Speed records, Knob Creek and Greek salads.
Here is a quick little update from the past month.
Ship Rock in New Mexico
I managed to take about 50 minutes from the solo speed record on Ship Rock, a record I set about 7 years ago. For those who know nothing about Ship Rock I will give a brief synopsis.
Ship Rock, (Tsa-Beh-Tai, meaning The Winged Rock in Navajo), is a unique giant basaltic collapsed volcanic neck rising 2,000' out of the desert in NW New Mexico’s Navajo Indian Reservation. Perhaps this is the largest such formation in the world? The multiple summits and fins might resemble the sails of a large ship sailing the desert when viewed from the north. But to the Navajo it has a much greater meaning. To be brief, Tsa-Beh-Tai apparently brought the Navajo ancestors to this land in the form of a large bird, landed, then turned to stone. Also, Cliff Monster, a man eating dragon, is said to have once resided in the large bowl below the summit until a Navajo warrior slay the mighty beast tossing its body parts out into the desert forming the other prominent volcanic features near Ship Rock.
Reaching the summit of Ship Rock was the last great problem of North American mountaineering during the late 1930s and apparently this was the scene of the first ever expansion bolt placed for the use of climbing. Rock climbing on the Navajo Indian reservation is forbidden by the Navajo government; though it is possible for climbers with special interests to gain blessings from one of the families living in the shadow of Ship Rock and not get charged for trespassing. But, even if you get permission from a permit holder, technically you are still going against the grain of the Navajo Government and could possibly get punished!
A few different rock types are found on Ship Rock, including volcanic breccia, basalt, and xenoliths (chunks of limestone and gneiss brought up during eruption). Rock quality varies from surprisingly moderately hard to loose and crumbly.
The drive from Farmington, NM to Charlotte, NC took me around 26hrs. I picked my girlfriend Jessa Goebel up near the airport, grabbed a quick shower at the climbing gym and quickly boarded a plane to Manchester, NH. Once there we meet a handful of other Mountain Hardwear athletes and representatives - Chris Strasser, Jesse Malman, Kevin Mahoney, Dawn Glanc and Ethan Pringle. Up next was the EMS Nor’easter festival; live music, bouldering comps, cross-bike racing, schmoozing, climbing clinics at Rumney and lots of drinking filled the 3 day event roster.
Welcome to Farmington, New Mexico!
Very fun time indeed! More-or-less a big blur of activity and I’m glad I managed to get out early one morning with Kevin and Matt McCormick for a quick group solo sesh at Canon. We barely made it, the night before a big group of us drank beer, scotch and wayyy to much Knob Creek, I remember rolling down the big grassy hill in front of the music stage, waking at 4:30am, puking, passing out again and then Kevin hurrying me out the condo door around 6:00am for our Cannon mission with the taste of Bourbon and vomit still unsullied on my palate. The event was well planned and I loved the setup at Loon Mountain Resort! My good freind Alex Johnson and Ethan Pringle won the UBC bouldering comp and the rain held off...can't wait until next year.
Ummm...ouch!
Whitney-Gilman, Cannon Cliff, NH Pat Goodman
Gopro vid from the solo sesh.
Jessa and I missed one of our return flights and managed a 19 hour travel day back to our home in Banner Elk, NC. I got to spend about 32 hours there then drove back to Charlotte to catch a plane to Athens, Greece - eventually ending up on the paradise isle of Kalymnos, where I sit now. I will outline more specifics in a later post, but I will say this place is EXCELLENT! Great climbing on dreamy limestone tuffas is the norm. Also, I will add, the clear blue waters of the Aegen Sea are supremely majestic! And….. Jessa and I got a special treat when we discovered my good buddy John “Verm” Sherman is also spending the month of Roctober here in Kalymnos as well.
Yeah, home for the next month!
I managed to take about 50 minutes from the solo speed record on Ship Rock, a record I set about 7 years ago. For those who know nothing about Ship Rock I will give a brief synopsis.
Ship Rock, (Tsa-Beh-Tai, meaning The Winged Rock in Navajo), is a unique giant basaltic collapsed volcanic neck rising 2,000' out of the desert in NW New Mexico’s Navajo Indian Reservation. Perhaps this is the largest such formation in the world? The multiple summits and fins might resemble the sails of a large ship sailing the desert when viewed from the north. But to the Navajo it has a much greater meaning. To be brief, Tsa-Beh-Tai apparently brought the Navajo ancestors to this land in the form of a large bird, landed, then turned to stone. Also, Cliff Monster, a man eating dragon, is said to have once resided in the large bowl below the summit until a Navajo warrior slay the mighty beast tossing its body parts out into the desert forming the other prominent volcanic features near Ship Rock.
Reaching the summit of Ship Rock was the last great problem of North American mountaineering during the late 1930s and apparently this was the scene of the first ever expansion bolt placed for the use of climbing. Rock climbing on the Navajo Indian reservation is forbidden by the Navajo government; though it is possible for climbers with special interests to gain blessings from one of the families living in the shadow of Ship Rock and not get charged for trespassing. But, even if you get permission from a permit holder, technically you are still going against the grain of the Navajo Government and could possibly get punished!
A few different rock types are found on Ship Rock, including volcanic breccia, basalt, and xenoliths (chunks of limestone and gneiss brought up during eruption). Rock quality varies from surprisingly moderately hard to loose and crumbly.
The drive from Farmington, NM to Charlotte, NC took me around 26hrs. I picked my girlfriend Jessa Goebel up near the airport, grabbed a quick shower at the climbing gym and quickly boarded a plane to Manchester, NH. Once there we meet a handful of other Mountain Hardwear athletes and representatives - Chris Strasser, Jesse Malman, Kevin Mahoney, Dawn Glanc and Ethan Pringle. Up next was the EMS Nor’easter festival; live music, bouldering comps, cross-bike racing, schmoozing, climbing clinics at Rumney and lots of drinking filled the 3 day event roster.
Very fun time indeed! More-or-less a big blur of activity and I’m glad I managed to get out early one morning with Kevin and Matt McCormick for a quick group solo sesh at Canon. We barely made it, the night before a big group of us drank beer, scotch and wayyy to much Knob Creek, I remember rolling down the big grassy hill in front of the music stage, waking at 4:30am, puking, passing out again and then Kevin hurrying me out the condo door around 6:00am for our Cannon mission with the taste of Bourbon and vomit still unsullied on my palate. The event was well planned and I loved the setup at Loon Mountain Resort! My good freind Alex Johnson and Ethan Pringle won the UBC bouldering comp and the rain held off...can't wait until next year.
Whitney-Gilman, Cannon Cliff, NH Pat Goodman
Gopro vid from the solo sesh.
Jessa and I missed one of our return flights and managed a 19 hour travel day back to our home in Banner Elk, NC. I got to spend about 32 hours there then drove back to Charlotte to catch a plane to Athens, Greece - eventually ending up on the paradise isle of Kalymnos, where I sit now. I will outline more specifics in a later post, but I will say this place is EXCELLENT! Great climbing on dreamy limestone tuffas is the norm. Also, I will add, the clear blue waters of the Aegen Sea are supremely majestic! And….. Jessa and I got a special treat when we discovered my good buddy John “Verm” Sherman is also spending the month of Roctober here in Kalymnos as well.
