Lauren Lee and Keith Ladzinski slideshow in Cincinnati

Poster by Colleen Riddell.

BE THERE!!!

"Who He Is"... Odub and Misty Murphy, featuring John Bachar on sax.

Yes, you read that correctly... John Bachar on sax. In the new issue of Deadpoint Magazine, I wrote about my only encounter with the late icon of our sport. Please go check it out... www.deadpointmag.com. I'm on page 12... turn your speakers up and listen while you read.

To download the song: Who He Is, featuring Misty Murphy and John Bachar.

Lander, Wyoming and Cowboy Poems

Hiking the trail from Wild Iris. Photo by Joe Kinder

I'm in the middle of the short, hectic space where I'm not yet completely unpacked from my Lander, Wyoming trip, but I have to leave for Salt Lake and the OR Trade Show in 2 days. So much to get done... so little motivation. Frankly, I just want to sit on my ass for a few minutes.

So... Lander. Amazing. Maybe the greatest small town anywhere, surrounded by incredible climbing, and inhabited by the nicest people anywhere (and hottest women). I hope you don't believe me, because when I go back, again and again, I'd love for it to not be overrun with horny climber guys. Oh yeah... it won't... the grades are relatively stiff.

Thanks to Lindsay Nohls for making the ICF another great event, and thanks to the entire Skinner Family for their amazing hospitality. I had an incredible time, and will most certainly be back more often than I counted on.
To honor the Lander locals, who treated me so well last year, I wrote a cowboy poem to perform at the festival. To write the poem I used 65 route names from the local guidebook.

King Of Hearts (Lander Cowboy Poem) (download)

King Of Hearts (Lander Cowboy Poem) (streaming)

Photo by Michael Cartwright

It took me a few days to get really used to the limestone there, focusing mostly on Sinks Canyon, which I had neglected to visit last year. Once I hit my stride there, I fell in love with the stone. I matched my hardest onsight (12d), and managed to redpoint a 13b before I had to start taking care of my festival duties.

Cow Reggae 13b Photo by Becca Skinner

Killer 12c Photo by Becca Skinner

Strangely, climbing wasn't the most memorable part of the trip. This time it was, by far, the people. I got to know the Skinner family much better, and they are truly an incredible group of people. South Africa '11?? Yes, count me in.

Jake, Sarah, Me, Becca, Hannah. Photo by Amy Skinner


Lowering from Cartoon Graveyard 12d, Photo by Joe Kinder

Touched.

The last real conversation I had with Micah Dash was about our fathers. He had met my daughter the previous weekend, and when I told him that my worst fear was becoming my father, he laughed out loud. "Dude, no way. Every kid wants a cool dad like you." Then he cracked some joke, smiled that gigantic smile, threw back his bottle, and we forgot all about the seriousness of 2 minutes earlier.
Last week, the search for Micah's body, somewhere in the mountains of China, was called off. The search party had found and identified the bodies of his two companions, Wade Johnson and Jonny Copp. Up to that point, everyone had hoped beyond hope that he'd be found, somehow alive. I think that for most, it took a few days to really sink in.

I only met Jonny once, but it was instantly obvious that he was a guy you WANTED to know. I never met Wade, but I knew his work, which will always be a great, lasting tribute to how he lived his life.

These three have touched, inspired, and will be sorely missed by the climbing community they dedicated their lives to. And they'll never be forgotten.

Below is a segment from "The Sharp End", which features Jonny and Micah, and was associate produced by Wade for Sender Films. It doesn't get anymore badass than these guys...

Micah Dash and Johnny Copp segment of "The Sharp End" from Cedar Wright on Vimeo.

Perfect Rendezvous

I just got home from emceeing the New River Rendezvous, and couldn't be more happy with the way everything turned out. The weathermen called for rain... and rain it did. But not enough to stop the climbing, and not nearly enough to stop the party.

The rain hit just in time for the tug-o-war, and after I called Lynn Hill out of the crowd to step up and compete, I realized another guy was needed. Lynn and I had a stare down, and true to form, Team Lynn Hill kicked our ass, though the final win went to the Mountain Hardwear team of Pat Goodman, Janet Bergman, and Freddie Wilkinson. Check out Janets blog for videos of the tug-o-war.
As soon as the tug-o-war wrapped up, the competitors for the sumo pad comp were taped up. Highlight was the ladies comp.... the stamina! Absolutely amazing. In this photo I'm spinning winner Neysa Dominguez in circles... getting her dizzy before more slamming.





Up next: Dyno comp. With the help of Lydia on the time and Karen taking score, emceeing was easy. The format this year was much better than years past, with the finalists given 2 minutes to complete all the dynos they could. High flying action... and again, the ladies KILLED it. Seriously, the boys need to step their game up!

And then the band. Holy hell. Freekbass from Cincy destroyed all notions of what a dance party was. This was by far the most rockin the dance floor has EVER been. Strangely enough, some climbers actually have rhythm.

All in all, big gigantic thanks to everybody who helped out... organizers, volunteers, sponsors, competitors, and partygoers.
With southern strong women Whitney Boland and Kate Reece-McGinnis.


After the Rendezvous was wrapped up, I got some great climbing and chilling time in with an incredible friend of mine. A few hard sends (for all involved), wine, some rearranged patio furniture (from all over Fayetteville at 2am), and more sending, and the trip was complete.

Headed home, just to head back out... to the Red with old friend Angie Payne. More on that, and photos of the last week to come later...

Monsters DO exist. Free new song...

Theres alot on the plate right now. A. Lot. Expect some rapid fire posts for the next few weeks to make up for the lack of recent posts. I'll be headed to the New River Rendezvous in a few days... and CAN'T WAIT!

However, lets get to business here. Three words. Herakleia. Float. Savgi.
Herakleia is the name of Mike Calls newest film, one of discovery and adventure, set in Turkey.
Float is the name of the album Misty Murphy and I are nearing completion on, to be released in July.
Savgi. Turkish for "love", and the name of the song you're about to download and blow your mind and speakers with.

Mike Call contacted Misty and I about a song for his movie, Herakleia. I toyed with some turkish instrument samples, and quickly came up with a minimalistic beat. I sent it to Misty, and was wowed upon its return. I had no idea what she'd do with it... but she nailed it. She learned a turkish love poem... in turkish... and sang it over my beat. All I could do was add a short 8 bar verse, resequence a few things, and it was ready. Quick, easy, and HOT.

Hi Fi Stream of "Savgi".
Free download of "Savgi".

You can get your copy of Herakleia at Momentum Video Magazine.
For a review of the film, Check out Straight Outta Bedlam.

More to come soon. Float, the album, is shapin up nice. Maybe, just maybe, you'll get another sneak listen in a few weeks...

DPM #4. Ode to the Haters.

DPM #4 has been posted online, and is currently on its way to a gym or shop near you, if its not already there.
In this issue, I started with the news, like usual, but just couldn't do it. I've seen so much online hate toward some good cats, like Kinder, Kehl, and Sierzant, that I had to speak up. I have my fair share of haters, and believe me, I love it. Without them, I'd have stopped rappin about climbing a LONG time ago. Go check it HERE.
Read the Sonnie Trotter interview on my page while you're listening... then go visit his blog. Its for sure one of the best around. And don't miss the great photo gallery from Keith Ladzinski!