As it has been a good day I am also in the mood to post some of the local routes that I am sure everyone knows about, but they have also decided that it isn't worth the trip. If you've guessed it that would be the Riverbanks Zoo Boulders I had the chance to hangout down there for a little while today and do two of my favorite routes there and I definitely suggest checking them out.
If you decide to go out to these boulders there are about 10 to 13 routes in that immediate area, I have heard that there are more but I have not had the chance to go and check them out yet so hopefully that is something that I will have more time to do. With the exception of these two routes this is mostly a set of boulders for beginners, but if you are ever itchy to just go outside and get away from the gym its a good place to go. You park your car in the back right side of the zoo parking lot follow one of the many trails towards the river and continue on the trails to your right, hop over some rocks across a small branch of the river and you're there.
I will tell you a warning about these two climbs, the landing is horrible if you can, take a friend with you. Also there is very little foot placement so just smearing your way up them isn't really going to happen.
The blue route is the easier of the two, you pull between the corner sloper on the right and the triangle pinch that runs to the top of the right, step up with your left foot on the small chip that sticks out about a half inch at knee height, after that you swing up with your right hand and grab the top of the triangle pinch where the climb ends, match your hands on that then pull up till you can get your left foot onto the very beginning of the triangle pinch and your up!
The yellow route is definitely harder probably only by one grade but it is harder, I've named this one Iron Man. You start with your right hand in the triangle pinch, but when leaned against like in this route it is a nice jug, put your right foot up on the 3 inch long smear that sticks out the most at knee height, it is below the triangle jug/pinch. Once you are in that position you are ready to swing your left side up to the sloping crimp on the top, there is really no crimp but it has enough feature to it to get a grip on it. You then work your way up along the jug/pinch while pushing off the sloper till you can get your feet under you and top out.
For today's review I will be reviewing my Revolution bouldering pad, it is the 2011 Mission 1.
Revolution doesn't have it on their official website, but they have it on their blog here, but I thought I would give a review of it as a consumer here after a number of months with fairly regular use of the pad. I really have nothing to complain about with the exception of the shoulder straps, they are velcroed in at the top right below that metal ring, the velcro is inside a sleeve type pocket and it really causes no problems unless I have absolutely loaded my pad full of all kinds of equipment, because I will sometimes use my pad as if it was my giant backpack and really I can't complain about that too much considering I only have problems with the velcro when I load it down. The pad has held up incredibly well, the foam is still stiff and the corners really haven't "tweeked" even though the Revolution blog is the one that was talking about that happening. The material that it is made of is extremely durable and there are no holes in it or stray threads. Also where I live and have been for some reason the dirt is dry on top and wet below, but my pad hasn't held onto any of the mud that I have gotten all over it. I was lucky enough to get my pad on sale for a little over $180, but the going price was about $259 last time I saw, but compared to the rest of what is on the market I would say that it was definitely worth what I paid for it and I have gotten more than my moneys worth.
On a last note, there will be work being done in an effort to make boulders easier to access and climb in our upstate check it out here!
On a last note, there will be work being done in an effort to make boulders easier to access and climb in our upstate check it out here!
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