StoneMaster Stories (Part III) continued onward

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Largo

Sport climber
Venice, Ca
Feb 22, 2006 - 07:15pm PT
Yeah, Brian shot all that stuff. One thing I was proud of (beyond the joke super tilt shot--something John Sherman and I debunked ages ago in his book--was never having used a rope at Black Mountain. That was very exciting working out some of those high problems with no line or crash pads. Not too many of them are all that hard but man you sure don't want to ping.

JL
bvb

Social climber
flagstaff arizona
Feb 22, 2006 - 07:24pm PT
buddy of mine broke his leg in half pitching off "the emperor's new rope" three years ago. and he landed in a nest of pads.

if some sport weenies found that thing in the 80's, there'd be three bolts on it.
Tarbuster

climber
right here, right now
Feb 22, 2006 - 07:25pm PT
Largo,
Earlier you mentioned Gran Trono.
Then my Phyliss Diller crack reminded me of sticking the neck out, way out, as in Gran Giraffe; that lead to Burton & Sutton.

Colorful Characters-
Don't believe their angle has been equated yet in this thread?
bvb

Social climber
flagstaff arizona
Feb 22, 2006 - 07:36pm PT
another classic stonemaster moment -- rockamazzo pic of largo on the fa of paisano, 1974. luv the p.a.'s.

Tarbuster

climber
right here, right now
Feb 22, 2006 - 07:56pm PT
Phat!
Now we need to see the mitts.
bachar

Trad climber
Mammoth Lakes, CA
Feb 22, 2006 - 09:18pm PT
Bob - Nice catalog. I totally forgot about that one! EB's baby!
rmuir

Social climber
Claremont, CA
Feb 22, 2006 - 09:32pm PT
Grammi said: All this talk of Rubidoux has shredded my tips. I could maybe meet you sorta half way at stoney???

Just watched Fritz, and the weather this weekend looks to be absolutely killer! But, man, if we go to Stoney, Wazoo will show up and spank our sorry hineys silly. On the other hand, if we go to Rubidoux, that's within striking distance for the Hensel and then we're REALLY in trouble.

As it is, I've been to Stoney more recently that Rubidoux. Can you believe that? Kamps' memorial service... (Actually, Largo was there then too, so we're screwed either way!)
henny

Social climber
The Past
Feb 22, 2006 - 10:55pm PT
Boy, did I have a bad morning or what. First I didn't recognize bvb, and then I said Ricky's fall on the second pitch of the Circus. My bads: sorry bvb, and it was the first pitch.

Robs, I am impressed. Yes, exact call on the Portal route just before the Circus, No Pie. And you also remembered exactly what I was talking about when I said slopers on the second of the Circus. It was the step left, then one more polished dicer to a good hold over the lip, and once your feet were up: bolt.
I remember right before the step left there was a largish diagonal hold to stand on. But because of the bulge it was awkward to stand there. Remember thinking that you might have drilled there if you would have been forced to. But no, you resisted the temptation (if the thought even occured to you). Great job. It gives the second pitch character to fit in with the first. Totally classic line.

Glad you remembered the date Todd. I'm not too great with some of the dates. Would have had to ask Powell when we did the Pie to figure it out.

The Circus would be a great candidate for replacement with beefy bolts. Especially knowing how poor quarter inchers can be from having done other replacements up there. Man, if one of those bolts failed on the aid...

My ears are burning. You know, I could swear I heard someone say "Rubidoux". ??? So what time are we meeting?


Tarbuster

climber
right here, right now
Feb 22, 2006 - 10:55pm PT
JL,
Not to draw the fire off the collective, which is what is being tributed here, it is clear to me and I'm fairly confident I speak for all of us:

With just one post on this neet ST forum, you have drawn a ton of people together who have shared their best.

Every post is a testament to the fact that you represent a tremendous cohesive force in our lives.


Thanks.
(gotta go make some more popcorn)

henny

Social climber
The Past
Feb 22, 2006 - 11:04pm PT
I second that statement. (I prefer mine with butter, and light on the salt please...)
Tarbuster

climber
right here, right now
Feb 22, 2006 - 11:12pm PT
Ishi?
Knockin' on Heaven's Door?
henny

Social climber
The Past
Feb 23, 2006 - 12:21am PT
Ishi: Possily. Knockin': That was really a totally joint effort with KP. He was instrumental, so I think I would like for him to relate what went down there, if he can remember that far back. So I'll hold on that one. KP???

Robs: "and I didn't want to endure those rope-burns on the legs again" Yeah, nasty, nasty stuff. A similar thing happened to me when we were putting up Burning Down the House on the Sunkist Wall. I came off about 20' out and spun around. As I started down I remember looking at a bunch of loops of rope that I was falling through and seeing one of them around my leg. I knew I was screwed and and started trying to get it off. No chance. When I got arrested it flipped me completely around 360 degrees. Luckily, I bounced out away from the wall immediately before being caught. Otherwise I might have hit my head. Serious stuff. I had the rope burn from h#ll behind my left knee. I could barely walk for about three weeks. Of course, I think Powell wanted to name the route "Kentucky Fried Chicken" or something like that. With friends like that, who needs... I had to veto that route name. Yeap, serious stuff when you get tangled up in the rope.
healyje

Trad climber
Portland, Oregon
Feb 23, 2006 - 12:37am PT
So far I think this is definitely one of the top two or three threads I've seen at ST so far. You guys definitely need to get a room - for a reunion - and somewhere near Stoney Point from the sound of it all. What great stories and pictures!!! I have no doubt it would make a great book if you guys all got together and put humpdy-dumpty back together again history-wise. Also, that climbing cover has always been my second favorite climbing photo of all time right after the #48 cover shot of Jim Adair.
Wonder

climber
WA
Feb 23, 2006 - 12:58am PT
tarbuster, i dont know who you are, but you are really bring it down, dog.
Burton & Sutton. when they first came down in the lincoln with suicide doors i never had so much fun. Yes they should be trown to the top of this pile.
todd-gordon

climber
Feb 23, 2006 - 01:18am PT
Here's another story about a classic Stonemaster climb... The Edge. Hensel wanted to climb all the routes on both Tahquitz and Suicide;...a big project, and one not many human's on earth could even do. Needless to say, that meant leading the infamous The Edge. (By the way, WHAT a GREAT name for a climb... THE EDGE;... THAT says it ALL). All of my friends were scared shitless of the climb, which was totally O K. For someone to say to you," Don't be a chicken, don't tell me you are afraid of THe Edge?"......people didn't talk that way ; EVERYONE ON PLANET EARTH was afraid of THE Edge, and I think Darryl Hensel was as scared of the climb as anyone on earth... maybe even more, because he KNEW he HAD to lead it someday. I NEVER had thoughts of EVER leading The Edge, NEVER.....As in NERVER IN A MILLION YEARS until HELL freezes over;... THAT kind of never. I was fortunate to be around when Hensel was ready to climb THe Edge. (I must be the ultimate top rope slut, for I got ANOTHER free ride on a classic dream climb......). Once again, we got Hensel so jacked up, that he had enough adreniline in his vains to run a 4 minute mile, or lift a car off a trapped child.....he had his wings, and needed not Red Bull. The actual crux is early, down low, and fairly well protected. All of us sent the 5.11- section without any problem. NONE of us was even REMOTELY concerned with the well-protected 5.11a move....big WOW; we could all do well-protected 5.11- at the time....it was the EDGE section, the run-out hand-slapping, chiseled arete of perfect god-like white granite that had us poopin'.......Hensel blew through the 5.11- crux like it was 5.7, and got to the Edge part. He chalked up, took a couple of deep breathes, and took off, and was he scared?.......as scared as any climber could ever be without exploding, but he keep it cool, and climbed with perfection, just like one has to on such a pitch. This is not the sort of pitch one climbs saying, "I think I can do this... or I hope I can do this...."......You don't hop on the thing without 100% conviction that you are GOING to SEND.....PERIOD......and Hensel did just that. It was awesome, and I don't believe any of us could have been much happier to be on such an outstanding, proud, wild, and committing climb....truly one of the highlights of our climbing careers..(And we ALL had fairly huge climbing resumes too....). When it was finally my turn, I found the climbing on the edge to be the trickiest just at the start of the steep edge section, ..... probably 5.10 something, ... then eased to maybe solid 5.9 liebacking and face climbing on the edge for MILES......no problem for anyone who has nerves of steel, but something I wish to never lead. Dave Evans took the 2nd pitch, which was surprisingly difficult and had some fairly hard moves above gear.....tricky, hard and scary climbing.....he climbed slowly, but confidently and we all made the summit;...nobody fell or hung on the rope. This climb probably says it all, as far as what the Stonemasters were all about......style, committment, balls, beauty of line, and quality of experience. Climbing The Edge was probably one of the greatest days in my life, and I was proud of my friends who , once again had the gym-bag to lead the thing and let me tag along on the follow. We did this climb in July of 1986, around the same time we did the Flying Circus.....(Henny was hot!). The Edge is one of the finest climbing experiences on earth, and I bet I won't have too may people arguing with me on that......
AP

Trad climber
Calgary
Feb 23, 2006 - 10:10am PT
I heard a story once (totally unconfirmed of course)that someone was going into Alberta to solo the North Face sometime after Tobin's accident. At some point on the approach he found Tobin's lost wallet, flipped through it,took it as an omen and walked back to the car.
Gramicci

Social climber
Ventura
Feb 23, 2006 - 11:06am PT
Radical, don’t worry about it , thanks for posting it.

It made me cry again...
Tarbuster

climber
right here, right now
Feb 23, 2006 - 11:12am PT
Radical,
No disrespect at all, while some might think it morose or problematic to print the dry facts, I don't think much could be done to denude the impact of a great spirit like Tobin. That report fleshes out his accomplishments as well.

Todd- you got some good rythm- upthread Shockley maroon honda passing story is a Jewel.

The Edge Direct aka Turbo Flange- a name more eighties in derivation, drawn from a time when "Flange" was indicating something entirely different, and I'm not talking about the welt on a brogue or wing tip business man's shoe such as the ones bvb was known to climb Spider Line(JT)with- The Fish(RW), a guy who in the '80's seemingly broke the Stonemaster code through ascerbic wit and spot on humour alone, most likely prepped and heated up that "flange" term in JL's head.

But to my point: Wonder, while we are waiting for the "incept" stories framing Burton Sutton Hatten-

I met most of that Squamish crew, one rainy day top roping at the Y crack I believe, or some thing in the woods below Suicide at least: Hatten, + Too Tall, Igor, (positively hates that name, sorry)Fred East. This was a time when Augie Kline was around. 'Hope these names will Jar some memories and get others to post up- while not the pure bred S Masters, all these cats would fit the '75 date and were a factor.

My first chance to hang with JL & Burton together, probably with E as my shoe horn, bouldering at Sunrise Boulders (Grandstaff Find) & one other spot Bartlett had shown JL, I'm thinking cool 'get to hang with the big boyz- I'm wearing a faux rugby shirt wich my mom had washed (too judicious w/ fabric softner) and Burton say's man what's that smell? I shrunk down into my earth shoes ('member those bizarre drop heel things) about as far as I could go.

Next time I saw Burton he was ferrying JL out of that late '70's snow storm from HVC in Josh in his spankin new Maroon 4WD monster. Not much later,that truck was absolutely battered at this point but in classic Burton style, he shows up in Mammoth Lakes, where I was rooming with Clevenger(another figure doing hard face up N at the same period), Says "where's Vern" (all I ever heard during my tenure there). "Dunno Hugh, what?"- "Roy, 'need some help".

Cool, get to help my Icon Hugh- Short Story long, he's had this beat Datsun Sedan holed up out in wood cutting territory, needs me to help retrieve it- of course I get no detail. He guns that maroon beast's gas pedal with his vasque Muir Trails and we get to the Datsun. OK, no gas pedal, no license plate. Burton says, no prob, hands me a six pack of Coors Talls & a bag of Doritos, jumps the thing and follows me back to town, I'm accelerating via a cable coming out of the dash.

That rig ended up in Hatten's posession in the Valley, where he used it to PROUDLY shuttle back and forth between camp 4 and the Deli.

Hatten would do that, swilling constantly, his claim to the usefullness of the Datsun "Yeah Man, I just toss the empties in the back- as the spent cans fill the back seat and start tumbling into the cockpit, that's when I take 'em in for the canning money".

Largo

Sport climber
Venice, Ca
Feb 23, 2006 - 11:50am PT
Wonder where we might get hold of Tobin's diary. Never even knew he kept one.

I've got a bunch of Burton stories--probably the best one is our trip to Baja for the 1st ascent of the Gran Giraffe. Burton was one of the best wall climbers on the planet at that time ('75), and he showed it.

I'm up for a reunion, but it would have to be at Roubidoux. That's like going back to the cradle for me. I literally grew up out there.

And who remembers the Roubidoux goat? Now that's a story . . .

JL
rmuir

Social climber
Claremont, CA
Feb 23, 2006 - 12:18pm PT
Ho Man! The Goat! Tell us a story, Largo... Often seen down around the Accomazzo Boulders... And, I do remember being QUITE worried about those horns on that free-range mutton!

What I miss the most about the modern Rubidoux experience? DRIVING up to the top! Every time. Fast, in the old Fiat and later in the MG...
Messages 81 - 100 of total 128 in this topic << First  |  < Previous  |  Show All  |  Next >  |  Last >>
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