Wyoming

My buddy Chris Johnson and I have been talking for several years about meeting up for a back country climbing trip in Wind River Range. The Winds are a popular hiking, fishing, backpacking and thankfully climbing destination. Cirque of the Towers is the main climbing attraction, rightfully so. The Cirque, as it is referred to, is a massive ridge of perfect alpine granite encompassing several alpine lakes, meadows, and more boulders than you can imagine.

After making the long drive across the plains I arrived at the trail head campground. Chris had just got there 30 minutes earlier and his truck had already purged all of the clutter and gear from the back onto the ground. We ate, drank, talked trash and tried to organize for the next day.

After a good nights sleep we began the horrible process of finding out how much our backpacks were actually going to weigh. Climbing gear, backpacking gear, and 6 days worth of food quickly added up to around 75 lbs. We should have brought a scale for justification. Regardless they were large, heavy and very uncomfortable. Luckily the first 5.5 miles to Big Sandy Lake has very little elevation gain and we were able to bang it out in less than 2 hours. We rested soaked our feet then began the rough and tumble trail to the Cirque. 3 hours later with aching hips we crested Jackass Pass to see the Cirque in all of it's beauty.

Chris on the trail to good times. the faint red lines are routes that we got to sample. From

right to left; NE Face of Pingora, South Buttress of Pingora, and East Ridge of Wolfshead

We established camp hung our food and started planning for routes.

After a late start the next day we stumbled up to the NE Face of Warrior I. My legs and hips were sore and stiff, and by 11 a.m. we were climbing. The first 4 pitches were mungy and not exactly what I had hoped for. Trip reports I had read online had rave reviews of this climb. The next 4 pitches improved dramatically and I lucked out and got the money pitch. 100ft of thin hands to hands on splitter granite followed by 50 ft of thin crack and slab climbing on and above rp's.

Me finally thinking that all the choss up to this point

has been totally worth it.

The following day we got up early (like you are supposed to for alpine) and boulder hopped our way over to the NE Face of Pingora in the dark. We got there at 6:50 to find 2 party's already on the route, and moving painfully slow. I have never understood how such slow people manage to arrive at routes so early. Chris and i took our time mulling around the base using the restroom and finally got started once the upper party was at the 2nd belay and the leader from the lower party was almost 1/2 way up the second pitch. The lower party's follower was having trouble making the face traverse moves off the first belay when Chris suggested placing a cam then clipping a cordelette into the cam so he could tension traverse. He did this then we unclipped his cam so he could reel it in. I gave him a 60 ft head start then lead up the 2nd pitch to share the belay with the lower party. They had decided to bail, yippee, so i waited for them both to get down and out of the way before bringing Chris up. We climbed efficiently upwards on pitch after pitch of the best alpine granite that I have layed my hands on in years. We caught the upper party on the 7th pitch and shared the last 4 belays with them. Around 1 we summited, snapped some photos then took our time on the descent with no eminent weather visible. Once at the base of the SW Face of Pingora we found a little waterfall and some dry grass with an excellent view.

We hung out for several hours to avoid the horrible mosquito's down in our camp. Around 4 we stashed our gear in the boulders since we planned on coming back up the following day for a link up of 2 routes. Once back in camp we found Chris's roommate Tommy and his friend Todd. They were supposed to be in the day before, and had gotten to the Cirque after dark, setting up camp within 50 yards of us incredibly.

The third day we woke up to rain, then sun, then rain and so on. Late morning we gave up on climbing and headed down to lonesome lake to explore and watch Tommy and Todd fish for dinner. By 3 p.m. the clouds had cleared and blue skies had returned. Chris and I hoofed it to camp, got food and water then blitzed up the trail to our gear. While retrieving our packs 2 like minded individuals walked by. One of them looked very familiar and we soon realized that it was Jeff, a friend of Chris's ex-girlfriend who we had climbed with in the desert several years prior. We caught up while scrambling to the base of the South Buttress of Pingora. Jeff and Drake chose some route left of the buttress proper and we took something to the right. 3 pitches later Chris was finishing up the gorgeous "K-Cracks" with some very threatening weather on top of us. It was around 5:30, we made 5 fast double rope rappels to reach the ground and ran back down to camp avoiding getting drenched.

The following day we climbed my favorite route of the trip. Wolfshead via the East Ridge III 5.6 unadulterated fun. Pristine Alpine setting, check. Perfect Alpine granite, check. Knife edge ridge, check. Massive exposure, check. Crazy gendarmes, check. Hand traverses on splitter cracks, check. Foot traverses on splitter cracks, check. This route dished out the goods pitch after pitch. Chris and I kept thinking that I had just climbed the "money pitch" when his next pitch would be even better. We approached via the gully between Tiger Tower and Pingora then traversed into the start. This turned out to be very easy and quite quick. The standard approach via the grassy ledges looked very wet and took some party's several hours as opposed to the 30 minutes for the gully. The photos do not do this climb justice at all, if I went back I would climb this route again in a heartbeat.

Wolfshead as viewed from the south.

We waited below Wolfshead till Tommy and Todd were done with the NE Face of Pingora then we all headed down to camp for dinner.

That night we had some snowflakes in the evening, and woke up to cold windy weather which quickly turned into moderate to heavy snow. We had planned on hiking halfway out, doing a climb on Sundance Pinnacle then making our way back to the trail head. Instead we scrambled to get camp broke then hit the trail before too much snow could accumulate. Thankfully the rocks were melting the snow and only a small amount was showing up on the grassy areas. By the time we got to Big Sandy Lake, we were below the clouds and it was easy hiking to the cars. Once back to the parking lot, beers, chips, cheese and candy were devoured. Jeff and his partner Drake soon showed up and the 6 of us went to Pinedale for calories. It was an excellent trip, and I am now psyched for a trip to the Bugaboos next summer.

Myself, Tommy, Todd and Chris right before the weather moved in.

Colorado

Better late than never! I have heard people say this about thank you cards, birthday presents, showing up for work, and menstrual cycles. I am now applying this to Blogging.

2 Weeks ago Bit and I loaded up a borrowed Subaru Forrester (thanks Mom) with camping equipment, dogs, food, books on CD and 1 bike for a week in the high country of good ol Colorado.

Got up Early on July 8th and drove till night fall to reach Crested Butte. Our friends Sean, Kelly and Seamus Burns had secured a sweet little campsite up Slate River Road Gulch in National Forest right next to a raging mountain stream. Within 24 hours our little spot in the woods became a full on refugee camp of temporarily dislocated Midwesterners. Andre, Jeanie and Erin Dory joined us as well Sean's friend James Alexander and Kelly's friends Amy and Kristin. For the next 5 days we enjoyed wonderful camp meals, with picturesque day hikes. Several days the guys weaseled some sweet single track rides in.

The first day we joined the Burns Clan for a short jaunt up Oh-Be-Joyful enjoying the views of several waterfalls and tons of wild flowers

Bit and Kelly happy not to be in the Midwest

The next day the whole crew headed to the Snodgrass Trail. The guys rode out and back on their mountain bikes grabbed the cars then drove around to pick up the ladies at the end of the trail. We ended the day in the town eating delicious pizza at the Secret Stash.

Day 3 Bit and I took the mutts up Gothic Gulch and did a day hike up one of the canyons that became a bush whack and was probably the worst hike of the trip despite. A majority of the trail was double track open only to hikers with mediocre views, bummer! That evening I rallied for a ride after the afternoon showers had passed. Sean, Andre, James and I arrived at the 401 trail around 6:00 pm and it started to sprinkle. Because of the weather we decided to ride up the trail as far as rain or time would allow then turn around and ride back. the standard route is to ride up Gothic road to Schofield Pass then climb a mile of single track for 7 miles of descent. We ended up making it about 7 miles up the trail with lots of gorgeous single track and unrelenting climbs. Sean and I were duking it out with the uphill grades on our single speeds and did surprisingly well. The descent was fast and flowey. By far the best trail I have ever ridden, and with a great group of friends. And yes the rain did let up.

The following day we all went up to trail 403 hiked up to the high point to enjoy the views and take some photos.

Afterwards Bit and I took a lift up Mt Crested Butte then hiked the summit trail to the top for great views of the Maroon Bells and surrounding mountains.

From the summit looking North

We went into town so Bit could get take a nice hot shower at the lodge the Dory's had just checked into. James and I snuck out for a quick spin on the lower and upper loop trails just outside of town, enjoying the nice rolling single track.

The following day we packed up and headed to Telluride for 2 days. We camped at the city park, which paled in comparison to our Crested Butte campsite, and got several hikes in that left from town. All the hiking was steep with exquisite views. The first afternoon we did a 3 mile round trip hike with 1600 ft of elevation gain.

The view was worth it!

Our final day we hiked up to Bear Creek Falls then headed back to the front range.

Our last day I took the dogs on 2 steep short trail runs/hikes to wear them out for the drive home.

It worked! Well!

That evening we stayed with Aaron and Becky Broyles at their newly purchased home outside of Evergreen. They have a cute house with great views, in a secluded yet accessible location. It was a perfect end to our trip, hanging out with some friends that we hadn't seen for quite some time, before making the drive across the plains.

Had a great time, and are already talking about going back next year.

Blinglespeed Makeover

Here lies the my rigid fork!

For the last 2 years I have been riding my only mountain bike rigid as a diamond in an ice storm. I had been toying with the idea of getting a front suspension fork for some time. And just recently broke down (i.e. broke the bank account) and bought a Fox Float 29er. It rides smooth, having had it's maiden voyage at Landahl last week on 20 miles of unrelenting singletrack. Goodbye old friend. Pics of the installed fork to come.

Chiggers-16, Jesse-0

Last Wednesday Jeremy, Jim Lassiter and myself left KC around 6 p.m. and made the short drive down to HCR for a day of climbing. We arrived at the Ranch just before midnight, meeting up with now professional photographer Andy Chasteen.

Thursday morning came to life with very cool temps and mildly overcast skies. We hooved it up to the east side to avoid the morning sun, and let Jer work Supersoul Sureshot. We had a great time warming up on long moderates while the air became heavier. Jer finally roped up for the main event while Andy found a nearby perch to capture some images. We moved down the bluff hitting several routes in the Far East. By late morning the high temp of 82 degrees had been reached and the humidity was becoming oppressive. The sun remained hidden, and despite the thickness in the air we all commented on how nice the weather was considering it was July in Arkansas. Every once in a while a breeze would kick up for 15 secs and it felt like someone had just turned an air conditioner full blast at your body. We eventually made our way back to Jer's project which he sent with mucho style and several grunts. We rounded out the day of climbing at the roman wall and then made our way back to the cabin.

By 2 p.m we were sitting on the front porch of the cabin sipping frozen Bud Light Lime's. Usually I am not a big Budweiser fan, but ice cold/partially frozen buds sure hit the spot. We chatted with Andy for an hour before hitting the road. 25 hours round trip saw us back home in KC, getting to bed at a reasonable hour.

Friday morning I came into work super early as a favor for a coworker. I clocked in at 0530 and by 0600 I started to notice I was itching just about everywhere. Little red bumbs covered my legs and other unmentionables. All that perfect weather distracted me from the fact that summer climbing in Arkansas still involves millions and millions of bugs. Four days later and I am still itching like mad. Next time I am coming armed with bug spray to even the score.

Oats, Shit and Wet Cabbage

For some reason I find British humor so much funnier than our stateside version. One of my absolute favs is Ricky Gervais. If you have never seen the original "Office" but you watch the american version, then you are doing yourself a huge injustice. Several years after "The Office" he did a 2 season show called "Extras." The premise is that he is an aspiring actor who bides his time getting gigs as an extra on movies sets. Each episode has a big name star as the guest who is in the movies that he and his female friend are an extra on. The big name star is playing her or himself but is either a huge a-hole or just plain crazy. The best episode stars Clive Owen who is starring in a movie as Lord Byron. This clip is the funniest thing I have ever seen, Bit and I must have watched this 15 times in a row. The woman playing the prostitute is Maggie, Ricky Gervais' best friend in the show. Enjoy.

Six Hours in the Saddle

This last Sunday Travis Donn, Cameron Chambers and myself drove down to Oklahoma City to compete in a 6 hour mountain bike race. Andy Chasteen (OKC local) had informed of us this race and invited the group down to crash at his place on Saturday night and race Sunday morning.

I had been dreading this race all week, because i really didn't think I was in shape for 6 hours of racing. The only other race I had competed in was last August at Landahl, which was a six hour race as well. At Landahl I had rode decent but my arms and hands were blown out after 4 hours, and the last 2 were hellacious. Up until May this year I have only done a couple of 2 hour rides, so I was excepting to suffer for the whole 6 hours.

We arrived at Andy's hip downtown loft around 11 p.m. and quickly found a sleeping space on the living room floor. Andy was hosting 3 triathaletes from Brazil and Sweden who were in town for a big money competition. Early morning found us stuffing our faces and departing south to the Clear Bay trails on Thunderbird Lake. 

The trails are a sandy maze through rolling hills of oak and poison ivy. There are a handful of decent climbs, very few rocks, and lots of bermed corners. Because of recent storms the race promoter had spent 6 hours the previous day chainsawing fallen trees and rerouting ne trail to avoid muddy sections. He warned us of several trees that he just wasn't able to get to and several long muddy sections. The tree turned out to be nothing and the mud was pretty benign as well.

After a lemans start the small field of riders sprinted into the woods. The first lap the corners were super loose. I had ran hard to get towards the front of the group and pushed my first lap a little faster than I normally would. By the second Lap Andy passed me looking strong. One of my goals was to keep up with him and try to beat him. Andy is an enduro beast, although he had voiced concern about not realy mtb riding over the last 3 weeks. One look at the size of his legs and most people would ask the court reporter to retract that last statement from the record. 

By the third lap, the loose sand had been pushed up into berms on all of the corners and things were fast. I had settled into a nice steady pace and was just concentrating on eating and drinking. Every once and awhile I would get a glimpse of Andy on a adjacent section of trail. I would look at my watch and see how long it took me to reach that location. It was always around 2 minutes. Lap 5 was the half way point, Cameron lapped me and asked me to "get on my space craft and hoover" as he blew by. Confused by his statement I plodded on. I ran out of water and rode one dry lap leaving my camelback to be refilled by Travis. 

Finishing lap 7, I came into our transition area to see Andy getting ready to head out. I refilled on water, slammed several sport beans then left hell bent on catching Andy. Travis and Cameron were racing as a team and by then had a commanding lead of 20 minutes on their closest competitors. Suprisingly my arms and hands were feeling pretty good. My legs were having some cramps occasionally that would go away after several minutes of easy riding. I caught Andy on a climb and kept pace with him for a while, the next climb he let me pass. Both Sean and Travis had told me that when you pass someone make a gap and push it. That is what i did for the next lap and a half. The cramps became much worse, I passed another singlespeed rider and pushed it even harder.  Travis caught me on the final lap and paced me for several climbs till my legs exploded. Finally I crossed the finish line, and was relieved that it was over, yet suprised at how well I had felt. Thanks to the Swope Trails, climbing and general riding everywhere else seems much easier. Like I said Swope Trails are "the shit."

I ended up finishing 2nd in the singlespeed division with Andy right on my tail in 4th.  It was a even better day for Travis and Cameron, they crushed all of the competition coming in 1st overall. Travis manned up and raced in CAT 1 and pulled some impressive lap times way to go bro. Also Cameron got the fastest lap of the day which earned him a little extra cash.  

Andy's friend Nicki took some photos of the race you can check them out here.  She was crouched in the woods towards the end of the 6.6 mile loop shooting. I can only imagine that she was covered in ticks and posion ivy by the end of the day. Thanks Nicki for providing the photos.

We all had a great time. Thanks to Andy for pushing me above and beyond my mental limitations, if he had not been racing I would have surely put forth a pathetic effort. Andy and I are already plotting our next enduro bike event. Did someone say 12 hour race?

The Grass Is Always Greener...

Each year I have 1 enviromental New Years Resolution. In 2007, it was to stop using a gasoline powered lawnmower. I had read numerous carbon footprint statements about these stinky loud machines that we all use to keep our yards nicely manicured. After doing  much online research, I finally settled on the a Scotts' Reel mower. Yes, like the kind that you "reely" have to push to 

make it cut your grass. I have a small yard so it isn't that big of deal, you just need to follow a few simple rules:

#1- keep the blades sharp

#2- make 2-3 passes to get an even cut

#3- cut your grass often

#4- cut your grass more often

#5- did I mention that you need to cut your grass more than normal

As you might have guessed, I haven't been following some of the "Rules" lately. Having neglected my back yard the grass was way to tall to use the human powered mower. I ended up having to cut it down half way with my electric trimmer then borrow Jeremy's new electric mower. So from now on I will be more diligent about keeping up with the rules.

Some other things aside from composting and reel mowers that I have been doing for my yard to keep with my "greener side" of life, is no chemicals. I never have and never will put any chemicals in my yard or garden. 2 years ago I found a little device that massacres weeds and dandylions. It is called the Weedhound , this thing rocks. I got my mom one for her birthday last year and she spent 45 minutes in the yard poppin weeds, it is totally addictive. 

Thats it for today, I am off to enjoy the spring weather.