Vertical or horizontal front point?

This winter's Ice climbing season started early.Nov. in the Ghost River area of Alberta in fact for me.



The Ghost



The super cold temps that would later invade Canada and Montana had yet to arrive. Some where you generally have to pay the price for good early season climbing. For me that was climbing on harder ice than I am generally use to for the majority of the season. By Jan and -30C temps in Canada I was pretty much worn down and worn out with hard water ice.



In a typical winter I start climbing water ice in Canada after Christmas and continue through mid April.



This winter I had 4trips north in before Christmas.



The 5th trip was to the Ice Fields Parkway at the first of the year. Cold by any standard. I took dbl boots and for once a pair of BD Cyborgs to easy the pain of pounding toes on hard ice. It made a difference.



Generally I like climbing in horizontal front point crampons. They offer marginally more support and resist shearing the front points in wet, soft ice. I have found most of the cruxes in my own climbing to be sun rotted vertical ice or just as likely what ice that is there sublimated or just out right melting off the wall. Places that a set of single vertical front points just don't "cut" it for me. I hate having my feet pop off on anything including steep or not so steep ice because of the specific tools I have decide to use.



Some huge advantages of a mono point on mixed but even there I will generally try to get away with a set of dual horizontal fronts unless I know it will be a mostly a rock climb with boots and tools required. Not dry tooling per say but certainly "modern mixed".



I know for my size a set of dual horizontal fronts offer more support and that I am less likely to pop my feet. Proven to my self over and over again.



But then there is hard ice....not the typical couple of days of hard freeze ice but weeks on end at -20 or less. The stuff that breaks tools, crampons and dinner plates big enough to break helmets. Cold...like an animal wanting to kill you. Polar Circus was a good example in Jan. Dbl boots and a set of vertical front pointed Cyborgs made it less effort, thankfully.



The Ice Field Parkway







Ha!Funny now in retrospect as I have never been as cold as I was climbing in Chamonix this winter. Shivering to the bone cold, on route. Temps only -20C or so and with a good wind. Likely most of it was me being less than fit and not acclimatised. But no matter, I as cold. (reoccurring theme about that trip)



The cold I can deal with..even while bitching about it. The ice was another matter all together. The first bit of gully ice I found shattered on impact and was tough even to get enough purchase for a good hook let alone a solid stick. That bit of ice was mid route on what is generally considered a "rock" routeso I blew it off to the 4 mm pick and my inabilities. Boy was I mistaken.



The next bit of ice I encountered was at least half gravel and sand, frozen into the back of a corner. Proper gully ice that. Thankfully there were enough rocks sticking out of the ice that front points weren't an issue. Getting a decent stick with my tools was however. Nomics without pick weights or hammers this time. My normal choice for Cascade or Rockiesmixed and the seemingly hands down preference in the Alps I am bluntly told. Nomics, Cascade picks and no weights. Ya, well that choice didn't work so well for me. Anda set of sharp, verticalcrampon points is likely the only thing that will consistently penetrate alpine winter ice, aka, Chamonix asphalt. The ice may look great forclimbing but the difference between Neve and old winter water ice is genuine and huge.



No more worrying about shearing a set of dual vertical front points or a monofor that matter through soft ice. The ice was hard enough to support even my lard ass on a mono in every alpine gully I climbed and half the water falls I did this winter.



So while I am still a big fan of horizontal fronts I am also a huge fan of Monos when I can get away with it and even a bigger fan of dual verts. And when it is cold...really cold.....I want VERTS.



Chamonix



There you go...another change of mind on my part for gear...it canhappen on occasion ;-)

Recycle that old Computer - America Recycles Day

In my post Sticker Shock, I mentioned that I had an old laptop that no longer works and I didn't know what to do with it. Well, in a comment on that post, Janice Brown, at Cow Hampshire, linked to an article about Staples and their computer recycle program.

Since I was going to Staples to purchase my new digital camera, I took the old laptop along. I asked the sales clerk who was helping me if they accepted computers for recycling and he responded in the affirmative. When it came time to check out I made a quick trip to the car and got the laptop. The young man was very nice and courteous but didn't know how to handle the recycling charge. Neither did the other cashier. They called the manager. He said there was a code they had to use. It wasn't at any of the registers so he had to go into the back office to get it. In the meantime, I filled out the paperwork identifying what was being turned in and signing my name stating that I understood that they were promising that the equipment would not be resold or used in any other way, that it was really going to be recycled.

What should have been a less than five minute process ended up taking about 20 minutes. Of course, the sales clerk apologized saying it was the first time anyone had actually recycled anything at their store. I wasn't in a hurry or anything so it was no big deal. But if you plan on recycling any electronic stuff, I'd suggest calling ahead to the store to let them know.

This morning, while on the Staples website checking the status of my camera shipment, I did a search for "recycle computers" but nothing came up. In their page on Media Information they have a News Release titled Fewer Than One in Four Americans Recycle Their Technology Waste that provides additional information on the program and what they will accept.

Did you know that Thursday, November 15th, is America Recycles Day? The Material Recovery Center at Columbia City (in Whitley County, Indiana) has a Saturday in November set aside for turning in hazardous materials, batteries, tires, appliances, etc. that they don't normally accept. Fort Wayne also does this. There is a fee involved with these things, but it is minimal. I'm not sure if they accept electronic equipment such as computers, printers, and scanners though. It might be worth checking your local recycling center, especially if you have multiple items (CPU, Monitor, Printer, etc.) as there is a $10 fee at Staples for each item. There is no charge for cell phones, pagers, digital cameras, mice, or keyboards.

It cost $10 to rid myself of a piece of junk, but I feel good about having done so. It got it out of my closet and hopefully some of the precious metals can be retrieved for other uses. As Janice suggested, I opened the laptop, found the hard drive and gave it more than a few good whacks. After putting the cover back on, the insides rattled a bit, but that shouldn't take away any of it's recycling value ;-)

As a side note, I purchased my new digital camera. A Sony Cyber-shot H7. 8.1 megapixal and 15x zoom. The only one they had in-store was the display model. I'm prejudiced against display models so opted for having it shipped to me. It is supposed to arrive tomorrow (Tuesday 11/13). I just want to be able to check it out for a few days before my trip to Missouri. I'm really looking forward to that 15x zoom. Awesome! Flag image from the America Recycles Day website.

Padre Island Sunset

Padre Island National Seashore
Corpus Christi, Texas
February 16, ..

Cumberland Island :: The Beach

The trail meanders through the dunes, alternating between a sandy path and boardwalk. A small forest of scrubby trees and brush seems to create a barrier for the shifting sands of the dunes inhibiting their movement and helping to prevent them from encroaching further inland.

The tide was out so there was a large expanse of beach showing. The group of people off to the south was the first and last group I saw walking along the seashore that day. The building in the distance on the right side of the photo is a pulp mill on neighboring Amelia Island. It is the only “blemish” on an otherwise beautiful and distant horizon.

I had been walking along the hard-packed beach for over an hour and in that time had seen only two other people. Now, I was alone on the beach, listening to the surf moving in and out, watching the clouds go by, and being amused by the Sandpipers that scurried to and fro around the edge of the surf, occasionally stopping to grab a little something to eat.

There was hardly any wind and the sun came out for a short time then disappeared behind a thick layer of clouds. The warmth from the brief appearance of the sun was quite welcome though it was comfortable otherwise, especially with the four layers of clothing I wore. Not too cold, if you kept moving.

I noticed a portion of a large tree lying along the outer edge of the beach, near the dunes, and went to investigate. I don't know if the tree had drifted in from the ocean or what but all of the bark had been removed and only stumps remained where branches had been. Conveniently, one end made a very nice seat with two of the stumps creating a nice backrest. It was early afternoon so I sat down to eat my lunch.

Every so often the sun would pop out for a few minutes, brightening the day. To the north patches of blue sky occasionally appeared through the clouds.

But to the south there was a thick layer of clouds, which would eventually block out the sun for the remainder of the day, but not before providing a wonderful palette of blues and grays, along with some marvelous reflections.

The clouds reflected in the thin layer of water coating the sand appears to be steam rising from the surface, giving the beach that “other world” look.

A delicate white feather provides contrast against the gray, wet sand. Shells and other debris left by nature also “littered” the beach. I saw no man-made trash on the Island, so people seem to be heeding the call to “take nothing but pictures and leave nothing but footprints.”

To be continued . . .

Sunset

Eye to Eye

Wordless Wednesday :: Schooldaze ~ Fifth Grade

Of all my school pictures, this is my favorite!

Wordless Wednesday - facebook

first impressions

GB Components Are Back! ...And You Can Have Their Cycling Cap

One of the things I was truly excited to see at Interbike was the GB display. GB Components (the initials stand for the founder Gerry Burgess) are known to vintage bicycle lovers, particularly the handlebars. Well, the company is now re-establishing itself under the ownership of the original founder's son (Jeremy Burgess), and the prototypes of their new, made in the UK components were modestly on display.



These include a gorgeous lugged stem (both quill and threadless models),



sculptural-looking wingnuts, handlebars, and other components. I have more photos that I will include in my big Interbike write-up, but these should give you an idea of their beauty. I spoke with the GB representative for a while, and may get to review some of the components as they go into production - will keep you posted.



In the meantime, I would like to give you their cycling cap. These were being given away as promotional items at Interbike, and they are rather nice.



The cap is white summer-weight cotton, with a single black ribbon stripe and an embroidered GB logo on the underside of the visor. The crown is rounded. The size is what I would call a Medium.



I have exactly one of these to give away. Leave a comment saying you want it, and I will select the recipient at random. Deadline is Sunday, 18th September, 11:59 pm US Pacific time (which is also the deadline for the Touring Bike entries!) Thanks as always for reading, and enjoy your weekend!

Seatpost Setback and Related Matters

A couple of days ago I replaced the seatpost on my Rivendell Sam Hillborne with one that has zero setback, and the change has been interesting. Before I go any further, I will warn you that this is a continuation of the long top tube post. So if that one gave you a headache, please stop reading now and save your sanity! Or, continue at your own risk.



For those new to the concept of setback, seatposts come with different amounts of it. One of the things the setback does is move the saddle clamp back, thus altering a bike's effective seat tube angle. Say your bicycle frame has a 74° seat tube, and you buy a seatpost with 2cm of setback. Unless you counteract the setback by moving the saddle forward along the rails, your bicycle's effective seat tube angle will be 2° slacker, making it more like 72°. And you can make it slacker still by pushing the saddle further backward. By contrast, a seatpost that goes straight up with no setback leaves your frame's natural seat tube angle unaltered. Seat tubes today tend to be steep, so it is rare that anybody wants to make them steeper still. But with a zero-setback seatpost, it is possible to make the effective angle a bit steeper by pushing the saddle forward on the rails.



The other factor influenced by a seatpost's setback is the reach from saddle to handlebars. The more setback a seatpost has, the further the saddle moves away from the handlebars. Here it is worth noting that bicycle fit experts typically warn against messing with seatpost setback and saddle positioning in order to alter reach. Instead it is advised that one's saddle position preference should be fixed in relation to the bottom bracket. At least that is my understanding.



Getting back to my bike, ithas a 52cm seat tube and a 57.5cm top tube - the latter being unusually long given the former. Additionally, it has a 71.5° seat tube angle, which is atypically slack. In previous posts I explained that when I ride this bicycle, I feel as if my body is not sufficiently forward. The long top tube will not allow me to fit the bike with a stem longer than 7cm, and the slack seat tube puts me further back still.



Originally the bike was built up with a seatpost with generous setback, making the effective seat tube angle even slacker than its natural 71.5°. Eventually I replaced it with a seatpost that had only minimal setback, but even that did not feel as if I were sufficiently forward. I was reluctant to go with a zero-setback seatpost, because everyone I spoke to acted horrified by the idea. "Zero setback? What are you trying to do, turn it into a racing bike?" However, after the "long top tube" post I came to the conclusion that a zero setback seatpost is the most obvious solution. Far from making the bike "racy," it would simply continue the frame's already slack seat tube angle without slackening it further. Or, I could move the saddle a tiny bit forward and make the effective seat tube angle a rather normal 73° (as it is on my other two bicycles with drop bars). So, that is exactly what I did.



The welcome side-effect of the new saddle position is that the long top tube problem seems to be resolved. My reach has been reduced considerably and I can get a longer stem if I want. But even with the current stem I already feel myself positioned significantly more forward on the bike than before. The subjective sensation of this is greater than I would have predicted: I feel more in control over the steering, and I feel that the bicycle is distinctly faster to accelerate and to start from a stop. Although visually the saddle comes across as being too far forward now, its relationship to the bottom bracket is actually quite normal for a roadbike (off-the-shelf road frames in my size typically have 74-75°seat tube angles). I need to take the bicycle on a longer ride before I can say more, but I think this setup may be just the thing.



It's been exactly two years since I received the Sam Hillborne frame as a holiday gift, and this bicycle has given me over 2,000 happy miles. I've changed a lot as a cyclist over this time and the Sam's frame is quirkier than I initially realised. But I am going to try and make it work for me - hopefully learning a thing or two in the process.

Stalking the Earth

I bought a birthday card once with a dinosaur on the cover. Inside, instead of "Happy Birthday," it read, "Congratulations on another year of stalking the Earth."

In birthday terms, I've probably been stalking for more years than I have years remaining to stalk. But it's amazing what can still surprise.

I saw a velvet ant this week. I don't think they're particularly rare, but this makes only the third time I've encountered one.



She was in a hurry and wouldn't pose at all. When I looked up the latin name, Dasymutilla occidentalis, I read that they make an odd sqeaking/squealing noise when captured. So now I'll have to try that next time I see one. They're also called cow-killers because of an extremely painful sting, though I haven't found anyone who has first-hand knowledge of it.

During the weekly cat walk, George investigated a humongous fungus. A champion champignon!



I don't remember ever seeing a mushroom this large. Some wild critter had left small scratches on the surface - it must have been curious too.

Hubby found a spider hiding between some rocks in the creek.



Turns out there are fishing spiders! Dolomedes tenebrosus or scriptus. I think this is the latter. The leg span can reach 3 inches (7.6 cm). I like spiders reasonably well, but I think I'd have to put this one out if he came in the house... I've seen enough spy movies to know that a spider that big and hairy would definitely want to crawl all over my face in the middle of the night.

What new thing did you discover this week?

Domestic Bike Share

In an unexpected turn of events, the Co-Habitant has hijacked the Urbana bike that's temporarily in my possession. Well, not hijacked exactly. It's more like we now share it. I keep the bike locked up outside, which makes it considerably more convenient to use than my other bikes, and one day it just happened. "Listen," he said, "I don't feel like dragging my Pashley out. Can I take that bike on a quick errand?" Somewhat surprised that he was willing to be seen riding a U-frame, I replied "Sure, just use the quick relea..." But didn't get to finish, as it only took seconds for him to adjust the seatpost.



The Co-Habitant is just over 6' tall, whereas I am 5'7", but making the adjustment back and forth is easy.



I rode a bike with a quick release seatpost in Austria in early , but found the lever to be stiff and difficult to use. My experience with the Brompton quick release was similar. In comparison, the lever on the Urbana bike is smooth and easy to operate.



And so, this is now our shared errand bike - though he rides it a bit differently from the way I ride it. Why do I suspect that this whole "errand" business was just an excuse to practice curb hopping?

It's pretty weird to see pictures of us both riding the same bicycle. I am of course more upright, because the saddle is lower.



Despite the U-frame, I don't think the Urbanalooks "feminine." The Co-Habitant says that he does not feel self-conscious riding it, and just sees it as a practical utility bike.



As a result of this experience, I've changed my mind about the usefulness of bicycles with adjustable unisex designs - such as the Workcycles FR8, the Urbana, and similar concepts (fill me in - what are the other popular bikes that allow for this?). I did not think we would have a need for a joint bike and I did not plan to share the Urbana, yet here we are both using it. For us, the aspects of the bike that make sharing it easy are the quick release seatpost, the low stepover U-frame, the ability to carry loads with minimum fuss, and the durability that allows it to be kept outdoors and within easy reach. A domestically shared errand-bike can be a worthwhile addition to any cycling household.

Mt. Rainier, Emmons Glacier

After postponing the climb for a couple of weeks, the weatherman finally gave us a green light to climb Rainier. We have seen bears up here before, but not this close! This encounter was the best part of the climb.



Our team high up on the Emmons Glacier just after sunrise. Steamboat Prow and Camp Schurman are way below us.



Doug, Ron, Spencer and Jim on the summit. The wind was blowing 50-60 mph. We did not stay there very long.



This is one of the reasons that we rope up! It was Spencer's turn to cross the dicey snow bridge. This was the second best part of the climb.

Climbing would not be nearly as fun or rewarding, if it wasn't difficult and a little scary now and then.

The Infinite amount of snow

Today was another great day of climbing. Despite the 36" of snow that fell upon the Laurel Highlands, Joel joined Laura and I for some fun at SCII. As soon as we could see the cliffs, we knew we were in for a treat. The cold weather the past week had built up some great lines that were begging to be climbed. We slogged through the knee -to -waist deep snow down to the cliff. We were treated to some great climbing in a pristine setting. The clouds cleared and provided us with some bluebird skies on several occasions. The ice was new and untrodden, presented many challenges and left us all (except Laura) pumped. It was one hell of a good time. Dr. Bob and Regina showed up before noon, dropped a line on the centrals and enjoyed the fun as well. We were hiking out as it was getting dark... Heres the photos that Laura and I snapped during the day... Enjoy

Tractor Work

My son has been here for the past week. It was really good to see him. He brought his big tractor and did a lot of work around our property. He took dirt from one place where it was to deep and put it in other places where it wasn't deep enough. Nothing like living on a moving sand dune.