AAC Weekend in Bend - Smith Rock Clinic

So Saturday is spend in two (AM and PM) climbing clinics @ Smith Rock. Since Brian and I climb together all the time, we figured it would be better if we signed up for DIFFERENT clinics so we could get more exposure to different folks. Folks milling around at about 8am.
Early morning climbers....There were some ladies with cameras taking photos. As one of the climbers peeled off the rock (it happens) she let out this squeal, not knowing he was top roped and totally safe....She was kinda big, and I thought she was gonna have a heart attack right there. :)
This is Mark, a EXUM mountain guide climbing the 5.12 something or other.
As Mark finishes the route, he does a pendulum swing over to the crack on his right, and feeds an additional rope through the anchors so we can climb the crack.
In the meantime, random people are hanging out, either waiting to climb or watching the masters.
This is Chris Linder (pro) climbing a nice little 5.10 route as a warm up. Chris is 23 and has been climbing since he was three years old. His dad was a climber, so that is where he learned.This is Chris on the next route over a 5.12 or 5.13.
Chris again. When he's lowered to the bottom he says, in a dude type fashion. "Wow...I first climbed that route like 11 years ago. Wild." I'm thinking, Jesus H Christ...You were like 12 years old. For the record, I could sooner flap my arms and fly up that route than climb it.

I try my own little magic....and have some success, but can't make the moves to top out.

By the look on my face here, I'm working hard.
Back on the ground.

I do the "shot" with Linder and I.

Later we get together for session two. Steve House is kind enough to belay for me, and I pick my way up an easy route. Brian, who blew his ankle @ Marymoor, is hanging out, watching the action. We have some epic climbs planned this summer....so his ankle better heal quick!

****

Later that evening, we're treated to a slideshow/video by Tommy Caldwell and Beth Rodden. Tommy climbed two routes on El Cap in one 24 hour period. As I recall, it was 60+ pitches. Those of you who don't know, a pitch is a segment of climbing where you typically swap leads, limited by your rope length, usually 50-60 meters or 150-180 feet. That much climbing is unheard of. That much climbing where portions are 5.13 are unthinkable. Most folks take days to get to the top of El Cap. Even if you CAN go in a day, running down to the bottom to then climb up ANOTHER route, and do that all night?

****

On a different note, I sought out Yvon Chouinard to tell him I loved his company and loved what he's done for the climbing community....With a big smile he graciously thanked me. I didn't want to bother the guy, so I quickly faded back into the banquet crowd.

AAC Weekend in Bend

So the American Alpine Club had it's annual meeting in Bend. Brian and I decide to kill two birds with one stone....Go down to this meeting (since it is driving distance) and look at the Ducati that was previously listed on ebay.

The AAC put on a pretty good weekend. Friday night was a slide show and presentation by Steve House and Vince Anderson on their recent (last year) climb up Nanga Parbat face in Nepal
Epic is so overused in today's climbing world...Hell I use it when I hike Tiger Mountain in my teva sandles...However these guys did this amazing route, in 6 days.

It's back

So I thought that I killed the motorcycle thing....it came back....can't shake it.....must have motorcycle....This is a pic of Phil's motorcycle, the same model I desire....The Ducati 1000 Sport Classic, Paul Smart Limited Edition. I think I'm closer to getting one, I may have to Bend OR break....More details later.

Added to the collection:
Leathers - http://www.vansonleathers.com/images/new_products/CSR2.jpg
Brain Cover - http://www.araiamericas.com/helmet_details.asp?model=PROFILE
Booties - http://www.sidi.it/eng/motorcycle/art_d.asp?ATp_ID=M01&Art_ID=MVVERTIGOTE

More You Tubes:
Blastin by
Race Track Wheelies

AAC meeting in Bend OR

The American Alpine Club is having it's annual meeting in Bend OR! This is a pretty cool even, since they have asked some of the best climbers in the country to come out and give instruction, in one of the coolest places to climb, Brian (I broke my girlie ankle) and I are going

Holy FUCKING SHIT! OK, I just looked to see who is showing up! This is gonna be so very cool. Do NOT forget my camera!

Oh my God

Ok some things are so cool, you just can't believe it. This is one.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGbbag9dklU
See what I mean?

Oh and here is another.
http://money.cnn.com/2007/02/15/news/companies/hooters_drink/index.htm
God Bless America, land that I love.

Wow
http://www.bananabunker.com/
I usually only see something like this in an adult film.

Time to Wake Up

“Because the struggle for gay marriage is so prominent, it’s easy for most people to forget that in 33 states, it’s still perfectly legal to fire someone simply for being lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgendered,” said Shelley Alpern, vice president of Trillium Asset, which specializes in socially responsible investing.

We have a long way to go, don't we?

Two Bianchis?

This is yet another bike to go with my OTHER bike. Bianchi Single Speed Mountain Bike made of Easton Aluminum, with WTB Tubeless Tires/Rims, a Rock Shox 85mm Reba Fork, nice WTB hubs, Avid Mechanical Disc brakes, 180mm TruVativ Stylo Cranks. The stem and handlebars are nothing great, but the seat post and saddle were good enough to go on ebay. Swaped out for a nice light Dura Ace post and an old school Selle Italia TurboMatic saddle. Now it weighs 23 lbs.

Took this nimble little green (punishmint aka celeste) forest pixie to St Edwards state park yesterday. It rode really well. I went slow and technical, and it was a lot of fun. Couple of the steepest hills were walkers, but to be expected for a first ride.

I got it home and realized this thing was covered in stupid stupid stickers. Here is a list.

1. 4 WTB stickers on the rims
2. 2 tighten the spoke stickers on the rims
3. 1 Frame size sticker on the back of the seat post
4. 7 different stickers on the fork
5. 1 Easton sticker on the frame
6. 1 Made in Taiwan sticker on the headtube
7. 1 YOUR BIKE SUCKS chain slap sticker/guard on the frame (no need on a ss bike, not to mention the your bike sucks thing...what is up with that? Marketing fuckers trying to be cutsie rebels....Uh, not quite polo shirt wanker.)

Maybe I got it down to 22.75 with my sticker removal!

WTF?

So every once in a great while, I will read a random blog. Just curious. As a result, here is what I find:

1. Countless 14 year old girls professing to how much they love somebody....Usually pink background and some sappy music in the background. Ugh.
2. Some beaming with pride new mom showing new pics of their baby....Now mind you, they have 6 kids already.
3. Some random vacation photos of someone. No prob, I do the same.
4. A confession to live your life for Christ. Uh, those are the ones I don't get.

I hit "next blog" and read this.

My first love is for my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. He is the only reason I exist - to glorify his name in all I do.

As said by a policeman @ a crime scene. "Nothing to see here....Let's move along." So, next blog.

I'm a follower of Jesus...I Love the Lord

Holy fuckstick..Twice? Then, I'm saved, ha ha, I find.

CRAZY funny, fun loving cyclist! That's me!

I look at her profile. She and her husband live in Kenmore. Holy Shit. No pun intended.

Wow..It finally happened!

I the last 6-8 weeks, I've been brewing on single speeds. I got my road fix with my new Bianchi Roger. More recently, I've spend tons of time (ebay and craigslist) and effort (driving to view and demo) in an effort to determine which single speed mountain bike to purchase. Here are the criteria in order:

• High Cool Factor
• Not too expensive (around 1500 total dollars)
• Disc Brakes (hydraulic or cable)
• Decent Components (No crap that I have to replace)
• Not horrible color (To Be Defined)
• Not too heavy ( under 25 lbs)
• Front Suspension

I built this stupid spread sheet to try and help determine which bike would be the best given price and a build vs. buy decision. Frame cost, component cost estimate, components I would replace given a purchase, etc. Overall I have Good News/Bad News/Good News.

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Good News: Doing this helped me determine that basically buy vs build was gonna cost me about the same money, even if I purchased a cheaper frame, and built it out. FYI full bike options were either a Kona Unit or a Redline Monocog Flight. I was leaning towards the Redline since the Kona's top tube is a little too long for me. Going a frame and build out route, were quite honestly between a Surly and Voodoo Wanga, since both had removable canti bosses....The Surly came with a fork but was a little heavy. The Voodoo was a crappy color.

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Bad News: I didn't make any decisions....

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Good News: As I was doing my research, last night, I totally stumbled upon a retailer in California who was doing a closeout on one of my full build out model choices!!! Local bike shops wanted a 300 dollar non refundable deposit to get a bike for a brand they already stocked? That didn't seem right to me. In fact, this bike was one of my top choices, but I had decided it was too expensive. Anyhow, I ordered the bike online, and confirmed my order this AM. It will be here Tuesday.

-

My friends Fabien and Michelle have mentioned a local mountain bike racing series, and I've decided this is gonna be my new race bike. Too bad I can't purchase some new race legs. Those would be very handy....maybe just some I could swap in mid race, perhaps?

Valentine's Day

Happy Billy Ray Valentine.

The Flu, the Flu, it made me blue

Caught the flu on Thursday....So I stayed home all weekend, watched TV, and ate a shitload of M&Ms both plain and peanut, of course!

Epic Ride Today

Since we moved to Kirkland, I've had some difficulty "getting" other places via the bike. I mean I don't want to climb 85th, since other people drive faster than I do, and I blast up that bastard @ 50 miles per hour. I could ride up to the 100th street bridge

So today I decided to take the new ride for a longer spin. Maybe a couple hours, maybe more. Here was how it mapped out, kinda. Kirkland - 68th/70th/Old Red Road - Downtown Redmond - Union Hill - Novelty Hill - Snoqualmie Valley Road - Woodinville-Duvall Road - 202 - 130th Ave NE - Locust Road - 522 - Burke Gilman Trail - Juanita Road.

I had a couple of "Hmm, I wonder where THIS road goes?" moments, but I knew that if I kept heading west and south, eventually I would get home. 4 hours later, I did.

Tomorrow is Groundhog Day!

3:00 a.m. - 8:00 a.m. 121st Trek to Gobbler's Knob for Phil's Official Prognostication! Live entertainment, music, fireworks, and fun with the Groundhog Club Inner Circle. Phil's official prediction at daybreak (approximately 7:25 a.m.). No alcoholic beverages or illegal substances are permitted on the premises. Gates open at 3:00 a.m. Dress for the weather. Courtesy of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club.

From: http://www.groundhog.org/info/feb2.php
Just like all these people waiting to see Puxataney Phil, I can hardly contain my excrement. Wow.

Climbing Wall

Our weather this week has been amazing.

Time to spend it on the climbing wall.

Kuri enjoyed it too.

Mailbox Peak

Kuri decides that she would like to hike to the top of mailbox peak. Being the accomodating human Iam, I agree to drive her, take dog cookies as a summit treat, and carry her water for her. Kuri makes it with energy to spare. I however, I was pretty damned tired when we got back to the truck.

Boots, Boots, Boots.

OK, I've had it with my Sportivas. Those italian boots have killed my feet for the last damned time. I shipped them off to my friend Tom and hopefully on his next trip to Nepal and climb he can give them to someone. They are too worn out and trashed to sell. Goodbye.
These are Asolo Titan GTXs, I got these on sale @ REI....Now I'm not a HUGE fan of REI but they will do in a pinch. However, since REI will allow any item to be returned (including BOOTS you have used) I figured it was insane to keep buying boots that are not working for my feet. If these don't work, that's it. I will climb the Cascades in these.... These are another option, however less viable for any real serious technical climbing....

J and Y in town

Our friends J and Y are in town this weekend. I've known J since 1990.....Good God, we've been friends for 17 years. Amazing. Anyhoooo...This is J and I at Discovery Park! We did much more than this, but I didn't take any photos. We did all sorts of random things.

1. The Tap House in Bellevue. I had not been there before. 160 beers on tap? Amazing. I loved it. We called Blood Clot Brian and he joined us.
2. We also went wine touring of some of the local boutique wines. Nice. J has a collection of 700+ wines. I have one bottle and Mrs Dirtbagger drinks that, so I guess it's not really mine is it?
3. Had dinner @ Il Fornia. Hadn't been there, and it was pretty damned decent, even for a chain restaurant. Awesome. Possum.

New RIDE

So I couldn't hold out. One of the local bike shops had one of the Bianchi's that I wanted for 100 bucks less than retail. Considering it was a new 2007, the right size, and our tax rate is almost 9% I thought it was OK to go ahead.
I've already removed a bunch of tacky stickers (wheels mostly) changed the seat, seat post, tires, cranks, pedals, and stem. Next is a shorter bottom bracket, fenders for crappy weather riding, and bottle cage for holding the battery for NiteRider lights. I'm seeing blue sky today. Time to ride!

New Bicycle?

Every couple of years I get a "hankerin'" for a new bike. Here is what I'm grooving on now. I've ditched the motorcycle idea. I think I will buy a Paul Smart model a year from now, when I can buy MUCH cheaper. This is the new Bianchi Lewis, single speed Mountain Bike with matching RockShox REBA fork. it retails for about 1400 bucks. Totally hip in the new celeste green color, huh?It is very cool. I wish my good friend Fabien was a Bianchi dealer, then I could get a smoking hot deal on one.This is the OTHER bike I'm diggin on. The 2007 Bianchi Roger, going for about 1100 bucks. It is a single speed cross bike with mechanical disc brakes. Is that cool or what. Just wait until you see what I do to it. I've got some big plans to make it ultra cool. Cool has been missing for a while. I decided to bring it back.

Mtn Ride @ Black DIamond

Fabien, Michelle and I decided we were hard enough to go and ride in Black Diamond. When I got up, it was POURING....I thought oh, shit....this is gonna be bad.

A couple of hours Michelle and Fabien show up @ my house to head out....and the weather is looking better.

After 2+ hours riding we decide it was time to head home. Fortunately, I looked @ the direction we were headed, so I knew I could get us out of there. That place can be a little confusing. Gotta love Casio watches! For the record, I had a $400+ Sunnto watch. Damn compass quit working @ 18 months, and it basically died right after the 2 year warranty ended....No more. I'm sticking with Japanese Watches!

BTW, this ride made me think of a single speed mountain bike....Hmmmm...Never really thought about getting one of 'em. Little to "trendy" for me. However, in tight, techincal, sloppy terrain, might be a good option.....

Winter Attempt @ Something

Brian and I decide we're gonna do a winter tooth climb. SNOW SNOW SNOW

Man, there is a lot of snow up here.

Brian just thinks we're stupid. I think I agree.

I can't even walk in this stuff. It's past my waist, in snowshoes. Time to get skis, or go home and drink beer. I think we did the latter.

Xmas is Over

Hmmm....Why is it, I seem to enjoy Christmas less and less? Is it because it now starts in October and with post Christmas sales runs until January 15th? We stuck to a budget this year, and frankly didn't spend hardly anything on each other? Does that make me a bad Santa?

Happy New Year

That is all I got. Happy New Year.

Motorcycles Again?

New 2007 Monster.

So I've been vibin' on motorcycles lately. Yes, I know they are dangerous. Yes, I know they are dangerous. Yes Yes Yes. They are also fun.

DUCATI

Have you seen this?

This has got to be one of the coolest motorcycles I've ever seen. It's a limited production, new Ducati, but made to look like a famous cafe racer bike of the early 70's. Holy Moly, I just pooped my pants this bike is so cool.

This is what I would call old skool cool.

Tex-Ass

On to Texas to chill with the family clan. We head down to south check out a train museum. Here, it would appear that I am trying to take a dump. However that is not the case. Nate and Hailey in a pose.Dirtbagger Girl!
Hailey
The crew on the caboose. Queen Dirtbagger, Allissa, Eilie, Nate and Hailey

Me and Chel.

Me and Ms. Dirtbagger

Veg-Ass

We travel to Vegas to meet friends Matt, Stephanie, Tim and Kirsten for a weekend of fun. Since none of us really gamble, we'd planned to just see what interesting things we could find. We find a giant beer We find an awesome Apple Strudel
We find a giant guitarWe find Chihuly

Matt and Tim find Pink Taco, and I take a picture of them @ the discovery of pink tacos. What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas, including pink tacos.

Trip Summary

So I spent 58 days away from home.

Of those 58, about 30 were at an elevation above 10,000 feet.

Of the 30 days above 10,000 feet, 20+ were in a tent.

35 days in Nepal

23 in Tibet

I was in Bangkok 4 days.

Spent a day in Pokara.

Of 35 days in Nepal, Kathmandu was probably 14.

I took over 2400 photos.

I had over 100 movie segments.

Made several new friends.

Had one helluva time.

Early Flight to Sea-Tac

So I catch an 8am flight from LAX to Sea Tac. Ms Dirtbagger comes to meet me @ the airport.

It's good to be home.

LAX....Getting close to home.

So, I leave Kathmandu on November 1st. I fly from Kathmandu to Bangkok, spend about 3 hours in the airport in Bangkok. I then board the flight from Bangkok to LA. 17 hours. I watched EVERY movie they had on board. Some from my sleep deprived memory include:

Cars (Animation Flick)

School of Rock (staring Jack Black)

I REFUSED to watch The Devil wears Prada.

Bascially I stay up the entire flight, all night since I know I will be in LA @ about 10 pm and need to go to bed. It was a challenge and I found myself dozing off everonce in a while. When that happened, I trotted back to the galley and had the attendants fetch me up a Coca Cola. During this flight, I drank no beer or wine, but I think I drank 6 Cokes.