First impression of Joe's is that it isn't as gorgeous as the Buttermilks. But when I first got to touch the rock, I absolutely couldn't believe the texture! For once, we were climbing on rock that doesn't take skin like it does in Bishop! I was pretty sure I was gonna be in for a great time!
Apart from knowing that Darryl, Wes and Shuan were gonna show up, we were also excited about seeing Mary and Rocco again...good vibes from our last meeting in Bishop.
Shuan & Wes preparing the Lunch of Champions
I had my sights set on Fingerhut V10, Nerve Extension V10, Worm Turns V11, Resident Evil V10 and of course Jitterbug Perfume V10/11. Day 1 was spent messing around on the moderates cos I wasn't gonna burn myself out by jumping on the hard blocs right away. Plus with the tons of moderates around, we were pretty much having such a good time that it didn't really matter what we jumped on...anything and everything was fun!Decided to check out Worm Turns on Day 2 and I've gotta say turning that worm takes some crushing pinch grip strength.
Carlo and Alex soon showed up and I basically got schooled.
Respect!
Alex came super close to sending it when the weather took a turn for the worse. As you can imagine, a tropical bloke like me would be overjoyed to actually see snow coming down but trust me, once the novelty wears off, it ain't a pretty sight having to stop shivering and keeping my climbing shoes from freezing. Tried stuffing them under my down jacket but I wouldn't say it was entirely effective.
Here's the crew is good spirits but it didn't take long for the temps to ruin it. I had the gut feeling that the end of our Joe's trip was imminent when everyone was getting into their cars and driving off.
Snow coming into the valley. There goes our Joe's trip! What a bummer having to bailout and driving back to So Cal!
Everything freezing up...my wipers froze, my cruise control froze. Doesn't all that frost remind you of Spore!?!?
Stopped by St. George for a day and decided to check out the sportclimbing at VRG. Not the prettiest of places especially with the dumb turn-arounds on I-15 plus the maddening traffic noise. Did gave Hell Comes to Frogtown a couple of goes and I really do like the climb. Super bouldery though...I later realized that most of my foot sequences were wrong when I saw vids of sends. I was beginning to feel pretty good on it with my crappy foot beta so I'm relieved to know that it could've been easier had I gotten better sequences. Not sure if I'll return to work it cos I wouldn't deliberately climb here unless I'm a local.
So the last Sat of Spring break was spent going back to Malibu Creek and this time, I fell of going for the anchors of Lateralus. Guess not everything's lost...only time will tell if I'll send it.
shiok right...the texture of the rocks at joes....can keep cranking and cranking all day long with not a worry about your skin shredding.
ReplyDeletehow was hell comes to frog town ?? seems like a 5 start bouldery route...
Do you mean 5-star? Well...it definitely contrasted the nature of most routes at the VRG. Short and stout. Excitement builds right off the ground and cumulates to a crazy runout cos you wouldn't be able to clip the 4 bolt until you've completed the crux. I was pretty sure I was either gonna deck or brush the ground if I've fallen. Comparable to some V9s I've been on but no where near the crux of Lateralus that I'm working on right now.
ReplyDeleteJoe's definitely superb but let's hope I wouldn't turn into a wuzz when I return to Bishop's granite.
the climbs sound great! will def try to pay u guys a visit when u settle there. Of course will bring more chicken rice sauce too:D
ReplyDeleteWhen r u guys moving there?
We'll targeting to move around end July but Halil been encouraging us to coincide our move with their visit to the Outdoor Retailer show in mid July so we're working on that. We'll be in Salt Lake for the duration of Tanleng's PhD program but if we like it there, we may settle down in SLC. Would love to host you guys again!
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