To Chalk or not To Chalk????!?!?

Post by **Gretchen** » Fri Jul 25, 2003 8:37 pm

Man I waiting for Krieg to come out with the body chalk bag!!!

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Fri Jul 25, 2003 10:10 pm

Honestly I don't know what to say,all this week I've been getting my ass kicked on ethics,(how many of you can say that someone sat down with you and gave you a three hour dissertation on their personal ethics?)Yikes!!!
As for to chalk or not to chalk I don't know.

Just a little logic on the subject:most other areas are mostly slab.or at least a lot more slab than what is here.To have a "chalk path" is ruinious to the whole problem. Versus the Red which is not a question of where the route is but can you hang on

Post by **Rain Man** » Sun Jul 27, 2003 4:10 am

I've SEEN SikMonkey chalk up 3-4 times on a 50 ft 5.7 route before...it was quite comical, actually (since he's projecting 12b/c's) and I noted as much when he came down.

On the same note, I don't use chalk (never have really, which probably began as me not wanting to buy a chalkbag). I can sit here and say with a VERY high degree of confidence that you do NOT sweat as much as I do (just ask Sik, and the 2 others at the bottom of everything I climbed today and how they said I should change my name to Rain Man). You ARE able to draw chalk from many of the more popular routes, as well. Reiterating what someone has already said, just climb without the chalk at the MN crags (though, Taylors Fall, at least on the MN side, doesn't seem to have a policy on chalk, at least none that I heard about 2 weeks ago while I was climbing there - also on a business trip). You will probably feel "sketched" and greasy and weak and unsure of yourself and your holds and all that stuff for a while, until you just accept what friction you have and climb with it.

Tha bottom line, I guess is, it's a route, you're a climber....climb on.

Oh, and when will you be in MN and where? I'll be back up in Minneapolis from the 11th through the 30th of Aug if you want to get together at Vertical Endeavors in St. Paul, or try to hit something outside.

Post by **SikMonkey** » Sun Jul 27, 2003 11:14 pm

I own stock in Metolius.

Mj

Post by **Caspian** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 2:41 am

I am a chalk junky.....I think one of the first steps to quiting is admiting it right?

Post by **canadaclimbergirl** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 11:43 am

OK....here is an example of how much my palms sweat.

I can be sitting in my office on a wednesday afternoon, thinking about sending on the weekend......and my palms sweat.......

I've tried climbing without chalk, it is kinda scary. I either climb at Granite crags where you get nice flakes (fine without chalk) or big rounded slopers (not so fine without chalk) Or...I'm climbing on overhangy limestone or basalt...in which case....i need the chalk just to hold on.

I saw a girl at our gym with 'grey' color friendly chalk she got for squamish.....and her hands looked like she had some kind of terrible illness...... it was rather amusing.

Sik Monkey - funny you say you own shares in metolious.... We don't live close to a shop, so we'll order 4 or so cases from Mountain Equipment Co-op. They had a 'chalk shortage' a few years back, and couldn't get any from metolious or flashed... in any case....it wasn't a good scene....... ha ha ha ha

I noticed that some of the crags in MN do allow chalk, and I'll be in Red Wing or Minniapolis, so Barns Bluff is right there...and it allows chalk I see. good thing!

Post by **Rain Man** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 1:03 pm

I carry a small towel on my harness (through a gear loop) to dry my hands/arms and face when my heat generators kick into high-gear.

Check out www.rockchalk.net

I was looking for a "low impact" chalk a little while back for this mid-summer heat, but just opted to pass, since I sweat more than any chalk can absorb (I just make it a nasty paste) and this stuff looked very promising. I'd be very interested to get your thoughts on it, if you get some.

Post by **canadaclimbergirl** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 1:11 pm

that stuff looks pretty cool...but here is a thought...

The crag that I go to most is Granite. It is mostly a pinkish feldspar granite, but there are sections that are very gray, and even black. So...would I have to carry two chalk bags? one with the pink, and one with a gray??

otherwise it looks good.

Post by **Rain Man** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 1:25 pm

Well, yeah, therein lies the biggest problem with trying to "match" your chalk to the rock...varying types and colors of rock. Regular white chalk doesn't stand out as much on white/black speckled granite as other types of rock, so you might be fine with it there.

Post by **Jeff** » Mon Jul 28, 2003 7:41 pm

Hey Rain Man, try some wrist bands like tennis players wear.