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Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Weather or Not

Keyhole project mt. gretna, pa

Sunday was supposed to be sunny, 48, blue bird and it was at 8am.  I left MD early to blue skies, 50-degree temperatures and only grabbed my jacket to be safe. Our plan was to make the 4hr drive west to check out Coles cove.   The temperature gauge in Brian’s car doesn’t work exactly, but it does measure some form of temperature, even if it’s not the temperature outside.  The closer we got to our destination the lower the temperature was dropping.  30, 20, 18, 13, and finally stopped somewhere around 8.  We were pretty sure the car was using some non linear algebra to calculate the temperature; it definitely wasn’t 8 outside…  as to what the temperature really was outside?  I put the window down and we quickly concluded it was really, really cold.  I pulled out my handy phone, Sunny and 35 is what the screen said…  I looked outside, snow and well below freezing... Back to the phone, refresh, refresh.. no luck, we had been had by weather.com and I was almost completely unprepared, praise the lord I grabbed my jacket.  Basically my trip to Coles Cove became walking around in 2 inches of snow while being snowed on.  The western PA boys were psyched though, and I was really psyched to see all the rock at Coles.  As with many western PA areas, Coles hosts gritstone boulders ranging in size and difficulty.  The stuff that’s good there would be considered good anywhere.  The plan is to make another trip out this weekend pending the weather.  I saw some stuff that got me very motivated to get back sooner than later.

Last crux move Keyhole
Yesterday, I made a trip to Mt. Gretna to see if I could snag a project that I put a few tries into many years ago and again last week spent a few minutes there.  Really good line that adds 5 moves to an established line called Keyhole.  The crux revolves around a left hand micro crimp, right heel hook and quite possibly one of the coolest little pinches I have ever been on.  You do two more hard moves to a left hand crimp with a thumb catch and cross to a good quarter pad crimp then jump to a jug pinch, so good and so close on this one.  We got into Gretna warmed up and I headed right to the proj, I was fully focused, nothing else seemed to even interest me at Gretna.  When I turned the corner to scope it out I was let down..  The boulder was soaking wet.  The only boulder in the field that had ice and water on it was the keyhole boulder.  I tried to dry off the water and get rid of the ice but nothing was working.  It was soaked.  I stayed and tried it a little beside the fact it was soaking wet I felt like I made one giant step forward with beta.  I started using a smaller worse hold than I was attempting to use before and managed to unlock the sequence that was shutting me down before.  No send but I am banking on my next session for sure.  I can’t really be certain how hard it will be exactly but it feels somewhere in the 12/13 range.  I think easier than some of the things I have done recently in the 13 range but it’s hard to say…  Beta and conditions make a huge difference and who even knows..  It could feel one way for me and totally different for someone else.

Monday, February 25, 2013

G Mountain Projects

Rabi, "word nucka"
Headed out to Gretna for another shot at the Keyhole project. Had a good session on it last week, perfect conditions today.

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Meltdown

After last week I have been trying to take it easy. I tweaked my right forearm trying a project with a terrible undercling. Reach over your, head pull it into your chest and lurch for a great pinch and you're done.. Luckily, the weather has been all over the map, rain, snow, heat, rain, rain, rain... all in the span of a week. Saturday Milton Rock Gym, in central PA, hosted their 3rd annual Meltdown competition. I had a really great time hanging out with everyone. A huge Thank You to everyone involved with getting it together!! Towards the end of the week I am hoping to head south to the NRG. I have had a line with a potential low start on my mind for awhile and would like to try it again. So much to do, so much to do...

Friday, February 15, 2013

Southern Exposure 4

This is the last video in my series from the south. ENJOi

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Thrice

I made the trip back to central PA today to wrangle up some outstanding projects from the previous weekend.  Managed to do a new line called Thrice, I feel its the hardest thing I have tried in the area. Super psyched, it went down today quick.  Check it out, short and sweet.


Thrice v13, FA from Tim Rose on Vimeo.

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Hunter and the Hunted

I just got back from my 2nd trip this season to the south.  I came back with a renewed psych on a few local projects in central and Western PA.  Funny how leaving an area can help you discover whats there.  I can get caught up in what I think or I feel is possible... Maybe that will change.
Sunday we traveled to a sandstone area in PA that hosts a few less known projects, two of which I am headed back for.  Both are steep on small holds and have great movement.  They may be some of the hardest things I have tried in the area, for whatever that is worth.  On the subject of difficulty,  I am finding it difficult to stay in touch.  Perhaps my age is finally starting to show?  Is it normal to loose patience with drama and ignorance as you age?  I thought the opposite was true. Maybe I need a vacation....  One things for sure,  I am psyched to climb and I have a semester free from school to get some work done before I get back at it.

Monday, February 11, 2013

Southern Exposure 3


Southern Exposure 3 from Tim Rose on Vimeo.

The last video in a short series from my trip down the south.