59-inch Drill*itch

Gaston? High Step? Drop Knee? Talk in here.
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weber
Posts: 1017
Joined: Wed Sep 24, 2003 5:44 pm

59-inch Drill*itch

Post by weber »

Image

Here's my favorite unsung hero -- Squeezindlemmon, aka 59-inch Drillbitch.

It takes a lot of grueling work -- more than most of us realize or appreciate -- to develop a new route. This is not a posed novelty photo. It was taken as I watched Karla wrestle a heavy, bone-chattering Boshe hammer drill to put in ten Dynabolts on a new route. Some of you macho jocks try hanging and drilling for an hour with half your body weight in equipment and hardware suspended from your harness. Rock dust, sweat, fatigue. It ain't fun.

When you're up sending your favorite RRG climb, remember the folks whose efforts made it possible.

PS

Because this photo was taken with a telephoto lens, it looks like the bolt hole is going in 2 feet below another hanger. Actually this other hanger, with a draw on it, is about 10 feet back on another route, and the crack is about 30 feet back.
We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand. - Randy Pausch
None are so old as those who have outlived enthusiasm. - Henry David Thoreau
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dipsi
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Joined: Thu Sep 26, 2002 9:54 pm

Post by dipsi »

One of my heros for sure! :!:
What I love about running is you can meditate while running. It's a peaceful place.

Sister Mary Elizabeth Lloyd, Runs marathons to raise money and awareness about children orphaned by AIDS
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Joel
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Joined: Tue Oct 08, 2002 5:53 pm

Post by Joel »

Karla,

We can't thank you enough.

(That goes for you, too, Rick.)

Joel
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squeezindlemmon
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Joined: Mon Apr 12, 2004 7:02 pm

Post by squeezindlemmon »

Awww... ya'll are gonna make me cry! :mrgreen:

Rick forgot to mention that although it's a lot of hard work, it's a lot of fun to do too... esp since I get to do it with an awesome crowd.
Emancipate yourself from mental slavery. None but ourselves can free our mind. ~Bob Marley
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Caspian
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Joined: Mon May 05, 2003 9:28 pm

Post by Caspian »

Thanks a lot Squeeze.

by the way...whats the name of that crack behind you?...seriously
"how ironic....now he's blind after a life of enjoying being able to see."~Homer
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J-Rock
Posts: 1936
Joined: Tue Apr 13, 2004 9:30 pm

Post by J-Rock »

That crack has not been climbed yet and as far as we know nobody had any plans for it. I thought it might be 5.8 or 5.9 by the looks of it. The rock is good and the route is more than 100 feet long. Whoever does the the FA will have the honor of cleaning it (there is one short green section) and installing anchors. Also, it ends under an enormous arch. 8)
"Those iron spikes you use have shortened the life expectancy of the Totem Pole by 50,000 years."

--A Navaho elder
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squeezindlemmon
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Joined: Mon Apr 12, 2004 7:02 pm

Post by squeezindlemmon »

Hahaha... Rick we're in trouble now.... have we disclosed the location of this climb? I have been getting several pms asking about that crack already!
Emancipate yourself from mental slavery. None but ourselves can free our mind. ~Bob Marley
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tomdarch
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Joined: Wed Dec 04, 2002 9:22 pm

Post by tomdarch »

Look at those forearms! I'm jealous!

Thanks to the whole team for putting up all those routes!
Bacon is meat candy.
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pigsteak
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Joined: Tue Jun 17, 2003 6:49 pm

Post by pigsteak »

telephot lens..does that make squeeze 2 foot tall or 8 foot tall in reality..I want to know the size of the monster I have been tackling.. :twisted:

nice work....I do feel your pain...and joy.
Positive vibes brah...positive vibes.
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Alan Evil
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Joined: Fri Oct 10, 2003 1:08 pm

Post by Alan Evil »

Heh heh, under an arch, eh?
[size=75]You are as bad as Alan, and even he hits the mark sometimes. -charlie

"Not all conservatives are stupid, but most stupid people are conservative." - John Stuart Mill[/size]
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