from gravsports
First off, paragliding can be a "reasonable" activity. I'd let my kids fly tandem with most any commercial operation in North America. But there are some problems lately with the competition scene, which is like comparing F1 to driving to the grocery store. The following commentary is opinion and ranting, but I'm thinking about it a lot so here goes: The 2011 Paragliding World Championships were cancelled a few days ago. I don't think that's ever happened before. The FAI (uber-governing body of air sports
published: 10 months ago
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downloaded: 10 months ago
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from Upskill Climbing
I recently expanded my home climbing wall, adding a big 45 degree wall. It was the one key angle I had been missing. When I went through my hold collection to see which holds were most suitable for going on the 45 I discovered a bit of a pattern. Holds were either too big and juggy and I could campus on them. Or they were too small or slopey to do anything other than bump off or compress with because they were actually designed for less steep walls. And pinches. God, it seemed like everything I put on the
published: 11 months ago
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downloaded: 11 months ago
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from The Alpinist - newswire
Keywords:
Zimmerman,
Allen,
climb,
Westman,
route,
glacier,
ridgeline,
peak,
Foraker,
Peak 12,214
On May 26, Mark Allen and Graham Zimmerman established a new route in the northwest fork of the Lacuna Glacier on the southern ridgeline of Mt. Foraker. Their climb, "To the Center" ( AK 4 AI2, 4500'), runs along a couloir for the majority of its 4,500 feet, then strikes a thin and precarious southeast ridgeline. There, the two climbed to the route's 12,214-foot pinnacle in five hours and forty-five minutes. This ridgeline also links two of their previous attempts at the ridge's high point, and they said
published: 11 months ago
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downloaded: 11 months ago
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from High Places
Hi Steph! After 5 years of sport climbing I am moving onto trad, which has opened up for me so many possibilities in the mountain. Ive learned mostly through trial and error, so your articles about thin cracks have been really useful! At least they helped me up a 400mt wall I climbed this weekend [...]
published: about 1 year ago
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downloaded: about 1 year ago
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from The Adventure Blog
Last week I posted about a new set of videos from National Geographic Adventure called Fringe Elements which exhibit the adventure lifestyle by spotlighting some very cool outdoor activities. The videos covered everything from trail running and snowboarding to mountaineering and paddling, with the early entrants into the series showing tons of promise for what is to come. One of the videos features rock climber Matt Maddaloni free soloing some rock climbing routes, which can be a challenging and dangerous
published: about 1 year ago
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downloaded: about 1 year ago
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from gravsports
The discussion on "Ice climbing is NOT rock climbing" has generally been useful; I learned a few things for sure, and I appreciate Jeff (the videographer) and the guys in the video taking it all well. I've talked to Jeff and the climbers, they're good people. I write this blog pretty much like I talk to my friends over morning coffee, and went a little overboard in not editing my comments a little. My sincere apologies to the Fall team for that, and I look forward to getting out with them next year. Now
published: about 1 year ago
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downloaded: about 1 year ago
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from James Pearson
Things are going well, which as I type this brings a smile to my face, and for a brief moment I even considered marking the occasion with an elegant and refined self-portrait. I'm sure you know the sort - tops off, slap on the baby oil, flip the mood lighting and stare moodily into the distance – but unfortunately, I can’t find my favourite pair of aviators, and you know as well as I do that a portrait without aviators is no portrait at all. The reason for this blog is that the day I depart these snowy
published: about 1 year ago
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downloaded: about 1 year ago
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from gravsports
Fall. from Jeffrey Butler on Vimeo . One of the biggest problems I see in ice climbing starts with people approaching ice climbing like they do rock climbing. That mindset is totally inappropriate, and leads to really avoidable accidents. A friend of mine recently sent me a link to a video shot Dracula, a one-pitch classic WI 4+ in New Hampshire. The leader gets pumped, struggles to get a screw in, and falls. Skip to 3: 28 to see it go bad, but the whole thing starts to go bad way before that point. I'm
published: about 1 year ago
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downloaded: about 1 year ago
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from The Adventure Blog
The weather delays are starting to get very serious for Ben Saunders , who is Resolute Bay and hoping to catch a flight to Cape Discovery soon so he can begin his attempt at a speed record to the North Pole. He had been hoping to get out on the ice yesterday, but a blog post last night indicates that the weather woes continue. Ben says that he talked to his pilot yesterday to get an update and the pilot indicated that the Arctic Weather Centre, located in Edmonton, is now saying that the current conditions
published: about 1 year ago
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downloaded: about 1 year ago
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from Mountains and Water
I decided last minute to attend the ABS Nationals and was very glad I did. I picked up a media pass on Friday and nabbed a ticket for my wife (thanks to AIM Media), and we were at the venue off east Pearl at 7:45, 4-year old in tow. The USA climbing staff were super helpful setting me up with a pass at the last minute and giving good photo access throughout the venue. I had followed the semi-finals earlier in the day on the web where there had been a certain amount of concern regarding a scoring system ...
published: about 1 year ago
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downloaded: about 1 year ago
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99 views