Innholdsfortegnelse for April & May 2019 / Vol 21 Issue 2 i Gripped: The Climbing Magazine

Sasha Sends in Mexico Sasha DiGiulian has made the third free ascent, onsight, of Samadhi, a 13-pitch 5.13 in Mexico on the Shaman Wall in El Salto. Molly Mitchell supported her ascent and repeated the pitches on second. Hueco Rock Rodeo Michaela Kirsch and Keenan Takahashi won the Hueco Rock Rodeo annual festival. Big V16 Send Toshi Takeuchi sent his V15 in 12 months with Spray of Light in Rocklands. “Mental battle was over because of bad weather,” he said about his four-day send. New Patagonia 5.12 Brothers Iker and Eneko Pou have made the first ascent of the new 550-metre Haizea V 5.12c on Aguja de la S in the Fitz Roy range of Patagonia. Sean McColl Silver at Climbing Works Sean McColl, 12-time Canadian champion, missed the bouldering…

The Nose speed record has been the focus for many great Yosemite climbers, from the first ascent of the route by Warren Harding, Merry Wayne, George Whitmore and Rich Calderwood to the first one-day ascent by Jim Bridwell, John Long and Billy Westbay. Hans Florine held the speed record eight times. Last fall Brad Gobright and Jim Reynolds stunned the climbing world by bringing the record down to 2:19.44. Accomplished photographer, filmmaker and alpinist Austin Siadak spent this past summer filming Tommy Caldwell and Alex Honnold when they brought the record of 2:19.44 down to 1:58.07. I spoke with Siadak about filming the sub-two-hour climb. What was it like to be on El Capitan when they broke the record? It was a pretty cool thing to witness. I remember when…

Castle Mountain towers over the Bow River as you drive north towards Vermillion Pass, just South of Lake Louise. With the impressive Mount Storm across the valley, the wide valley is flanked by impressive alpine walls. The orange stone of Castle Mountain is divided in half by the Goat plateau, a large shale ledge that has eroded to allow climbers to unrope and enjoy the sunshine. Before James Hector crossed over Vermillion Pass in 1858, the area was already named Miistukskoowa, a name given by the Sitsika tribe long ago. They have considered the valley below the cliffs and the mountain itself sacred. Dr. Hector was hoping to discover the headwaters of the Bow River, which he discovered after getting kicked by a horse near Lake Louise. The pass now…

Five Ten Grandstone $240 The Grandstone is Five Ten’s answer to the TC Pro, a durable high-top that fuses 1990s style with a modern design and materials. It has a microfiber upper that will stretch for comfort on long climbs. Stealth C4 rubber is still one of the best on the market and these edge as good as they look. The in-cut design allows the show to crank in cracks without compromising comfort. A great shoe for crack climbers. MEC Edge Chalk Bag $17 The new MEC Edge is a serious contender for best multi-pitch chalk bag on the market. The slight taper allows it to sit flusher with your body and the small stash pocket for a phone or snack. It’s made of a tough polyester which will help…

Mike Penney has been climbing on Ontario’s steep limestone cliffs for the past decade, establishing new routes and photographing top climbers during rock season. He first tried climbing at the age of 14, at the end of a long competitive swimming career. As a director of the Ontario Alliance of Climbers (oac), Penney has been active in a number of initiatives, including hardware replacement efforts and route development. 1 Did your competitive swimming career help you as a climber? Yes, it definitely did. Competitive swimming and climbing are not all that different. Similar muscles are needed, and the prevailing elements in success are technique, persistence and mental fortitude. 2 What’s the most photographic crag in Ontario? High above the turquoise water of Georgian Bay, Lion’s Head is certainly extremely photogenic.…

Hub Climbing’s new Mississauga location is one of the most impressive new indoor climbing gyms in the Greater Toronto Area. We caught up with Steven Brown, one of the owners of Hub Climbing, shortly after the grand opening of the 30,000-square-foot facility. The location promises to be popular with new and old climbers alike. “We used to climb at True North and fell in love with climbing,” said Brown. “Then we thought, we need a gym in Markham, so we made a gym in Markham. Then we thought, we need one in Mississauga, so we made one.” The Markham location has been a booming bouldering gym since the doors opened a few years ago. The new location has 50-foot walls that make it one of the largest gyms in eastern…

I’ve always trusted my gut when it comes to who I should climb long routes with and when I met 16-year-old Cory Rogans, I knew I’d found someone I could trust up high. His mom, once a top climber who’d roped up with the late Yosemite climber Todd Skinner, was more than stoked for Cory to go up high with me. I met him at Elevation Place, the local gym in Canmore, and asked if he’d join me for a lap up my route Soft Moth on Ha Ling. He was keen and assured me about his rope skills. Having been on the national biathlon team as an athlete and coach, I knew his cardio would be up to the task of moving quickly. Although the 11-pitch route has some…

Guides Rock is one of Banff National Park’s most historic multi-pitch crags and is only about a 10-minute drive from downtown Banff. The approach is steep with a number of calf-burning switchbacks, but only lasts about 20 minutes before you arrive at the base. The limestone is stipply with some natural cracks, but more deep water-runnels that provide fun pinching and foot jams. Most of the climbs are bolted, but some old and bold traditional lines exist. It’s south facing, so it’s always in the sun and can get breezy in the summer, but it’s a perfect place to climb in early spring. Guides Rock is a Verdon-like steep ridge above the Bow River on Mount Cory. It was once only used by locals for guide and rescue training back…

New Icefields Parkway Alpine Ian Welsted returned in January 2019 to complete a route he’d first attempted in 2018 above Bow Lake on the Icefields Parkway, Alta. Welsted was joined by Alik Berg for the first ascent. “Jesse Bouliane and I started the route last spring,” said Welsted. “This year, Berg and I shimmied, chimneyed and enjoyed the short approach across Bow Lake from Num-ti-jah lodge.” They called their route C-Train M5 WI3+. Welsted explained the name as follows: “The C-train, is Calgary’s public transit. Could be riding the C-train or skiing across Bow Lake in a train of people, or alpine scrambling on Crowfoot Mountain. Moderate alpine route open to all not just the elite double-M drytooler, sort of like public transit, open to all. More tongue in cheek,…

I lived in a van and I’d do it again. I spent most of my nights parked along the Bow River in one of the many places to park. Years before I lived in a van, I lived in a 1988 Chevy S10 pickup with white racing stripes and a moose skull quick-tied to the grill. The topper window had stickers from places, beers and brands. I slept on a Therm-a-Rest and empty beer bottles and soup cans would roll next to me. I’d use one of the bottles to prop my once-lofty pillow, so I could better angle my headlamp. I parked next to rivers, at friend’s and behind the Canmore library, the old one downtown. I would lay low and time my morning unfurling to when the fewest…

Ontario has some of the best climbing in eastern Canada and much of that can be found along the north shore of Lake Superior. The rolling hills of the Nor’ Westers mountains have many steep rock faces that provide in-your-face and casual climbing. Close to the city of Thunder Bay, along the shores of Brule Bay, are a number of buttresses that rise from the boreal forest. The rock is basalt, but more specifically, it’s diabase and it provides climbers with edges and cracks to climb. Up the final buttress along a one-lane dirt road next to Brule Bay is a stunning two-pitch 5.8 that was first climbed back in the 1981 by Shaun Parent and Scott Kress. Spiral Galaxy is steep, stout and full of fun moves, and is…

As we head into the 2019 rock climbing season and the 20th anniversary of Gripped magazine, it seems appropriate to take a look at one of the photographers who’s captured thousands of images over the past 10 years, many of which we’ve published. As a top-selling real estate agent in Calgary, Tim Banfield spends much of his time making sure his clients have the best service, while keeping one eye on the weather for good photography conditions. If a team is heading to try an esthetic route or a project, Banfield has no problem leaving the city behind to capture the moment. More than once, he’s worked on real estate deals from the tops of mountains or at the base of climbs. “I focus on capturing pictures of climbing and…

Scarpa Arpia $165 Celebrating its 80th anniversary in 2018, Scarpa, an industry leader in footwear, unveiled a collection of 20 new or redesigned products for spring 2019. One of the standout products for indoor and outdoor climbers was the Scarpa Arpia. The Scarpa Arpia is a medium-rigid shoe characterized by a microfibre upper, which is finished internally with a soft fabric to increase comfort. Designed for climbers looking to transition from a traditional flat last to a more performance-oriented rock shoe, the new Arpia is an all-around performer that is more aggressive and downturned than the flat-lasted Force V, but softer than the Vapor V. Great for you boulderes who don’t need the most aggressive shoe on the market. Flashed Chalk 312 $10 If you get clammy hands or sweaty…