Early AM on a Sunday, now generally the only day I have for my bouldering session. I now have a new position at the University of Colorado Denver School of medicine in the department of Neurology, my employer Randahl Cohrs is interested in Varicella Zoster Virus the causative agent of Chicken Pox and Shingles, it is a sweet job but requires a daily commute to D-town so I have less time now. I am already thinking about the 2009-2010 season, what it might entail, although now employed full-time I have a faculty posting so I have 4 weeks plus vacation each year with all the holidays too, this opens up some travel opportunities that before did not exist as I have a salary more than adequate. Of course I have Ouray 2010 as a goal, probably no qualifier again this year as the sponsoring entities do not want this as then non-sponsored nobodies tend to eliminate the sponsored “athletes” who then miss the final on Saturday. This omission of the preliminary has been attributed to volunteer burnout but if 45 people sign-up and each pay $40 to be in the preliminary you would have $1800 in which to compensate judges, belayers and so forth so I don’t see the issue as such. In the last four years I have done 10 different winter climbing competitions, I enjoyed all of these immensely except for Bozeman 2008 when I got paired with the illustrious Jim “The Spud” Earle who hadn’t tied into a rope in two years, it was amusing to watch him flail on some of the dry-tool routes but I took a no-score rather than end up 15th behind the legally blind-amputee breast-cancer survivor climbing squad, I do possess humility but sometimes you just have to throw in the towel. I may do Bozeman as an open entrant this year so I can visit Simone my daughter in Bozeman who will be a freshman at Montana Sate University, I will of course bring my own partner to avoid the inevitable Joe Josephson voodoo manipulations of teams and starting assignations, Joe is a great guy but utterly from another era, doesn’t understand modern mixed/ice and cannot help but meddle to have the comp’ come out the way his dated sensibilities dictate, anyway the organizers of this event are too concerned with turning a profit with their clinics so people are herded around like cattle from clinics to coma-inducing slideshows. There are actually some very good routes in Hyalite both ice and mixed although mild/dry autumns the last two years have meant lean conditions and on Saturday last year the routes were in sorry shape as the Chinook blew big-time, all this after a brutally freezing day on Thursday. I hope Festiglace du Quebec returns in 2010, hopefully Eric Leclerc will return safe and sound from Afghanistan those fuck-head Jihadists having missed him and his mates with their roadside bombs and mortars. Otherwise I might like to do Europe again, I was invited to Gorzderette last winter by Stephan Husson but could not go this year for sure I will go if asked. Also I would like to do the Lake City, Colorado Comp’ if that is happening, I really think this event has potential. I doubt I will do the Ice World Cup as this would involve dealing with the American Alpine Club an organization I loathe with their fossilized thinking and geezer-hierarchy, if I do I will join the Italian Alpine Club and compete as an Italian, I can't bear the thought of handing the AAC my money so they can give it to some drip like Kelly "Mangina" Cordes for his summer vacation. So I train and dream, dream of winter and those freezing, adrenaline-drenched moments, for now trying to stay strong and not eat so much ice cream and drink so much beer. This spring has been terrifically wet so hopefully this will translate into much seepage this winter, Rocky Mountain National Park was poor this past winter, there is much potential there if only the moisture would occur, maybe this is the year. Finding people to go will be another issue, always a problem here in Colorado where everyone is a climber but no one actually goes climbing, that would require effort I suppose.
