December 16, 2009

So I lied...


Ok, it's been a month since I said it would be two weeks until I made the first post on my new job. The post will be coming in the near future. I've been distracted by other things. One of which is my newly regained ability to climb. I'm horribly out of shape, at least compared to how I was climbing before, but it's coming back bit by bit. I'm hoping that once the Tacoma gym opens up I'll be able to train like I did back home. The picture above really does no justice to the size of these walls. I'm pretty sure I can't touch the lip of that red roof from the ground, maybe after the padding is put in. So soon, get psyched!

See you on the rocks.

-Josh

November 15, 2009

An update about updates


So there hasn't been much going on recently, since I'm still trying to get my shoulder up to speed. However I will be posting 2 blogs in the coming weeks dealing with both sides of my job. Speaking of which, the above picture is the majority of the kids on our team (at least 2 are missing that I know of). It's going to be crazy to see what all those little ones can do in about 6 years. Everyone else better start training wicked hard, 'cause some of them are already crushing everything in sight.

October 4, 2009

Getting back in the groove

So this weekend was going to be about working on tying up some of the loose ends from last weekend. But then the guy I was going to meet at Little Si ended up going to Leavenworth, and the person that said they may want to go never texted me back. So as I sat in my apartment eating breakfast on saturday morning debating if I should make the 2 hour drive to Leavenworth to boulder, I came to a realization. I haven't trained, I mean seriously trained, in over a year.

It's been just over a year since I took a heinous fall at an ABS comp at the BRG and tore my left labrum. In the following year, I've done my PT exercises, I've climbed a bit inside, I've climbed outside, but I haven't trained, not even close.

So I sucked it up and headed into the gym both days this weekend. Saturday was all about power. I warmed up then headed straight up into the cave. I finished off everything except for the dark green 9 and the direct finish to the dark blue, plus I messed around on some made up problems. Then it was off the the weight room. Any of you that have known me for a while, know that this is not my style. I worked out my arms and core until I could barely hold my own weight, and did a little leg work just because. Then finished myself off with a full gym traverse.



After waking up sore on sunday, I was ready to get back to it and finish myself off. This day was more basic, just climb. A warm up, followed by just messing around in the cave. Sometimes I'd work a problem, sometimes just trying out different moves. I managed to stick the direct finish to the dark blue problem, which was sweet since it's big move to an undercling/pinch. Then finished up by doing my PT exercises, but bumped back down to 5 lbs instead of the 8 I had been doing. I was psyched because I was able to do sets of 30 straight through instead of having to split them into two sets of 15 like I did before I moved out here.

This weekend has given me a lot of hope that I can get back to where I was before, despite the fact that I will have to go in for surgery on my shoulder some time in the future. It's just a matter of finding a new way to train, and making myself do it. Only time will tell...

See you on the rocks!

-Josh

September 27, 2009

The Best Outcome of the Worst Day

Today was suppose to be the day. I had it all planed out. I had easily flash a few 5.12a's since moving out west, and my shoulder was feeling the strongest it had since I injured it almost exactly a year ago. I would head out to Little Si, flash Psychosomatic, 5.12d, and put this long, hard year of recover behind me and continue my steady rise to the level of dominating 5.14's.

I got to the base of the cliff just when it was starting to get to the good part of the day around 1pm. I let myself cool down from the approach (making that easier is a proj for another day). I warmed up on Aborigine, 5.11b, a climb I had done each of the few times I had come to this cliff. It felt the easiest it ever had, helping get me pumped up for Psycho. Then I got on it.

The bottom half, Psycho-Wussy, 5.11b, went ok. I was hoping to get beta through it, to help give me some extra energy for the top, but had to settle for an onsight since none of the half dozen people at the base who knew the climb felt like spraying me down. Whatever, I did it anyway, nothing was going to stop me. Then I started into the Psychosomatic extension. the first clip went no problem. The holds all looked good, get the next clip would be no problem. Five moves latter, one from the next clip, I found myself yelling take.

Ok, deep breath, not going to stress this. I was going for flash attempt and ended up on an onsight attempt. I didn't stand a chance. It wasn't my fault. Time to head on to plan B and let one of the guys looking for the redpoint get on this one. The day can still be salvaged. I'd get on Hang Out To Dry, 5.12b, and flash that. It's only got one hard move.

So, after a rest, I tied in and started up it. The bottom wasn't very hard but quite technical, so it took more out of me then I had anticipated. There was a big rest at about 2/3 the way up so I got the pump out, my right calf was starting to burn a bit, but that wasn't likely to be a problem. I launched into the last section. Things go smoothly up the the crux. I get my hand settled in the holds and hike my right foot up high for the move. Then my leg starts shaking like it's getting warmed up to stitch up an entire wardrobe of cloths. So I back down several moves to stretch it out. I do this as long as I can without getting my forearms pumped. I head back up to the crux. This time I can't even make my leg get up onto the foot hold.

Once again I found myself hanging from a draw instead of anchors. A fact that became more frustrating when I walked through the last moves of the route after a short rest. I hit the dirt feeling like the day was wasted. My grand "comeback" was spoiled, but I stuck around for awhile to watch other people work on their projects. Finally, I headed down the trail back to my car. As I made my way do the trail, all the little details that I had overlooked began to settle in.

Yes, I didn't send the 12d, but I did get all the beta necessary to smooth out the bottom and to make a solid attempt at the upper section the next time around. Yes, I didn't flash the 12b, but I didn't fall until right at the crux and that was only do to my leg being worked, so next time I know to make sure it gets de-pumped as well as my forearms. These routes are going down. Not some time this fall, but sometime in the next week or two.

Everyone wants that one awesome day, when all those hard routes fall to your climbing skills as if you lapped them all the time. I've decided that I'm done with that mentality. I'm not going to measure my accomplishments by what I can do in a day, but by what I can do in a season. The best would be to not think about any of it until I'm in my 80's, but you've got to feed your ego a little bit to progress in this sport.

See you on the rocks!

-Josh

September 17, 2009

The Reel Rock Tour '09

I know that I said I'd be doing posts about the (no quite so) awesome details of my new life on the Left Coast, but I just saw some wicked sick flicks and I want to get you psyched on what I'm psyched on!

And the Judge's decision please...

First up were 3 shorts that were part of a filmmaking competition Reel Rock put on. The first was the winner of the Humor/Spoof category, Spray Lords. This movie had it all, famous climbers, the Red, and numerous references to 8a.nu. I think that says it all... No, wait, awesomenessity! That covers it nicely.

Second go was the winner of the Action/Inspiration category, Do What You Like. Absolutely fantastic videography in this film, but outside of that it seemed rather run of the mill.

Last to summit was the Judges Choice award winner, Pose Age XXXVIII. This one is a complete spoof on the Dosage series as well as all the usual players in the major climbing vids. Prepare to laugh ourself out of your seat, and under the table if you happen to be at one.

The Second First Ascent

After the first round of shorts we were treated to the first two episodes of the new show First Ascent. Having not been a huge fan of the movie, I was skeptical about the spin-off TV series. However, the stories, and climbing, in the episodes was of a much higher quality than that of the movie.

The first episode followed Alex Honnold on his epic free-soloing adventures. The footage of him climbing the Moonlight Buttress, and then the North West Face of Half Dome, left everyone in the theater breathless and on the edge of their seats. These shots blew my mind more than anything else I saw all night.

The other episode was a much more sobering tale about a man that lost his wife to a car accident and his mental recovery from it. The story follows him and his friends, Renan Ozturk and Cedar Wright (I'm going to go ahead and just get it out that this is the first video to have Cedar Wright in it that I actually enjoyed the entirety of), on a trip to Patagonia to claim a first ascent in her memory and scatter her ashes in the mountains that she loved. This one tugged on my heartstrings in a few spots; An amazingly well told and touching tale.

And now for the Main Event!

The showcase of the whole night was the premier of Progression, the new film for Big Up. It is filled with the usual suspects, such as Chris Sharma and Tommy Caldwell, as well as some newer faces, like Adam Ondra and Kevin Jorgeson. I don't want to spoil any of the sweetness that this movie exudes, so I'll just stick to saying that it shows some of the best climbers in the world doing what they do best, pushing the limits on R/X trad routes, sketchy highballs, bold free-solos, and insane 5.15 sport climbs from 40' tall to over 200' tall.

If you still aren't psyched to see these movies then just go here to watch the trailers. Now if you still aren't psyched to see these, why are you reading my blog? You obviously don't like climbing and we probably aren't friends. Don't you have a life?

See you on the rocks!

-Josh

September 16, 2009

A Fresh Start

Starting of from scratch. The reasons for this you ask?

1. I've moved. Not a few towns away like before, but to the complete other side of the country.

2. The new kids that I coach, as well as the other coaches, all seem to have these, so I feel obligate to keep up.

3. I actually have things to talk about now. Not that I didn't before, but before it was easier to just say it in person.

4. I get bored around the apartment.

So, hopefully there will be a flurry of posts this week to fill in all the details of my new life in the greater Seattle area. After that I should settle into at least one post per week, minimum.

See you on the rocks!

-Josh