Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Gripped Magazine Article

The Canadian climbing magazine Gripped has published its latest issue and we are told that there is an article in it titled "The Blakney's: East Coast Climbing Couple".

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Final Week in Bishop, California



The view from the Buttermilks
Our current home



Ben sending Kill On Sight V12

Kill On Sight V12

Ben flashing Standing Kill Order V11


It is starting to get hot here - the lizards are out.
Our time is Bishop is almost done. We are thinking about staying about one more week to try and finish off a couple more projects. After that we are going to move our home base to Joe's Valley, Utah for the month of April.

We are currently hanging out in the coffee shop trying to avoid the 50mph wind gusts outside. There are lots of tents being flattened and blown across the valley at the climber's campground.

Krissy is currently battling an eye infection and a cold...not the best scenario for trying to climb hard boulder problems. Other than a broken tooth last week I am in pretty good shape. Despite feeling under the weather Krissy has managed to climb a few projects in the last couple days - she now has her sights set on climbing Seven Spanish Angels (V6). Seven Spanish Angels is probably among my top favorites of the grade that I have ever climbed - very unique! Google it. I have been pretty much shut down on one of my main goals for Bishop - The Mandala (V12). I'm not sure why it is giving me such problems compared to other stuff of similar difficulty. I made progress last time on it, so maybe tomorrow will finally be the day...I have had to take many rest days here - my finger tips are incredibly bruised up.

That is it for now. We are off to see if our tent is still standing....

Saturday, March 17, 2012

75 Days Down, About 165 To Go

Krissy sending the classic Buttermilk Stem V1

The view from the Buttermilks

Josh nearly sending the Mandala Sit Start V14
Ben getting psyched to be really scared on Haroun and the Sea of Stories V12. VERY windy!!

Ben sending Haroun and the Sea of Stories


Staring the upper V9ish section of Haroun and the Sea of Stories

Krissy on Acid Wash Right V7

The crux of Acid Wash Right


Krissy on Mr. Happy v5
Today Krissy and I are sitting in the Black Sheep coffee shop in Bishop, California. For the first time since January we are having some bad weather - cold, snow, and rain. We woke up this morning to bad weather, but free coffee and doughnuts in the climber's campground. This was followed by a trip to the hot springs, lunch in the coffee shop parking lot, and then coffee's in the shop.

We have definatly settled in to the road trip lifestyle over the last couple months. We more or less never know what day or time it is, and our only real decisions are what project to work each day.

Hueco was a pretty big success for both of us. Krissy was able to get some pretty good fitness by the time we left, being able to send Mexican Chicken V6, Bloodline V6, New Religion V7, and Stegasaur V7/8 and a handful of other hard problems. My time in Hueco also went pretty well despite have split tips for nearly four straight weeks. I was able to send a number of problems up to V13 - including a number of problems on my lifetime tick list. Some really memorable problems were Full Service (V10), Rumble in the Jungle (V12), and See Spot Run (V6 - classic highball). We had some great times with a bunch of other Canadians posted up in Hueco as well.

We have now moved onto Bishop, California - the land of larger than life boulders. The name of the game is definitely highballing here!! I climbed what I would consider to be one of the best lines in the Buttermilks yesterday - Haroun and the Sea of Stories V12ish. Houroun is probably something like 30 feet high! The line involves climbing a lower double digit crux to a higher V9 crux - it is probably one of my favorite problems I have ever done! Very, very memorable with the high winds and highball climbing! I love the boulders here - they are some of my favorite anywhere in the world. Krissy on the other hand has been having a little bit of a problem getting use to the size of the boulders here. From her climbing the last couple of days I think she should be sending hard here as well in no time. The climbing here takes time to get used to. The crimps are small and sharp and the feet are small and often polished. You need to have both you physical and mental games firing on all cylinders to climb hard here.

Our current home is "The Pit". We have amenities such as a pick-nic table and pit toilets. There is no running water, therefore we get water from a near by, more expensive campground. We take "showers" in the hot springs whenever we feel like going for a soak - picture a ditch with really hot water in it. When the weather is bad we hang out at the coffee shop, when the weather is good we go climbing.

We plan on staying in Bishop until the end of March. Hopefully all of our projects will be finished up by then...The weather has actually been unseasonably warm lately, making hard climbing even more tricky. We saw a Blackwidow spider a few days ago, and just yesterday we were told of baby Rattlesnake sightings at both the Buttermilks and the Happy's.
Stay tuned for more updates - we are going to make an effort to write more...Any questions for us - post them up?

Till next time,
Ben and Krissy

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

The good life in Bishop, CA: Hot Springs and Boulders

Ben sending Toxic Avenger V9

Exfoliating at the Hot Springs

Full Moon

Krissy sending Iron Man V4 (note: there is a Black Widow below her - NO falling!)


Keith running a lap on Iron Man V4

Sierra's from Sherman Plateau

Ben sending Xavier's Roof V11

The Buttermilks as seen from Dale's Camp

Xavier's Roof

Xavier's Roof

Sunset over the Sierra's

Xavier's crazy mantle finish

Last move

Krissy on Hero Roof



Sheena getting painfully close to sending Iron Man on her last day

Keith getting painfully close to High Plains Drifter before the 24 hour drive home

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Last Hueco Photos - Now: Bishop

Nate on the Flame V12

Ben trying out the moves on the Flame V12

Sending Rumble in the Jungle V12


Ben on the classic Egg V8

The Egg V8


Ben on the Feather V11

The feature of the Feather

Ben before doing Roughage - Scary V7

Krissy warming up on a three or four star classic

Ben running a lap on The Melon Patch V0

Ben on Best of the West V7

Arriving in Bishop, California after a 16 hour overnight drive from Texas

The road to Bishop

The Buttermilks and Sierras

Krissy on Iron Man V4

The "Never Stop Climbing" sign at the Buttermilks

The Hot Springs / Shower

Ben on the Hulk V6