Eastward Ho!

Good news, Rockers and Rockettes!
I'm headed back to the Red for Halloween. It seems the only Rockette who isn't totally psyched at this development is my ladyfriend, Kate. Any holiday with a government mandate for couples and individuals alike to get dressed up like disco queens and drink 'til they're blind is a fine occasion for romance. Alas, the only curvey object in my hand will be a chilly bottle of Ale81. And it's not even infused with alcohol.

In preparation for the Red, I've gone back to Rifle for some last minute training. Sure, there might have been that ulterior motive of my stratospheric level of psych for climbing there right now, and I might have had a longstanding open project that required attention before winter sets in, but whatever the reason, I was wrestling Colorado's finest limestone choss again this weekend.

Kate and I got out there early enough of Friday to snag THE primo campsite. At this time of year, early sun is a at a premium, and we were in trusty Number 8. It didn't stop us from stoking up the fire in retaliation to morning's bitter temperatures that kept the early motivation low, despite the sunlight. As you'd expect, all of our friends came out of the woodwork to share the site, and by Sunday, No. 8 looked like the Hunchback Grimper Carnival had come to town. The tent city spilled nearly to the road, and we even got a highly anticipated cameo by Leslie The Paranoid Schitzophrenic. Everyone got a little jumpy when she spilled out of her car, along with skis, a turntable, and a years worth of newspapers. Please sweet lord above, don't let a loaded handgun come next!

The rest of the visitors were totally enjoyable. Dave Snyder stuck it out with us for the weekend, and this was one of the highlights given that he's one of the nicest, most relaxed people I've ever met. If I ever get to the point where I'm easily crushing 13c, I'd like to do it with as much style, humility, and humor as him. Have I mentioned I have a man crush on the guy?

Kate was motivated to get a lot of mileage in this weekend, and the work she's been doing there is really starting to show. She now has a slew of warmups that, last year, would have been projects. Now she's putting in burns on a fanstastic 12b, Lost and Found. Two years ago, mid 5.12 wasn't even on her radar, and now she's putting it together. It's been cool to watch her get motivated to really push herself and test her limits.
I got on a bunch of climbs, too, and had some success of my own. When Katie and I got up this morning, though, we both felt like Tony Yao ran us over in his green micro bus. I am sore everywhere, and my fingertip skin is so thin it hurts to open the fridge. Now, I just have to clean up the camping gear from the weekend, and get psyched for the Red in just over two weeks. In the interim weekend, maybe a trip back for more bolt clipping on the Western Slope, weather permitting.