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He finished his strong year with a repeat of Lucid Dreaming V15 this week
The post Sungsu Lee Climbs 6 V15s and a 5.15 in 2024 appeared first on Gripped Magazine.
He finished his strong year with a repeat of Lucid Dreaming V15 this week
Gripped Magazine (gripped.com)
December 18, 2024 National Park Service withdraws proposal that threatened climbing access and America’s climbing legacy Access Fund Applauds Protection of Sustainable Wilderness Climbing Today, the National Park Service (NPS) announced that it is rescinding proposed guidance on Wilderness
Access Fund (www.accessfund.org)
And climbers collectively breathe a sigh of relief
https://www.climbing.com/news/national-park-service-ends-bid-to-ban-fixed-anchors-in-wilderness/
"We must exercise restraint, humility and respect as we climb in these amazing Wilderness areas to ensure that they remain accessible for generations to come.”
The post Bolts Allowed to Stay in U.S.A. National Parks appeared first on Gripped Magazine.
https://gripped.com/news/bolts-allowed-to-stay-in-u-s-a-national-parks/
I’d been driving past this rock, near Hanksville, for years. It’s just begging to be climbed but looked impossible without drilling a ladder of large holes for spikes (rebar? footing stakes?) of some kind. And what kind of fun is that? The “rock” appeared to be too soft to nail, too crumbly to bolt. There…
Another installment of Steve “Crusher” Bartlett’s “What We Talk About When We Talk About Choss” photo essay from The Climbing Zine, Volume 11.
The Climbing Zine (climbingzine.com)
His book Pushing the Limits published in the year 2000 is one of the most important pieces of climbing writing ever produced in North America
The post Chic Scott Receives the Order of Canada appeared first on Gripped Magazine.
https://gripped.com/profiles/chic-scott-receives-the-order-of-canada/
The legendary Canadian alpinist was one of 88 Canadians appointed in 2024
The post Barry Blanchard Receives the Order of Canada appeared first on Gripped Magazine.
https://gripped.com/profiles/barry-blanchard-receives-the-order-of-canada/
In addition to freeing The Nose via the 5.13 V9 Schnoz variation—marking a first for the route—Puman also ticked off a laundry list of hard lines, from boulders to big walls
The post Recap: Hannes Puman’s Mind-Blowing First Visit to Yosemite appeared first on Gripped Magazine.
In addition to freeing The Nose via the 5.13 V9 Schnoz variation—marking a first for the route—Puman also ticked off a laundry list of hard lines, from boulders to big walls
Gripped Magazine (gripped.com)
Finishing up tonight's indoor session with a low-level traverse, and I found a "Hero" sized mini Double Decker hidden in a hold!! 
#Climbing #IndoorClimbing #CragSwag
"To be an excellent boulderer, one must work through all the displeasure of moves that feel unnatural," says American writer Francis Sanzaro
The post Five excerpts from The Craft of Bouldering, a must-have new book appeared first on Gripped Magazine.
"To be an excellent boulderer, one must work through all the displeasure of moves that feel unnatural," says American writer Francis Sanzaro
Gripped Magazine (gripped.com)
UK Sport has announced investment of 2.775 million of government and National Lottery funding in Sport Climbing and Paraclimbing ahead of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games. 2,275,000 has been allocated to further develop the existing British Mountaineering Council/GB Climbing Sport Climbing programme, while 500,000 will fund the c...
Ice is a fickle medium that is hard to assess. This month we’re highlighting an accident report from ANAC 2023 involving a leader fall that was compounded by pulled protection. Though the climber was very experienced, this accident underlines that even as more people climb ice than ever before, it takes years of experience to accurately gauge conditions. Also, climate change is increasing the hazards of rockfall, avalanches, ice collapse, and generally warmer ice.
Utah County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue was dispatched at 11:09 a.m. on December 26 to aid an ice climber who had fallen from the first pitch of Finger of Fate (3 pitches, WI4+) in Provo Canyon.
The climber, Tim Thompson (29), was nearing the end of the first pitch when ice sheared from under his left foot. He wrote to ANAC that he was “pushed forward into my ice tools and my relaxed grip caused me to fall.” Thompson’s uppermost screw pulled out of the ice, causing him to fall a total of 50 feet.
Utah County team members arrived and, with the help of the climbers already on scene, evaluated the ice conditions, established an equalized anchor with six screws at the base of the climb, and developed a plan to move the patient horizontally about 100 feet over steep, slippery terrain to a five-by-ten-foot ledge that was out of the rockfall and icefall area. Conditions were deteriorating, the ice was becoming less cohesive as temperatures rose, and rocks were starting to fall.
A Department of Public Safety (DPS) helicopter crew did a reconnaissance of the ledge and determined that it would be a suitable place for a hoist operation. The patient was then short-hauled from the ledge to a nearby parking lot, where an ambulance was waiting. He was airlifted to a hospital and assessed to have two broken vertebrae, a broken elbow, torn ligaments in an elbow, and a badly broken left wrist.
Warm conditions make ice climbing hazardous. Recalls Thompson: “The weather was warm the day before. Temps overnight were about 28°F for almost 10 or 12 hours and were hovering around 31°F or 32°F while climbing. We felt confident that the ice had had enough time to heal, and that as long as we climbed quickly, we were in no danger.”
Running water, heat retained by the underlying rock, and even indirect solar radiation can prevent ice from refreezing. The warm temperatures also affected the quality of Thompson’s protection. He wrote to ANAC, “When I put in the last ice screw, the ice was really soft. Up until the last quarter of the route, the ice [had been] really healthy and the screw placements were really good. I got several really solid screws lower on the route, and the second-to-last one (the one that caught me) was in really bomber ice.”
Thompson did well to place extra gear that he might have dismissed as unnecessary. Before the final section of the pitch, he says, “I remember pulling onto the ice after a ledge rest and deciding to step back down and place a high screw. I knew that would be a lot of protection, as the last screw was just below my feet. But if I had not placed this screw, I would have hit the deck from almost 100 feet up. Things could have been a lot worse.”
Sources: Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue and Tim Thompson.
Warm conditions make ice climbing hazardous. Pete Takeda, editor of Accidents in North American Climbing, and IMGA/AMGA Guide Jason Antin are back to explain the hazards ice climbers face in warm conditions, such as protection pulling, poor tool placements, and shearing crampons.
Producers: Shane Johnson and Sierra McGivney; Videographer: Foster Denney; Editor: Sierra McGivney
Location: Silver Plume Falls, Silver Plume, CO
Over time an ice climber learns to gauge conditions and most importantly, when to go for it and when to back off. This is a long and experience-based learning curve. The biggest lesson is: If it doesn’t feel right, don’t do it. Whether a novice or an experienced ice climber, don’t factor luck into your decision-making.
Utah guide Derek DeBruin’s flowchart is a handy tool to assess ice climbing decision-making on any given day:
This flowchart can assist in managing hazards by helping determine the stability of the ice, the effectiveness of ice screw...
Ice is a fickle medium that is hard to assess. This month we’re highlighting an accident report from ANAC 2023 involving a leader fall that was compounded by pulled protection. Though the climber was very experienced, this accident underlines that even as more people climb ice than ever b
American Alpine Club (americanalpineclub.org)
The World Cup circuit is coming back to Colorado in 2025
The post Denver to Host Its First-Ever World Cup appeared first on Gripped Magazine.
The World Cup circuit is coming back to Colorado in 2025
Gripped Magazine (gripped.com)
Print magazines last longer than internet sites, they read better and have higher-quality images
The post Six Reasons to Buy Climbing Magazines appeared first on Gripped Magazine.
https://gripped.com/profiles/six-reasons-to-buy-climbing-magazines/
Bailey made the first ascent of one of the world's only V17 problems this year. Watch some of his most difficult sends to date below
The post 13 of Sean Bailey’s Hardest Rock Climbs appeared first on Gripped Magazine.
Bailey made the first ascent of one of the world's only V17 problems this year. Watch some of his most difficult sends to date below
Gripped Magazine (gripped.com)
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