School is starting!

So... for most of the summer Mike and I have done almost nothing in the endever of outside climbing due to lack of funding and hot weather... :( However, now that school is fast approaching and the weather is getting better we are hoping to be able to climb again! whoo hoo. So keep checking and we will have some new stories for ya!

Brian

Ahhhhh! nothings happening!

Well.. its been a long time since there has been anything crazily exciting so here is a run down of the small stuff!

Mike and I haven't been able to climb together for almost 3 weeks, :( so I have been climbing with a few other people. A few weeks ago, 3 I think, Karlyn and I went climbing in Leavenworth were Karlyn Completed a long standing personal project the Hole. After that we drove to the Camp Serene boulder in Gold bar were Karlyn then dispatched the awsome Serenity Now. Later that day I was itchen' to go work the bottom of Ross Bongo so Karlyn and I made a quick drive over to the Five Star boulder and I spent the rest of the day light trying to link the actual start with the rest of the problem with not send in the end but i did figure out how to like all the moves. During all of that Mike and Britt took a trip to Seatle and when climbing at the wonderful Stone Gardens were they enjoyed a quite evening of awsome climbing with amazing walls!

2 weeks ago Mr Mike Dove had a gig playing with a band! So left to my own I decided to go climbing with Karlyn again. So back out in leavenworth we went to the Forestlands and spend some quality time on the amazing rock there. I wanted to try the back door ass attack before the sun hit it, well I wasn't successfull in that but i was able to somehow mantle on the sloping nothingness that is the topout, though I don't think I could do it again! Inspired by my work ethic (I dont know why haha) Karlyn decided to try another one of her projects, the insainly cool and scary Ruminator! Having been super close to the top out severl times before Karlyn was pretty nervous getting ready for the climb. Once the pads were set and the shoes were on however, Karlyn made quick work the problem sending on her first go!

so this last weekend was an exciting one for Mike as it was his B-Day! whoo hoo! He is now an old geezer like me at the ripe old age of 22! So this weekend Mike and I could have climbed together.. but no.. I thought he had gone home but he didn't. So like the goober that I am i went climbing with out him :(. but only because I thought he wasn't around... I took a trip out to Vantage in the late evening with Derick, Laura, and Karlyn. it was Dericks and Lauras first time climbing out side so Karlyn and I put up a rope for them and they both climbed on real rock for the first time. That was a ton of fun! after Derick climbed I was itchen to climb something so I asked him if he wanted to go free solo a route... and to my amazement he said yes! ahh! brave man! So Derick and I went and climbed the easiest route there but with no ropes and Derick did great never got scared once and never stoped either. Pretty impresive for his first time climbing!

Well now that we are caught up in all the cool climbing news and I have written a book, I think I'll go eat some breakfast!

Brain

OH MY GOODNESS!!!!!

Oh man! Is it time for some updates!

So last Wednesday, Britt, Brian and I went to Leavenworth for the day, and it was awesome! Brian finished up Pimpsqueak, which is super awesome! It's an amazing line and you're completely horizontal for quite a while. So sick! I couldn't quite pull it off, but I knew I'd be back soon to try it again. After a short dinner break at Heidelburger, we went to check out Musashi and Brian nabbed that one also! We were all stoked for Brian! Woo! After Brian spanked Musashi, I went back to Pimpsqueak, but just couldn't pull it off. Fast forward to Saturday. I was really itching to get back to Pimpsqueak, so we warmed up in the Mad Meadows proper area, and then trekked to the awesomeness that is Pimpsqueak. I nailed it first try of the day, and was really excited about it! Brian and I find it so much fun and so much more satisfying when we go through the project rollercoaster. Experiencing every emotion, becoming so angry with an inanimate object, and eventually, finishing a sequence on this piece of rock that you have somehow become intensely attached to. But after we finish, there's always the lingering question: What's next? We decided that we had some unfinished business over on the west side, so we traveled to the Camp Serene boulder, and both got Chemical Imbalance, officially ticking off that boulder for us. The next stop on the agenda was the Five Star Boulder. Brian ticked the Five Star Arete very quickly, and then we went to work on Ross Bongo. I wasn't too psyched on it until Brian unlocked the sequence and got painfully close to topping it out. After being inspired by Brian, I managed to send... well, sort of. After watching videos of others doing it, we realized we weren't starting low enough, so we gotsta go back. Anyways, super long post but super productive weekend. Stay tuned for more pics and video. Didn't get too much on this trip.

BATMAN

Ladies and gentlemen, let me tell you a story.
There is one boulder problem I have been too afraid to attempt since I found out it existed in Leavenworth. It's name... is Batman. I was never afraid because of anything the climb had to offer, except for its name. You see, I love batman. I have a slightly unhealthy obsession with him and would never want to disappoint him. So, I never tried the problem in fear that if I blew balls all over the climb, I would disappoint. Finally, Friday, June 19th, 2009, with the help and encouragement of Brian, I gathered the gonads and summoned the gumption to go visit my idol. I stood in awe at this superproblem I had built up in my head everytime I drove past it. Brian and I set the pads, and quickly sussed out the beta. I threw myself at the problem with reckless abandon, wanting so badly to prove to the dark knight that I was ready, that I was worthy of this send. I am fortunate to say that even though I did not complete the problem (fell off the top a bunch of godforsaken times), it was everything I've imagined. It is rare that a line holds the attention of Brian and I for any significant amount of time, since we both suffer from a severe case of I'mboredalready-itis, but this one captivated us, and we will be back to dance with the devil in the pale moonlight.
-Mike

Headspace

After a wonderful history with the beautiful boulders of Leavenworth, Brian and I found ourselves in a little bit of a psych slump. Since we were feeling a bit down, we decided to check out a couple boulders we had never seen before. So we called up Nathan, and trekked over to Gold Bar to visit the Camp Serene and Five Star boulders. After a long drive, we found the Camp Serene boulder. It was big and beautiful, and had some amazing quality problems, all of which came with a bit of an adrenaline rush!

Nathan on Ryan's Problem

Somebody had an accident

We managed to dispatch 4 of the 5 problems, and all got dangerously close to the super "chemical imbalance". Definitely added to the tick list. After spending a few hours at the Camp Serene boulder, we decided to head up to the Five Star Boulder. I had heard a ton of spray about this boulder, and it definitely did not disappoint. It is a HUGE boulder, with about a dozen quality problems for those who are willing to test their headspace. We got a few done, but have plenty to go back to. Ground Zero will go down soon...

A video of Brian and I on Sobriosity, one of the Five Star's less highball lines

Enjoy!

Mike

Finally a post by me!...you know.... Brian...

Finally after months of not climbing, ok just a few weeks, I have started to climb again! Today Mr. Dove, Nathan Joyner and I decided to go out to Goldbar and hit up some of the boulders that we haven't climbed on yet. Lets just say that they were AMAZING! First we went ot the Camp Serene Boulder, which is sadly all by its self. :( All of the climbs on this boulder have been put near the top of my favorites list. After we were shut down by the last move of Chemical Imbalance we decide to hit up the 5 star boulder. I didn't think it was going to be as gigantic as it was.. but it was nothing less than ginormous! Mike, Nathan and I spent some time on Sobriosity and the Five Star Arete. Both of these polar opposite lines were extreamly fun and if you ever get a chance you should try them. By this point Nathan and I were beat, Mike however, decided to give Ground Zero a try... and only one try... We decided after his first crazy fall that we needed more crash pads... Which will be ordered soonly!

Brian

Brian's Back

Finally, after a ton of schedule clashing and music playing, Brian is back climbing again! Brian, AJ, David, and I hurried to Leavenworth for a nice afternoon sesh. We started in the swiftwater parking lot to warm up.

Here's Brian warming up a bit

AJ doing some pebble crushingAfter a solid warm-up, we went to check out Slingblade. Brian and I had tried this problem a few times last year, but got shut down by the first move. We came back with a vengance today, and both sent. I must say this problem has easily been added to my top-ten climbs EVER! It's just one of those climbs that's physically demanding, but also demands your attention till you're on top of the boulder. World Class!

Me on Slingblade Brian crushing slingblade After our send train was over at slingblade, we went to go check out AJ's project: Han Solo's Lightsaber Tournament, which he effectively crushed, as AJ usually does.

doing what he does bestOnce AJ topped out Han Solo we made a quick run to the sword area to try out resurrection again. We didn't quite get it, but we nabbed ascents of "go baby", which is directly right of resurrection. David had never seen the sword before, and was so inspired, he flashed it! It was awesome to see him push his mental limits, and overall the day was full of projects becoming memories.

Brian on Resurrection Brushin' and Sussin'David making the insecure transition to the sword slabGreat day!

Mike

Busy Weekend

School's almost over, and I have three concerts to play this weekend. I had a concert today, I have an orchestra concert tomorrow, and another orchestra concert on Monday. Needless to say, this weekend has already been, and still will be, crazy busy! Kinda bummed cause I haven't been able to climb with Brian a ton cause these past couple weeks he's had other olbigations. Bummer. Thankfully, I had a free evening so I jet to L-town with Karlyn, Max, and Emily. On the ride down, we reminisced about "Twilight Zone". Freakin' awesome show! Our first stop was the scrambled eggs boulder, which we warmed up on. I also warmed up on this problem called "the dildo". Problem was sicknasty! Awesome crimps and sweet heel hooks! After that we made our way to the 420 boulder, which I had never been to before. The problems on this boulder were sweet! The feature problem on this boulder is a tall slab with a bit of an insecure start, but then absolutely perfect granite edges up higher. It was an awesome climb that I had to repeat a few more times to get the full effect of how cool it was! There was however, a stupid bolt up on top of this 15 foot Vo. Dumbness. Anyways, other than that, the trip was awesome and after the 420 boulder we headed to the straightaways. I did a couple problems I hadn't been able to pull off before, but couldn't nab "WAS"... so pretty! It will be mine soon... I hope!
Stay psyched!
Mike

What's in a Secret?

Yesterday, I went to this "new" climbing area a few of my friends were telling me about in Entiat. I had heard rave reviews about this place, so I was psyched! Visions of unlimited potential danced in my head. So Max, Nathan, Eric, Rick, and I all packed up in Rick's Ford Exploder and made the two-hour drive to this area. The first boulder Max brought us to was absolutely astonishing! It was this massive tooth, with climbs on all sides. It had slab, overhang, and even a ginormous dyno! "This is perfect! This is all I had dreamed of," I said to myself. After playing on that boulder for a bit, we went to an area a bit further up-canyon. We stopped, and as I stepped out of the Exploder, I saw so much rock I had no idea where to start. I started off with some of the established problems, but couldn't wait to trek uphill to see what I could find. What did I find? Not much. Out of all this expanse of rock I saw before me, there were very few rocks that were big enough to classify as boulders (lots of babys), and even then, there wasn't a ton to climb. The visions I had earlier were slowly fading. After a quick trek down to the river for a break, we went to check out some supposed boulders even farther up-canyon. We combed the forest and found... not much. After another hour of hiking (it was 90+ degrees outside) we left. Now, don't get me wrong, I had a ton of fun exploring this generally undeveloped area, and the few boulders I climbed were pretty incredible. Definitely a worthwhile place to be. The scenery was incredible and most of the rock I saw was impeccable. It was also very nice to take a break from the Leavenworth climbs I have been falling off, and go fall somewhere else. But what struck me is that one of my friends told me to keep this area "on the DL" in hopes that these secluded gems wouldn't turn into the next Leavenworth's Icicle Canyon. It won't. Granted, I didn't do a ton of exploring, and if someone was really motivated and wanted to work their way down from the cliffline, they could probably find some rad problems. There definitely is some potential, but Icicle it is not, and Icicle it most likely never will be.
Stay Psyched!
-Mike

Poor Tree

Ah, so the tree... it was quite an adventure actually. Josh, Jesse, and AJ got a little bored of climbing and found a 40 foot overhang. Josh decided to throw a little branch off the top, and the three of them thouroghly enjoyed the results. So, for the next half hour, they struggled to get a 25 foot fallen tree to that cliff. Seriously, they worked their butts off and had some very epic moments (i.e. almost being crushed by the tree) but after a long struggle, they finally got the tree to the edge of the cliff...

Enjoy!

Leavenworth Weekend

We spent the weekend in leavenworth with Britt, Jesse, A.J., and Josh. The weather was absolutely gorgeous! There was a ton of climbing and quite a bit of molé lovin'.

Here's Jesse on the Fridge RightBritt on Concavity

Josh Climbing the Fridge Slab AJ climbing Splash Attack
Mike on the FA of Splash Attack
Brian working Kobe Tai
The impending doom of a fallen tree
Altogether it was a great weekend, and we all found new inspiring projects to work on. If you want to see what happens to the tree, go to http://www.vimeo.com/user1770065.

New Video

Here's a link to our first video on vimeo.com. It's of us climbing some problems in Leavenworth, WA and Bishop, CA.
http://www.vimeo.com/4694206

Enjoy!

Welcome!

Welcome to Brian and Mike's new blog page. We're just two guys who love climbing! Enjoy your stay!