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

Cragbaby’s Year in Highlights!

Climbing. Parenting. Reflections.
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With all of the end of year Highlight Week talk that’s been going around our house, Cragbaby wanted in on some of the action as well.  But considering that his verbage is rather limited still (actually its more untranslatable than limited….), I thought it would be easier to share his highlights in the form of pictures and captions…

5.  An Adventure Suit – This spring Mommy got me an Adventure Suit so that I can play all day in the rain and not get wet!

4. Photography Lessons – Manuela let me be her special assistant. This will come in handy for me later since I want to be a photographer when I grow up. Either that or a fireman. Or maybe a drummer in a rock band. Good thing I have plenty of time to decide.

 

3.  The Honeymooner’s Ladders – Finally I got to climb something tall!  Mommy spotted me real close because she was afraid I would fall, but I didn’t.  When I go back I’ll be an even bigger boy and I bet I can make it to the top!

2.  Meeting Chris Sharma – I got to meet Chris Sharma at the New River Rendezvous.  I wanted to wait in line by myself, but Mommy was just sure that I needed her help.  

1. Little Clear Creek Swimming Hole – My favoritest climbing day ever was in Tennessee when we got to play in the water after we finished climbing.  I wore my sandals and splashed around.  I accidentally cried when Mommy jumped off a boulder because she disappeared under the water and I got scared.  But then I realized that she did it on purpose and that it was fun, so I practiced putting my face in the water too.  I wanted to jump in but my Daddy said maybe next year when I’m bigger.

So that concludes Highlight Week.  Time to archive all of that 2011 fun and make room for more memories in 2012!

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Highlight Week Continues…with the 2011 Highlight Reel!

Climbing. Reflections.
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Our family is grateful to have had the opportunity to get a lot of time out on the rock this past year.  In fact, we managed 5 trips to the New River Gorge, 2 trips to the Red River Gorge, 2 trips to the Obed River, 2 trips to Grayson Highlands, and of course numerous day trips to various crags across North Carolina. Its no wonder that loads of fun were had by all as 2011 played out.  In keeping with the “Highlight Week” theme, and in honor of our family’s time-honored Highlight Reel tradition, our family decided to wade through our best memories over the past year and choose only 5 highlights – both personal and spectator – from 2011.  (Just as a refresher, the “personal” highlight is pretty self-explanatory – something you’re proud of yourself for accomplishing, while the “spectator” highlight is something you are proud of seeing someone else do!)  After a lot of reminiscing and fun reflecting, we were finally able to each narrow it down to our top 5 of each category.   I decided to share mine here, but as you read through mine, be thinking of your own, so that you can share as well in the comments section.

First Post-Cragbaby Summit – Stone Mountain South Face!

PERSONAL:
(Honorable Mention) The Great Arch (5.5), Stone Mountain, NC – This was a really fun day of “Post-Cragbaby Firsts.”  First climbing “date” with just me and my hubby, first multi-pitching, and first time we were both out all day.
5.  Paleface (5.11a), South Clear Creek, TN – A big spider, sketchy traverse, serious pendulum potential, and a panicked clip on the onsight attempt turned into a smooth, zen-like send on my next go.  This one was a mental breakthrough for the lead head.
4.  Same day onsights of Stim-o-Stam and S’more Energy (both 5.11c, both at the New River Gorge, WV) – Its always great to have a day where it seems like gravity doesn’t exist (because those days are rare compared to the ones where the gravitational pull is all too strong!)
3.  Finally ticking Heresy (5.11c) – Though its not my hardest, scariest, or most fought-after redpoint, the saga behind it probably makes it the most poetic.
2.  First 5.12a Redpoint (TKO, Crowder’s Mountain) – They say you never forget your first, right?
1.  Sending Dave the Dude (5.11d), Red River Gorge, KY – This unexpected 2nd go send was the perfect way to wrap up an already fabulous fall trip to the Red last November.

Steve, aka Crag-Daddy, doing his thang on O-ho last September.

SPECTATOR:
5.  Steve leading Overhanging Hangover (5.11b), Pilot Mountain, NC – After months of hemming and hawing, Steve finally summoned the gumption to tackle this line on the sharp end, and he cruised it with only one quick hang to rest right before the crux.  Then a couple of weeks later he  came back for the redpoint on a day when it was pretty darn cold for rock climbing – and after eeking through the crux clean, he had a heartbreaking fall in the significantly easier section up high due to overgripping and numb hands.  I know he wishes he had sent it, but I’m still mighty proud of my man for leading his first 5.11 – and I’m certain the send will come in 2012!
4.  Manuela sending Drop the Anchor (5.8+), Red River Gorge, KY –  This was NOT a straightforward line, and had some sections with rather unpleasant fall potential.  After making through it on TR without too much trouble, I saw a look of redpoint fever in Manuela’s eyes that I hadn’t seen on her before…For someone who claims they don’t like to push themselves on lead, she’s making it pretty tempting to call her bluff!  Signs of greatness to come I’m sure!
3.  Aaron Johnston on “It” (5.10a), South Clear Creek, TN – For a 30 foot route, Aaron’s onsight was epic!  With sewing-machine leg at full-throttle, Aaron somehow managed to hang on, even after dropping the rope three times trying to clip the anchors.  Every climber in the Stephen King Library had stopped what they were doing, and were waiting on baited breath to see if he would make it.  Aaron was the poster child of determination that day!
2.  Bennett’s Comeback send of Arms Control (5.11c), Pilot Mountain, NC – Seeing Bennett come back and man-handle the same line that had taken a finger and part of his hand off one year prior was pretty spectacular.  The fact that he’s back climbing at all is perserverance at its finest!
1.  Cragbaby Lovin’ – I know I say it often, but nothing warms my mama’s heart more than watching all of my awesome climbing partners love on my little Cragbaby.  I am so appreciative of each and every one of you, and if C knew how to say the word appreciate, I’m sure he would say the same thing – but for now everyone is stuck with sloppy, open-mouthed kisses and peek-a-boo giggles.  Seriously though, thanks to all for the best climbing year yet – can’t wait til the next!

“So. Many. Highlights. Must. Pick. Five.”

Well that’s my Highlight Reel in a nutshell.  I would love to hear what other folks felt most proud of accomplishing this year.  I’d also love to hear some bragging on your climbing partners – what was most exciting to watch this year?  So now its your turn – if you had to choose just a handful of highlights, what would the be the best of the best in 2011?

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The Hit List for 2011 – The Year in Review

Climbing. Climbing. Reflections.
10 Comments.

I mentioned before Christmas that the first week in January was going to be celebrated as “Highlight Week” here at Cragmama.  It seemed appropriate to kick things off with the Hit List.  Some of you may remember  my 2011 Hit List that I published last March, where I listed 10 goals (some very specific, some rather general) that I had my sights set on for the year.  I remember at first being a bit hesitant about posting them for the world to see, since I wasn’t entirely sure that some of the objectives were even in my realm of ability.  However I’m really glad I put myself out there – not only did it keep me motivated and focused all year, but the kind words and encouragement I received as I was making progress was an ongoing example of how supportive the climbing community is!

So 2011 has come to a close, and my list will soon be replaced with a new list for 2012.  But before the Hit List hits the archives, here’s a final recap of how I fared against my objectives for the year.

New adventures for the whole family in 2011!

1.  Redpoint Heresy (5.11c) at Lilly Bluffs, TN – This send was a definite bright spot during a rainy weekend in Tennessee this past June.

2.  Redpoint New Yosemite (5.9+) at New River Gorge, WV – Didn’t get a chance to check this one off…we managed to make it to the New River Gorge 5 times this past year, but for one reason or another never ended up at the Junkyard.  If I’m being completely honest, I’m not a huge fan of the Junkyard because of all the crowds, so had this line been elsewhere in the gorge, I’m sure it would have been higher up on the priority list.

3.  Redpoint Discombobulated (5.11b) at New River Gorge, WV –  Ticked this one off at the New River Rendezvous this past May.  It was just as classic as I’d remembered it, but a lot easier than the time before when I was preggo!

4.  Find a Long-term Local Project – This past year was the first year that I actually started getting more of a “project” type mindset, especially when it comes to local areas that I can hit all the time.  Now that I’ve discovered its worthwhile for me to work high 11’s and low 12’s, there will be no shortage of projects in my range for the indefinite future.  This past spring before it got too hot I began exploring what Hidden Wall had to offer at Crowder’s Mountain.  Though the burly, scrappy style of climbing found there is not something that I’m usually very strong at, east-facing Hidden Wall will be a great place to have close by for cold and crisp sunny mornings this winter.

We found plenty of new projects at new areas this year!

5.  Send a 12a (Sport) –  The original goal was to just get to the top on lead, bolt to bolt, and I assumed it would take several attempts to even make it to the top.  However, I surprised myself by getting to the top of Pockets of Resistance (New River Gorge) on my first go in July, as well as 5 other times at my next visit in August (unfortunately all of those included a fall at the crux, so no send yet for that one!).  Since Pockets had gone so well, I decided that an actual 12a redpoint might be in reach, so I upgraded my goal to a legitimate send.   We never made it back out to Kaymoor to finish up on Pockets, but after a few bolt to bolt leads on some other 12’s here and there (including a bail-biner or two), I finally managed to cross this off my list 2 days before Christmas on a local mission to Crowder’s Mountain, with a 4th go send of TKO!

6.  Get Horizontal – Though roofs are still not my forte by any means, I’ve made some progress in that department, and definitely have seen a lot of improvement in my skills on steep walls over this past year.  Aside from Heresy (5.11c), a lot of my big roof attempts still ended with a bailer biner or the Texas rope trick.  However, I had several notable pocket-infested jug haul sends over our spring and fall trips to the Red River Gorge – Weed-Eater (5.11b),  On Beyond Zebra (5.11c), and King Me (5.11b).  Ironically, the first two were onsights, and the latter was a flash (its amazing how much bolder you can be on the first go knowing the only thing below you is air!)

Steep pocket-pulling at the Red River Gorge last April on On Beyond Zebra (5.11c)

7.  Climb in the following areas – Grandmother Boulders, NC , Red River Gorge, KY  , Foster Falls and/or Tennessee Wall, TN – Our friend Matt gave us an excellent tour de Grandmother this past July, and as I said got out to the Red twice.  We did make it out to Tennessee twice this year, but both of those times were to the Obed – so no check off yet for the Foster/T-Wall combo.

8.  Get Back into Trad – Though I still climbed a disproportionate amount of clip-ups compared to gear routes this past year, I definitely got my trad on a decent amount, especially towards the end of the year.  I didn’t try anything that approached my limit, but I got comfortable on gear again, which was the purpose behind this goal, since trad lines had taken a backseat to bouldering once Cragbaby had entered the scene.  A bonus was that we were able to do our first post-Cragbaby multi-pitching together at Stone Mountain!  Look for the bar to be raised a bit on the trad Hit List for 2012.

9.  Consolidate Bouldering Grades – Since I’ve only really gotten into bouldering since Cragbaby’s arrival, I had been a little inconsistent – flashing V4 one minute, only to get shutdown by the V2 just next door.  I figured I just needed more mileage, so every bouldering area we went this year I made a point to get on anything and everything, which seemed to go a long way towards consistency.  While I didn’t send anything harder number-wise this year over previous years, I found myself a lot more comfortable committing to taller, more sustained problems.

The first hard move on Pockets of Resistance (5.12a), NRG

10.  Giving Back – With so many people willing to teach and mentor us along our journey as young, inexperienced climbers, it only seems fitting to pass it on.  This year we were able to lure a couple of Steve’s co-workers into our climbing crew (both had dabbled in indoor climbing off and on so it didn’t take too much enticing…) Evidently they couldn’t resist Steve’s daily psych at the office.  🙂   We roped them up at Crowder’s a couple of times, and took them out to Dixon to boulder.  It’s been refreshing to see things from a different perspective, and also really nice to have partners at the gym so Steve and I can rotate who watches C!

So I guess that wraps up a spectacular year!  We lucked out with some fantastic weather weekends, made the best of some crappy weather weekends, and met a lot of really cool people along the way.  Not ticking New Yosemite?  Eh, who cares.  It’s a case of failure to try, rather than tried and failed.  I’m sure at some point I’ll make it up to the Junkyard, and I’m sure that hand crack will still be there, ready and waiting.  In its place I found plenty of other high quality trad lines of equal caliber.  And not hitting Foster Falls/T-Wall?  No biggie.  Our crew was too busy crushing at other crags around the Southeast, and that’s a good enough excuse for me!  And with tentative plans for a trip out west in March, and some exciting news on the sponsor front (more on that later 😉 ) 2012 is already shaping up to be even better!  And with a new year, comes a new Hit List, so stay tuned!

Anyone else out there cross off any projects from their list this past year?  Please share!

 

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Greatest Hits and Taking Requests

Climbing. Reflections.
5 Comments.

In the spirit of the new year, I thought it would be a good time to do some reflecting on my site content.  So the point of this post is really two-fold – a chance to look back, as well as the opportunity to move forward…

GREATEST HITS:
For those of you that are relatively new Cragmama readers (or for those interested in a walk down memory lane), here’s a look back at the most popular posts over the last year.  “Popular” in this case means high traffic and a lot of overall buzz – via hits, comments, shares on facebook/twitter, etc.

Helmets – Heck No or Essential Pro? – I have a sneaking suspicion that the popularity of this post might have something to do with the fact that it included a giveaway sponsored by PembaServes in conjunction with Petzl’s Helmet Campaign.  I’m assuming folks like to win prizes – I know I do, so hopefully next year will bring more giveaway opportunities for this blog!
Review: Chariot Cabriolet Bike Trailer –  This one’s been around a while – last January in fact.  It was a post-Christmas present review of C’s gift that ended up being a gift for the whole family!  For those of you that enjoy reviews, I intend to do more of those as well – over the next few weeks be on the lookout for a Misty Mountain harness review as well as an EMS backpack!
An Interview: Celebrating a Comeback – This inspiring story of my friend Bennett’s comeback to climbing got a lot of positive feedback.  In fact, the other interviews were well-received as well, so look for more of those on the horizon.
What Can Your Earth-Suit Do? (aka Perceptions on Body Image) –  This one was pretty vulnerable to write, but I’ve found that often I get the most sincere comments and encouragement from writing on topics that hit close to home.  I guess I’ll have to prepare to peel back the layers some more…
Creating a Cragbaby:  Rules for the Ropes – I’ve been able to get a lot of mileage out of this one, tweaking it and reposting it at a variety of other sources.  As Cragbaby prepares for his big 2 year birthday bash in March, I expect our family will be ever-changing our logistics and coming up with new ideas of how to (and how NOT to) handle a crag day with your little one, so look for more posts along these lines as well!

Don’t be shy…what do you want to see next year on Cragmama?

TAKING REQUESTS:
Now its your turn for some reflection…What would you like to see more of on Cragmama?
Any burning questions about crag logistics?
People you’d like to see interviewed?
Gear you’d love to see reviewed?
And don’t limit this to just blog posts either – think site wide!  For example, you non-climbers out there – would it be helpful to have a “climber’s dictionary” with all of the jargon and technical terms explained?
How about videos/pictures – more?  Less?
Please don’t hold back – any feedback is much appreciated, and will hopefully help me continue to build Cragmama into an online resource for adventure-minded parents.  As an added incentive (for whatever its worth…), I’ll throw in some Cragmama stickers for any commenters that would like one!  🙂

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4 Weeks Off = First 5.12a!

Climbing. North Carolina.
9 Comments.

"Climbing is fun guys!"

I know I said I’d be taking a break from blogging until after the New Year…but our climbing trip yesterday was particularly noteworthy…This past week marked the end of our self-imposed 4-week climbing hiatus…we celebrated by promptly getting spanked at the rock gym on both Tuesday and Thursday.  On Friday, however, it was a different story and we had a different reason to celebrate – my first 5.12a send!  To be honest, my expectations hadn’t been very high – after 2 days of solid rain, we weren’t even convinced anything would be dry enough to climb.  But the morning dawned bright and sunny, and freakishly warm for December.  In fact, by the time we got there (we got off to a late start since Cragbaby had for once gotten the memo about sleeping in!), conditions were perfect – everything was dry, all traces of humidity were gone, and a consistent breeze kept temps just right.

We spent the day at Red Wall, where we all took a run up The Gimp, a tall for the wall 5.10c/d with a tricky traverse up high.  We were all feeling pretty good, so we opted to get down to business right way – on TKO (5.12a).  My friend Bennett has been after me to no end to try this route, certain that it would go down pretty quickly for me.  After bailing before even getting to the crux on my first go, I was less than convinced, and more than a little discouraged.  Bennett graciously hung the rope for me so that I could work the moves on toprope, and after getting through the first long reach right away, I tackled the heinously sharp, credit card crimpy crux.  The crux is only a few moves, but the holds are heinous and the sequence is ridiculously beta intensive.  It took me several thrashings to figure out exactly how I needed to position my feet to make one particular move stick with any sort of regularity without barn-dooring at the credit card crimp.  I finally found some beta that seemed to work for me, so I lowered off and after a short rest pulled the rope and took another burn on lead.

TKO! Just before the crux...

This time I had only the slightest hesitation committing to a reachy move down low (the same move that had shut me down on my first lead attempt), but pulled through that move as well as the whole crux pretty smoothly.  I only had one more significant move left – a powerful lunge to a giant undercling flake… and I came up short and fell.  I think I was a little too adrenalized, and rushed the move without finding the sweet spot on the small rail my hands were on.  It was pretty frustrating to get that close and lose it post-crux, but everybody was pretty adamant that I should give it another go.  I wasn’t sure I had it in me to get to the top again, let alone clean, but after downing some pre-Christmas goodies and having some good snuggle time with C, I decided to put on my try-hard pants and give it one more go.  I knew that it would be easier with the sequence fresh in my mind, even if physically I wasn’t feeling daisy fresh…

And I guess 4th time’s a charm!  I got through the crux without a hitch, and this time I took my time getting setting up for the last move.  When I stuck the undercling flake, all I heard was an awkward silence…apparently my crew didn’t want to make any assumptions this time.  After clipping the chains however, wild hooting and hollering commenced from the base of the cliff, which was quite alarming for poor C until he saw an all smiles Mommy being lowered down towards him.

We celebrated with the usual revelry at one of our favorite post-climbing eateries.  What started out as a rather unlikely day for sending of any sort had turned into my hardest redpoint to date.  I arrived home exhausted, happy and satisfied, excited about wrapping up one of my 2011 goals as an early Christmas present, as well as the upcoming opportunity to spend some relaxing time with family over the next few days.  Merry Christmas everyone!

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