Are you Experienced? or Something New, Something Old, and Something Borrowed

If you squint your eyes, it looks like a Topo of Rattlesnake Canyon (or the universe)

In the late 1800's a young artisan was sent to Rattlesnake Canyon with the task to retrieve only the finest sandstone for the construction of Santa Barbara's grand estates. But like most young people, the boy was more interested in exploring his surroundings rather than fulfilling the needs of his spiritless employers. As he crisscrossed his way up the rambling stream bed, he started to think about the stories he had heard of marauding groups of banditos and the lost 49er's driven to madness by the thrill of striking gold. Deeper and deeper he moved in to the shaded canyon, deeper and deeper grew the feeling that something or someone, was watching him. That there was something going on in the shadows.

You see, this part of the world was and is, wild. Each canyon locks away its own secrets behind a wall of poison oak and manzanita, the perfect place for things that need to be or that want to be hidden away. But every once in a while the youthful need for exploration will reveal its secrets. And that's exactly what a motivated group of SBRG climbers have been up to. Searching the untouched and forgotten parts of Santa Barbara looking for the finest sandstone.

The Canyons

Their newest find may not be so new, some of the local heroes have claimed first ascents on the same boulders, but the crew has breathed some new life in to the area. With a tip of the cap to those first ascensionists, the boys have been creating access to what they're calling The Creamery. How this area got it's name is not my story to tell but I can tell you that the guys are working hard to get this place looking as good as the new McConnell's on State St.

Notice the fine ironwork

With only hand drawn maps available online, going to The Creamery feels like your striking out in to the unknown. And you are. You're responsible for your own safety and how you treat the area. It's not the gym with plush crash pads, holds that won't break, and people cleaning up after you.
There are no pieces of tape telling you where to place your foot.
When you're climbing a route, you're probably one of a handful who've done so. And this is one of the benefits of being a climber. As you sit on the boulder you just topped out smile knowing the thing in the shadows is you or the route your about to climb, and that there is something else going on.

Two of the Handful

Check out these tips about leaving wild places wild. Don't ruin it for the rest of us.
Gym to Crag
Leave No Trace

Don't Believe the Hype: or follow the beat of your own drum

Quest anyone?

Like most climbers, we here at the gym have spent a lot of time and effort traveling to places that most people think only exist as an 800 piece puzzle solution. You know, the types of places Frodo often finds himself elbows deep in a quest. And we go for the same reasons that Ol’ Pete Jackson does: for the views, for the quiet, for the camaraderie, and mostly to see what we’re made of. 

Why else would we spend our nights and weekends wrecking our bodies and minds training for and dreaming about the “BIG” climb? 

And the big climb can be anything. It can be the red one in the back of the bouldering cave, it can be a tendon-popping red point at the Owl Tor, or it can be something that you haven’t found yet but for some reason you still feel the need to try harder, to do more. 

But just like young Frodo, our quest to send the big one, to climb our...our precious...can blind us(i.e. me) from the other joys of being a traveling climber. 

For example, I want to attempt to climb a handful of mountains under 24 hours. This means I have to spend a great deal of time training for these events. On one of my training hikes a friend who was accompanying me threw a wrench in the entire plan. As I related the goal he asked me, “Why would you want to rush through such beautiful places? I mean, you’ve never been there before right? So why rush the experience?”

Well it appears I have a history of this phenomenon. Six years ago I started a project at the New River Gorge that was supposed to be my first 5.12. In order to climb this route I had to drive 6 hours, hike 20 minutes to a place with only 2 other climbs, pray it wasn’t going to be wet or get wet, sucker in a belay partner, and try to climb through the last bolt that always shut me down.

"The Forest"

"The Trees"

The kicker is that in my 6 hour drive I passed 4 amazing climbing spots, I hiked pass 2 better climbing spots or could have hiked to a better location that would be dry and have a better selection of routes, and oh yeah, I wouldn’t have to climb and fail on the same move that, to this day, I have not completed. 

You might ask if the route is awesome and no it’s ok. You may ask if the location is awesome and no there’s nothing particularly spectacular about it. That fact of the matter is I wanted to climb that one route so bad that nothing else would do and I may have limited my experience down at the New.

So what’s the point? 

The point is that we here at the gym hope you keep going for those “BIG” climbs. We also hope that you enjoy the places you’re in, the people you’re with, and are willing to change the plans. 

*I’m currently reevaluating my goals, maybe I’ll climb those mountains in 2 days.

Happy Trails

Santa Barbara Rock Gym

322 State St.

Santa Barbara, CA 93101

805-770-3225

"Helping to foster and preserve Santa Barbara's Climbing Community"

Happy New Year: Now lets get back to normal

Note the Green to Meat color ratio

Happy New Year! 

Now lets get back to normal

If you're like most of us here at the gym, the holiday season means less actual climbing and more talking about climbing while eating delicious, mouth-watering, butter-soaked, sugar-encrusted, calorie-packing, waist-line-expanding, thank-you-grandma-but-I-can't-eat-another-ok-one-more, treats. 

And its hard, I know. 

At most holiday parties they put those mass produced, tired looking vegetable trays right next to the fresh baked, homemade treats table. That's a real no-brainer. It's like winning an all expense paid trip to either Ice Climb in Antarctica or to Sport Climb in Thailand. 

I'll take Thailand.

vs.

But it's over, so lets get back to normal... no, better than normal. 

First things first, we've got to figure out what we're going to get better at. If you don't have a goal, it's like fishing with just a hook. 

Climbing guru Eric Hörst explains in Training for Climbing:The Definitive Guide to Improving Your Performance that goal setting first starts with self-assessment. Once we know where we are in our climbing it's easier to know where we want to go. 

After we know where we want to be, we have to take action and be willing to make course corrections along the way. The taking action and making course corrections part is where we here at SBRG can help out. We offer amazing FREE members clinics on the last Monday of every month and want to offer things you're interested in learning. 

SO ASK US!

If your goal is to boulder harder, climb longer, or onsight radder(!?!) we can help, we want to help. Just ask us to hold a free members clinic on the subject you're interested in.

And one more thing about reaching goals. Every one needs an account-a-bil-a-buddy, someone who will hold you accountable for and ask how those goals are coming. 

Who better than your climbing accoun-a-bil-a-buddies at SBRG!!

Your Account-a-bil-a-buddies