Butt of the joke...

Now, to say the least, I can be sarcastic. I suppose I've offended a person or two along the way with my bluntness, sarcasm, and willingness to just call somebody out.


The most exciting thing about it for me is when somebody hits me back... creatively. Not just "my dad could beat up your dad" shit... but real wit.


Years ago, an icon of Red River climbing, Chris Snyder, and I, got into a little verbal war. I ended up saying some things that might have been inappropriate and I got kicked off the forum we were arguing on. Haha... my former climbing partner owned and ran the site... but his moderators and admins collectively voted that I had gone too far. I agreed.


In the past year we've made peace. It only makes sense now that I'm clippin bolts and we see each other at the crag at least once a month... usually more. Not too long ago, he posted a comic strip on that same website, redriverclimbing.com, that was about me.


My thoughts on it? Hysterical. Absolutely genius.



My point is, if you're going to be a sarcastic ass, try hard to see the genius behind what other's say about you. In this case... my hat's off to Chris.

In desperate need of project patience...

I was starting to get irritated. See, I suck at projecting routes. I've only climbed 13a, and the longest I've worked on one is 5 tries. Beer Belly, a sweet Mike Doyle route in Red River, looked like it was gonna go fast. I fell at the last move on my 2nd go. And my 3rd. And my 4th. And my 5th.


Now I was in new territory. Was it in my head? Was it the humidity? Was it my tweaked shoulder? Do I suck? Should I take up badminton?


6th go... not even close. Fell all over it.


7th go... last move... again. Shit.


Finally, on the 8th go, I stick the damned move. Finally.


Finally.

Setting up for the crux...

The crux, just before the big throw...

NOT sending, but at least I look good doing it...

After Beer Belly, I began work on its neighbors, Spank (13a), and Dirty Smelly Hippie (13b). Spank wasn't bad... a 12a to the worlds greatest jug, followed by 18 feet of STEEP "I can't clip from these holds sloper slappin". After a couple of big falls off the last few moves, it went down on go #4. Back to normal.

Dirty Smelly is similiar to Spank... except the crux is much harder. That is, till I found the kneebar right in the middle of it on go #2. I think it'll go within 5. Problem is, those last moves are hard. Guess I'd better learn, huh? The cooler weather is comin fast, and I've got 13b's to send.

JATD 2008... a time for work, fun, and reflection

JATD. Johnny and Alex Trail Day.
Several years ago, two friends of mine passed away within a few months of each other. John Bronaugh and his son, Alex Yeakley both embodied the Red River Spirit. This trail day, as John organized the first one, is their annual memorial. I'd been asked to speak at the afterparty, and Kaitlynn and I were excited about attending to put some labor back into the trails we use every weekend.
Katy and I got up EARLY. 5a.m. ish early... We rolled into the Red right on time, and met up with friends to get to work out at the PMRP. Kaitlynn, my friend Melissa, and I set to work at The Shire, rebuilding the eroding ground at the base of the wall with a motivated crew of people, many of whom we knew... Jon, Jordan, Dr. Bob, and some others.
It was a hot day, but everybody toughed it out and got an amazing amount of work done. Kudos to all who slaved away in the KY humidity!

Kaitlynn after a hard days work.

After the work, we headed to the lake at Lago Lindas. Here we met up with Tina Bronaugh and Johns youngest son, Jesse. Melissa and I hit the lake while Jesse and Kaitlynn canoed around. Now, I'm no Michael Phelps. Fact is, the water is just not my comfort zone. However, when we decided to head across the lake to the slip-n-slide, I decided to shelf my fears, and swim the distance. I just focused on relaxing, and it wasn't so bad. Maybe the 2012 Olympics and I'll give Phelps a run for his money...
The slip-n-slide was great fun. Kaitlynn finally got on, and once she did, there was no stoppin her. Apparently, the slip-n-slide isn't my forte either. Some of those guys were pros...

Melissa, Katy, and I... crushin the slip-n-slide.

Next up: Dinner. Great food, beer, and chatting with friends. I got to chat with Melissa some more, which was nice. Shes excited about climbing, and wants to sponge whatever info she can... and since I love to spray my philosophies around, its a great match! An amazing bluegrass band played, and during their break, several people spoke about John and Alex. Matt Tackett got pretty emotional... which led to the rest of us being emotional. Funny how that happens. The band started back up, picking up spirits, everybody danced, and of course, the beer was still flowin. I'm gettin old, but I think I held out till most were headed for bed. So did Kaitlynn... crankin pullups on the ceiling beams till the wee hours. Pullups?? Where did those come from? She'll be crushin everybody before long...

In a few days its off to Salt Lake. First to Maple Canyon for Cobblefest, then to the OR. More shows with Misty, more climbing, and more beer, I'm sure. Can't wait!

Special Thanks to Wes Allen for the JATD photos. See his more of his incredible camera wizardry at www.radicalangles.com

Lander, Wyomin'

Ok, so I suck at updating this. It can only get better, I think. Of course, there's always the prospect of complete abandonment, which is never out of the question... but lets hope for otherwise.

The last few weeks I've been riding a whirlwind, which dumped me off at the airport in Salt Lake City. There, I met up with good friend and wonder woman Devaki Murch, who whisked me away to lunch and to meet with my ride to Wyoming. Muchas gracias Devaki... you seem to always save the day in your invisible jet! Misty hooked me up with the ride (thanks Misty!) with her friend Damien, a cool Argentinian who brought along his girl and their bouncy little dog. Even though the car was packed... the drive was fast and fun.

Destination: Lander, Wyoming.

Morning 1 in Lander I hooked up with Chris Lindner and crew to do some climbing at Wild Iris. The rock there is the polar opposite of the Red... short, bouldery, and slippery. I loved it. Got in a couple really good mid-12's and tried a 13a.


Two Kinds Of Justice 12b/c... Spencer belaying.

After belaying Chris on the famous "Throwin The Houlihan" 14a, which looks impossible, and takin some big falls off of "When I Was A Young Girl, I Had Me A Cowboy", 13a, we headed back to to the hotel for some Mexican cookin.

Now... Chris is sponsored by Camp Chef, so he brings these huge incredible camp grills and cookware with him, and makes these elaborate dinner (always in a tortilla) every night. I'm a Chef Boyardee kinda guy, so it was fun to witness all this. While Carlos was videotaping the Chris Lindner Cookery show, the hotel management showed up at the door.... told us we couldn't cook there!! However, the show must go on. We set up the grill in the middle of the alley in back of the hotel. Haha. It was comical to say the least!





Chris finding the spatula he'd just sent Scotty to find... for the 2nd time.



Chillin in the alley with Chris.


After the tortilla fest, we headed to the bar so I could emcee the raffles and introduce Chris to the Lander crowd, where he would be showing his movie "Spray".

Its amazing how the climbers and cowboys coexist there. No tension at all... just beer and laughs.

Next day I headed to Wild Iris with Misty Murphy and her hubby Bill. Misty and I had just met, despite doing several songs together, and I think we were both nervous about how we'd get along. It didn't take much time to realize that we were both a little off our rockers and we all had a great time. Bill is one of those silent strong men who has developed as many sport routes as most people ever climb. Those kinds of guys deserve way more credit than they get...

I tried "When I Was A Young Girl..." several more times... falling off the final move twice. I was pretty psyched to be close to a 13a in an area other than the Southeast, that didn't fit my style, and on completely foreign rock. I didn't even intend to try anything hard... but after my first go, I thought I might have a chance. Only one day left though...


The "Rose Move" on "When I Was A Young Girl I Had Me A Cowboy", 13a



That night, I had to perform at the festival, and Misty and I were going to do our song "Float", a tribute to Todd Skinner... who's family were going to be present. NERVES!!! We were both pretty nervous, but we got the sound system set up (finally), and ran through the song once... our first time doing it together. It went great. Now for the real thing....

Once the crowd thickened, and the dyno comp was finished, I took the front and center position. Of course, its not hard to get climbers to listen when you talk about climbing... so I had their attention from the get go.

A few songs in, I brought Misty up to perform "Float". All these people staring at us were friends and family of Todd... including his wife and children. Scary. We pulled it out... and the crowd loved it! Amy Skinner, Todds wife, came up and gave us hugs afterward. Phew!! Emotional...


Misty Murphy and Odub... Live in Lander



I finished out the show with a couple of big songs, and then to shouts of "Encore!", I did an acapella version of a "name dropping" song that Misty and I are working on. They were lovin it!

Misty and I hung out, sold CD's, talked to lots of drunk people.... and got our drink on as well.

It couldn't have gone better.

Next day I went climbing with the crew Misty had been camping with. Lots of laughs! Did a cool, slippery 12a called "Saddle Tramp"




Saddle Tramp 12a


Late in the day, Bill volunteered to hike WAY out to the Erratic to belay me on my last goes at "When I Was A Young Girl...". We arrived... and NO DRAWS. I had brought just enough to do it... and nearly sent it hangin the draws. Rested 20 minutes... and crushed it. Psyched! The coolest part... its an Amy Skinner FA.

So, Lander was amazing. The climbing was extra cool, the people were even cooler. I can't wait to make it back...

Big gigantic thanks to Misty and Bill (and Joe and Lily) for getting me back to the airport just in time!!

Evolv-ing

Climbs:

I've been wearing Evolv climbing shoes (Predators) for several months now, and quickly decided they are the best shoes I've ever stuffed my feet into. That makes it even more exciting for me to become a part of their athlete roster! Joining Team Evolv means that I'll be joining with some of the best climbers on the planet... Sharma, Rands, Lindner... to wear and promote shoes made by an incredible company. Not only are they the greenest climbing shoe company on the market, but they go out of their way to be a force in the community. My kind of people. They're sending me the new "Optimus Prime", which I can't wait to put to rock...

Gettin started...

Climbs:

I've spent the last year and a half getting to know sport climbing, training, and gyms. Things that, in my years as a traddie, I wasn't familiar with. I guess a 3 year layoff changes your perspective...
The gym training has been incredible. Sport climbing is a complex and beautiful dance, and I like to think I'm good at it. 13a's are coming easier and easier, and I've just started work on my first 13b's... Elephant Man and Shiva... both in the Red.

Got on Elephant Man after sending Tuskan Raider (12d), which shares the first bolt. Its full on from bolt 2 to bolt 6... then a bad stance... and another bolt of hard moves, followed by a 12a headwall. Power endurance at its finest.

Shiva is the opposite. I tried it after a 2nd go ascent of Tapeworm (12d pictured at right)... its neighbor. Shiva is steep 12a to a hard V7ish boulder problem, to more steep jugs. Should be fun to work on...

Rhymes:

Where to start?? I've recently started a new project... one I'm extra psyched on. I'm working with an incredibly talented singer/songwriter/musician/climber/hottie named Misty Murphy from Utah. Check her out at www.mistymurphy.com. We just released our first collaboration, entitled "Float", which is a remix of sorts of her song "35". "Float" is meant as a tribute to climbing legend Todd Skinner, a big influence in my climbing.

I've received several emails from friends and family of Todd, including from his niece Becca and his widow, Amy. It gives me chills that the people close to Todd are touched by our song. We'll be performing it in Todds hometown in July... I'm already nervous.

You can download "Float" here: http://www.soundclick.com/util/downloadsong.cfm?id=6543207

Life:

I have no complaints... none at all. Why is it that writing is better when there are complaints?? Work is good, money is good, life in general is, well... good. Just finished a great mural at work... Undersea theme in a room absolutely made for this mural. Is so much more fun to paint when it makes sense in the space...

My daughter, Kaitlynn, did her first lead climbs a few weekends ago! Led 3 more this past weekend. Only 10 years old. She'll be schoolin me in a few years, no doubt... I look forward to that, though. I asked her once how good she wanted to be at climbing... her immediate answer: "Better than you."

Won't be long...