Pulling a biner

Carabiner FEA Analysis from mikedidonato on Vimeo.

EMS Club Day coming up

Stock slides got you down? Liquid assets dwindling? Maybe it's time to convert the paper currency into something tangible, like biners...



And speaking of gearing up, don't forget TRC's Halloween party on the 29th! (I see Joana as a farm girl, Brian as Mojojojo, and Guillaume as a lumberjack...)

Was Santa not thinking alpine?

Here's your chance to make up for it - good deals on gloves and fleece over at EMS...

Gear advice

This is my stab at a decent set of gear for our forthcoming mountaineering adventures (likely to include Mt. Washington). I've spent 7 winters in NYC using the patented hoodie+jeans+circa 1987 JC Penney's Boy's Large Parka+Converse, so the choices reflect recommendations and advice from people who have actually mountaineered.

Any advice or comments you guys have to offer would be appreciated. Note that my main constraint is cost, which explains many of the specific selections (I will certainly not be matching colors on the mountain).

White I already own, purple I haven't purchased yet and red I should decide quickly about due to impending price changes.

The Open Hand Pull-Up

Wamup:
Purchase Metolius SimulatorInstall Simulator above door frame (picture to follow) with maybe not quite enough screws...

For Satisfaction:One four-finger open grip pull-up on the Simulator's medium depth grooves.


Cool-down:

Watch Bourne Ultimatum and think that I really, really, really need to do a lot more working out as I don't think I could do mortal hand-to-hand combat after getting knocked down by a concussion-shock wave from a bomb blast only meters away, running for 500m being chased by police, running 200m across roofs, hurdling party-walls lined with shards of glass, jumping (so cool) from building to building across alleyways (Tunisia was a brilliant setting) by jumping across mini-balconies for 100m and jumping down a story through a glass window to be confronted by a homicidal killing machine (almost) as good as you. In the middle of the fight scene there is a very nice Aikido joint-lock lock/throw and beautiful escape, btw.


Makes our workouts (well, maybe not Brian's as he has to face 'the hood' getting home from the gym) seem not too bad....

Before you drop that cash for a new shell...

Here's some interesting data from Phil Gibson (Army Materials Science Team) comparing one measure of breathability across several well-known fabrics as a function of relative humidity (constant humidity gradient). The details can be found here and here.I couldn't resist the chance to plot another data set from McCullough et al. 2003, A comparison of standard methods for measuring water vapour permeability of fabrics (from their Table 1). They compared various methods of measuring breathability; the top four panels show measures of water vapor flux so bigger is better (the fourth, ASTM F2298, corresponds to Gibson's test at a higher humidity gradient and relative humidity); the last measures evaporative resistance so lower is better.These data are consistent with the word on the street that eVent is king of the hill in terms of breathability (not sure where the newer Gore fabrics fit in here). Unfortunately, the use of eVent fabric seems to be more popular across the pond, with Rab and Montane making all sorts of nice shells (you can however buy this stuff through ProLiteGear). Wild Things also makes a nice shell (in the US no less!).

More relevant reading: Mar Verber's essay on Outdoor Clothing; Andy Kirkpatrick's article on Breathable waterproofs.

Three hours of climbing in New Rochelle with Kenway. Given that it was the day before Thanksgiving, the place was pretty empty. Worked on lots of overhang climbs again. I managed to send "Monkey Business" (5.8) and Kenway finished (without taking) the orange 5.10 that gave him grief last time. I got stuck on several other 5.9s, and for a change of pace, I ended the day on a yellow 5.8 at the front that required a little bit of laybacking. Super fun and a nice change of technique. Kenway finished on a red 5.11 near the front that looked pretty technically challenging (I was cringing at the finger pocket).

Oh yeah, thanks for driving for as long as we climbed Kenway.

Steve House and Vince Anderson climbed the Rupal Face of Nanga Parbat (14,0000 ft) in 2005. The ascent took 6 days and was completed alpine style. Here are a couple of great videos where Steve describes the gear they used: