So Now Its June

So now it's June, what the fuck? May went by in a blink and with nary a word from your favorite somethings here at vertiCALI. Ah well, June gloom is here now, which must mean its summer, but wait! Its still tits cold (for LA, anyway) and overcast outside my window, this is good for climbing, but bad for Rachel, who needs a parka if the mercury settles any lower than 70. Anyways, lots of new shniz been goin' down, in life and climbing; the royal we got a new job at Adventure 16 in Tarzana, a radical outdoor outfitter with five stores down here in Socal, climbed a lot, was visited by the twin towers from the great white north, and finally redpointed 11! Phewf. . .
Here are some pictures from a recent jaunt to Echo with Rachel, Ben, and Marri. A satisfying, beery day.

Here we're getting set for my attempt on Intensity (11b). Most trite name for a climb ever, but still good. What follows is a sequence of my first (and best) attempt at leading the bouldery line.

Kickin it off

Notice the bitchin' new shoes? Five Ten Quantums, amazing, review soon to follow.

Get your feet up!

Set to throw for an awesome jug

Fumbling with the crux clip at the second bolt.












As always, thanks for flying with vertiCALI; we realize that you have many options when it comes to killing time on the net and appreciate your continued patronage. Keep the mind state Golden, Peace!

Dud

Well, I am embarrassed to be a Lakers fan today. Poor form, boys.

Uggh. . .

Well, perhaps my enthusiasm for ye olde purple and gold was a bit premature. seems like the color scheme may be changing back sooner than the royal we here at vertiCALI had hoped. There is still hope though. . . Right? Right?! Most important, in these dark times we gotta remember to keep the mind state Golden.

In other, non-Laker related news. Here is a sequence of me rockin the Chube, an awesome boulder problem in the Barker Dam area out in Josh. Credit goes to Chris Ramirez for the pictures and Steve for the spot, thanks dudes. (see Chris at flickr.com/ventures23)

Purp and Yellow

In tribute to the might Lakers vertiCALI has gone purple and gold for the rest of their playoff run, threepeatin on 'em!

Ask vertiCALI: 4 Tips for Beginners

I have been climbing for a year now, and although this amounts to a short career I have learned something new every time I head out to the crags. I thought I would share some tips that have helped me as well as try and rectify some of the bad advice I was given.

1. Go Climb! This one is obvious but the quickest way to advance through the grades is to climb as much as possible. No matter how many pull-ups you can do, if you lack technique you ain't gettin off the ground.
2. Climb Outside! Gym climbing is a great way to build strength and develop technique but 9 times out of ten what you are doing in the gym just does not translate to outdoor climbing; don't believe me? ask a super strong gym climber to go climb a crack or crank a hard mantel and watch the results.
3. Make Friends! That is, make friends that climb. Finding a crew of friends climbing at a similar level helped me stay motivated, push grades, and have more fun.
4. Get Good Shoes! One of the things that frustrates me most when I read about shoes and sizing is that beginners are constantly advised to just get some comfy, cheap shoes as they learn to climb. The people in this camp would argue that since good climbing shoes are expensive and beginners have sloppy footwork and may not fall in love with climbing they should start with something cheap. BULLSHIT! I followed this advice and after a month and a half of regular climbing I had a pair of sloppy, cheap, blown out shoes. If you get serious about climbing you will start to out climb those comfy shoes in a couple months, then you'll just end up buying the shoes you've really wanted all along. So if you are getting started climbing and you feel like this is something you want to pursue, do yourself a favor and buy some decent, tight-fitting shoes (My recommendation, the Five Ten Moccasym. See my earlier post regarding these killer slippers).

Happy thirsty Thursday and keep the mind state Golden!

Can't learn that in the gym. Nick mantels on Carousel Rock.

Bishop Pictures

 There has been a rash of inactivity on this here blog and I aims to rectify that ish. The good thing is I have been out climbing in glorious locations a lot, and I have lots of new material with which to inundate thee. Here are a few pictures from day 1 of a trip to the fabulous boulders of Bishop, California (of course); as usual credit for many of the pictures goes to Chris Ramirez, see more of his fine work at flickr.com/ventures23. A more complete trip report is soon to follow but I figured I ought to whet the appetite of my avid fanbase (thanks mom and dad!).





This is Chris O. warming up on the Green Wall, a rad looking boulder with deceptively small holds.

Chris R. works on Flyboy, a burly V6 from which there is no escape. . .

Here I am on the Prow.

Sunset on the Sierra, sigh. . .

This is our campsite and one epic shot by Chris, enlarge it for full glory.














Rise and shine boys, the mountains are calling. . . Ah yes, but we're bouldering, the sport which makes mountains out of pebbles.














And here is the campsite in it's full morning glory. cozy, eh?

Five Ten Moc Review: The One Shoe Quiver

Ahhh, the venerable Moccasym. This simple shoe has been helping climbers scalp the Custer’s of crags across the land for far longer than I’ve been climbing, and many a review can be found, yet I think another is in order.

The Moc is an ultra-simple, sensitive slipper-style climbing shoe by Five Ten, which features their famously sticky Stealth C4 rubber and is about as versatile as a climbing shoe can be, and it serves as the only arrow in many young braves’ shoe quivers. The Moc is a favorite at Stoney Point, where the blazing red can be seen adorning the feet of old guys eliminating holds and young guys looking for new ones.

I wore my Mocs on everything until both toes were worn through to the leather, and even in an impressively dilapidated state, the shoe performed. The Moc is at its best in thin cracks and on overhanging boulders, where the sensitivity and the low-profile toe allow for extremely precise footwork.

On sizing: In my opinion the Moc performs at its best when sized down A LOT. I wore mine two full sizes down from street, the first week or so was torture, but after breaking in the Mocs become the bane of any rock wishing to chuck you off. With the right fit even micro edges, normally the forte of a stiffer shoe, are no problem for this shoe. So my advice is to size ‘em tight! For bouldering and single pitch sport, I’d say get the smallest size you can get your foot into, for longer climbs maybe go a half to full size up from there.

Moc’s, buy ‘em!

Pros: Versatile, comfy, easy on/off, durable, and they look fuckin’ rad

Cons: They will pop off on hard heel hooks and can get sloppy if sized improperly