into my training regimen as well and felt like I was finally breaking through to the next level when, of course, enters illness. I was feeling a bit sick the week before but per usual continued on to not only overdo it but also contract strep and mono at the same time. The first two days were actually ok, filled with doctor visits, sleep, and a few days of class and I thought that maybe it was on its way out. The midweek hit and I instantly knew that this was only the beginning and that I needed to get home as soon as possible if I was going to have any chance at recovering. The following two weeks were spent in Fort Payne, in bed feeling worse every day. I tried to keep up with school-work, but knew that I needed to get back soon if I was going to have any chance at doing well that semester. The following weeks were spent either in bed, classroom, or library doing whatever I could to make up for lost time. I would try and get outside, if only for a short walk or hike and it would fully exhaust any of the energy that I had, but after 3 weeks of recovery I was able to make it out to HP40 for the annual fundraiser that Solid Rock Climbers for Christ has every year and fueled solely by psych of being out again was able to amass 30 problems.  Even though I could barely drag myself up the easiest problems in the field, the group raised tons of money and I was absolutely syked to be out again. Trashed for the next week, I began to re-assess all of my goals for the following year and revamp a training plan that would put me on the best possible tract without jeopardizing my health again. I was able to maintain some power gains that I had made but the problem for the ensuing months was being able to sustain any sort of workout. 3 routes in and I would be completely exhausted but it was more refreshing than anything to just be out and having fun again. An ankle injury had also put me back which ended up as a blessing, making me only focus on my weakness of pulling power in the short sessions I did have. Spring break from school was welcomed and I had finally began to feel like I had somewhat of a base to work with and headed to the Obed, Tennessee with Hamiter and several others from the b-ham crew. The focus of the trip was mostly to get out and climb as much as possible and sort of get back in the game again. I had so much fun on the trip, perfect weather and amazing comradery the whole time. I only had 2 months left till Ten Sleep and I had a ton of ground to make up not only with training but also work and savings. I was able to get out a good bit for the following months and was also able to climb several climbs that had been on the lifetime list from the beginning.

Some Sandrock Lowball Choss

After the semester ended in May, the majority of my time was spent working 10 hour days in Birmingham during the week then enjoying 4 day weekends with close friends and family. Climbing became a secondary focus, sort of a mental break before the summer and I was not only super syked for my trip but also loved every moment of time with friends during this transition time.

Space Camp Homie!!!!!

            ENTER THE TEN STEEEEEZZYYYY!!!!!! 30 hours of driving and I was finally back, Wassssup!

Rich Wheater Photo

The last 3 weeks here have been simply amazing. I’ve already gone through 1 box of bolts and there are still new areas being explored daily. As for climbing, I’ve spent much of my time off the grid at a newly developed area and have been able to put together several 12’s and 13’s in this steep mega-theater over the past few weeks. I’ve also put several days into bolting some new climbs at an area that we found at the end of last year and dubbed it the Wall of Awesome. Yesterday I got to get out and put a bit of work into these mega-routes, 2 of which should go soon. The weather has changed drastically here and this past week temps soared close to 100 degrees in the valley. After baking in the sun for part of the day, we headed over to the Ark and was able to do all of the 5 star routes there before heading back down into the valley. This following week looks like we’ll hopefully be able to get out to the new Crazy Woman area and hopefully get to finish off several projects from last year in the canyon. Today looks toasty but I’m over it, time to send!

Photo by Mr. Williams. To check out the adventures of Milky and his southern swag, visit mikesironcladbeta.blogspot.com/ 

Goodbye Ten Sleep, its been real

Grand Teton

Wow…. The summer in Wyoming was awesome!!! Great people, good temps, and gorgeous weather truly make this one of the best destinations for summer climbing. I was able to grow so much as a climber in the past two months than I could have imagined and was able to even tick some climbs off of the lifetime list. I did get to climb the Grand Teton on July 17^th, in the best weather possible. I started at 3 a.m. determined to go car to car in 10 hours. I was making great time and was lightly packed with just lunch, shoes, chalk, and water. I made it to lower Garnett Canyon around 5:30 and saw that the last two miles of the trail was a frozen, steep snowfield. I was not planning on this at all, fully outfitted in my gumby Teton apparel of thermal layers and running shoes. 

Garnett Canyon             

I began to make my way up the icy slope, sliding and crawling my way for a few hundred feet until I luckily found where the group in front of me was. They looked at me for a second, laughed a little and asked where I was going. I replied the lower saddle and said it would be great if they could go ahead and I can follow in their boot-pack. We continued on and 3 HOURS later I found myself at the lower saddle, where the fun begins. The weather on top was sick!!! 

Topo of Direct Exum Ridge

After I thought I found the base of the Direct Exum, I slipped on some comfortable climbing shoes and set off. I was a little off route, on a more exposed vertical face but the beauty and rock was amazing. 

Swirls of rock on the Golden Staircase pitch

The rock was surprisingly unique; a mixture of fools gold, quartzite, and granite that made for some really wild colors and cracks. It was very smooth, a little unnerving for me but the dry air made for some great friction. I could see the famed Black Face pitch ahead and after an awkward 5.6 chimney I was at the base. 

Climber on the Black Face

The base consisted of a 5x5 stone platform that once left, exposed you to the valley and about 800 feet of air below. The pitch was only 5.7 finger crack but all of the class III exposure was pretty much concentrated here. I said a quick prayer and set off, focused solely on the movement I made, while passing some fixed pins reminded me that I was still on route. I was now halfway done and the easier sections remained. I felt like I was moving twice as fast now; the route was easier to find and the climbing was less difficult. Strangely, No one else was behind me, nor did I see another group on the other side. I was a little confused on the descent and was counting on following a party down, thinking that it was going to be a busy weekend. I found one party, luckily at the rappels where I caught a ride down and scrambled down the rest of the Owen-Spalding route. I stayed at the lower saddle for a bit, enjoying lunch and the beautiful views that were around. On the descent, I slid down the entire snowfield of Garnett Canyon, aka “The best ride ever.” I passed a lot of guided groups who were splitting their day and planning on summiting the grand the next day; explanation for the slow day. I raced down the trail and was back down to the car in 11 hours and 40 minutes, a bit longer than expected. After another day of biking in Jackson I was back in Ten Sleep and ready for a final push before I had to leave. We had been developing an area at the upper canyon (the muffin’ top) and I had several lines there that I needed to finish cleaning and try and do before the end. Shaina, Andy’s girlfriend, and Andy had both put up some killer lines that I was excited to go see and they were also pushing to send before they left. Shaina ended up sending her’s, Nuttin’ Butt the Muffin (12b) and Andy was super close, falling on the last move of his. I finished cleaning and after warming up on Shaina’s, I had my friend Paul go up to see if all of the holds were clean and to configure some beta I could use. I then got on and flashed it for the first ascent, naming it Pillsbury Dough Hoe (12d). The route follows a nice line of pockets with a few good rests in between to a long 3 move boulder problem, after which is a great rest to the final pull out of a bulge on perfect edges and marble like pinches. I had also bolted a route to the right and at the beginning had not finished it because of the top section being so blank. I had kind of shrugged it off and gave it to Kevin to clean and see if he could see a way through and after a little cleaning, he found a way that went. The moves were pretty taxing to get up to a large rest before the final 15-foot boulder problem that guarded the anchors. After working out the moves and gaining some solid beta I came back after a weekend of rest to try and fire it. A fellow southerner, Paul Smoresly (aka Couscous) was also up for the month and had put some strong effort into the Dough Hoe, being super close to sending the last two days. We went up on Monday, for one final day at the muffin’. I sent the line and in keeping with the muffin top namesake gave it Lardy Party (13a). Paul came antagonizing close again to getting the Hoe and I worked out the moves on the third line I had bolted which involves a v9 crux at the top, routes we’ll both have to come back for. I climbed my final day there in good spirits, hanging out for the final day with some great friends and enjoying the weather before heading home to the hotbox of Alabama. After some long days and a few detours, I made it home Wednesday afternoon, completely exhausted from the summer. I’m looking forward to taking the next two weeks off to fully recover and catch up with friends before hitting it hard again for the fall. Thanks to Alli and Kevin again for not only letting me stay as long as I did but for also being great people and even better friends.

Family photo

Much Needed Rest

                              He Biggum 13d   Photo: Deadpoint Mag

Since the weekend of the fourth, things have been on the up. I enjoy climbing here more and more everyday and I couldn't ask for better friends to be climbing with. I have been doing more developing here than I could have imagined this summer and have been really excited about a new wall (aka the muffin top)  me, kevin, and a few others have been bolting and can't wait to come back to next year to send. It really motivating to also see others getting into and excited on developing and who want to give back to the community. My friend Andy Mann has been up here for a few weeks now and have been not only shooting pics and video of everyone but is also putting in hard work learning and equipping lines, something exciting to see. I have been looking back on this summer a lot and the one thing I am really motivated to do when I get back is train power. I am lucky to be an endurance climber but when I have been faced with a bouldery or power move, I have needed all I have to get through it. Case in point is on The Hellion, a route I thought and should have done about a month ago. I was falling at this dynamic move on the fourth go and thought that when it hits that I'll send. Well it still hasn't hit on link and was starting to take a mental beating on me. On multiple occasions I had fallen at this bottom move, after a good rest, pulled directly back on, did the move, and sent to the top. One day I did this on all six of my attempts, the last two being so upsetting that I did the route without resting at any of the holds to see if I could pump. I had been focusing on it more and more lately and when I get back next week, its going down. Today was a great relief though to my stress as I did an extension to a route (Suck the Nipple 13a) that had not been repeated to the FA's knowledge.  The route was typical Ten Sleep style on small holds, pockets, and a nipple all adding up to a nice line I was syked to do second go. I am also getting a much needed break in the Tetons now as I am waiting for Kelsey and some of her family to show up and spend the next few days with her, something to look forward to. I won't be doing much climbing but we might get out to one of the local crags one day and possible scramble up Halletts peak another. I will be soloing the Direct Exum Route on the Grand (5.7 Class III) on Sunday and am shooting for under 10 hours car to car. This will be one off of the lifetime list and a great time. Definitely will have pictures from that. Time is winding down in Wyoming but I plan to finish out strong!

                                          Driving through Wind River Canyon

                                  Through the Winds on the way to the Tetons

                                            First sight of the Teton range

New development

Today is a day off and I have been thinking a lot about my time spent here in Ten Sleep, WY this past summer. This place is truly amazing and the more I climb here, the more I fall in love with the rock and the syked people that I am surrounded by. The laid-back nature that surrounds the climbing here has made this place really feel like a second home and has also allowed me to push my limits on all climbs. Even though some of these climbs seem far off in the beginning, the more I look and try the closer I become, quickly. A perfect example of this was a route, He Biggum (13d), a route I tried a few days ago. Six months ago I would have never been able to pull on a two finger pocket or even imagine using a mono. This route features only that, a few bad pinches and no feet or intermediates. I never would have even tried this route a few months ago but I stepped out and gave it a shot. I surprisingly found myself able to pull all of the moves and even linking sections, something I was very excited to see. I also never would have imagined to find a local crew of motivated climbers that have not only pushed me but also encouraging me. I went back to the city of gold over the crazy weekend and finished bolting a few lines that I had my eyes on earlier in the month. One addition is a great warm-up on some crack features and finishes on deep pockets and bigger holds. The other of which I really want to go out and try is Curse of Cortez, a 13- I finished equipping and cleaning that takes a slightly overhanging face of the wall. There is more to be had further down canyon also, some of which me and kevin will be checking out today. Peace from the sleep!

Rest, Style, and Syke!

Ten Sleep Canyon has definitely been a wake up call. Just like I wanted. The style, stone, and movement here is so unique and different that it is totally adding to the amount of engrams that I have acquired in my past two years of climbing. I have found that the technical ability to do the harder routes is something to become comfortable with but I never would have expected to become fatigued on routes like I have. For the past year I have been exclusively climbing on good ol' steep southern sandstone and have built up endurance for just that. When I began, I was exclusively bouldering, a great way to get strong fast none the less but over the past year I have shied away from that, clipping only bolts or gear. This has slowly taken away the necessary power for me to break through the next barrier or the next grade. Thankfully I began training with an old master this past february, who coached me and trained me through power and power endurance workouts yet I still climbed 5 days a week. While this was key to getting stronger, I suffered a severe case of overtraining all because of my selfishness. I came to grips with this the other day when I was discussing resting with my friend Alli, who now climbs full time and has coached other athletes. I found it odd how they were only climbing 4 days a week, but the key was every day was a strong showing. The were receiving ample rest in between hard days, something I never considered. While climbing 24/7 would be great I now know that in my recovery state that I need at the least 3 days off a week when climbing at my limit. While I am by no means an expert, just something to think about. Back to the climbing! So I have accomplished exactly what I have planned on doing out here; climbing at my absolute limit every time I get out. I have been climbing lately with local experts Alli Rainey and Kevin Wilkinson, who have been gracious enough to hang out both climbing and on chill days. By the way, Kevin is the mario cart champion, but not for long. I have also met some of the local development crowd and have even bolted two new lines here, something I have become very motivated about since a spring of re-bolting. As for sending, thats something that is about to be on the verge. I have been getting on so many routes at my limit that I can be satisfied with going back and doing all of them soon. I have however gone back to a few and have been really close on breaking through. Yesterday was my first day of real steep climbing, a change of pace and something which is good to maintain. After a few warmup's I was really motivated to get into the cave and finally tick some lines. I had my sights set on a nice 13a which took a long journey out the roof and putting you about 25 yards from your belayer. After a promising flash attempt, I went at it second go only to be completely shut down by a nagging shoulder and bicep pump, soreness from the "rest" day before of hauling, bolting, jugging, and cleaning. See my rest day problems here? I am really excited to get back out and do that along with a few of the others. I have found my power endurance to be a little lacking, but that is something that is only built with time, but I definitely feel much stronger in these past three weeks than I have ever. I have one hung about every route I have tried and can see with just a little rest and recovery, the route going down. One route I have been really motivated on to go back to is The Hellion, a 13c which is just off vertical and features a 25 foot crux section which is near my power limit. I had doubts the first day on it due to a mono move but found a new way the second day to skip it, but making it a lower percentage move in return. I have tried the route about 7 times over 3 cold days, the last two tries falling at the opening crux move, pulling directly back on and doing it from the lower bolt to the anchors. So syked on this perfect route!! I have also had nagging routes like The Burden of Immortality (13a) which I should have done second go but botched my feet and vowed to come back and do it next go. I came back a few days later and made it through the crux 4 times only to fall right before the resting jug at 3/4th height. I'm ready for you now :) Sending is always rewarding but being able to see progression is so much better! Hopefully more pictures and sends to come!