Alpine Follies

Alpine Follies

Saturday, February 27, 6-8 pm

at Vertical Relief Climbing Center

Events*: Screaming Barfies, Sedona Dexterity Test, Crashpad Obstacle Course!

*This is a team challenge. To compete you must be in a team of two.

Prizes: 1st place, Best Name, Best Costume, Weakest Link

FREE for members or with a day pass!

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Do you have what it takes?

Local Climber Profile: Zak Farmer

Growing up in Flagstaff, Arizona and finding a connection with climbing at an early age, Zak Farmer soon became one of the strongest boulderers in Flag. By his teens he was climbing double digit boulder problems all over the southwest and placing at top level bouldering competitions. After a crushing shoulder injury before his 18th birthday while climbing at the bouldering mecca Ibex, Zak was forced to deal with the fact that he may never climb at a high level again (or climb at all!). Since then Zak has moved on, graduated high school and then college, moved up the ranks working at Vertical Relief Climbing Center (his current position is Head Routesetter and Retail Manager) and, after much rehabilitation, found a meaningful albeit different place for climbing in his adult life.

I cornered Zak recently and asked him a few questions...

J: Why did you start climbing?

Z: I actually can't claim any credit on why I started climbing. Climbing was one of those things that was recommended by my mother. I had climbed outside with some programs at the Museum of Northern Arizona but those were just a couple of fun days and this was before the gym had even been built. Having been to the gym once or twice I had received a mailing advertisement about the junior team when it first started. Being the calm and open minded teen that I was I thought it sounded kind of lame, but I was "nudged" to do it anyway. I fell in love with it immediately.

J: What was your motivation for climbing when you were young?

Z: Once I got started climbing at Vertical Relief I imagined myself no other place. I had had a lot of trouble with team sports, especially with overzealous coaches who seemed to just be washed up out of shape people who couldn't do the sport themselves anyway. Climbing quickly seemed to be quite different from the sports I was used to. I feel that the independent nature of climbing is what kept drawing me in as you can choose the direction you wish to follow instead of being told what you have to do. I naturally excelled at climbing as soon as I started which is always nice to keep motivated. I am not sure being so good at such a young age helped at all with my ego, as I am sure a lot people who knew me as a young kid can attest (cough..Pete Walka..cough) but I definitely think it kept me focused on climbing. Teens are fickle and can bounce around a lot but I stuck with climbing.

J: How did you injure your shoulder? Was it difficult to start climbing again?

Z: I was climbing at Ibex on a V10 there and I had done all the hard moves but put my shoulder into a weird position and I tore my labrum and bicep tendon on my left shoulder. I lost complete use of the shoulder and had to go in for surgery where they placed I believe 7 anchors on the labrum and had to piece the bicep tendon back together again. Things looked grim and for a little over a year and a half I was a roller coaster on my way to recovery. Some days I would feel great and some days were terrible and I don't think I really regained full functionality for a couple years. However, after recovering I found myself to be a much better climber, even placing better at competitions. Not being able to use my raw power for so long led me to seek alternate methods of achieving my goals and by adding new tricks I brought my climbing to a whole new level.

J: Is your motivation for climbing different now that you are older and have gone through some adversity with your climbing?

Z: Absolutely, climbing is a gift and it can be taken away so mercilessly and without reason. One day you are at the top of your game and with no warning it's gone. It leaves you with a sense that you really have no control of the outcome on the choices you make in life. You can let it destroy you or you can let it fuel you, there are people doing incredible things after having endured more than I can imagine...it's just a shoulder, at least I still have my arm. As far as my motivations changing I think it has been quite dramatic. As a young guy I was really focused on competing and being the best, at all costs, and in the end when I had to pay those costs, it wasn't worth it. Does that mean I don't enjoy competing? No. I still have that drive and I always will, it just means that I look at each experience I have with climbing much more intently now knowing that is a fleeting moment.

J: Where do you see climbing fitting into your future?

Z: I have for some time now tried to expand my vision of what climbing is to me. I was as pure a boulder as they come and it created a power that pushed me to the limits...but it was also limiting. I wasn't well rounded, I had no head for rope climbing and I thought trad climbing was a joke. I think it really left me incomplete as a climber. So recently I have been doing it all. Trad climbing more and focusing on sport climbing has once again given me the confidence in my abilities to succeed and refueled my drive to take those new skills back to the competition realm...but years have gone by and kids who weren't even climbing when I was at my peak are now cleaning house. It will be interesting to see where I stand.

Conditions at Jack's Canyon Feb. 1, 2010

The ground surfaces are covered with snow, with patches of wet mud exposed. As the days warm, and as additional light precipitation falls, the ground will stay in this condition for some time.


The road into the main parking area is very wet and muddy, beginning at the 1st "Y" after the entrance gate. Ruts averaged 11-inches deep! High clearance, 4x4 vehicle needed to pass the entire road (a smaller/lower Subaru-type vehicle will get stuck.)


Walking to the rim from the entrance was a miserable, wet, muddy experience. Skiing in is not an option, as there is more mud than snow.
The canyon drainage has minimal flow, so, if you go, you can access all of the climbs, but will be mud-hopping the whole way in, with the canyon decent/assent being somewhat treacherous.

-Wyatt Brown

Excellent Dean Potter Video!

Daily Climbing Tips

We just found a nice site that is worth checking out http://www.dailyclimbingtips.com/. Good tips for climbers.

Sedona Season

Just a bit of Sedona to get you psyched! The season is on!

Alien Baby at The Anvil Boulders



The classic "The Mace"



Oak Creek Spire Jump 1



Oak Creek Spire Jump 2



The Mace Jump (crazy). Anyone who does this should get a gold star!!!



Leap of Faith



Chris finds a big rattlesnake in Sedona



REAL Rock Climbers!!!

Cochise Stronghold Trip Report: Women Build Good Anchors Class

The " Women Build Good Anchors Class" held at the Cochise Stronghold in mid November was a huge success. Myself and four other woman climbers spent 3 amazing days camping, climbing and learning at the beautiful granite domes of the Stronghold.

We arrived on Friday afternoon and set up camp at a super sweet site with an amazing view of the West Stronghold.

After spending some time getting to know a little bit about one another we dove right into learning about ropes, webbing, cord and the like. We talked extensively about the construction, benefits and uses of these soft goods. Then we practiced knots and hitches until the sun set and our fingers were frozen. After enjoying a hot meal and a toasty camp fire we all retired to our tents.

Saturday morning we awoke to low clouds socked in against the rock formations, but soon the sun poked through the clouds and it turned into a lovely day. A perfect day, actually, to learn the basic principles of anchor construction. The camp site we choose was surrounded by small domes and free-standing boulders. This is where we spent part the day learning and practicing anchor building skills. The ladies had a great time wandering around tying off trees, slinging boulders and placing gear.

After a good lunch and a small rain storm that produced a fabulous rainbow, it was time to put those skills into practice and do some climbing. We hiked to a sight just 15 minutes from camp. The formation I had beta on was a small top roping crag with 6 established routes. The ladies choose the 5.7 off-width and the 5.8 crack just to the right as their targets. Due to the nature of many of the domes at the Stronghold we were able to easily scramble to the top of the formation.

Next we broke into teams and began to build TR anchors for the chosen routes. The women used their newly found skills to build some pretty sophisticated anchors. We spent a lot of time making sure each cam placement was bomber and all the master points were perfect. The sun was just beginning to set as we tossed the ropes down. After dealing with some rope management issues ( a rope got stuck on a ledge oops),we realized that there would be no climbing today. So we let the ropes hang for the night and headed back to camp excited to send in the morning. Back at camp, dinner and fire were the first order of business.

That night the clear cold desert sky was beautiful. The stars were so intensely bright, the concentrated band of the Milky Way blazing above and the random shooting stars made the sky seem unreal.

Sunday we woke up to a icy sunshiny day. As we ate breakfast we watched and waited for the sun to hit our climbs. We hiked back to site checked our anchors and spent the morning climbing in the sunshine. The climbs were stout for the ratings but quality none the less. Everyone was super excited to have climbed on, and fallen on, the anchors they had built themselves. We broke everything down and headed to camp and then to the next climbing site.

The next site was Council Rocks we hiked in scouted our routes and headed to the top. Each team did a great job of using their skills and were able to get a good start on their anchors, but unfortunately we were running short on time and didn't get a chance to climb that afternoon.

We covered so much material in such a short amount of time. The class could have lasted for another 3 days easily. But the ladies did an awesome job of facing and overcoming all the challenges the Stronghold threw at them in the time we had. I learned just as much as my students did on this adventure, and I feel proud to have been apart of this class. I can't wait to do it all over.