>> February - March 2003
Who is Tony?
For boulderers, December is usually a time spent dreaming about warmer
seasons, or for those fortunate souls with travel plans, warmer places.
This past holiday season, however, the question asked by bouldering cognoscenti
everywhere was, "Who is Tony Lamiche?"
In Bishop, California as part of the Petzl Roc trip, which brought many
of the best boulderers from across Europe and North America to raise funds
and awareness for the Access Fund, Lamiche seemed to have come out of nowhere
and stolen the show. To stand out from the large field of top boulderers
you would have to either be Chris Sharma or offer a spectacular display
of power and style. Since the job of being Sharma was already taken, Lamiche
opted for power and style and proceeded to repeat all the established test
pieces in quick fashion. Warming up with a flash of the Mandala V12, Lamiche
then quickly repeated the Dave Graham test piece Spectre V13. Following
that outburst, the young Frenchman repeated the highball Evilution (which
had earlier claimed the ankle of fellow Frenchmen Daniel Dulac) and the
Buttermilker V11. For the finale, Lamiche capped things off with a first
ascent of the sit start to the Mandala at V13.
So, who is Tony Lamiche? He’s a long standing member of the French
national team and a French national champ in 99, so he
didn’t exactly come out of nowhere.
5.14a is Easy
2002 will be remembered in sport climbing annals as the year 14a
onsights broke through. Up until 2002, only Elie Chevieux and Yuji Hirayama
managed the feat. But early in the year Christian Brenna also succeeded,
the first of a spate of climbers to follow. This trend would see 14a onsights
go from big news to two line blurbs in climbing rags all over the world.
However, the young Spanish duo of Ramon Julian Puigblanque and Eduard Marin
Garcia (who is only 16) upped the stakes just before the close of the year.
The duo have both onsighted two 14as in a day –Hydrophobia and les
Elements, at Mont Sant in Spain. Both are endurance affairs, typical of
the crag and good candidates for onsights, with Hydrophobia having been
flashed twice before by Katie Brown and Tommy Caldwell while les Elements
had been onsighted earlier this year by another Spaniard, Pablo Barbero.
Not surprisingly, the duo have found success on the competition circuit
lately as well, Puigblanque won the last leg of the World Cup circuit in
Kranj, Slovenia, his first World Cup victory. Garcia won the recent European
Youth Cup also held in Kranj. After a few years of bouldering dominating
the headlines, perhaps we are seeing sport climbing return to fashion.
Grit Repeat
Originally established by Neil Bentley, Equilibrium at E10 7a is by all
accounts the most difficult grit route there is. The 40 foot tall route
has now seen a second ascent by Neil Gresham. With the crux at 30 feet and
the only protection available coming at 14 feet, ground falls are possible
right up to the top. Gresham made several harrowing, ground skimming falls
before redpointing. The two ascensionists
concur that Equilibrium feels a full grade harder than other E9s they have
done and that the crux is about V10 and the whole route feels similar to
a 13d/14a.
Owing to the uniqueness of gritstone and difficulty in deciphering British
E grades, impressive grit performances often go
unreported outside of England. After all, no one but the Brits can quite
work out whether an E5 6c is easier or harder than E6 6b. The whole thing
leaves you with the nagging suspicion that even the Brits aren’t sure,
except now the Italians seem to have picked up on it. Mauro Calibani, the
reigning world bouldering champion, made a pilgrimage to Stanage and managed
some impressive ascents, most notably the classic Renegade Master E7 7a.
Finding grit style climbing agreeable, Calibani immediately got to work
on an overhanging open corner upon his return to Italy. The result was the
sparsely protected and oddly named Is Not Always Pasqua E9 7a.
Correspondent: Andre Cheuk
Edwards and Millar
Make First Ascent of West Face of Swachand
This October John Millar and Guy Edwards climbed the West Face of
Swachand, 6721m, in the Garwhal Himalaya, India. Swachand is a tantalizing
peak located up a side valley of the Gangotri Glacier, visible in the distance
from a well-frequented trekking and approach route. Swachand has only been
climbed once via the Maiandi Glacier and the snowy southeast side in 1938.
Malcolm Bass and Julian Camp (UK) first attempted the much steeper West
Face in 1998, however, due to poor weather and rockfall, they were not successful.
The monsoon was still in full force when Edwards, Millar and Conor Reynolds
arrived at basecamp at Tapovan Meadows. Originally they were to climb as
a group of three, but just a few days before attempting the climb, Reynolds
developed a boil the size of a ping-pong ball on his back. He had to quit
and descend to seek
medical help.
They left advanced basecamp at 5150m on October third. Edwards describes
going up "a fair bit of snow, up the ice shield, and [then] we were
at the base of the first rock pitches. A series of mixed pitches (M5+ or
so)" followed. Edwards took a big fall with a heavy pack when he pulled
off a huge block. On the second morning, Millar led a beautiful WI 5 pitch
to access the "key-ice-ramp." Edwards was hit in the foot by a
grapefruit sized block and couldn’t frontpoint for a day and a half.
Millar got all the leads for that afternoon and the next morning.
"The last two days on the face became more trying:" comments Edwards,
"we hadn’t been eating or drinking enough while climbing, and
the cold was getting to us. John had a brilliant lead on what was certainly
the crux of the route, - a 60m WI 5, and M6 at the top." Numerous pitches
up hard dinner-plating ice put them on the summit ridge. They simulclimbed
up the ridge on firm corniced snow, with one rock step and arrived on the
summit at 4:00 pm.
First Ascents Feedback
Report 2000-2003
First Ascents is a project that puts climbing gear, climbing instruction
and climbing environmental awareness together with kids to generate opportunities
that would otherwise not be available to them. We believe these opportunities
foster a mutually beneficial relationship that is sustainable and beneficial
for both the local community and the climbing community. Our first two projects
were in the Hidalgo-Potrero community. At the completion of our next project,
2003 #3, the Hidalgo Potrero community will have enough gear and climbing
development to allow the kids to carry on more independently than three
years ago. They will continue to need safe usable surplus gear donations
and we ask that visiting climbers and others continue to donate as they
have so generously done over 2001-02.
We chose El Potrero Chico because of the awesome climbing literally in the
local kids’ backyards. There is easy access to the rock for youth of
almost any age before and after school during the week and on weekends.
We connected with approximately 35 kids who tried climbing for the first
time, producing a core group of about a dozen, aged from 7-17 yrs. We are
fortunate to have Edward "Magic Ed" Wright, a resident of Hidalgo
and an active full-time climber to provide weekend instruction opportunities
and guidance to the kids. We also utilize traveling climber mentors to take
the kids out. Our particular thanks to the on-the-roaders of 2002: Jason,
Jason, and Jason, Amber, Tim, Calhum, Caroline, Paul, Karen, Rodney and
Ismael.
The generosity of the First Ascent’s supporters: Rock Oasis Climbing
Gym, the Mountain Equipment Co-Op, BLURR, Borealis Press, Gripped Magazine
and other friends has been awesome. Photographer Tony Varney joined us for
sixteen days. We hope the Potrero Faces presentation and the support photo
enlargement sales will encourage further developments towards our next steps.
We hope to expand the environmental awareness parameters with Sister Ariel
Pena and Dr. Norman Yan of York University Environmental Biology Dept. Toronto.
We will also continue the climbing developments with Ed Wright and others.
First Ascents will provide a mapping software program and start a dialogue
about the park’s development.
Anyone who would like to get further information or to assist with the project
via e-mail support, suggestions, volunteer time, equipment contributions
or other resources; contact jcwmara@muskoka.com or varney@muskoka.com.
Correspondent: John Weir
Peewee and Stephane
Charm the Cobra, Alpine Style
Last June 2002 Québec hardmen Jean-Pierre (Peewee) Ouellet
and Stephane Perron made the second ascent of Cobra Pillar VI 5.11 A2+ on
Mt Barille in the Ruth Gorge. The Cobra Pillar was first climbed in 1989
by Jack Tackle and Jim Donini. The route involves 28 pitches of mostly free
climbing with three or four aid pitches and four pitches of snow to the
summit. They fixed five pitches, waited a day for good weather and committed
to an alpine style ascent. They made it tent-to-tent in 37 hours, climbing
without a bivouac. "We were so tired on the descent," Said Peewee,
"That we had to stop every 15 minutes and in the last 75m we had to
stop three times
before making it to the tent. We found the route excellent despite some
loose and rotten sections. I think that the route could go entirely free
at 5.11+ or low end 5.12."
New Rockies Testpieces
This fall and early winter saw at least three awesome new alpine
routes in the Rockies. In October Rockies hardman Eric Dumerac called up
his friend Phillippe Tronc Pellet in France saying "Come to see me
my friend, come from France and we will send!" And did they ever. With
Canadian Alpine legend Barry Blanchard they made the first ascent of Infinite
Patience, the third route on the huge Emperor Face of Mt Robson and with
Pellet he made the first ascent of Rites of Passage 800M IV 5.7 M5 WI 7+
on Kitchener’s North Face.
Barry Blanchard and Albi Sole had previously attempted their route on Kitchener.
The crux, Dumerac said "is a constriction glacier, a smooth structure
reminiscent of the ice bulges on Mt. Fay. This does not mean it will not
start shedding, so be cautious. Also check your avalanche hazard as the
route is a gully. It begins with a swirl of stepped ice roofs. Its surface
has gentle ripples and looks like smooth glass. We were like kids that found
the world’s biggest marble."
Dumerac, a serious mixed climber commented that his practice on sport mixed
came in handy when contemplating the crux: "did we not dangle upside
down from our ice axes, like weird alien insects, on a regular basis?"
The pair then teamed up with Blanchard to take on a new route on the Emperor
Face of Robson. Earlier this season it had been attempted by a Slovenian
party who backed off before completing it. For more on this route see the
feature in this issue.
The imposing yet compelling east face of Howse Peak has several wild ice
smears. Howse of Cards 1100m, VI, WI6X, M7- takes the steepest ice smear
out of the large snow patch in the middle of the face and into the central
gully before finishing directly on the steep face below the South Summit.
A short walk north takes you to the slightly higher but proper summit of
Howse Peak. Gadd says "I'd driven by this face probably a hundred times,
but never had the guts to try it. Scott and Kevin made it a reality, definitely
one of the finest outings of my life with a good team." Howse of Cards
shares the first two pitches with M16 1000m, VI, A2, WI7+ (by Backes, House,
Blanchard, 1999, see page 284 of Joe Josephson’s Waterfall Ice) and
two pitches in the prominent gully in the middle of the face. The first
ascensionists believe this is likely the first complete and certainly free
ascent of the East Face of Howse Peak as M16 reportedly stopped below the
ridge. The name Howse of Cards refers to the ice and mixed climbing experience
on the crux pitches and the mystique of the face. Their first attempt lasted
three days and took them to the top of the hard climbing on the night of
day two, but they were out of time and retreated on day three. Aid or jumaring
might have speeded things up, but they chose to climb free as a team. On
the second attempt, on December 5 they climbed the route in two days. One
day to climb all the crux pitches and fix two, then one very long and dark
day to climb (not jumar, they used T-Blocks to self-belay) the upper crux
pitches and climb to the summit and descend. The short days complicated
things, but cold temperatures kept the face reasonably stable.
John R. Carey (1948-2002)
In August 2002 John Carey died in a fall while descending from the
summit of Billy Budd in the Battle Range of the Selkirks in British Columbia.
A slip on a snow slope sent him to the rocks 150m below. When Dougal Haston
died Doug Scott was described as looking like a "pole-axed bull"
and the televised image of his reaction has always haunted me. Looking at
anyone who knew John, you see the same expressions of anger, frustration
and disbelief. He was one of the good ones.
John did that remarkably annoying thing by which he could remind you of
what your foibles were at the same time as asking you to realize their futility.
He could laugh hardest at himself without descending into parody or self-deprecation
and make you understand the political nature of all vanities. Not to say
he wasn’t capable of vanity, but it was of the sort that was ultimately
endearing, to the extent that it acknowledged the inherent weaknesses, not
failings, that define our personalities. In spite of his best efforts, he
really liked you, all of you.
If the measure of a man is the impact he has on the people who are left
behind, then John was a remarkable person; no one who knew him will ever
forget him. In the six months since his passing, there has not been a single
day that I have not thought about "The Old Guy." I think that’s
wonderful.
Greg Hill
No More Illegal
Climbing On Mont Gros Bras
A few years ago, climbing the most impressive cliff in the Parc des
Grands Jardins became illegal. The Société des établissements
de plein air du Québec (SÉPAQ) decided that climbers were
disturbing nature on their land. Some cliffs in the Charlevoix region were
then pronounced closed: the Mont Gros Bras plus six other cliffs in the
Parc des Hautes-Gorges de la rivière Malbais. The climbing community
was losing access to some of the greatest multi-pitch cliffs in the province
of Québec. While the Fédération québécoise
de la montagne et de l’escalade (FQME) was trying to gain back these
cliffs access, some climbers were still climbing illegally on the Mont Gros
Bras, but risking getting a very nice fine if they were caught.
On September 13th there was good news: a letter from Alain Couture, the
FQME’s temporary director said that the Mont Gros Bras was re-opened.
Climbers only have to pay the park access fee which is $3.50 per person,
per day. They should also leave their vehicle in the official parking lot
at the park’s entrance, as no more parking is allowed on the side of
the Route 381. Access to the cliff has not changed for now, but SÉPAQ,
the organization in charge of provincial parks, is talking about changing
the trail for environmental protection. Negotiations are still going on.
Let’s hope that everything will also work out fine with the Parc des
Hautes-Gorges de la rivière Malbais. Rock climbing is currently not
allowed there. As for ice climbing, only the famous ice route La Pomme D’Or,
is permitted.
As for the Cap Trinité cliff, in the Parc du Saguenay, climbers still
have to ask the park director permission to climb. All routes on the right
side of Les Grands Galais are still going to be closed from May 1st to July
15th for falcon nesting.
Correspondent: Alexandre Brault
