Central Valley Bouldering Crew

2008-12-01T21:28:00.000-08:00

Well Thanksgiving has come and gone again and another quality trip over to the land of milk and honey has gone down. Last Friday, all stuffed still from T-Day dinners, Brodie, Gary, and I (sans Thomas because of his ankle disaster) headed out early to the East side to do some pebble wrestling. On the way into Bishop, Brodie had been wanting to check out the Sherman Plateau area. I scanned the guidebook and came across a problem called Everything and Nothing. It is a sweet overhanging pocket problem in the Pocketopia area. Brodie and I both dispatched this 3 star classic quickly despite all the snow and ice on the top out. That was about all we wanted with that place at this time of year. Definitely a summer hit up. So we headed back out onto 395 and decided with the light left we would scurry up to the milks and play around on Seven Spanish Angels. As the sun was setting, mind you it is only like 3:30, we both took down yet this classic problem.

Saturday was a day to show Gary, our Bishop virgin, a little of the Happys. There we got on Heavenly Path, a must do for first timers, as well as Mister Witty and Every Color You Are. With that we decided to go back across town and head to Dale's Camp. We had never been there before so really wanted to check it out. I, for one, am definitely going back for Gastonia and Hueco Wall. Up there we hopped on a super cool problem called Cuban Roll. It a high ball type problem thats got a kind of nerving roll out move towards the top. (hence the name).

Sunday was my apex of the trip with my tick of Pow Pow. Being my third trip trying it, I knew it was going to happen. I didn't really expect it but it all flowed perfectly and sent on my first go. After that the weekend was complete and it was time to pack up and head back to the place we call home, The Central Valley.

2008-10-30T22:38:00.000-07:00

Disaster!!!! At least for my climbing season that is....This past Saturday started off quite well. Daniel, Brodie, and I were joined by Brett for some heavy valley crankin. We started off over at the project wall and worked the two potential problems to the left of "T-Bag Surprise." Daniel made substantial progress on one of the two coming agonizingly close to sending but unable to unlock the top sequence. From there, we went over to check out the Woodyard. Having never been there before, we stopped at the Woodyard Arete, which is directly right of the infamous problem "Dogwood" that was featured in Dosage V. After a few short goes, Brodie sent the problem. Following that, I managed to get to the top but couldn't quite figure out the last move, so I dropped off and.....CRUNCH!!! There goes my ankle....Daniel and Brett sent shortly there after for the 3-peat send. Later that night a trip to the ER confirmed that I had fractured my tibia....so looks like I'm out for awhile unfortunately. Although if all goes to plan Daniel and I will be hitting up the ABS comp in SLO this weekend, so stay tuned for that!

2008-10-28T22:59:00.000-07:00

So over the weekend of October 18, Daniel and I made a quick trip over Tioga, down the 395 to the magical land of Bishop. Temps there really hadn't dropped yet so some headlamp bouldering was in order. Once we arrived, we busted out the pads and walked over to a group working Soul Slinger. Daniel proceeded to walk up the problem first go at about 1 am! That was definitely the epic send of the trip. My trip was plagued by agonizingly reaching the top of two classics, High Plains Drifter and Atari, only to not be able to work the last move...anyways, it was a good short trip!

2008-07-20T18:38:00.000-07:00

So...it's been forever and a day since I posted last and a few things have gone down. Sometime in April Brett and I went cruising for some new FA's and projects. We mobbed around the Awahnee/Horse Trail area and ended up finding a gem. The first line is one entitled "T-Bag Surprise" and is a super-slopey overhanging arete problem. Located directly to the left of that problem is a couple super-sick projects that have yet to be sent as far as I know. Anyway, this boulder is kind of hard to find but is in-between the east Awahnee area and the start of the Horse Tail area (if that even helps at all).

2008-03-24T15:36:00.000-07:00

Daniel headed up to the valley a couple weeks ago and needless to say it was awesome! Perfect weather, awesome new probs, and just a great day of bouldering. We started off the day on "Atlantis," which checks in at V6. I've been looking at this problem for a while now and finally got on it. It involves some fun, physical moves on positive slopey pinches. However, it is quite deceptive and definitely looks easier than it is. Daniel sent in typical fashion in about 3 goes. I followed up with another send, but it took me a while to stick the top slopey rail. After that I took Daniel over to "Pride." I gave it a quick few goes, but was shut down when the notorious crimp on that problem left its mark on my right pointer finger, and left me bleeding. Daniel gave the problem numerous good attempts, but couldn't seem to get enough pop on the dyno to snag the lip.

2008-02-28T12:40:00.000-08:00

Brodie and I met Ben at CJC and he showed us a few of the new gem problems he's been putting up in the Labyrinth. Some were still wet from the weekend storm, but luckily a few AMAZING lines were dry. The first problem was "The Minotaur," named for the two jugs at the top that resemble beast-like horns. "The Minotaur" is fairly high off the deck and involves some tenuous, physical moves, to literally, a do or die move to the lip. The landing is kind of sketch and if the last move is not executed, there is the potential to fly backwards and into a pit. At first, the problem felt quite awkward, but with a little trickery I was able to nab the second ascent. Brodie followed up shortly after with the third. "The Minotaur" probably checks in around V5. The next problem Ben showed us is an awesome roof problem. This problem just flows great and involves fun moves. Unfortunately, a second ascent was not made, but should see one soon!
"The Minotaur"

2008-02-27T19:01:00.000-08:00

Well, Brodie and I thought because of this string of nice weather the valley snow might of dried up, but we were wrong. There was TONS of snow still, which left most of the boulder problems seaping with water and with snowy topouts. We played around on "The King" but unfortunately had to drop off at a certain point because of the ice on one of the key holds. We then pretty much proceeded to look for ANY dry problems and we finally found one, "Pride." It's a fairly new problem and is simple, yet hard, if that makes any sense. "Pride" consists of about 3 moves into a huge dyno for the top and checks in around V9. Neither of us sent, but agonizingly kept making it to the last move and hucking, hoping for the top.

2008-02-10T18:41:00.000-08:00

On February 2, 2008, Rocknasium hosted its annual "Crankin the New Year" comp. All in all it was, and always has been, an awesome time with friendly competition with old friends.

2008-01-04T22:16:00.000-08:00

I'd like to apologize to our "faithful" CVBC readers. It's been a while, but we're back! Over Thanksgiving we made our annual trek over to the eastside and hit up the magical boulders of Bishop. Fortunately, the weather was kind to us and we were able to travel over Tioga pass, which definitely makes the drive significantly shorter. So...needless to say everything started off well, and that seemed to be the trend for the entire weekend. When we arrived, we mobbed down Chalk Bluff road to the Happy's to check out some problems none of us had ever looked at before. After finding parking among the 52 cars there (yes, I said 52 cars!) and making the arduous hike up the hill, we first stopped at The Clapper V6. Beta wise, this problem is pretty straight-forward. It involves a series of easy moves to a big left-hand pinch, followed by the crux move, a big right hand deadpoint to a very small edge on a slopey ledge, and finishing out left. The Clapper proved to be a great problem to start our trip off and Daniel, Brodie, and myself all sent. From there we moved up in the canyon to an amazing overhanging prow called High Brow V8. Daniel was immediately psyched. He made quick work and got to the last move on one of his early attempts, but missed the top and took a big fall onto Brodie into a bush. Of course the fall didn't stop him and he sent a few goes later. A bit later, Brodie found a small pocket out left that allowed him to bump to another hold out at the top, thus allowing a left exit. He sent this way in a few goes. There's no description of this variation in the new Bishop Bouldering guide (which is aweseome by the way), so who knows if this variation has been done before. Brodie felt this way was definitely easier and probably checks in around V6. I also tried this variation and stuck the last hold on the top, but wussed out on the finish and stepped off on an adjacent boulder. Following that, we continued up the canyon to a crimpy face problem called Rene V5. The crimpy mono crux proved to be too hard and no one sent. The sun quickly started to descend after that, but Brodie wanted a shot at his his arch nemesis, Morning Dove White V7. He gave it a few goes, but unfortunately...still no send. So we ended our first day around the campfire with some awesome beef stew and peppermint schapps. We awoke the next morning to find the same amazing weather we had the previous day, so we headed up to the Buttermilks. After warming up and doing some boulder hopping, we placed our pads under the overhanging face of Fly Boy V6. Last March, Brodie and I both attempted this problem with no success and ended with Brodie "flying" off the last move onto my head. So...of course we wanted redemption. Brodie quickly sent, latching onto the last hold that spit him off last time. Upon downclimbing the problem, he decided to a victory lap and sent again! After a good handful of attempts, I surprised myself and sent as well. Meanwhile, Daniel had begun working Fly Boy SDS V8. Brodie then stepped up to the plate and tried this SDS and sent second go! I think it's safe to say that Brodie owned these two problems. After those two awesome problems, we went over to Saigon V6, one of the classics. I had gotten agonizingly close to sticking the crux move last March and this problem was definitely high up on my must-send list. After having some trouble sticking the move before the crux, I finally got set up and threw and stuck the crux move, but unfortunately screwed up the top sequence. My skin was wearing thin and I new I didn't have to many goes left. On my next attempt I stuck the crux move and as soon as I did, the tip on my middle finger blew open. Knowing this was my last shot, I carefully worked up the finish and topped out (and then proceeded to Katie who applied some liquid stitches on my finger). Since we were in the area, Brodie and Daniel checked out Smooth Shrimp V6, and both of them flashed it. After that, we were pretty spent and jammed over to Whiskey Creek for an awesome dinner. On our last day, we hit up the Sad's. Problem #1 of the day: Molly V5. This problem is quite deceptive and definitely looks easier than it climbs. We all struggled quite a bit, but Brodie nabbed the first send, and Daniel followed up with the second. From there, we went over to Pow Pow V8. Unfortunately we were all feeling the effects of being three days on, and no one sent. All in all, it was another awesome, unforgettable Bishop trip, hopefully we'll be back there soon! As far as other news goes, the CVBC has been dormant for the holiday season, but as soon as the rain stops and the snow melts we'll be back in full force. Stay tuned....there might be a Hueco trip in the works!

The Clapper

"Party in Oakland!"

High Brow

Rene

Fly Boy

Saigon

Smooth Shrimp

Molly

Pow Pow

"Ehhh!"

2007-09-03T14:53:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Daniel and I hit up the valley mainly to check out Candyland. It wasn't too bad temp wise until about noon, so we made the best of what little time we had. We started on the 4 star classic, "Once Upon a Time." Although not a physically demanding problem, its off the deck a bit, the feet are smears for the most part, and the crux comes at the top...all ingredients that make a heart-pounding scary classic. We both sent it, and then moved on to "Jitterbug," a link up problem that definately requires some cooler weather to be able to hold on to the slopey little rails. After realizing this, we moved on to "The Diamond," a problem with awesome, but spaced apart holds. Daniel was successful on the left exit of the problem, but I had trouble holding the big throw move out left. Quickly, the sun started to bake that problem and the valley in general, so our day was short lived. Hopefully the weather will start to cool off soon, and the fall season will be in full effect.
"Once Upon a Time"

"Jitterbug"

"The Diamond"

2007-08-27T16:19:00.000-07:00

This last weekend's Bear Valley Boulder Bash was crazy. The plan was that I was going to leave early to peep out some new boulders near Hell's Kitchen and Thomas and Brett Ashton and crew were to meet me up there for the comp. This was the plan at least. The only object not in the plan was the four fires along Hwy4 that pushed my just under 2 hour trip into 5 hours or so. Thomas got mis informed and decided to head home just before the traffic started moving so he really missed out.
So Brett and I got there about an hour and a half late. With only an hour and a half left we turned on the boosters and kicked into gear. Brett smashed out about 35 problems while I ran around and managed 43. In the end, I took first, and $200, Hans Florine second and Brett third, $50. I do want to give props to Danny for his second in the amateur division. With the time issues i didnt have any pics form the comp, didnt even unfold the pad either, but after the awards Brett, Matt Keebler, Scott Chandler, and I went back to work the "Proj". Here are some night bouldering shots I took. Enjoy. Daniel.

2007-08-23T11:11:00.000-07:00

The second annual Bear Valley Bouldering Comp in Hell's Kitchen is taking place this coming saturday the 25th from 4pm-7pm. This year there will be open and beginner categories for both the men and women's divisions. For both open categories there will also be a cash prize of $200 for first, $100 for second, and $50 for third. At the end of the comp last year there was a raffle with loads of sick prizes, so I'm assuming they will be doing the same this year and let me say that I will definately be buying many tickets because the prizes last year ranged from probably 10 ropes, tons of jackets, sleeping bags, climbing gear, and the list goes on. MAS does a wonderful job of getting high quality sponsors for the event. Some of the CVBC is going, so feel free to meet us out there and have a great day of bouldering.

Here's a video of Daniel doing an FA at the Hell's Kitchen area. He named the problem G-Ma, in dedication to his Grandmother, who we later found out had passed away the day of the send. Also, if you pay close attention to the beginning of the video, you can see that G-Ma is next to the sick long-standing project at Hell's Kitchen. At possibly the V10 range or higher this problem is still waiting a send...maybe it will go down saturday...

2007-07-01T10:26:00.000-07:00

Last weekend the crew hit up Tuolumne Meadows...as well as...Rock Creek (another 65 miles away) for some bouldering. Tuolumne Meadows definately hosts some quality stuff, but having not bouldered there before we didn't know exactly what we were looking for. Rock Creek is an interesting place on the east side of the sierras. The boulders themselves are situated in an aspen grove next to the creek, which creates an awesome aesthetic atmosphere.

Rock Creek - Groove and Arete

A Boy Named Sue

2007-05-02T19:53:00.000-07:00

Here's a video from last year of Daniel sending Soulslinger.

2007-03-28T22:07:00.000-07:00

Heres a video of Daniel and Brodie rockin "Flatline" and "Lifeline" from last weekend. Sorry about the shitty quality, I cant do much with only the 100mb youtube allows.

2007-03-17T11:15:00.000-07:00

After nearly 2 months of absence from Yosemite, Daniel and I finally made it back. We planned on checking out some more new problems in the La Conte area. First, Daniel made quick work of "Atheletes Die Young," a classic in the area, sending it in 2 goes. After that, we made our way over to the newly developed problems. This area, located directly behind "The Shield," is host to two amazing lines. The prominent line, "Flatline," is a death-defying highball, but luckily has its crux fairly close to the ground, and has a huge shark fin like jug directly after the crux, but one still has a series of moves to go to top it out. Unfortunately, neither of us could unlock the crux, so we moved left to the other line, which isn't as high off the ground, but has a rock underneath the landing that makes some interesting falls. "Lifeline" involves a lot of sidepulls and tension, and I have to say is one of the coolest problems I've got on in the Valley. Adequate pads are a necessity on this problem. The rock in the landing zone creates somewhat of a slide, but also can create some bruised heals and tweaked ankles, as Daniel and I soon found out. Daniel came down bad on his heel three times in a row and I tweaked my ankle a bit on the "slide" rock. Even after all of this, Daniel still managed to nab a send of the problem. After hobbling back to the car, we headed to Camp 4, with no particular problems in mind. Then we decided to hit up "Battle of the Bulge," a super classic Camp 4 problem. I had tried the problem a few times on previous trips, but in all those attempts, I was never able to stick the move out to the two left-hand slopers. After a significant amount of tries, I was finally able to get the body positioning just right to stick the top of the two slopers, but was confused on what to do to get to the top after that. After a team effort of finding some different beta, it came together, and I was able to send. It was a great day with great weather, and I once again have to give mucho props the Betabase guys for the problems in the La Conte area, they are excellent!

"Flatline"

"Lifeline"

"Battle of the Bulge"

2007-03-11T20:46:00.000-07:00

Another great weekend in Bishop! With perfect temps, Brodie and I were ready to throw down some problems. After arriving, and picking up the sweet new guidebook, we made our way to the Happy's. First we hit up Ketron Classic, a super cool problem that consists of a long deadpoint to a decent sloper, followed by a quick lunge to the finishing jug. After we both sent, Brodie was ready to do battle with his nemesis, Morning Dove White. The last few trips he had made significant progress and was ready to send. He reached a new highpoint on his first go, getting the the last pocket hold and throwing for the rail. On around his 12th go or so, he stuck the rail and was able to match, but was too pumped for the last final big throw. Next we went over to Mister Witty, a problem that consists of a few quarter size pockets on a relatively blank face. Brodie did the problem first go, making the difficult problem look simple. With the sun going down quickly, we went over to Serengeti, a problem I had tried at the very end of our last trip. I sent it in about 4 goes, right before the sun went down. The next morning we went back up to Morning Dove White, but unfortunately with no success. From there we hit up the Buttermilks and got on Fly Boy, a awesome, powerful problem that concludes with an all or nothing dyno to the top. After some bad/awkward landings and a lack of pads, neither of us sent and we moved on to a relatively new area called the Apiary. Located near the Pollen Grains, the area is host to many problems that have seen little traffic. We mainly scouted the area, tried a problem, and then went to Soul Slinger. We met some people from Pennsylvania and realizing none of us were going to send, we all walked uphill to Saigon. Saigon is just one of those problems every boulderer sees a picture of, and just from that picture, wants to climb it. I hopped on it and came agonizingly close, sticking, but not holding, the good jug that leads to the top. The next day was my birthday, and I have to say there's no better feeling than waking up on your birthday and being in Bishop. With raw fingertips, we decided to just circuit some easy problems in the Happy's. We started off doing some easy, yet super committing and classic highballs such as The Heavenly Path. From there, our day started to drift away from doing just easy problems. We hopped on Groundwater, a short 3 or 4 move powerful problem that includes yarding off a sharp crimp followed by a big throw to a good sloper. We both sent it in a few goes, and also ran into our friends from Pennsylvania again. They were looking for the classic Action Figure, so we agreed to go show them where it's located. Action Figure is a sick line that consists of starting off two good underclings, making a left hand move out to a oddly shaped hold, hitting a bad right hand intermediate, quickly deadpointing right hand again to a small two finger pocket and finishing by making a big move to a juggy sloper. After figuring out how to grab the oddly shaped hold, I dug deep and sent, thus concluding another awesome trip in Bishop!

Morning Dove White

Mister Witty

Fly Boy

The Apiary Area

Saigon

2007-02-26T18:21:00.000-08:00

Big update! I have just been informed on some history on bouldering in the Arboretum in Columbia. Dimitri (who gave me the info) commented on one of my posts and also wrote some stuff about the Arboretum's history in the forum at sonorapassclimbing.com. Here's his post in the forum:
"I spent a tremendous amount of time bouldering in the Arboretum from 1978 - 91. Many of the problems posted here as FA's have been done, all but one, that roof.

That traverse into the overhanging crack was done by me in 1987 and repeated by a number of people including Yabo and a handful of friends of mine from Spain. Yabo did that problem on his third go, it took me about three weeks off and on trying to get people to go there from Yosemite in order to work on it with a spot, no pads those days. The Coach was done before 1978 because it was a standard problem that got done a lot, the problem to the left got the FA by me in 1985. Also the Coach, I like that name, can be done by starting with the left hand on that pinch and is a bit harder. As you can tell I don't really care what these problems are called.

A good variation on the Triple Cracks is a start from the left edge of the boulder and traverse right climb the Triple Cracks but avoid the regular top out, go up and right to the very top, there is an obvious cone point. Then down climb the right side of that boulder until you're on the ground again. Also many of the top rope climbs were soloed in the late eighties and some of them are classic.

That roof looks really hard and no doubt it has never been done, i am sure you will find more like it. I remember some problems off the trail that goes to Columbia from the Arboretum, the landings kept us away back then, no pads! What a bunch of dumbasses we were for not inventing the crash pad, duhhh!

If I had a slide scanner I would post some photos, I have a around a hundred or more of the Arboretum bouldering including some of Kauk and other well known climbers of my generation."

He also told me that this problem below is called "Repent" put up by Dave Yerian in 1979 or 1980. Thanks Dimitri for all the great info!!!

2007-02-18T00:09:00.000-08:00

"Grotto Monkey" is a 4 bolt route that is approximately 35 feet high. It is the horrible, rocky landing that is probably the reason why this potential problem was bolted in the first place. Brodie has been eyeing this route's potential to be bouldered for some time now and with some inspiration from Jason Kehl's bouldered ascents of the routes "The Fly" and "Straight Out of Squampton," attempts at bouldering "Grotto Monkey" should take place soon, weather permitting. This video is a short preview to what may go down soon.

2006-12-07T00:53:00.000-08:00

Last Friday Daniel and I went and checked out a new development of problems near the LeConte Memorial. Daniel tried The Shield, a problem that looks totally blank after the first few moves. We didn't have a whole lot of time to try the other amazing looking problems, but we will hopefully be back this Saturday. Props to the Betabase guys for putting up these sick lines!
The Shield

2006-11-29T22:26:00.000-08:00

Last weekend, the crew headed out to Bishop for a weekend of pebble crushing and some cold weather. With the turkey still settling from Thanksgiving the day before, Thomas, Brodie, Erik Calef, Katie, and I rolled up to the Happys for some volcanic fun. Some of the problems that went down were the Hulk and Rio's Arete. It was good intro day to Bishop bouldering. The temps dropped into the teens at night and we slept nicely in our not so dirtbag heated hotel. Day two came with a trip to the Buttermilks. We warmed up on the King Tut boulder and saw Brodie flash a V6. I also slapped my way up a V6 as well on the boulder. From there we headed to Pain Grain which I ticked with some burly beta. The session in the Milks expanded when Adam F and Kyle the J joined us for some fun times. The highlight came towards the end of the day up across the way on Checkerboard V8. Brodie and I worked it until we were thrashed and i finally sent with the last push of energy i had. Scarry shit when you get to the last move. Try it some time. Day 3 we were back to the Happys. We startes out with a nice V3 warmup and then moved on to Gleaner V6 which saw ascents by Brodie and me. We played on the Rave, the sit is super hard, and did Mr. Happy. Others that went down were Serengetti V5 and THe Big Chicken V4. With blood on our tips and warried muscles we bade Bishop a farewell and headed out for our nice 8 hour drive home.

2006-10-02T10:09:00.000-07:00

Before the rain rolled in yesterday, Daniel and I went up to Hell's Kitchen in Bear Valley. I had been telling him about this project right off the highway. Brodie and I went back a few weeks after the MAS comp to work it. Basically the only beta we got from that trip is that it is much harder than it looks. We couldn't get past the second move. So, Daniel hopped on the proj. He was able to establish on this awkward sidepull, but didn't get any farther than that. He suspects its in the V10 or above range and says that its an awesome line and worth investing some more time in. After some work on the project, Daniel put up a FA on an arete directly to the left of it. The start involves a burly SDS on a bad pinch and a decent sidepull. First, make a big move out left to the slopey arete, work the feet, slap up the arete, get a good toe hook, match, and throw to the finishing edge. We got video footage of it, so maybe we'll get it up on here soon. Daniel dedicated the problem to his Grandma, who we later found out passed away that morning.
The Project

Daniel's FA

2006-09-30T11:55:00.000-07:00

The Reel Rock Tour stopped in the Valley yesterday. My Dad, Daniel, and I decided to hit that up as well as have a little session before. We went to the Crossroads boulders again, and Daniel made quick work on Crossroads Moe, sending in a few goes. Myself, on the other hand, was not so fortunate. The left exit of the problem (right exit described in previous post) involves a wicked small left hand crimp right before the last tricky momentum move to the top. Anyways, I finally figured out how to get my momentum moving in the right direction to move off the crimp, but as I was hucking for the top, my left hand popped off. This resulted in the deepest flapper I've ever had. After that we made it over to the auditorium where the show was. Klem Loskot opened by showing three short videos he made of skiing, traveling, and one climbing one that was down entirely with thousands of photos. Next Tommy Caldwell and Beth Rodden introduced the night main features Dosage 4 and First Ascent. Dosage 4 was first highlighting Sharma's route Dreamcatcher in Squamish, Lisa Rands send of the sketchy gritstone route Gaia, Shama and Graham in Hueco crushing problems, and Tommy Caldwell free climbing two El Cap routes, The Nose and Freerider, in a day. I have to point out that one of the opening clips showing Sharma on Dreamcatcher is awesome and I can't even describe it, so go check it out! The one big disappointment was the fact that the dose on Graham's Coup de Grace and boudering in Switzerland was ommitted, which was a total bummer. I have to say that the second film, First Ascent, was much better than I thought it would be. The film's main focus was following a Swiss climber, Dedier, as he worked and insane trad route in Squamish called Kobra Crack. In the end, he blows out his knee and the Canadian, Sonnie Trotter nabs the FA. All in all, both films are definately worth checking out.

2006-09-23T18:51:00.000-07:00

The 06 bouldering season in the Valley is on! Cool temps + Great weather = Sent problems. Today Cole and I hit up Yosemite. I've wanted to check out the Crossroads boulder for some time now and today finally decided to. For those who have not been to the Crossroads boulder, drop everything and check it out. It's awesome. All the problems on it are quality stuff. We did the zeros on it and worked The Naked and Hairy Traverse V4 and Crossroads Moe V6. The traverse is quite technical and balancy and we couldn't put the together the middle sequence. Crossroads Moe proved to be one of the coolest problems I've seen. It starts on a big right slanting rail and a right hand jug. From there, get a high heel hook and paste the right foot and make a huge right hand move to a decent sloper. I was able to match the sloper and make a move out right to a really bad sloper, but couldn't do the last big bump move to the top. From there we headed to the Curry Village boulders. The first problem we did was one Cole and I had tried last year. We did the V2 stand start that is basically just a dyno, last year, but the V4 SDS was way above our ability. So naturally we wanted to redeem ourselves. I did the SDS in a couple of tries and Cole got super close a bunch of times, but just couldn't put it all together. He'll definately finish it next trip. After that I did a problem nearby called New Dehli Freight Train V4. It's basically involves a slightly overhanging lieback start to a sloper, then moves out to a right facing side-pull to a tricky mantle. For the send, I busted out a Shamu move and beached whaled that shiz. Definately an awesome day with awesome weather. Can't wait for the rest of the season.
Crossroads Moe

Cole busting to the sloper on Crossroads Moe

The Naked and Hairy Traverse

The Steep Face Dyno

New Dehli Freight Train

2006-09-16T18:11:00.000-07:00

Today, Cole, Daniel, and I set out with hopes of catching a load of crawfish. We set a few traps and then mobbed it up to Columbia. I repeated Triple Cracks and Daniel put up a awesome new FA. It's located to the left of Triple Cracks on the pathway between two rocks. It starts on the problem to the right of the arete, but instead of going directly up, make a big move out right and finish up the crack. He hasn't named it yet and thinks its somewhere in the V8/9 range. After we were done bouldering, we went back to the traps, only to find them totally empty. Stupid crawdads.
UPDATE: Daniel named his new problem CRAWFISH AVENGER
Here's the sequence to Daniel's new FA Crawfish Avenger

Cole on an unknown problem.

2006-09-04T15:16:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Brodie hosted the 1st MotoWn ShoWdowN to kick off the completion of his new bouldering wall. A good showing of people came, which made for an awesome session. There was plenty of problems for everyone to try. The difficulties varied anywhere from wicked hard to simple jug pulling. Out of all the problems set only one didn't get sent. After everybody's fingers were tired, many games of a variation on ping pong were played. All in all, the event was awesome and will definately have to be an annual thing. Many thanks to Brodie for putting on the event and those who showed up.

2006-08-29T15:44:00.000-07:00

A couple of days ago, the crew headed to Castle Rock, confident that it wouldn't rain like the previous 3 trips to the area. It was a good session and nice to get to actually boulder there. The problems we worked included Yabo's Roof, The Swim, Kauk Roof, and Hueco Wall. Anyway, the moTown shoWdowN is less than a week away. Everyone is invited, so feel free to stop on by for an awesome session!
Brodie sending Yabo's Roof

Me using the wrong beta on The Swim

Cole working Kauk Roof

2006-08-25T19:16:00.000-07:00

The wall is done! Brodie has completed the awesome bouldering wall pictured in one of the posts below. To celebrate this momentous event, Brodie will be hosting a party to "break in" the finished project. This will take place on September 3 at about noon. Brodie just placed a huge order of holds with So ill and plans on secretly setting as many problems as possible, so there will be plently of new problems for everyone. There is some talk of possibly having a small competition, but if not, an awesome session is for sure to take place. For more details, contact Brodie, Daniel, or myself.

2006-08-20T11:04:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Brodie and I checked the 1st annual Bear Valley Bouldering Competition held at Hell's Kitchen. Hell's Kitchen is located just off the side of highway 4 right before entering Bear Valley. The area was somewhat developed, but also had many projects. The comp was fun, laid back, and set up well. By the end of the day 11 new FA's had been put up, two of them by Brodie. I took 3rd place and Brodie threw down and grabbed the top spot. All in all it was a good comp and I would definately have to say that those who didn't come missed out and should consider checking it out next year.
Brodie on a FA

Brodie on The Worm

2006-08-16T11:36:00.000-07:00

The other day I was chillin' and thinkin about some of my old projects. One that kept coming up was the Triple Cracks problem in Columbia. It's definately a five star problem with awesome moves. The last time I tried it had been almost a year ago, so I decided to head out solo and send it. My plan was successful and after a handful of tries, I finally stuck the last big move out left and sent it.
Here's a picture of me on Triple Cracks from last year.

2006-07-27T20:58:00.000-07:00

Well, It's been a while since I've posted which has been mainly to my recent injury plague. A couple of weeks ago, I tried going to Castle Rock again only to be shot down by a horrible forearm cramp while warming up. Then later that week I set a bunch of new problems at our local gym, Stonehenge, and 15 minutes before closing time, I was trying one of them, fell, and sprained my ankle pretty bad. So the last week has been miserable. But things are looking better. Next week I'm visiting my friend, Mike, who just moved to Oregon at the beginning of this summer. Hopefully, we'll be able to rope up and check out Smith Rock. Then on August 18-20, a bunch of sponsors are hosting th e first annual Bear Valley Boulder Bash. This 3 day event will include a outdoor bouldering competition at an area in Bear Valley called Hell's Kitchen. I was planning on going and here's the flyer if anyone is interested.

2006-06-28T20:46:00.000-07:00

Rain, rain, rain.....seems to be the trend. So bouldering in the bay area was cancelled and some plastic pullin' was in order. The OG of the CVBC, Brodie,
is in the process of finishing a super sick bouldering wall, so we worked on that for while, and finished with a short session.

2006-06-28T09:07:00.000-07:00

So Bishop proved to be somewhat of a bust. Around day 3 of my trip the temperature was reaching 110. So, on the following day, I bailed. When I got back Daniel and I decided to go spend three days in Tahoe and check out some of its classic problems. So yesterday we got up there, and started the day on some problems at Split Rock. Next we decided to check out White Lines, which is claimed to be Midnight Lightning of tahoe. After an hour of searching, running up and down talus fields, we could not find it. So if anyone reads this and can give me decent directions (and/or GPS coordinates) it would be greatly appreciated. After no luck finding that boulder, we wanted to go check out a classic problem called Midnight Train in the Saddle Boulders. The driving approach to this set of boulders proved to be quite awesome. It involved driving through old, wet train tunnels near Donnor Summit. Midnight Train turned out to be a super cool aesthetic line. After a handful of tries Daniel sent it, and I know have another problem to add to my personal project list. Unfortunately quickly after Daniel's send, in the spirit of our summer bouldering experiences thus far, a huge thunderstorm rolled and dumped buckets. So last night we made the decision to go home and climb in Berkeley or Castle Rock today.
Daniel sending Midnight Train V7

2006-06-23T10:41:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I made my way over to Bishop via Tioga Pass (definately the way to go). Then played around on some easy problems, which probably wasn't the best idea due to shredded tips from the previous day's thrashing at Indian Rock. It's pretty hot, but at least there's a nice breeze that rolls through the Buttermilks every once in a while. I got up this morning around 7, and the it was already starting to heat up. So right now I'm sippin some coffee in Kava, and thinking about heading over to the Happy's, hoping that the rock will be easier on the tips. I'm probably going to take the next couple days off to grow some skin back. Hopefully Daniel will screw work and get over here by then so some serious sendin will go down.

2006-06-21T21:42:00.000-07:00

Today me, Daniel, and Adam F. went back to the Indian Rock Area. We checked out the Stoneface boulder, which is kind of hidden up the road from Mortar Rock. We worked Stoneface V8, and a variation of it, Stoneface Right V6. I sent Stoneface Right, and Daniel got super close to sending Stoneface. Now off to Bishop.
Me sending Stoneface Right

2006-06-12T19:11:00.000-07:00

Castle Rock 0 for 2

Daniel and I headed over to Castle Rock today only to be greeted by a thick cloud of rain....again. So we headed over to Mortar Rock and made the most of the rest of the day. I sent The Ramp, and we worked Mission Impossible.

2006-06-11T16:48:00.000-07:00

The CVBC is a group of boulderers based out of Modesto, CA. We have a small gym in town and our closest/home bouldering area is Yosemite. We try to hit up the valley as much as possible, but also try to find new areas and put up new problems as well. Many of us also participate in ABS. This blog is pretty much just for our trip reports and to showcase new problems/areas that have been found. To start off the blog, here's some new problems that my friend Daniel put up in an area near Columbia Junior College last fall.

Me on Trogdor V6?

Daniel on a crazy roof project

Daniel on Typing With Boxing Gloves V7?