A Look Back: March

Hot Sends
Matty Hong – La Rambla(5.15a):
Margo Hayes sent La Ramblaat the end of February and on the first days of March, her partner Matty Hong was right behind with his own send of the now iconic route.  The interview asks what it was like working the route with Margo and how it feels to join the 5.15 club.
Nina Williams – Ambrosia(V11):
Bishop, CA is known for its highballs, and three of them clock in at over 50 feet.  These include Footprints (V9), Evilution Direct (V11), and Ambrosia(V11) making for a very pretty fifty-footer trifecta on the Grandpa Peabody Boulder (Daniel Woods’ The Process(V16) is not included for us mortals).  Nina Williams managed to do one each year for the last three years and has developed quite the relationship with Grandpa Peabody.
Michaela Kiersch – Twenty Four Karats (5.14c), Southern Smoke (5.14c), and Fifty Words for Pump (5.14c):
A few weeks after Bouldering Nationals, Michaela Kiersch got back on a rope and spent back-to-back weekends in Red River Gorge, and boy did she CRUSH!  These last weeks have been all about the ladies showing the boys how it done and Michaela didn’t want to be left out of the party.  She doubled her 5.14c count in 6 days!
Second Weekend
Nathan Kutcher – Contra(W13-) and Flake It Till You Make It(W11):
Two new lines just went up in Keystone Canyon, Alaska and the former takes the cake for the hardest in the state.  Nathan Kutcher recalls feeling so wiped from the effort of the ascent that he couldn’t even celebrate once it was over.  The two routes are overhanging, thin, and essentially dry tooling with only a few patches of ice to really sink in to.  Kutcher was psyched by the nearby Valdez Ice festival to go out and explore the area for new lines and he came away with a ripe plum.
Sport National Championships:
Was there any other expectation than for Kai Lightner and Ashima Shiraishi to win Sport Nationals?  Well they did but it was still stunning to watch.  Margo Hayes, fresh off her trip to Spain, took second and Brooke Raboutou placed third for the ladies.  PRG’s Jesse Grupper found silver again closely followed by Drew Ruana.
Fabian Buhl – Ganesha (8c/5.14b):
It’s hard enough to put up a first ascent, but Fabian took it to a whole other level by doing one as a rope solo.  For those not wise to the rope soloing (very different than free soloing) you lead the pitch, rap down, then clean the pitch meaning you get to do everything twice!  This route goes in seven pitches after a steep uphill approach and a long walk off.  Sounds like a hell of a day.
Joe Kinder – Planet Garbage(5.14d):
In an areas known for its stout grades, weird sequences, yet frequent traffic, it’s a miracle when something new comes out of Rifle, CO.  Joe Kinder put the work into cleaning and figuring out what is now considered the hardest line in the area, and he did it with only a few people in the loop.  Now that it’s finished, a sweet little video compiling his effort have been released, s check it out!
Calls to Action
Bears Ears, UT:
If you haven’t already made the commitment to help protect Bears Ears National Monument from government impact, then you must be living under the very rocks we are trying to protect.  It’s easy to show your support and the fight is not yet over!
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Chris Irwin:
This is not so much a call for us to act, but more showing respect to those that have answered the call.  The Access Fund’s annual Sharp End Awards go to individuals that have risen above and beyond to have tremendous impact on the climbing community be it through education or access.  Our very own Chris Irwin, President of the Midatlantic Climbers Association (MAC) has been given the award for his work in helping to re-open Catoctin State Park to climbing and for establishing better relations with Harpers Ferry Historical Park on top of his years serving in MAC.  Way to go Chris, much respect and pride to have worked with you and MAC.
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Hueco Tanks – Five Bimbos Boulders:
Woo!  More boulders have been opened in Heuco!  The boulders closed in 1999 due to excessive erosion from foot traffic and destruction of scrub vegetation.  Now that the vegetation has made a comeback, and with strict rules for paths and access, the boulders have been reopened thanks to the efforts of the Climbers of Hueco Tanks Coalition.  Another victory proving what can be accomplished when organizations and the public work together for a common goal.
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Local Events

PRG Burn Championship:
March 12 – PRG finished up the Burn series a month ago with the invitational Championships.  To compete, you had to participate in at least two of the previous competitions (Midnight, Winter, and/or Heart Burns) and place in the top 20 of your respective category.  Needless to say, this was a tough field and many hopefuls did not make it.  Still, several Maryland climbers got to see what they were made of against the PRG powerhouses like Solomon Barth, Jesse Grupper, and Zoe Steinberg and ther series continues to be the stand alone gym comp in the Midatlantic so a big thanks to Dave Roland (DR) and all of PRG for keeping the winter season alive.

Timonium 12:
April 1 – This competition was awesome!  The first [hopefully] annual Timonium 12 was styled after the classic 24 Hours of Horseshoe Hell (24HHH) but only lasted 12 hours and was held in the Earth Treks Timonium facility.  Teams of two competed to see how many routes, both lead and TR, could be completed between 6am and 6pm with points going up exponentially as the grade and length of the route went up.  A pancake breakfast kicked it off and then an after party with live music and beer finished it off, plus there was a sweet pulled pork food truck for lunch, massage therapists and chiropractors on hand throughout the day.  Crank Climbing member Justin Meserve and Tylor Streett managed to place third in Open going by the name “All Out of Bubblegum.”  I hope this becomes a series to get people out to all of the ET gyms.

Crank Candy
Deep Water Soloing Walls:
When Psicobloc took off three years ago, it astounded the American climbing community, things like this had been happening in Europe for years.  Thanks to its success, more deep water soloing (DWS) walls are being made available across the country and perhaps even a specific competition circuit.  This is a great addition to the booming artificial wall industry and helps to give places where DWS may be banned (Sommersville Lake, WV comes to mind) more attractions.  I swear I had this idea, like, ten years ago but I had no idea how to advance it.  Now that climbing walls are becoming more mainstream, investors see the value in the sport and tourism associations understand what it can do for their respective regions.  More power to them.
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Community Losses
Australian Dies at Everest Base Camp:
It seems to that Everest has become so common place that many people may take it for granted.  Despite the heavy traffic on the mountain, it is still a real adventure at high altitude and without proper training you can lose your life.  The man here didn’t even make it out of base camp before succumbing to high altitude sickness.  Fortunately, he was the only death of several cases in the 18-person party that reported HAS and had to flown to the hospital.  Protect yourselves, friends, and train appropriately.
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Royal Robbins:
We already lamented the peaceful passing of Royal Robbins on our Facebook and Twitter, so not much can be said that hasn’t already been stated in the subsequent three weeks.  I’ll simply leave the message that Robbins was and will continue to be the standard for ethics in climbing both from an ascent and LNT perspective; ground up, on lead, make it like you were never there.  THE original American climber and we should all aspire to be half as brave, strong, and dedicated.
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Deadpoint Magazine:
Yes, I know it’s not a person, but Deadpoint Magazine was a source of unfiltered climbing media for over ten years.  It was different, it was in your face, it was free!  But, just like Urban Climber before them, this style of media gets buried under the massive power of other sources like Alpinist, Rock & Ice, and Climbing Magazine.  I’m not saying that those publications are bad or worse, but they domnate the market in such a way that little guys can’t keep up (this blog included).  DPM, you were freaking rad, enjoying fishing.
Deatils

Coming Attractions
Sourland Smackdown:
April 8 – Another classic day on Pennsylvania’s Triassic diabase full of razor crimps, crappy foot smears, and sketchy top-outs.  What’s not to love?
Crank Caravan: New Hampshire Edition:
April 8-15 – All right you lazy bums, if you still want to come up for the weekend, we have two beds and a pull-out couch.  Flights to Boston are cheap and we can come get you.  The weather looks perfect for the next four days over Easter.
Tylor Streett, really wants you to come join us in New Hampshire even if it’s just for a long weekend.  Flights to Boston are cheap and we will be more than happy to come pick you up!