Climb. Friends. Beer. Awesome.

When I started this blog last July I wrote a lot. In part, my descriptive ramblings were a kind of creative outlet, and a medium for sharing stories and painting word pictures. I think even more so, they were the result of a LOT of free time. Rest days can feel pretty darn slow to a solo dirtbaggin’ climber, and any passably interesting and time consuming activity is an activity worth doing for a long, long time…

I enjoyed filling those rest days with writing. These days however, I am lucky to steal a few minutes a week to edit neglected photographs. I think this is a good thing. Right now, my life is filled with doing, rather than documenting.

Here are a few that have accumulated over the past month. Enjoy!

Me!
PHOTO: Trevor ‘Swiss’ Williamson

PHOTO: Trevor ‘Swiss’ Williamson

‘The Quickening’ .12c
PHOTO: Trevor ‘Swiss’ Williamson

PHOTO: Trevor ‘Swiss’ Williamson

Brent being awesome.
PHOTO: Trevor ‘Swiss’ Williamson

Brent being awesomer.

Brent being awesome-est.

Just Brent.

Jake: “I’m not feeling it bro.”

Swiss: “Well I’m not letting you down until you try it again.”

Radar: “The sun is coming!”

“There is no escape…”

Jake giving a solid on-sight effort on ‘Up for Grabs’ .11d

Swiss schooling ‘Vomit Launch’ .11b

The weekend before last I braved the long road up to Bellingham, to reunite with the old crew and drink some awesome beer at April Brews Day. It was an absolute blast. I wouldn’t have done it without a battery of funny and persuasive text messages from a conspiring group of old friends. Thanks guys!

Great friends, abundant laughs, delicious beer, and one hell of a dance party. It was worth every mile.

The only evidence that I drove 8 hours to drink beer with my B-ham homies.
PHOTO: Nika Ghassemikia

Travelin’.
PHOTO: Nika Ghassemikia

Thank you all for bringing back a ton of awesome Bellingham memories.  ‘Til we meet again!

Parting Shot:

Some dude crushing ‘Aggro Monkey’ .13b

Sixty and Killin’ It!

My dad, Donald Lee Dimmitt, was born on March 28th, 1953. In anticipating a lack of enthusiasm for the math required to figure out the significance of that sentence, I have provided the following clarification: he turned sixty on Thursday. You would never guess from the spring in his step, or from his nothing-but-black-diamond-or-harder ski days, that this guy is now eligible for the majority of recreational senior discounts. I hope I’m in his kind of shape when it’s my turn to take advantage of them! The whole family was in town this past weekend, and it was a blast to share my new home with them, and refreshing to take a weekend away from climbing and explore new areas around Bend. I finally made it up to Bachelor! Skiing, sushi, music, views. Enjoy.

60. Stoked.

Gnam-ster trying to drop his ski off a chair lift.

Howard! Awesome.

Me and Pops. Love you dad!

“Haaaaaaaaaaaaaa-”     (-ppy birthday to you…)

“ok you guys start. lilke this. laaaa. la. lalala.”
“la. laaaaaa.”
“hmm…”
“GAA just play a chord!”

Superhero of the day.

KAREN!

Parting Shot: Monkey Face!

Toby Butterfield sussing moves on Spank the Monkey (.12a)

Settlin’

This past month has been awesome. I moved in to a new apartment a few weeks ago, and that, pared with a growing sense of community and a good rhythm at work, has me starting to feel at home here in Bend. I basically do four things: work, climb at Smith, climb at the rock gym, and hang with friends at the cluster of incredible breweries littering this place. Somehow, those four things eat up just about all of my time. I’m sure it will wear me out eventually but for now, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

I’m keeping it brief with this one. Just wanted to share some shots from the past few weekends at Smith. The weather has been prime, and the company delightful. Enjoy!

Sean cruxing on ‘Latest Rage’ (.12b)

soon…

Me in 20-somethin’ years… hopefully.

Erin! Justin…

Power socks.

Caitlin!

Sam!

Mike!

Sam and Mike! Killin’ it.

In addition to feeling more settled at work and in the Bend community, I am definitely feeling much more confident with the technical climbing style of Smith than I was a month ago. These past few weekends I ticked many of the classic routes I wanted to do in the .12- range, and on Sunday managed to onsight a rad and technical .12a called Latin Lover. It has been a while since I onsighted anything at this difficulty, and it was definitely a confidence booster.  Now I am getting pretty excited to get after the harder stuff. There are plenty more moderate classics to do, but the hard ones just look so cool!

On Sunday I also was fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time, and see Paige Claassen finish her latest project, To Bolt or Not To Be (.14a). This climb, first done by Frenchman JB Tribout in 1986, was the first 5.14 on American soil, and became the first 5.14 climbed by an American when Scott Franklin repeated it the following year. This thing is long, sustained, gorgeous, absurdly technical, and packs about as much history as a single pitch can handle. It was rad and very inspiring to see it climbed. Well done Paige!

Byron points out ‘Latin Lover’ for those who missed the battery of chalked holds covering the entire face. Wasn’t expecting to nail a sequence through that!

Paige breaks into the ‘easy’ terrain on her send of ‘To Bold or Not To Be’ (.14a)

Good vibes from this crew. Byron talks up ‘Latin Lover’ to some passersby. Paige and Jon look on as Ian gears up for a go on To Bolt.

Parting Shots: Some guy gives a crack at a high-line spanning the mouth of Cocaine Gully.

Rags to Riches

My life has taken a drastic turn here in 2013. For those of you who don’t know, I cut my road-trip short back in January to move to Bend, Oregon, and accept a job as Holds Technical Manager at Entre-Prises Climbing Walls. Long story short, I landed my dream job in one of the coolest towns in America, and will be managing a new climbing hold production line once we get it up in running. In the span of two weeks I went from living in my car eating canned black beans, to having a salary and the most responsibility I have ever had in my life. Weird!

As I transitioned back into the working world I decided it might be an appropriate time to put the blog to rest. Writing about travels makes sense, but writing about everyday life seemed to me a haughty declaration of self-importance. In the past few weeks however I have realized that many of my friends and family members back home are more interested in what I am doing now than the boulder problems or routes I obsessed with on the road – big surprise. So I have decided to revive the blog! For now, anyway.

After just three weeks in Bend, I was sent out to the little town of Alfred in upstate NY to install a climbing wall at Alfred State College. Entre-Prises was a bit short on man-power and my boss wanted me to see and learn the install process. It was a neat experience, but the cold weather, lack of entertainment and food options, and long working hours had me eager to get back to Bend, to settle in and continue building a community and home here. It feels so good to be back!

Awesome place to unload and store our equipment and hundreds of panels. Lame.

JJ killing it with the Gradall.

That doesn’t look quite right…

An unfortunate miscommunication between our designers and the shop was responsible for the cave extending 8-9 inches past the upper headwall it ties into. A few cuts with the grinder, some fiberglass, and a bucket of topcoat later and you would never guess anything had gone wrong!

‘Can we just cut off the extra?’  Yep. Perfect.

mmm… chemicals.

Job well done gentlemen.

Eat, sleep, work, and drink really weird beer. New York!

Parting Shot:

I have managed to get out to Smith a hand full of times thus far, and have fallen in love with it! The old-school and technical style suits me well, although I am sure it will start feeling pretty gnarly once I get into the 5.13 range.  I haven’t accomplished much yet, but managed to make quick work of my first Smith 5.12, Heinous Cling. I am excited to settle into a routine and start feeling stronger on a rope again. There are so many incredible lines to try! Getting out there on the weekends hardly feels like enough! Love it.

‘Heinous Cling’ – 5.12a (First Anchors)
PHOTO: Caitlin Richmond

 

The Recap

My final two weeks in Bishop were an absolute blast. Since Christmas I have battled bitterly cold weather, snow, and minor injuries, but have also enjoyed wonderful company, breathtaking scenery, and many of my best climbing days in Bishop. Ever. I finally found my rhythm and was able to end the trip on a very positive note, managing to climb several fun and proud Bishop classics. Now, back home, I have a chance to sit in a warm house, drink piping-hot tea, and share some photos to recap the last stage of the trip. Enjoy!

Puffing like a blowfish on ‘Moonraker’.
PHOTO: Micah Humphrey

“Cut ‘em loose and hold that swing!”
Micah sets up for the crux of ‘Moonraker’.

Byron tackles ‘Saigon’.

His strength is in his hair.

Micah keeps it together on an impressive flash of ‘Saigon’!

Getting ready to go to work in the Ice Caves.

Micah on the last hard move of ‘Aquatic Hitchhiker’.

How far is that in oil changes?

Not a bad sendoff. Bye Bishop! See you again next year!

2012 was a big year for me. From graduation and beginning an exciting career (starting in less than a week! I will share more soon, for those who are in the dark),  to branching out and making huge growth as a sport climber, and traveling and exploring new climbing areas and communities, this year has brought major change to my life. If you had asked me a year ago, I never could have guessed where my winding path would take me.

Like many people, I spent some time reflecting as 2012 came to an end, and thought it would be fun to share a few items that represent my last year as a climber:

The Sport Bag:

This was my first season of focused sport climbing, and over the past year this loyal buddy of mine accompanied me to the top of more 5.12′s than I ever thought I would do in my whole life! I can’t wait to continue that focus in 2013.

Ronald ‘The Motorcabin’ Burgandy:

Ron saw more miles this past year than any year prior. He has been my loyal traveling companion, and I am very grateful for him. And he’s still killing it in the snow!

The Send Hat:

This little guy, created by my grandmother for my mom years and years ago, has outshone me in more photographs than I care to count. Still, I suppose I owe him one for popping out on dark outfit days. You can’t necessarily get away with wearing the same brightly colored shirt ten days in a row, but the send hat…. that’s more acceptable.

Campsite #9:

This post marked my very own piece of Gravel Pit property for the past six weeks, and represents the last stage of my 2012 adventures. In this campsite I endured frigid nights, and enjoyed blissful mornings, hot meals, and relaxing tea times. Not a bad place to call home for $2 a night!

That’s all for now. I wish you all a happy new year!

Parting Shot:

Me bringing up the rear of a team flash-train on ‘Done With the South’.
PHOTO: Micah Humphrey

Merry Christmas! – Bishop, CA

December 25, 2012:

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope that each and every one of you enjoyed a day of love, life, and laughter with your family and friends. Peace and blessings!

This Christmas was my first away from home. It felt odd and a bit sad to be apart from the family I love so much on such an incredible holiday, but fun and refreshing to celebrate a little bit differently for a change…

Bouldering on Christmas? Yep. It’s as good as it sounds!

Santa’s little helper lends a spot on ‘Iron Fly’

Will expresses his Christmas joy on ‘Go Granny Go’.

Will: “Can you take a picture for me to send to my mom?”

‘Go Granny Go Right Exit’. So fun!

Surprise Christmas send of ‘Brian’s Project’!
“Umm, guys? How do I get down?”

December 24, 2012:

Christmas Eve was a blast. I felt surprisingly bad climbing after back-to-back rest days, and decided to dodge frustration by scouring the Happies for easy and moderate classics that have escaped by attention on previous trips. Climbing for climbing’s sake. Loved it!

Will takes advantage of a photo op a few days after his ascent of ‘Acid Wash’

It still feels very, very hard…

Micah takes on the incredible and intimidating ‘Black Magic’

December 26, 2012:

It snowed last night. Still merry with Christmas cheer, I awoke to find The Pit transformed into a winter wonderland. So far it has been a perfect rest day: coffee and left over Christmas pie for breakfast, clear skies with the sun shining brightly, and that wonderful crunch of snow beneath my feet. Will bailed, deciding to return home early rather than risk another storm, but I’m sticking around. The snow is already melting rapidly, and I’m thinkin’ we will be out climbing again in a day or two. Happy holidays!

“Where’s Ronald?”

“There he is!”

Cows and Clouds!

Parting Shot:

An ugly sunset at the milks.
PHOTO: Nathan Getzin

“Lets do some highballs.” – Bishop, CA

Bishop is a powerhouse of American bouldering. It boast thousands of incredible test-pieces for climbers to measure themselves against, on two very distinct rock types created by completely unrelated geological events. While other bouldering areas might match their quality or quantity, the Granite and Volcanic boulders of Bishop set themselves apart with their size. Highballs are the name of the game here. Bishop is known for its abundance of VERY tall boulders, who’s stunning lines have the pertinacity to make your palms sweat and your ankles tremble nervously at a mere glance.

So after a week of acclimation and sprightly adventures, the time came for the Bellingham crew to step up the game and get a taste of what Bishop is all about!

From video gamer, to climber, to video game climber! Yours truly on ‘Atari’ – V6
PHOTO: Rachel Bellamy

Micah on a repeat pleasure cruise of ‘High Plains Drifter’ – V7

David grapples with ‘Pope’s Prow’ – V6

Will and Casey team send! ‘Suspended In Silence’ – V5

Craig! ‘Jedi Mind Tricks’ – V4

David! ‘Jedi Mind Tricks’

Peter! ‘Jedi Mind Tricks’

They came, they conquered, and they fled at the first sign of Winter. I can hardly blame them. Just two weeks ago I was enjoying bright and sunny mornings, with a daily dose of Vitamin D after tea time. Now I’m lucky if my seven-gallon water jug hasn’t frozen completely solid overnight.

The climbing is still amazing if a bit cold, and the small crew that remains is an excellent bunch to spend the holidays with. Will and Micah are sticking around, our friends Ashlyn, Kris, and Nick have arrived to join the fun, and bouldering in Santa hats is on the agenda. Merry Christmas!

Will Moore makes his momma proud on the likely FNAISAT (First Naked Ascent In Sub-Arctic Temperatures) of ‘Jedi Mind Tricks’   PHOTO: Rachel Bellamy

Micah This-message-will-self-destruct-in-ten-seconds Humphrey

Iced coffee?

A light dusting of snow and the place is emptied!

Parting Shot:

Bish-stache Bash! – Bishop, CA

You see a lot of interesting things when you’re on the road. Every destination’s climate, culture, and demographic bombard the optic nerve with a flurry of visual information. I have been fortunate enough in my upbringing to travel much, and at the young-adult age of 23, thought that I had processed enough of these assemblages of visual stimuli to claim immunity to the surprise and wonder brought on by optical newness. Today, I realize my ignorance. The 20-member-strong Washington crew has arrived in Bishop, and exposed to my unsuspecting retina the most eclectic collection of mustaches in Buttermilk history. You can take my word for it, or you can take a stroll down the page and see for yourself!

Man-stache

Hip-stache

Finger-stache

Wisp-stache

Flash-stache

Happy-stache

Brush-stache
(This brush may or may not be the property of Western Washington University…)

Rock-stache

Braid-stache

Locks-stache

Dog-stache

Spoon-stache

Sage-stache

Cheese-stache

Utensil-stache

Scarf-stache

Stab-stache

Towel-stache

Wood-stache

Glove-stache

Ron-stache

Toon-stache

Bishop is as good as ever. The crew has brought fresh energy, excitement, and laughter that warms my heart and soul. It’s a rowdy bunch, but I love them all for it.

The weather and climbing have been excellent, and I have very much enjoyed the opportunity to settle in and find some of the hidden gems of the area. To keep things fresh I have tried to balance my time working projects, exploring fun new problems, and repeating old favorites. A few new-to-me climbs that have stood out so far include: Hero Roof V0, Green Wall Essential V2, Green Wall Center V6, Flyboy Arete V5, Anti-hero V5, The Greatest Imperfection… V6, Therapy V8, Acid Wash Right V9, The Checkerboard V8, and Morning Dove White V7. I still have a long list that seems to be growing with every passing day. My main objective at this point is Acid Wash V10. So far I have invested three partial days of effort and am starting to see light at the end of the tunnel. I just hope I can pull it off before that flexing jug breaks!

Here are a few parting shots to balance out the stache-bash:

Bishop from the Druid Stones

Will finds his inner boulderer.

Greg celebrates victory after grappling with a pesky V4 at the Druids.

Kevin fires ‘Acid Wash’ V10

Sunrise at The Pit.

The proper way to brush those hard-to-reach features…

Casey learns how to fold a burrito.

Nathan provides accountability for the 21-year-old.

Greg!

Margot!

Nathan!

South Park reference of the day:

“I’m a saaaaad panda…”

On The Road Again – Bishop, CA

After a wonderful month at home, I’m back to the dirtbag lifestyle. With winter clearly on the way in, I fled Washington on Monday, November 26th, still recovering from a cold, and sporting a healthy Thanksgiving weight belt. I stopped through Bend, OR, and spent a few nights living like royalty at the house of some dear family friends. I had an excellent time catching up with them and exploring the town, but quickly realized my secondary goal of climbing at Smith Rock was not a likely one. The winter weather seemed to have followed me, and the only option for climbing was $14 for a day-pass at the Bend Rock Gym. I did a couple day hikes, checking out Smith Rock State Park and Tumalo Falls, and hit the road again Friday, answering the call to migrate south for the winter.

Smith Rock – ‘Birthplace of American Sport Climbing’

The view from the top. Bummer.

“Is that you Monkey Face?”

The stunning 97-foot Tumalo Falls

The 11-hour drive to Bishop seemed the equivalent of traveling 2-3 months back in time. It is difficult to think much on the approach of winter or Christmas when you are getting daily sun burns. I am still getting thrown off by the Christmas carols and decorations surrounding the local coffee shops of Main Street. I am very excited to dig in for another 6 weeks and have the chance to acclimate to the climbing here. The technical climbing of the Buttermilks, the drastic temperature changes between sun and shade, and the elevation all take time to get used to. A couple days ago I went on a hill run that had me sucking air like an impaired vacuum cleaner. It felt horrible.

Dirtbaggin’ in Bishop is quite comfortable. With $2 camping at The Pit, natural hot springs, and incredible rock everywhere, this place is every climbing bum’s dream. I am very lucky to be here with a great crew and am excited to hear that more friends will soon be heading down to join the fun. See you guys soon!

Ron – ‘The Motorcabin’

Greg – ‘The Lounge King’

Kevin – ‘Eric?’

Lya – ‘Ms. Mischief’

Nanook – ‘Alpha Pup’

The wondrous and colossal boulders of the Buttermilks!

Efficient use of crash pads.

‘Superman’

And here it is! Excellent work and long hours by Steven Gnam are responsible for this thing coming together so quickly, and I am very pleased with the way it turned out. Enjoy!

(If you have playback issues click the ‘vimeo’ icon in the bottom right hand corner)

I cannot say for sure, but thinking back I count six days of effort to take down Superman. So don’t let yourself be fooled with the “he came, he crushed, he moved on” storyline depicted by this short film. My initial effort took place on an early September scorcher, and despite blistering conditions managed to plant the seed of possibility that stuck with me through my trip to WY and UT. It was either four or five more days of subtle victories and progress upon my return home that led to success.

Progression in climbing is a struggle. The climbing blogosphere has become saturated with success stories, yet success in climbing is hard-earned and makes up a very small slice of the pie. It is a rare individual who can stay motivated through success alone. I certainly cannot. In fact I find much more joy, motivation, and determination amidst the struggle, chipping away at a difficult project and fighting for every miniscule baby-step of progress. The common ideology that success makes all the hard work worthwhile seems imprudent. There is always a bigger goal, a harder route, another struggle.

A little more than two weeks has passed and it seems that I took care of business in the nick of time. Rain, snow, and a minor illness have kept me off the rock and brought an end to my Leavenworth season sooner than I would have liked. I tried to climb with my friend Justin Plant the week before Thanksgiving and ran into some very strange weather. Looks like it’s about time to migrate south!

Justin waiting for the rock to dry.

Today I leave for Bend, OR for a brief visit before the longer road to Bishop, CA. I am excited to continue my travels, but also sad to leave home. Goodbye Washington! Thank you for a great fall season!