Tuesday, October 06, 2009
Triple Crown 2009: Hound Ears
The first leg of the Triple Crown Bouldering Series was unexpectedly one of the funnest days of small-pebble wrassling I've had to date. Thanks for sending me FiveTen. Climbing in a new area with great friends on a perfect Fall day doesn't get much better. The style of climbing suited me pretty well too--steep powerful movements on incut crimps. Its hard to pick a favorite for the day, but if I had to, my top three would be Stupid Human, The Crusher, and whatever the long, traversing one was where Phil--my savior for the finish--pointed out the last five holds for me when I was pumped out of my dome. Thanks.
Climbing with Phil, or just being around the kid, is generally hilarious. "I've never been betrayed like this--ever," he commented about his skin early in the day, which set the tone for the rest of the afternoon. He suffered bad, but that's what you get for circuiting V12 in RMNP just one day before. Dingleberry. Nonetheless, he climbed as strong as always.
Maximus Zolotukhin, on his 9th tour of Hound Ears, had an impressive day as well, hiking pretty much all the hard classics and nabbing a stout repeat of Random Man, a three move problem that had not been repeated since James Litz' FA eight years prior.
In the end, Jimmy Webb, the local crushing monster, took first in front of Brion Voges, who established an FA for the day to the left of the Crusher called Half Price Pornos (probably the best name in climbing...ever). Max finished third, taking away $200. Rad. I ended up 5th for the day just behind Phil, who just just repeated Jade (V15) a few weeks ago. There were over 300 competitors at the event; hopefully, next year is even bigger.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy the video as much as I enjoyed watching Phil have a temper-tantrum. Horse Pens next!
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Random Horse Pens
Skywalker from last year. Beautiful problem.
Gettin' psyched for the first leg of the Triple Crown at Hound Ears. First time!
Side note: Climbing on plastic is really, really hard. Tonight was my second serious session in all of September with the Max/Gav duo and my plastic fitness is GONZO. Climbing outside seems to make you stronger in different ways--like having good core tension--but the whole pinch-power-endurance baloney has dissipated to shat. Fun! I love getting owned inside!
Gettin' psyched for the first leg of the Triple Crown at Hound Ears. First time!
Side note: Climbing on plastic is really, really hard. Tonight was my second serious session in all of September with the Max/Gav duo and my plastic fitness is GONZO. Climbing outside seems to make you stronger in different ways--like having good core tension--but the whole pinch-power-endurance baloney has dissipated to shat. Fun! I love getting owned inside!
Monday, September 28, 2009
WTF + FML= Rock Climbing!
So, I fell off the very last move of Supernova today from the low start and it got me thinking...
1) You are a dumbass.
2) You should probably layoff the midnight ice-cream refrigerator rape brigades.
3) Who really cares? Nobody besides me, but that ain't the point.
4) Pete Kamitses short-roped me like a bumbling dick head. Kidding.
Pardon me for writing something semi-serious about climbing, but this has been bugging the dingleberries out of me lately.
This question keeps rolling through my head. What's the best frame of mind to be in before you get on a project? In this case, the project is a route. As you tie in, you get nervous and start mentally fidgeting.
Are you going to fall at the crux? Do chicks think you're ripped? Why don't you have a girlfriend? Shouldn't you be confident enough that you won't be thinking about falling at the crux? Are you a huge pussy? My conscious usually replies, "Dude, yah, you are...but we're here, so you mine as well try hard." These fragmented thoughts bounce off the inside of my dome like bouncing balls inside a metal box every time I get ready to try something at my limit.
From my chair, these are some options to experiment with. Use with extreme caution:
Type A: The Meat Head Method
Prepare yourself like you're about to go brawl with someone like Wolverine or the Hulk. Yell and scream at the rock a little bit before you pull on as to intimidate it into submission. Some rocks are easier to scare than others. Get psyched up the same way a football player does before running onto the field before smashing his helmet into another teammate. Kill it. It's time for World War III.
Type B: Party in the Front, Business in the Back
This is when you act like you don't give a rats ass about anything on the outside, but on the inside you actually feel like you're going to empty you wrists into the tub after you're done climbing if you fall. Not sure about this one.
Type C: Zen Master
Sit by yourself in small cave for as long as it takes to find your inner D-Bag. No talking before tying in. No talking while booting up. Tell you're belayer that if you fall, you will blame it on him no matter what and make sure everyone at the crag knows it. You're face should look so awfully sullen that if someone saw you they might think you had just left Michael Jacksons funeral. Too soon?
Type D: Have Fun?
Don't try to be or act like anything. Just focus on climbing as well as possible on each move; one at a time--believe. Don't think about the end result, just focus on executing one piece of the puzzle at a time. Instead of creating weighty expectations, have fun climbing hard--actually enjoy yourself--and then you might finish.
Or just imagine yourself as this guy...
1) You are a dumbass.
2) You should probably layoff the midnight ice-cream refrigerator rape brigades.
3) Who really cares? Nobody besides me, but that ain't the point.
4) Pete Kamitses short-roped me like a bumbling dick head. Kidding.
Pardon me for writing something semi-serious about climbing, but this has been bugging the dingleberries out of me lately.
This question keeps rolling through my head. What's the best frame of mind to be in before you get on a project? In this case, the project is a route. As you tie in, you get nervous and start mentally fidgeting.
Are you going to fall at the crux? Do chicks think you're ripped? Why don't you have a girlfriend? Shouldn't you be confident enough that you won't be thinking about falling at the crux? Are you a huge pussy? My conscious usually replies, "Dude, yah, you are...but we're here, so you mine as well try hard." These fragmented thoughts bounce off the inside of my dome like bouncing balls inside a metal box every time I get ready to try something at my limit.
From my chair, these are some options to experiment with. Use with extreme caution:
Type A: The Meat Head Method
Prepare yourself like you're about to go brawl with someone like Wolverine or the Hulk. Yell and scream at the rock a little bit before you pull on as to intimidate it into submission. Some rocks are easier to scare than others. Get psyched up the same way a football player does before running onto the field before smashing his helmet into another teammate. Kill it. It's time for World War III.
Type B: Party in the Front, Business in the Back
This is when you act like you don't give a rats ass about anything on the outside, but on the inside you actually feel like you're going to empty you wrists into the tub after you're done climbing if you fall. Not sure about this one.
Type C: Zen Master
Sit by yourself in small cave for as long as it takes to find your inner D-Bag. No talking before tying in. No talking while booting up. Tell you're belayer that if you fall, you will blame it on him no matter what and make sure everyone at the crag knows it. You're face should look so awfully sullen that if someone saw you they might think you had just left Michael Jacksons funeral. Too soon?
Type D: Have Fun?
Don't try to be or act like anything. Just focus on climbing as well as possible on each move; one at a time--believe. Don't think about the end result, just focus on executing one piece of the puzzle at a time. Instead of creating weighty expectations, have fun climbing hard--actually enjoy yourself--and then you might finish.
Or just imagine yourself as this guy...
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Failed Attempts: Yay!
Supernova (5.14b): FAIL--David Wetmore from David Wetmore on Vimeo.
What I say at the end of this attempt is pretty funny. I didn't know it until I actually watched the clip.
Supernova (5.14b): FAIL--David Wetmore from David Wetmore on Vimeo.
Max! Hi MAX!
Steady Slobbin: (5.14b): FAIL--Max Zolotukhin from David Wetmore on Vimeo.
Another Shitty Day at Rumney
The weather was so gosh-darn nice I nearly made pee-pee in mis pantalones. I'll post up some new videos tomorrow. One is up Max falling at the last move on Steady Slobbin-gay and another is of me having a hissy fit on Stupid-Nova (it's funny).
The crew...
Max Zolotukhin: He is now sponsored by his favorite beverage--Vitamin Water.
Neil Mushaweh: The most serious, non-fun, all business climber out there.
Me: Captain D-Bag. I make it rain.
The crew...
Max Zolotukhin: He is now sponsored by his favorite beverage--Vitamin Water.
Neil Mushaweh: The most serious, non-fun, all business climber out there.
Me: Captain D-Bag. I make it rain.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Man Down
For some reason, a good wave of climbing for me never fails to crash at the most inopportune moment. Neil and I were out for a session at Pawtuckaway and I ended up coming off the upper crux of Confident Man--rolled my ankle and it's swollen up like a grape fruit right now. Sick!
At any rate, Pawtuckaway is beautiful; the season is finally here. Hoping to heal up like Wolverine--2 to 3 days tops? Yes? Yes.
More importantly, this kid, one of the young talents on the MetroRock team, cracks me up to no end. Jesus H. Christ. Sam, where did you come from bro?
At any rate, Pawtuckaway is beautiful; the season is finally here. Hoping to heal up like Wolverine--2 to 3 days tops? Yes? Yes.
More importantly, this kid, one of the young talents on the MetroRock team, cracks me up to no end. Jesus H. Christ. Sam, where did you come from bro?
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Neil Mushaweh sending Halcyon (V11)
Neil Mushaweh sending Halcyon (V11) from David Wetmore on Vimeo.
Flippin' Flapjacks, this video gets me psyched! Listen carefully for the classic "Sataaaaaat" and "SAAAAAAAAHT" and also "Sssssssseeeeeeeaaaaht!" at the lip. Right on Neil. What can I say? This guy is a freaking monster--crushing Parallel Universe and Halcyon within the same week. He gets out more than I do and has a real job. FML.
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