The Phoenix

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the kid

Trad climber

fayetteville, wv

Jun 14, 2011 - 07:33pm PT

damn fine photos and true old school send.
one for the ages..

Darwin

Trad climber

Seattle, WA

Jun 14, 2011 - 07:50pm PT

Bruce and Kalimon

"a tensioned lead rope" doesn't often help (I know, it can). I think Beth felt it just had to be made more difficult.

;-)

darwin

Brian

climber

California

Jun 14, 2011 - 08:50pm PT

Hey mark- It's not on the same level, but how about some stories regarding the ffa of White Eye at Cathedral in'78 ?

Did Mark put up White Eye? Loved that route when I was back east in grad school. Definitely one of the harder routes for me.

Brian

drewsky

climber

Seattle

Jun 14, 2011 - 09:47pm PT

Great pictures on Mark Hudon's post!
I wish I had more pictures of the actual climbing...

...but I managed a redpoint of this thing in '08. I forced my partner to go down there two days in a row and hang out with the ants at the belay. I burned a couple attempts out of sheer nervousness and did the thing on my third attempt. That climb along with the Tales of Power/Separate Reality combo stand out in my mind as some of my favorite Yosemite single pitches, maybe because of their unique locations and good exposure.

I don't think the Phoenix is really that much harder than Equinox, but it's kind of an apples and oranges comparison because of the sizes involved: that 60 feet of thin hands on Phoenix gives a nice pump, while I found sharpness to be a major factor on Equinox. Doing Phoenix without the cams would certainly up the ante, but that's why all us kids have Aliens and TCU's these days.

I have to admit that the initial holds, while obviously 'manufactured' didn't faze me all that much. Not that it should be the gold standard of establishing routes, mind you, but I've seen worse. Then again, that initial corner probably would have gone free without them and been a real stemming challenge!

Also, that must be a half-baked attempt at a joke about Beth Rodden and a 'tensioned lead rope' (whatever the hell that means; usually having too much tension on the lead is harder, not the other way around): with the way she climbs, the Phoenix would be a mere trifle for her (and it was: she onsighted it!).

Kalimon

Trad climber

Ridgway, CO

Jun 14, 2011 - 10:09pm PT

le_bruce,

I can't back up sh#t. I've never seen the video. My reference originated from viewing commercial photos of other "free" ascents that clearly display a "tensioned" lead rope through gear placed above the climber.

Lurking Fear

Boulder climber

Bishop, California

Jun 14, 2011 - 10:11pm PT

Heard it was soloed yesterday by Alex.

Acer

Big Wall climber

Jun 16, 2011 - 04:23am PT

Solo

http://www.alpinist.com/doc/web11s/newswire-internet-gossip?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+alpinist%2FEFcn+%28Alpinist+Newswires%29

k-man

Gym climber

SCruz

Jun 16, 2011 - 12:08pm PT

Just an amazing shot. Climbing with hexes, and check out that harness:

And now Alex ...

Double D

climber

Jun 16, 2011 - 01:49pm PT

as he hadn't been on the upper crack before, though rapping in and jugging out you do get to see it.

... Not quite. Bill and I went up there maybe a year before and borrowed some of Jardine's prototype friends and put a top-rope on it. Bill did it in like 6 pitches, me...maybe 20.

The part right off the belay was too wet so we never tr'd that section. Bill's ascent is truly amazing though because hanging from a "good" jam to fetch the rack... man those jams kinda suck and with the leaning nature there's no good rests that I remember.

AH's free-solo: can't even fathom that kind of ability.

k-man

Gym climber

SCruz

Jul 1, 2011 - 10:44pm PT

What the heck??

Mark Hudon

Trad climber

Hood River, OR

Jul 1, 2011 - 11:07pm PT

I'd never seen that photo.

No, I didn't do the FA of White Eye but I did the FFA of it. All sorts of people (Henry Barber, Jimmy Dunn) were telling me that I'd never be able to do it, that I was too short. Max and I went over there and I did it first try, higher up on the pitch I took a big fall, almost 30 feet. Henry got all freaked out, said "this is getting serious", and left. I went back up the pitch and free climbed the whole thing. I can't remember if Max followed it on not, he probably did, there wasn't much that one of us could do that the other couldn't.

Darwin

Trad climber

Seattle, WA

Jul 1, 2011 - 11:37pm PT

This is my favorite thread.

I admit, I was out of climbing by the late 70s when this all happened, but this shows what I missed. I love the two carabiner link to the pro (pin?) under the roof. We did that all the time, I remember Matt Pollock saying when I started climbing again in the 1990s, "we never worried about rope drag", while he suggested that I use a runner or quick draw.

Mark, if you would have a beer, I'll buy you one. If not beer, something else (added in edit: pomegranate juice or coconut water).

GDavis

Social climber

SOL CAL

Jul 2, 2011 - 01:27am PT

can't read this enough...

GDavis

Social climber

SOL CAL

Jul 2, 2011 - 02:04am PT

FACT: PHONIX AINT THAT RAD SUGARTITS AND GIRLS HAVE DONE IT SO WTF EH AND A2 MAXIMON

GhoulweJ

Trad climber

El Dorado Hills, CA

Jul 2, 2011 - 06:07pm PT

Quality post.

Dave Sessions

Trad climber

Thousand Oaks, CA

Oct 23, 2011 - 03:41pm PT

damn, now you got me crying.... Mostly from seeing those hexes hanging off the rack! Dems' was the days. Awesome Mark.

Timmc

climber

Oct 23, 2011 - 04:12pm PT

Wasn't there a cool shot of Moffat on the Phoenix in a Boreal add back in the later 80's, with a caption like 'JM flashes the Phoenix'? It was taken from some distance.

I'm not home for another week but if someone could dig it up and scan it I would be grateful.