Serving Optics

I recently got back from a catalog shoot with Colorado's own, Paige Claassen, down in The Red River Gorge. The shots from the trip are heading to new issues of Climbing and Urban Climber Magazines along with Maxim Ropes Spring Catalog. Below is a fun pic of Paige climbing at The GMC Wall at The Motherlode.

I'm headed back down there in less than a week for a little over 2 weeks this time. Climbing, shooting, working on the house, stuffing my face with Turkey, and just plain chillin' are the top priorities. The house is looking great, and all 5 bedrooms are available for rent per night/week/whatever.

Hit me up if your interested in having a roof over you head, wifi, showers, etc. Btw, the house is 7 miles closer to the Pendergrass Reserve (Bob Marley, Motherlode, Driveby, Purgatory, Gold Coast, etc.) than Miguel's. But alas, I cannot serve you a brilliant slice of pie, or mega breakfast burrito, so Miguel's is always #1 for camping!

I posted a few "before and after" house pics below to show some of the hard work we've done to the place. Cheers!

Mountainsmith

Autumn is my favorite time of the year and with it, my motivation, and the motivation of the many climbers I work with, tend to sky rocket. Well, this year is no different thus far. The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of traveling, hiking, and shooting. From Matt Wilder's 5.14R First Ascent on Devil's Thumb to Jonathan Siegrist's recent stomping of The Red River Gorge, the fast pace keeps getting faster.

So, in order to streamline my travel, my in the field shooting, etc, I've teamed up, exclusively, with Mountainsmith Camera Bags and Travel Gear. I plan on using, testing, reviewing, and even helping to design, what I believe to be the best line of packs on the market. The team at Mountainsmith has recently unveiled an exciting new line of product that makes what I do, not only more efficient, but safer and faster. I'll be periodically blogging about their different products as I field test and travel with them. Exciting stuff, and I couldn't be more stoked to join forces with such an amazing, local, and forward-thinking company.

On my recent week long photo assignment to the Red River Gorge, I had to get a large load of photo equipment, climbing gear, clothes, computer, hard drives, etc to Kentucky. The last thing I want to do on such a short trip is check bags. Not only is it $20 dollars a bag, both ways, but my return flight to Denver left me absolutely zero time to get from my flight, to the last bus back to Boulder.



Now check this out: The pack on my back above (at Chicago O'Hare on layover) is called, Borealis AT ($179), and is a hybrid of a camera bag, computer case, and accessory bag. Normally, my computer bag, in addition to my camera pack, book both my carry on options and essentially forces me to check a bag (damn $40, chill out!). Problem #1 Solved. This pack is also good for a day of shooting at the crag. I can fit a camera body, 3 lenses, flashes, etc in the bottom camera compartment, jumaring gear in the top, and I can sling a static line over the top of the bag which buckles in securely. Though the pack is not designed to bare such a load, (35+ pounds), it is certainly manageable for hikes less than a mile. The separate camera compartment also means that no dirt, or chalk, will encroaches on it. Good stuff.

The Roller bag you see to my right in the photo above, is called The Boarding Pass ($135) and is designed to the maximum regulation size for carry on luggage. Perfect, as I knew I had not an inch to loose and plenty to pack. Note: The Boarding Pass is designed to fit on an overhead luggage compartment perfectly, so packing it so tight that it bulges out like a pregnant mother means that if your caught by a stewardess wrestling it into the overhead, you may be checking it. However, there is plenty of packing room to avoid this. The durability of this bag, along with the ease of packing, made traveling to, and from, The Red River Gorge a breeze.

Colorado Burl Re-cap.

Thanks to everyone who came out to the Boulder Rock Club to see Jonathan and my first slideshow on Wed. night. It was a success...I think. It was hella-fun I know that much!!! My nerves seemed to settle immediately, and I probably could of talked for hours about my photography and rock climbing. I love this job! Truth was, I figured a few close friends would be the only to show up and we'd just divvy out the swag, drink the kegs, and ditch the show all together. But, I'm sure glad that wasn't the case. Over 100 people showed up, and there was quickly standing room only! WHOA!!!!!!

Thanks again to those who showed up, Everyone at The BRC, JStar, Matt Wilder, Arc-Teryx, La Sportiva, Mountainsmith, Avery Beer, and Urban Climber for all their support. The plan is to do several more shows along the Frontange, and definitely one Denver and Fort Collins. Stay tuned for show dates...

Colorado Burl

Howdy Folks. I would like to invite you to join Jonathan Siegrist and I for a special evening of pi'tures, spray, swag, and beer this Wednesday. This is my first slideshow and needless to say, I am super psyched! The show is, again, this Wednesday, October 7th, 8pm, at The Boulder Rock Club. The show is free ($5 donation welcomed) and so is the Avery Beer. There will be a raffle and trivia giveaways from Arc-Teryx and La Sportiva. Colorado Burl will showcase all Colorado rock climbing, with healthy doses of trad, sport, and tons of bouldering. Jonathan will be offering insight into the "burl", and sharing his stories of success across the Frontrange, including his recent bolting accomplishments at "Wizard's Gate" in Estes Park. Please come on by with some friends and at least have a beer on us and leave with some swag! Cheers.

New Work

The new issue of Urban Climber Magazine has dropped and I'm the proud parent of the cover shot. The photo is of Jonathan Siegrist diggin' deep, and sending 2nd try, a 5.13d route outside Seattle, WA. Pick up a copy to read the feature article about our trip to the NW and back. Also, amongst the pages of this issue you'll find of mine: a 2 page spread bouldering photo of Little Cottonwood Canyon, a Carrie Cooper Drive column, a gallery shot of Vanessa Compton sending in Dream Canyon, and a Phil Schall portrait. Go Phil!

Very cool. Very psyched. All the standard supperlatives apply.

Also, I'm happy to have teamed up with Metolius for the front and back covers of their new 2009-10 catalog. Matt Wilder and Ethan Pringle pluggin' the best cams on the market. You can pick up a free copy here. Cheers!

Back from The Red

Keith Ladzinski, Lauren Lee, and I drove out to Kentucky last week to start renovating the house. What a truly great place. There are even horses in the backyard. Country livin' at its finest! A few crags are even within walking distance, with most being a few miles drive.

We spent the last week working 18 hour days - pulling up carpets, finishing hardwood floors, tiling floors, landscaping, cleaning, scraping, mudding, painting walls, laying new water pipes, putting in appliances, cutting on utilities...the whole sha-bang. A lot of work! We hope to have 5 bedrooms available by the end of October, each with 2 big beds, country furnishings, locking doors, wifi, and mucho privacy. More info to come.

Photo Below: The crew working late night style, sanding and scrapping old wallpaper.

Serving Optics

Ryan Olson adding a new variation (11+?) on a nice deep water soloing wall at Independence Pass, CO. 2006. Taken with the ol' Coolpix point and shoot. High altitude psychobloc? Good times. The prow leading up to Ryan's position in the photo remains a project. Likely 5.14 or harder, although, hard to establish on without a little raft of some sort. This particular line climbs in from low and right. Worthy, with great position.