Cragmama

Sep 09 2013

It’s been almost a year to the date that I traded in my La Sportiva Miuras for a whole fleet of Tenayas – Tatanka for overhanging terrain, Masai for technical edging, and Ra for everything in between. To be honest, I’ve never looked back. My experience with the product as well as the company has been nothing but top-notch, so I’m thrilled that Tenaya is adding yet another great shoe to their line-up!

At this point I’ve done a wide variety of demo’s – at the New, at the Red, and at various climbing gyms across the Southeast. And by far the most common question I get is this: “Why doesn’t Tenaya have a more aggressive, down-turned option?” My response in the past has always been to steer those folks in the direction of the Tatanka – it provides me with plenty of power and precision through both heel and toe on steep rock, and for me personally, is the best-fitting shoe I’ve ever had.

But I know a lot of folks very much prefer a more down-cambered shoe, especially for getting horizontal on boulder problems and cranking out over steep, pocketed roofs. So the next time I get posed that same question, I’ll have just the shoe to put in that person’s hands – the Tenaya Oasi!

What Tenaya Says: The Oasi will radically change how you think about down-turned shoes. It’s down-turn and down-camber are ideally suited for steep climbs, but you will immediately notice the edging and smearing performance as well – a true distinction.

What Cragmama Says: I’ve always shied away from severely down-turned shoes because the fit is always so unnatural…but the Oasi’s are so comfortable I can keep them on during my entire gym session without sore toes. Plenty of support underneath the forefoot allows for a very powerful toe without making my toes feel crunched up. The heel cup fits very snug and comes up higher than my other shoes, but without digging in at the back of my heel. There is rubber almost all the way to the back loop, leaving nothing to blame but technique if you fall out of a heel hook!

Note: While the Oasi’s edge and smear very well for a down-turned shoe, they still probably aren’t the best shoe for a low-angled, Stone Mountain friction-fest. In the (paraphrased) words of Clint Eastwood: “A shoe’s got to know it’s limitations.” However, if your Oasi’s turn over the lip of a roof only to find 15 feet of dime edges between you and the anchors, they’ll certainly know what to do!

Sizing: Like all Tenayas, the Oasi’s are synthetic and will not stretch – aside from some conforming to the shape of your foot, the fit you have in the store is the fit you’ll have on the rock…even 6 months later. It’s definitely worth noting that the sizing on the Oasi’s seems to run bigger than the rest of the Tenaya line. For example, a performance fit for me in Ra is a 5, whereas my new Oasi’s are a 4.5 (and to be honest could probably even go a half size smaller if I wanted them really tight!)

I am now more than ever convinced that Tenaya offers the best collection of climbing shoes on the market (and the fact that my shoes were free has no bearing on that statement, as this review, like always, expresses my honest, unbiased opinions). The addition of the Oasi to the Tenaya line-up is the final piece to their climbing shoe puzzle. So if you’re looking for some new rubber for upcoming fall projects, give these shoes a try! You can order them directly from Trango, or if you’re a Charlotte local, you can try before you buy at Inner Peaks. Since these babies just officially became available a week ago, I can’t offer any sort of discount…but I CAN offer a Tenaya t-shirt to one randomly selected reader! All you have to do is leave a thought about climbing shoes in the comments section below – what’s your go-to shoe on the steeps? How many shoes do you typically carry in to the crag? Do you stick with one favorite brand of shoe or do you have a hodge podge? And for anyone that’s had a chance to take their Oasi for a test spin, please chime in as well! T-shirt winner will be announced on Friday, September 13th, so best of luck!

Obed, Tennessee Trip Report – 13 Weeks Pregnant

4 Comments.

Sep 05 2013

Steve cranking out the roof of The Rail (5.11c)

If I had a dollar for every time one of our crew said the word “manky” this weekend, I’d have plenty of money for a nice date-night dinner with the hubs. For those of you that aren’t familiar with this highly technical term, “manky” is generally an accurate descriptor of summer climbing conditions in the Southeast. The rock feels greasy, palms are sweaty, and chalked up holds feel like they are coated in a layer of slimy toothpaste. Not to mention that smothering wet blanket of humidity Mother Nature tosses over your head while hiking in and out of the crag. Needless to say, our weather at the Obed River in Tennessee this past weekend was a far cry from the “sending conditions” we can expect to see in just a few short weeks. We quickly realized that no hard projecting was going to happen, and lowered our expectations to mileage on the classics over constant laughs with friends.

This trip marked the first time since my last pregnancy that I’ve gone an entire climbing weekend without being on the sharp end. At 13.5 weeks, my outdoor leading days are now officially on hiatus until after Baby #2 comes onto the scene next March. It’s a very weird feeling, and if I’m being honest, I don’t like it. I don’t enjoy toproping nearly as much as I enjoy lead climbing, because let’s face it, toproping a climb completely neuters a line. That’s not to say there’s not a place for it, for both beginners and experienced climbers alike – I toprope in the gym because I’m short on time and can get in more laps that way. I toprope routes that are above my head to safely explore my physical limits. I also toprope to safely rehearse the moves on a route with sketchy fall potential before trying to lead it. But the only routes that “count” for me are the ones that I’ve sent clean on lead. Climbing is just as much (and sometimes more!) about winning mental battles as it is physical ones. Taking out such a big part of the equation makes a successful climb far less satisfying.

Exiting the dihedral of Rumors of War (5.12b)

The other reason I dislike toproping is entirely ego-related…I don’t like being dependent on other people to put up routes for me to climb. I don’t like watching my friends pull the rope one by one when it’s their turn, while I jump in at the back of the line for clean-up duty. It makes me feel like a newbie, and I’m pretty sure every other party we encounter assumes that I’m just the significant other tagging along with my husband’s climbing friends. All that being said however, toproping is by far the safest option for sweet Baby #2 right now, so a toproper I will be for the next few months! And I promise that 99% of the time I’ll have a smile on my face doing it, I just needed some cyber space to air out my ego a bit 😉

Our first day was spent baking in the sun at South Clear Creek. After a warm-up on the ultra-classic Spawn (5.10c), Steve and I both flailed through the sweaty, slippery dihedral of Prophet (5.11b). We were disappointed to find that everything in the Stephen King Library was seeping, but Brother in Arms (5.10b) was a fun and casual alternative. The opening moves were scrambly and easy, so we decided to let the crag-kiddos take a crack at it while the grown-ups took a siesta. In case you’re wondering from the pictures, we’d accidentally left C’s helmet in the car, but he never got any higher than 10 feet or so anyway, so thankfully it wasn’t a big deal. I squeezed in two more routes that afternoon before hiking out – Paleface (5.11a) and Alchemy (5.11a). The former had been a challenging send a couple of years ago, so I was pleased that I felt very secure and solid on it this time around. The latter did not go down as easily, as the upper section was just a little too thuggy for my low-endurance state to be able to power through without hanging.

C powering through the start of Brothers in Arms...e car.

C powering through the start of Brothers in Arms…sans helmet.

Day 2 dawned rainy and wet, so we opted for North Clear, which stays dry as a bone even in a downpour. We warmed up on the short Double Trouble (5.10a) before moving on to The Rail (aka Drugbusters) (5.11c). Next came Sensitive Guy (5.11b), which everyone unanimously agreed was the hardest .11b we’d ever been on. Had the guidebook said .12a I wouldn’t have batted an eye, and no one would have called it soft. Only one person in our group climbed it clean, and even that was with an uncharacteristically excessive amount of grunting and shouting.

My last route of the day was epic – Rumors of War (5.12a). One of the best of the grade I’ve been on in a long time – it’s got pretty much everything you could want out of a single-pitch sport climb – bouldery opening sequence, gorgeous steep, slanting dihedral, and a horizontal roof finish (there’s also an extension onto the upper face above the roof that goes at 5.12c). It took two tries to do the boulder problem start, but I was shocked that I blasted through the dihedral clean on my first go – it was probably the first time since I found out I was pregnant that I really put my “try hard pants” on. Every other move was a committing stand-up off high, smearing feet, and every time I thought for sure I was going to come up short, but managed to hang on. I started to think I could maybe get the route clean…My forearms were red-lining as I approached the roof, but I only had about 10 more feet to go, and besides, every other Obed roof I’ve ever climbed is littered with buckets and handlebar jugs. But a classic like this wasn’t going to succumb that easily – no mercy, even for a pregnant woman…A series of small pockets guarded the finish, and stopped me dead in my tracks a mere arms length away from all those giant hero holds! On toprope it was really difficult to get the last bolt before the roof unclipped, as a fall would have swung me way out into space and made it hard to get back on. I managed to get established in a sequence that seemed like it work, but could never do it AND get the quickdraw out, so I ended up aiding my way through on the draw to reach the jugs at the roof. This route is definitely one for my post-preggo tick list!

All tied in and ready to go! (WITH helmet this time!)

C just “hanging” out

On the last day, we were all dragging, so we kept things short and sweet at Little Clear Creek. Over the Top (5.10a), Finders Keepers (5.10b), Losers Weepers (5.11a), and Alzheimer’s Onsight (5.11a) were the only routes on the agenda. Oh, and we also hung a rope up on 32 Feet Per Second Squared (5.5), for the kids. This time C made it almost to the top (though in full disclosure he had a good bit of “belay assistance”!) He remembered all of his commands, showed no fear, and lowered off with perfect feet-against-the-wall form! The only tears came out of frustration when he had to stop climbing because he couldn’t unclip the rope out of the last quickdraw!

A morning-after Armaid session is the perfect way to limber up for the day!

Despite the rain and heat, we ended up with a great weekend. I felt strong as ever on vertical to slightly overhanging rock, but I’m noticing that my core is starting to betray me on roofs, making it hard to stay in tight to the wall. On a flat or downhill hike I have plenty of energy, but add the slightest incline and I am out of breath alarmingly fast (which meant the steep, strenuous trudges back to the parking lot were done at a snail’s pace.) I’ve also noticed that multiple climbing days in a row seem to take a heavier toll, so it was good that the morning after we got back coincided with C’s first day of preschool, giving me a lazy morning to unpack and get back into the routine.

Who else got a taste of adventure over the long weekend?

New River Gorge – 12 Weeks Pregnant

New River Gorge. Climbing. Pregnancy.

6 Comments.

Aug 29 2013

To celebrate my fading nausea from the 1st trimester, we decided to take advantage of some unseasonably fair weather at the New River Gorge, West Virginia. With daytime temps hovering around 80 degrees, and nights dipping into the 50’s, their was a crispness in the air that was much more reminiscent of the beginnings of fall rather than the end of summer!

I found that I had a mixed bag of emotions with this trip. On the one hand, I’m feeling great – my energy is coming back, and the icky nausea is gone. Although I can clearly tell that my waistline has expanded a good bit, it’s not obvious to the world yet what my body’s got cookin’, and I’ve only gained a negligible amount of actual pounds – so I’m feeling strong and am psyched to climb hard! On the other hand, climbing is not what occupies the majority of my head space these days. And I’m winded after just a few minutes of easy hiking with my toddler on my back – a sure sign that I’m slowly but surely falling off the endurance wagon.

Climbing or not, it was a great day to be outside…

Then there’s the issue of actual climbing logistics – to lead, or not to lead? A few weeks ago I didn’t hesitate – during the 1st trimester the fetus is so small and well-protected. It would take a pretty traumatic fall to do any damage – so I felt comfortable going for it with gusto on familiar, well-protected sport routes. Once the uterus gets big enough to actually move out of the pelvic cavity (aka when people will notice a “bump”), the baby is still safely cushioned in amniotic fluid from an impressive amount of jars and jostles. However, the gravitational forces from taking (or catching) a long, hard leader fall could obviously cause complications. And once that belly gets big enough to get in the way, impact starts becoming an issue as well. That being said, most health professionals familiar with climbing recommend that a woman stop lead climbing at some point early in the 2nd trimester.

Steve working out the moves on Low Brow (5.12a)

At 12 weeks I’m technically still well within the “safe” range – and in my head I know that a soft catch from a good belayer doesn’t feel that much different than going really high on a playground swing. But this is obviously not a situation where I want to explore the limits of what is safe and what is not. So I decided to come into this weekend with no expectations, deciding on a route-by-route basis about my style of ascent.

Here’s the play by play:

Unknown (5.9) : We warmed up on a newer line that’s not in the most recent guidebook. Tall, enjoyable, and a fantastic warm-up for the other routes in the area. I chose to toprope this one because there was a lot of lower angle rock (not as conducive for falling). As it turns out, the route was really easy and I would have been fine, but better safe than sorry!
Low Brow (5.12a): Steve has had his sights set on this prize for a while now, and conditions finally lined up right for it! This route traversed a lot (meaning the potential for swinging, pendulum type falls), not to mention it’s hard, so my odds of falling were high, so I chose to toprope this one also. I actually got in two laps on it, since Steve took several attempts before sending (but his 4th attempt was the charm!) Although I had sent this route a little over a year ago right after coming back from my ankle injury, the crux sequence is really intricate and precise. I didn’t climb it clean on either try this time around (although my second attempt was disappointingly close), but I was pleased with how I felt on it.
Unknown (5.10c): Some friends of ours were hanging a rope on another unnamed route around the corner, and I had already arranged to take a TR lap on it. My friend was unable to finish it however, so I decided to tie in on the sharp end without pulling the rope – ie, the first 5 or so bolts were already clipped, and I just took the route to the top. It felt pretty darn hard for the grade, in my opinion. Very tricky to read, with a tenuous clip at the crux. I climbed up, down, left, right, for FOREVER before I finally figured out how to get past a long reach. The up side however, is that while my aerobic endurance might be dwindling away, my forearm endurance still proved trustworthy.

Me and my new Stonewear threads on New Mexican Rodeo

New Mexican Rodeo (5.10+/11-): Yet another one not in the guidebook (come on Mike Williams, let’s get the new one on the shelves!!!). According to a party we ran into earlier in the day, it was 5.10c…according to people we ran into later in the day, it’s listed on Mountain Project as 5.11b. Steve was done for the day, but I wanted to get in another pitch – it didn’t look too difficult and appeared to be bolted well, so I opted to lead it, intending to take if I felt insecure at all about falling. Turns out this was a great way to end the day! I think 5.11 is a bit generous, especially when compared to the surrounding routes, but regardless of grade, it was fun – excellent position and exposure!

This might be TMI, but one of my highlights of the weekend was being able to make it through 2 nights of camping with a grand total of one middle-of-the-night bathroom break. Considering that my usual m.o at home involves anywhere from 2-5 trips to the bathroom per night, I hadn’t been looking forward to the camping part of this trip – but I was pleasantly surprised!

But anyway back to the climbing. Our next day was spent at Fern Buttress, which tends to be a little more “old school” with bolting than the routes at The Other Place. Every route we did today had at least one, usually multiple sections of fall zones that I wasn’t comfortable with in my current state of affairs, so I ended up toproping everything I climbed.

You can’t help but smile on Wild Seed (5.11a)

Two-Tone Arete (5.10b): I’d only been on this route one other time, many years ago, so it felt like a new route for me. Very sustained moves up an arete to a cruxy bulge at the top – from what Steve said about it and from what I remember from my first time on it, it’s pretty exciting on lead…
Wild Seed (5.11a): Classic in every sense of the word! Such a fun route, I think I’ve done it every time I’ve ever climbed at Fern! No real hard moves, just jug-hauling on surprisingly steep terrain.
Fragile Ego System (5.10a): I feel the exact opposite about this route. It might be my least favorite route at the New… first of all 5.10a is a joke, not to mention it’s really runout in a lot of places. But, the rope was up, so I figured I might as well hop on it. It had been a while since I’d been on it, so I thought maybe I’d have a change of heart…nope. 😉
Arbor Day (5.12a): This one shares anchors with Fragile, so we decided to set up a TR on this one. I’m really glad I got on this one – it looks a little dingy, but climbs way better than it looks. I thought it felt pretty hard for the grade – none of the moves felt harder than .12a, but there weren’t too many that felt that much easier than .12a either, relentlessly sustained! Add in the pucker factor from the multiple runouts, and this would be a proud send indeed! I was psyched that I only had to hang in a couple of places to work out the moves and knock down a few spiders that were too close for comfort. (A precarious slab where my entire body is hugging the rock is NOT where I want to encounter giant spiders at face level…)

Other than the fact that I toproped almost everything all weekend, I didn’t notice a huge difference in the way that I climbed. The only routes I fell on were the 5.12’s, which is about par for the course – I generally have to get my beta dialed in really well before I can expect to climb clean at that grade. It feels so good to have the better (worst) part of my 1st trimester behind me, and the fall-like weather we’ve been having just adds to my delight. Next weekend we’ll be in Tennessee, so we’ll see how my expanding belly does on the steeps…

Campsite Cooking (For Those Who Hate to Cook…)

Camping.

13 Comments.

Aug 27 2013

Our family climbs a lot. And when we climb, we usually camp. And also eat…a LOT. In fact, one of my favorite parts of a climbing weekend is sitting around a fire at the end of the day with my family and friends – bellies full of food and hearts full of laughter as we retell highlights from the day’s antics. But this post is not about hallmark-card sentiments, it’s about food! So let’s get to the meat and potatoes of the matter…(sorry I couldn’t resist ;))

First of all, let me preface by saying that by no means would I consider myself a good cook. That’s not to say I DON’T cook – during the week we almost always eat daily home-cooked meals as a family. But my “recipes” (if you can even call them that), are elementary at best. In other words, no frills – chicken, fish, pasta, rice, and steamed veggies make up the bulk of our ingredients. That being said, our family’s style of campsite cooking is no different. With Cuisinevault it’s not difficult.

A simple dinner with friends at Obed River, Tennessee

I know a lot of families who load their car with all the latest and greatest camp kitchen supplies, and divide their entire refrigerator contents amongst their 12 coolers of varying sizes. Each weekend always features a different menu, and it’s always something extravagant that I would be hard-pressed to make in the comforts of my own kitchen, let alone in the Great Outdoors. Not us. Don’t get me wrong, I am certainly not opposed to a gourmet campfire meal. If someone wants to make me a hearty beef stew with loads of fresh veggies, I will for sure be part of the clean-plate-club. But left to our own devices, that’s just not gonna happen. For us, the main focus of our weekend (and therefore contents of our trunk) is climbing-related…after a long day up on the rocks, we want something fast, filling, and requiring minimal effort to fix.

The following are all tasty options that require very little prep time with very few ingredients. They also require minimal refrigeration (some none at all!)

Rustling up some pesto pasta after a day of climbing in the Linville Gorge, NC.

CHICKEN PESTO PASTA
Supplies: campstove, pot
Ingredients: jar of pesto, box of pasta, pre-cooked chicken
Directions: Boil water and cook pasta. Drain water and mix in chicken and pesto until everything is warmed up. For a completely fridge free option, use canned chicken. You can also switch out marinara or alfredo sauce for pesto if you prefer.

MEXICAN FEAST
Supplies: small cooler, campstove and pot if you want your beans/meat heated or cheese melted (we’re usually too hungry to care…)
Ingredients: tortillas, beans, cheese, sour cream, salsa, guacamole (Wholly Guacamole is pretty darn good for pre-made),
Directions: This is a great potluck option if you are camping with a group of people, as individual ingredients can easily be “assigned” for people to bring.

HOBOS
Supplies: aluminum foil, open fire, oven mitts, openfire grill top (optional), cooler (depending on ingredients)
Ingredients: Meat, potatoes, veggies, olive oil
Directions: This one is probably the most time-consuming, but is still a pretty simple option, and it’s probably the healthiest. Chop everything up, dab on a little oil, and wrap your goodies up in the foil. Set it in or on the fire. They will be HOT when they come out, so be careful! Cook time varies depending on what’s inside, but the sky’s the limit with the variations you could choose! Peppers, onions and other summer veggies are always a great addition. If you’re still hungry and in the mood for something sweet afterwards (after all you’ve still got that fire going, right?), cut up some apples and wrap them up in the same way, sprinkling liberally with brown sugar, cinnamon, honey, or even peanut butter! Campfire rings made from stones are PERFECT for this. Best ever sweet dessert.

MAC N CHEESE (originally found on this site)
Supplies: open fire, disposable pie plates, aluminum foil, tongs, small cooler for dairy
Ingredients: pre-cooked pasta, cheese, milk
Directions: Divy out the pasta into individual pie plates. Add a splash of milk and cheese to taste, then cover it up with foil, doubling over the folds on top to make a sturdy “handle.” Cook until the cheese is melted, then stir and enjoy! You can always add your pre-cooked meat of choice if you’re the type of person that needs meat for dinner.

Men-folk munching on appetizers while the hobos do their thing in the fire.

NO COOK DINNER DIP (originally found on this site)
Supplies: small cooler
Ingredients: Ready-to-eat steamed lentils (you can find them at Trader Joe’s), can of bruschetta topping, feta cheese, tortilla chips
Directions: This makes for a great appetizer for those of you who get impatient waiting for water to boil. Just mix everything together and find a chip to dip! Serve over boil-in-a-bag rice for a hearty meal (meat-lovers can also add accordingly)

These meals will probably not win any awards for presentation. In fact, some of them look downright ghetto (especially if you use canned chicken…). But I can guarantee that what they lack in the looks department will be made up for in taste and efficiency. And after all, a yummy meal shared with those you love IS the happy, hallmark-card ending you were looking for, right?

If you’re new to the camping scene and looking for basic supplies, lots of great deals can be found on www.theclymb.com, a free to register website that has daily “Flash Sales” on a wide variety outdoor equipment. We are big fans of Light My Fire Camping Gear in our household, and you can find a host of that brand and more on The Clymb. For all of you camping veterans out there, what are some of your favorite dinner basics? Remember, nothing fancy! 🙂

1st Trimester Update – The Secret Weeks

Pregnancy.

9 Comments.

Aug 22 2013

I suppose in some ways, even “planned” babies are still a surprise…We’d been in the “not TRYING but not NOT trying” stage since the spring, so seeing two lines on a pregnancy test shouldn’t have been such a shock. But I probably stared at those test results in utter disbelief before walking out of the bathroom and putting my harness on (because of course I’d stopped to pick up a test on my way to the climbing gym…and then of course I couldn’t wait til I got home to take it…) I won’t lie, my initial reaction involved a lot of fear – How could I possibly love another human being as much as I love C? Can we really handle two? Will we ever climb again? What have we done?!?!?!?!? But by the time I had shared the news with my “Baby-Daddy” and gotten a good night’s sleep, I woke the next day with that giddy peaceful feeling that comes from knowing you’re in the right place. Though at 12 weeks I still have a few more days left before I’m officially in my 2nd trimester, most of the 1st trimester ickies have faded substantially, so to celebrate I thought I’d catch you guys up on all that’s been going on (and why there hasn’t been anything worth “‘trip-reporting.”)

Hard to believe something so little can affect so much!

Weeks 4-6: So, so tired. Like, soul-stomping, bone-crushing tired. One night I slept a solid 12 hours and STILL managed to be late for a 9:00 appointment! I feel bloated, crampy, and just generally “off.” Being in the heat completely ZAPS every ounce of energy I have. In fact, a hot July run that left me feeling dizzy was one of my first clues that there was a bun in the oven…

Weeks 6: Hello nausea! Though I never really had any with C, I’m now finding that I spend the majority of the day trying to figure out whether I need to eat, go to the bathroom, or throw up. Thankfully, the latter has yet to happen. I randomly discovered that watermelon and pineapples (good for me!) and soda (not so good!) help to ease the off and on nausea. At 6.5 weeks we went to the New River Gorge. There was no trip report because I sent nothing besides the warm-ups. Ironically I felt fairly strong – I got several moves higher on Lost Souls (5.12a) without falling than I ever had before, and each individual move felt a lot easier than I’d remembered! (It had probably been a year since I’d been on it.) But my endurance is shot, so there’s no way I could think about linking the whole thing together right now. I’m still lead climbing – at this point the baby is no bigger than a pea, and very well-protected deep inside my uterus. That being said, however, I’m sticking with closely bolted routes and clean fall zones.

Trying out the new Tenaya Oasi on Lost Souls (5.12a)…with my phone in my pocket (oops)

Week 7: Our first doctor’s appointment, and we were thrilled to see a tiny, flickering heartbeat on the ultrasound screen! Nausea is getting worse – and intermixed with periods of ravenous hunger. I continue to wilt and wither in the heat more than usual (I end up drinking so much water that it feels like an ocean in my stomach). Since I hate running on a treadmill, I’ve replaced my afternoon runs with the elliptical for now. Hopefully once cooler temps move in in a few weeks I’ll feel better about running again.

Week 8: The song remains the same – my tummy feels like crap most of the time, although I’ve gotten used to it and am managing it a little better. We haven’t climbed outside due to rainy weather, but I’ve been feeling really strong in the gym, and am enjoying the last few weeks of lead climbing before restricting myself to toproping only for the remainder of my pregnancy. (For a good sum-up of climbing precautions during pregnancy, check out this article).

Week 9: Spent a week at Sunset Beach with my husband’s family. It was nice to get away for a week and be able to talk freely about my “secret.” It was also great to hang out on the beach with the new-found pudge around my belly button (insert sarcastic smile here). There’s not really a bump yet, but people weren’t kidding when they said things happen faster the second time around! My belly is “tracking” about 3 or 4 weeks ahead of where it was with C…We had some cloudy afternoons that were relatively cool so I ran 3 times while I was there. While my pace had slowed, I was pleased that I was able to keep my distance the same.

Giving Stonewear rep Dana the local plastic tour!

Week 10: After a few days of horrible nausea at the start of the week, my hormones must be starting to level out a bit, because each day has gotten progressively better . Still too hot to run, but I’ve been biking or ellipticizing (sp?) on non-climbing days. I was really jonesin’ for a day on real rock, so after our planned weekend at the New River Gorge fell through due to rain, we took our chances with a sketchy forecast and BLAZING hot sun at our local crag, Crowders Mountain. Good times were had by all, but I made a mental note to never climb at Crowders in August ever again…pregnant or not (it was masochistically hot).

Week 11: Exciting times – after hearing a pounding 175 bpm on the Doppler at my appointment, we shared our big secret with the world! I also got my fall allotment from Stonewear Designs, one of my sponsors. Picking out what styles and sizes I wanted presented a unique challenge due to my ever-expanding belly. Thankfully everything from Stonewear is super stretchy and comfy (read: forgiving), which makes them the perfect option for my not-quite-ready-for-maternity-clothes-yet body. (Stay tuned for a review on my fall favorites coming soon!) I also tried on my Mountain Mama maternity tops…still nowhere close to filling them out. We’ve also had unseasonably cool weather this week, and I was delighted to get in 4.25 miles at a solid pace – it reminded me how much more fun it is to exercise outside than in.

Today marks the start of week 12, as well as the start of a very busy next few weeks – two climbing trips and an out of town wedding, followed by a weekend off and then more climbing trips on the radar. Let’s hear it for fall!

This guy is gonna be a big brother! (He's bloodied from biting his lip, but all smiles just the same!)

This guy is gonna be a big brother! (Bloody mouth and all…he bit it jumping down from a boulder problem but he’s all smiles still the same!)

“Not all who wander are lost.” —JRR TOLKIEN

Cragmama "Not all who wander are lost…" JRR Tolkien

The NEW Tenaya Oasi: Comfort + Performance = Climbing Shoe Perfection!

Obed, Tennessee Trip Report – 13 Weeks Pregnant

New River Gorge – 12 Weeks Pregnant

Campsite Cooking (For Those Who Hate to Cook…)

1st Trimester Update – The Secret Weeks