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philo
Trad climber
Somewhere halfway over the rainbow
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 20, 2010 - 11:54am PT
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Senior moment alert.
Sorry Scott.
Phunny story about Oh Mama Mama roof.
I had just returned to the ground after leading the roof when a guy approached me.
He was blonde haired, very tanned and talked like a surfer wanna be.
"How hard is that?" he queried.
"5.10" I answered honestly.
At least that is what my hard men mentors had always told me.
"No really , how hard?" he persisted.
"5.10" I insisted.
He started to get pissy with me and I didn't know why.
Again, more forcefully he asked "How hard is that roof?"
Turns out he was from California and wanted me to give an A, B, C, or D to go with the 5.10.
He had been watching me stem through it, which actually made it look easier than it really was, and wanted to do it if it was in his letter grade ability. Unfortunately we climbed in a vacuum and the alphabet hadn't reached us yet.
I said "It's a Taylor 5.10!"
Then un wisely added "It's totally tubular Dude."
That set him off and he stormed away hurling insults over his shoulder.
I hope he has finally recovered.
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ydpl8s
Trad climber
Santa Monica, California
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Sep 20, 2010 - 12:43pm PT
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Before we figured out how to navigate the roof on Oh Mama Mama(and I don't include myself in the "we"), that climb was always started by traversing across the bottom of Whiskey Crack. I think I lost them, but I had a great 3 picture series of Scotty Gilbert leading it, taken from the sundeck, he was on blotter at the time, I was blown away.
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philo
Trad climber
Somewhere halfway over the rainbow
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 20, 2010 - 12:59pm PT
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Mr. MossMan sir, you preceded me to Gunnison by several years and were well established as a local before I got there. I was a brash and arrogant front range phrig and you were a Vet. I admired you all so much. My life was changed when I was accepted by the local "family". Thank you.
Now back to Chuckles. He was a few years after me and was the brash arrogant front ranger d'jour.
But he was immensely powerful, thoroughly driven and beyond merely talented. It didn't take long for the locals of the day to sit up and take gape mouthed notice of the dynamo that was Grossman.
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ydpl8s
Trad climber
Santa Monica, California
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Sep 20, 2010 - 01:28pm PT
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I once wrote a song about getting old titled "Since when did I become Sir?" :-)
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philo
Trad climber
Somewhere halfway over the rainbow
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 20, 2010 - 01:38pm PT
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Moss, he is in Tahoe. He is always jammin. Busiest man in show business. You should head north to Lover's Leap then show up and sit in on a session.
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philo
Trad climber
Somewhere halfway over the rainbow
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 20, 2010 - 07:34pm PT
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Up Chuck bump
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Allen Hill
Social climber
CO.
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Sep 26, 2010 - 02:25am PT
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Boy I'd love to see the picture of Scotty Gilbert. I missed him by a year. I got to know his girlfriend fairly well after the accident and somehow as a result did and continue to have great great respect for him as well a strange connection to him. Doug, Jimmy, and Rosholt told me such amazing stories.... normally during my career as the get the beer boy during their poker games. Chuck, Jimmy, and Tom, did the second ascent of Gilby's Tower out in the Needles of Canyonlands in his honor about a year or two after his death. I've always thought that might be one of the neatest ascents ever.
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Allen Hill
Social climber
CO.
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Sep 28, 2010 - 12:38am PT
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Allen Hill
Social climber
CO.
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Sep 28, 2010 - 12:39am PT
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Allen Hill
Social climber
CO.
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Sep 28, 2010 - 12:40am PT
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Sep 28, 2010 - 11:51am PT
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Great shots and stories! Isn't it about time Chuckles pulled up a chair?!?
Tell him we have a fat recording contract waiting for him...no strings or stacks attached...LOL
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philo
Trad climber
Somewhere halfway over the rainbow
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 28, 2010 - 11:54am PT
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I have told him about this thread so he may have lurked. Next time I talk to him I will urge him to post up. He has great stories and pics.
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TwistedCrank
climber
Ideeho-dee-do-dah-day boom-chicka-boom-chicka-boom
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Sep 28, 2010 - 12:42pm PT
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That foto sums up the Chuck. So did the names of his cars. He had "Gorvy" which was the black Ranchero (as I recall). Then he got "Proto" - the orange VW bug.
I have a hazy recollection of one of our trips to Escalante Canyon of getting to the top of Cerro Summit and Chuck popping Proto in neutral, putting his feet on the dashboard and exclaiming "Look! Proto's trying to fly!"
It saddened me when I stopped by Escalante last fall to find some of the routes we did back then had chains on the top of them. Sometimes the crux of Escalante routes is stepping out of the crack and on to a sloping sandy ledge strewn with loose boulders.
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Allen Hill
Social climber
CO.
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Sep 28, 2010 - 10:47pm PT
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Allen Hill
Social climber
CO.
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Sep 28, 2010 - 10:50pm PT
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Allen Hill
Social climber
CO.
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Sep 28, 2010 - 10:51pm PT
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Sep 28, 2010 - 10:57pm PT
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Good stuff!
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Allen Hill
Social climber
CO.
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Sep 28, 2010 - 11:08pm PT
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It's fun to dig up these old photos. Chuck taught me to climb 35 years ago and we still have a ball when we get out. He's a great guy who really deserves a lot more credit for his role in Colorado climbing history.
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Allen Hill
Social climber
CO.
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Sep 28, 2010 - 11:17pm PT
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TwistedCrank
climber
Ideeho-dee-do-dah-day boom-chicka-boom-chicka-boom
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Sep 29, 2010 - 10:52am PT
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BITD Chuck had outstanding taste in climbing clothing - more so than the average Colorado crag rat. Usually his threads were held togather with masking tape and staples.
I recall one day Chuck was wearing a pair of bright red sweat pants - the kind with the elastic ankles - that had a 2 foot gash torn open along the crotch. After a day at Taylor Canyon, we somehow managed to scam some meal tickets to one of the WSC dining halls. I nearly bust my gut watching Chuck strategically sitting in view of some barely-legal Cherry Creek coeds, shifting in his seat so the hole in his sweats was playing peak-a-boo with the dorm girls.
I'm going to have to dig into the vault for some slides to scan...
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