Atelier Ortega, an award winning chocolateria located in Jackson Hole, WY, is hosting a Wine and Dessert Tasting this Saturday, February 6th from 7-10 p.m.
Master Chocolatier and pastry chef Oscar Ortega will be serving a selection of his delicious desserts in petite sizes matched with wines from Elizabeth Imports.
This event, to be held at Atelier Ortega, 150 Scott Lane in Jackson Hole (map), is open to the public, and the cost is $20 per person.
If you have any questions you can email Mark Daverin at markdaverin@atelierortega.com, or call Atelier Ortega at 734-6400.
For those who love divine chocolates, this event is not to be missed!
Ouray is a fantastic place and the Ice Festival held there every January is a great event that is an opportunity for folks interested in the sport of ice climbing to take clinics with sponsored climbers, demo the latest gear from top brands, see slideshows, win gear, be entertained, see the competition, eat good food, meet the players in the industry, soak in hot springs and in general have a great time in a beautiful place with good, fun people!
Photo of me doing some mixed climbing at the Ouray Ice Park before the competition.
The comp route, put up by Vince Andersen at al, was excellent this year! This was my second year competing. I had fun, climbed well and ended up roughly in the middle of the pack. Click here for comp results.
Congratulations to Josh Wharton on his dominant win!
It is not easy to put yourself out there to compete at the elite level, with a crowd and judges. To all those who competed, creating a fun and supportive environment, thanks and congratulations!
Will Gadd is my hero! He ice climbed 24 hours straight, climbing over 25,000 feet of ice! See below.
Will Gadd climbed non-stop for 24 hours at the Ouray Ice Park in an event billed as The Endless Ascent to raise money for the dZi Foundation, which builds programs to improve education and quality of life in the small villages of the Himalaya. No one has pulled this sort of feat off, but if anyone can do it, it’s an ice master and freak of fitness like Will. This is a GREAT opportunity for all of us climbers to support a cause that truly makes a difference. You can get more details, follow the Twitter feed and MAKE YOUR DONATION at: www.endlessascent.org
I find that, inevitably, when I go to use my hydration pack it has been sitting with water in it for three months and is basically unusable until cleaned. I came across the following information on how to clean your hydration pack on http://www.utahmountainbiking.com, which seems to be very comprehensive. I will add one thing: when done with your clean hydration pack for the day, take it out of your pack, drain it, pull the hose off, put a bent coat hanger (with ends/sharp bits on the outside or taped) on the inside to separate it/open it up and hang it, so it dries completely after each use. I know…kind of a pain and maybe not worth it but the price to pay for clean water on the go.
Cleaning your hydration pack!
Got some black deposits in the tube of your Camelbak? Dark stuff in the seams? Little black spots? You’ve got fungus, mold, and bacterial slime inside your hydration pack. Do you really want to drink that stuff? Didn’t think so.
First, get the inside of the bladder clean. That’s the easy part. You can use a baby-bottle brush. I’ve found what works best is a long-handled foam paint brush. The point of the foam gets into the seams nicely. Don’t use soap, unless you want to taste soap for the next month. Just use plain water for your routine cleanings.
For deeper cleaning, use a paste of sodium bicarbonate (add just enough water to make it squishy) as an abrasive to remove stubborn deposits. The bicarbonate also kills germs and removes unusual tastes such as that “stale plastic” flavor.
Scrub into the seams, and don’t forget to clean inside the port where the hose attaches. (A persistent nasty taste can mean the plastic is degenerating and poisoning you. If an odd water taste persists after soaking the bladder overnight in bicarbonate solution — 1 teaspoon per pint — buy a replacement.)If you can’t get a brush to a cruddy seam area, squeeze the bladder sideways so the seam touches a flat area. Trap the seam between thumb and finger as shown. Now squish back and forth, working down the seam. Not as good as a brush, but better than nothing.
Now sterilize the bladder. This slows down the regrowth of spores and germs. Put about 1/2 cup of water in the bladder and toss it in the microwave. Don’t boil the water! Just heat it up, a bit at a time, until the bladder is too hot to touch. Take it out and let it sit flat, so the hot water contacts the entire inside of the bladder. Leave it until the water is cool.
Now the fun part — the hose. Pull the hose off the bladder, and pull the bite valve off the hose. I recommend you buy a tube-cleaning brush. That’s a long stiff cable with a little brush on one end, made just to clean the inside of hydration bladder tubes. That’s the best solution for a frequent rider. Quick and effective, with a tool made specifically for the job.But if you’re cheap or only plan to clean the tube on rare occasions, here’s a home-made tube cleaner: Get an old derailleur cable. (Clean it first with soap and water if it’s greasy!) Slide the derailleur cable through the hose.
Take a short piece of paper towel (NOT tissue paper). Get it slightly wet, then wrap it around the derailleur cable.
Spiral the paper towel a couple of inches up the cable, making sure it’s narrow enough to fit into the tube opening.Slide the cable, with its paper towel coating, into the tube. (Don’t pull on the tube yet.)
It may help to rotate as you push the paper towel-covered cable into the tube.Once the knob is inside the tube, squish the tube with your fingers, just in front of the paper towel. Pull on the free end of the derailleur cable. The knob will compact the paper, expanding it so it tightly fills the tube. Now we’re ready to clean!
Slowly pull the cable through the tube. As you come to obvious problem areas, again squish the tube somewhat, so the paper rubs hard against the inside of the tube.
Once the cable comes out the other end, suppress your urge to hurl as you see what you’ve been drinking recently. Discard the paper. Reinsert the cable, get a fresh piece of paper towel, and repeat the process until the paper comes out clean and your Camelbak tube looks crystal-clean.Now put everything back together.
One way of slowing the growth of mold is to let the hydration pack sit for a day with a very dilute bleach solution (a teaspoon in an entire bladder of water). Rinse well afterward. This will inhibit growth of slime for a couple of months — about the same time it takes before you stop tasting Clorox. I’ve done this, and it does prevent growth of algae and bacterial biomembranes. But my kids complained mightily about the taste of the water. Also, the bleach will oxidize the plastic, reducing the lifetime of your hydration pack innards.
Prevention! If you’re a water drinker, you can avoid fungus and calcium deposits by always using demineralized or distilled water. If you use an electrolyte solution, you’re going to get critters growing in your hydration pack no matter how carefully you rinse it after each use. I suggest you grab an old derailleur cable and foam paintbrush, and make them part of your bike tool kit.
As a snowboarder and mountaineer who has traveled the world in search of the finest lines to ascend and descend, I have witnessed first hand the devastating changes occurring globally. This film by Teton Gravity Research highlights some of these changes and below are some simple and concrete solutions we all can do to help our world.
Cheers,
Stephen Koch
FIVE THINGS YOU CAN DO
We can all do some simple things that have a huge short-term impact on climate change. Collectively, we could save almost 123 million metric tons of CO2 in ten years, dropping the US national emissions by 8%. Consider doing these five things today:
1. Get an energy audit. Seal doors and windows and insulate the hot water pipes
2. Carpool whenever you can and/or buy a fuel efficient vehicle and drive the speed limit
3. Use compact fluorescent bulbs, turn lights off and unplug appliances when not in use.
4. Lower your thermostat settings, put a sweater on!
5. Use reusable water bottles & coffee mugs… avoid plastic water bottles unless necessary.
ABOUT GENERATIONS
Within the span of a lifetime, one can observe the planet’s changing climate. Skiers, snowboarders, farmers and climatologists across the world are experiencing the effects of climate change. Ski areas in the Northeast United States are witnessing shorter winters. California’s farmlands are experiencing water shortages. Europe’s glaciers are receding at alarming rates. Generations is a film about the consequences of climate change and shows you what you can do to make a difference.
Lyn Dalebout is a wonderful person, gifted astrologer and friend who has thoughtfully and insightfully read my astrological chart several times. I highly recommend Lyn if you are interested in an astrology reading. – sk
For those who may be unfamiliar with Astrology, the definition follows: The study of the positions and aspects of celestial bodies in the belief that they have an influence on the course of natural earthly occurrences and human affairs.
By the Light of the Super Moon Dec 31 2009-Jan 1 2010
This epistle arrives in the nick of Full Moon time. To have a Full Moon eclipse, symbolic of new beginnings, on a new year’s eve, which holds the hope of all things reborn, is a dream come true for astrologers and for someone like me, prone to excessive ceremonies at key junctures of change, like full moons and year end eves. Time for lit candles and planting paper white bulbs indoors to mark this momentous shift at the end of 2009. With this celestial event, I feel a renewed sense of hope and possibility for our planet. This year, winter solstice felt like the first day of spring to me…“twelve weeks till bluebirds” is my mantra.
One thought: it’s as if the whole world went through some form of rehab this year, facing the shadow, confronting denial, no place to hide, forced learning of new coping skills, and the healthy discipline born from paring down. One result of this? Remembering again the immense joy to be found in the simple pleasures of life.
I know now that when a pet dies, it is then you realize the reality of the balance and joy that came from just a simple walk together. I will never, ever, take that for granted again, by rushing through the task…I know Cola forgives me from her doggie bed in the heavens, but I cry when I remember any hint of hurry on my part…sigh.
Maybe, at the end of this year, you appreciate even more the miracle of warm food, a safe home, a good bed and beloveds by your side. Maybe you now consciously take a moment each day and pray that all people are as fortunate as you are. These kinds of prayers on a global scale have more power than we know. I believe our combined intentions have actually softened the effects of some of the more cataclysmic potential that existed in 2009.
Did you learn it feels better to deal in the truth of things, and to just be openly honest with one another? In our vulnerability, all can potentially be healed. What amazing grace and gifts have come with the hardships of 2009.
So as we arrive at New Years Eve, Dec 31 , here are some astrological tidbits about this last Full Moon of 2009 (12:14 pm MST) for your rumination and reflection:
***It is not just a Full Moon which always brings the possibility of illumination and awakening***
***It is also a Super Moon, when the Moon is closest to the Earth (Lunar perigee). This Moon will loom extra large in the heavens and is sure to amplify emotions to new heights and depths***
***And this is also a Lunar Eclipse (viewed mainly in the Eastern Hemisphere, the right brain of the world), which creates an energetic severing from old patterns, creating a portal of rebirth at the completion of the eclipse***
These astronomical facts speak for themselves.
It seems so much was ushered out of our world this year. As you sit bundle by the bonfire, or before a simple shining candle, may the Light of this Super Full Moon Eclipse, on the last day of this year of completions, bring some solace, and help you understand more fully why there was so much mass exodus on so many levels. And may this radiant reflective Light also illuminate the next small step you are ready to take on your path to renewal and return in the year of new beginnings, 2010.
Peace,
Lyn Dalebout
contabo@earthlink.net
As this solar year draws to a close, I gratefully offer my Winter Solstice discounts (found at the end of this email) to old and new clients. Thank you so much for supporting my work over the years. It is always an honor to decipher the patterns, talents, gifts, even challenges found in each unique star map. I feel particularly drawn to work with 14-30 year olds right now, perhaps because their wisdom is ripening early, partially because the world is in such need of their evolutionary awareness. An astrology chart is one way to mirror their talents and excellence back to them….so they know they are seen, understood, respected.
Discounts are as follows:
New clients: $160 (usually $180)
Updated charts for past clients: $140 (usually $150)
Gifting a new chart: $150 Gifting a returning client: $130
I have other types of chart you can inquire about too, like comparison charts,
or family readings, or even you and your pet comparison (a favorite of mine!)
Below is an email I received from someone asking me about how I dealt with my forced inactivity after my Mount Owen Avalanche Event. My response is below V’s email…
Hi Stephen,
Thanks for keeping your blog, its a good diversion from my current horizontal life. I am writing to ask you about your experience with dealing with your injuries after your accident on Mt. Owen. I have not-so-recently acquired some injuries from a fall I took, and they are especially slow to respond to treatment. I have developed some residual back pain that occasionally progresses to the point of spasm, and a torn hamstring that does not seem to want to heal. It has been almost 4 months since the fall, and I am currently limited to yoga as my physical activity. While nowhere near the injuries you sustained, I wanted to ask your perspective on dealing with this forced inactivity. How did you cope, and what strategies seemed to help? Thanks for your time.
-V
Hi V,
I can relate to your being injured and know it is challenging. First thought is yoga and hamstring injury do not mix. I would guess your hamstring and lower back are all tied together and causing you the suffering. I suggest trying deep tissue massage on your psoas. This will likely relieve your back pain and put less pressure on your hamstrings. Only my intuition/thoughts based on what you are telling me.
To answer your questions about coping with forced inactivity…I did not do it very well. I was so injured at first that I was in hospital for several days on morphine and pretty out of it, next I was out of surgery and all jacked from the knee surgeries (both knees…left ACL (with a bunch of meniscus damage cut and sewn) and right reconstructed MCL (which was pretty much obliterated) and meniscus which was torn as well as patella relocated (it was on the side of my knee, they discovered only after viewing the MRI due to all the swelling). My back had two compression fractures also. The plan was to have the ACL / PCL in the right knee, the one that was dislocated, repaired a couple months after the surgeries mentioned above.
My right knee after my second round of surgeries to repair the ACL and PCL.
I did watch several movies and had my mother come out for three weeks to help me! Thanks Mom! Also worked on a story for Men’s Journal about the experience.
What I did was focus on what I could do physically. As soon as they let me go to Physical Therapy I went (with Percocet), worked as hard and as often as I could, came home and went to sleep, repeating 2x in a day when I eventually had the strength. I was as positive as I could be…thankful to be alive after such an event (I do not call it an accident because I do not thing there is such a thing…it is a term we use to describe cause and effect that we do not like). Fact is I was on slope when it avalanched. Avalanche hit me. I fell over 2,000 feet, sustaining injuries. Spent night out without shelter and in only a long underwear shirt. Took things one step at a time. Prioritized really well, which was not too hard at the time and is not difficult for me when climbing or doing physical things. Other things are more challenging for me to prioritize and execute, that is for sure! Survived night out. Got rescued. Was stoked to be in emergency room getting hot blankets from hot nurses!
I also thought a lot about risk and risk management.
My suggestion is for you to try meditation (audio guided meditation with John Travis here), or to find a way, if you haven’t, to get quite inside your mind so you can settle and feel what is inside of you. You have the answers inside of you already, waiting for you to feel them. The next step is to then trust what you are feeling. Not an easy task, but a worthy one! The mind likes to get in the way through distractions/neurotic thoughts. Let the distractions go and get back to the settled place, like a pond after a stone (neurotic thought) has made ripples. In time the pond will be still, like your mind. This comes with practice. That is why meditation is called a practice. Like anything new, you will improve with practice.
The other suggestion is for you to trust your body. It is, like your heart/inner self/sixth sense, full of the answers you seek. The challenge is to listen.
To be gentle with yourself and not hammer down that you are a wimp or weak for being injured/not healing as fast as you would like (a judgment). You are healing at the perfect rate. That is a fact. Cause and effect. Be gentle. Not easy, like much of what I am writing about, but ultimately very worthy! You will benefit, as will those around you. So be selfish and the world will benefit!
I have found that keeping my back strong through regular exercise (in mountains or gym at Mountain Athlete) has kept the bulging/herniated disks at bay. They may come back eventually and if/when they do, I will try to take it in stride and not beat myself up about this or that and just except the reality of my situation. Life is nicer this way, for me and those around me.
Now home and saw this post was not sent a week ago. Sending now. Enjoy.
I spoke yesterday at the Sports Academy in Krakow, Poland, to about 120 students. The school is for those studying physical therapy, athletics and hotel management, among other things.
My host was Mikolaj Bielanski (first name pronounced Nikolash more or less…so challenging this lovely Polish Language due to sounds we do not have in English…voul/voul/voul etc.), I met in Zakopane, while hiking and trying to climb in the Tatra Mountains.
Beautiful Krakow Poland. Photo Copyright Stephen Koch 2009
St. Mary’s Church in City Center of Krakow Poland. Photo Copyright Stephen Koch 2009
Polish Feast Photo copyright Stephen Koch 2009
Delicious! Photo Copyright Stephen Koch 2009
Will Steger having make-up put on for his Polish TV appearance on “Coffee or Tea?” Photo Copyright Stephen Koch 2009.
Will Steger rocking the climbing for the first time in 27 years!
Actually tried to change my ticket to come home and work, despite having a wonderful time in Poland, but it would have been $800, so I am staying another few days in Poland.
I am missing my family but if I had to be “stuck” anyplace, Krakow Poland is top on the list! The people (my experience has been in Lodz, Krakow and Zakopane) are kind, generous, warm, helpful and have gone out of their way my entire trip to make my stay in Poland an absolutely wonderful experience. And this is despite not being able to climb in the mountains. I have been getting schooled on the many small limestone crags around Krakow and Zakopane!
In the city center of Krakow there is an old limestone quarry that has a long traverse for bouldering and several drytooling and rock climbing routes to train on! Incredible to see and experience all the climbing people have access to from a beautiful city of over 700,000 people.
Krakow is the former capital of Poland. Story goes something like this…King way back was from Sweden or Norway and wanted to be closer to his mother so moved the show to the countryside (formerly Warsaw).
I am heading out for a drytooling session with the interpreter I was going to have for the Krakow Mountain Festival. I say was because I am not going to speak there due to a conflict with the Lodz (pronounced woodge more or less) Explorer’s Festival. Anyway I am excited to hear Rapheal Slawinski and Tommy Caldwell speak as well as see the films from Banff Mountain Film Festival which I missed when they rolled through Jackson.
Looking forward to hearing how the snow is back home and getting out for some turns on the Pass and at the Village soon, and to taking Axl skiing!!!
Cheers,
Stephen
3 grudnia 2009 r. (czwartek), g. 15.30
Akademia Wychowania Fizycznego w Krakowie
Sala G – budynek główny (Al. Jana Pawła II 78)
Stephen Koch (USA)
Opowie o swoich niezwykłych dokonaniach.
Stephen Koch jest zawodowym przewodnikiem wysokogórskim, alpinistą, ale przede wszystkim pionierem ekstremalnych zjazdów na snowboardzie w wysokich górach.
Na długiej liście jego dokonań można znaleźć min. pierwsze i nigdy nie powtórzone zjazdy ze wszystkich głównych szczytów Teton Peaks
w Wyoming (USA).
Poza tym, jest jedyną osobą, która zjechała na desce z 7 najwyższych szczytów każdego z kontynentów (w tym Mount Everest).
Stephen wspinając się wspólnie z Marko Prezelj i Dean Potter dokonał pierwszego wejścia południowo-wschodnią granią na Cerro Torre.
www.stephenkoch.com
ZAPRASZAMY WSZYSTKICH SERDECZNIE NA SPOTKANIE!!!
Wydział Turystyki i Rekreacji
Akademia Wychowania Fizycznego im. Bronisława Czecha w Krakowie
mikolaj.bielanski@awf.krakow.pl
Yesterday was the last day of the Explorer’s Festival in Lodz (pronounced Woodge), Poland. I was invited to give a presentation about my adventures, which I did yesterday to a packed house. What a treat to be on stage in Poland with so many enthusiastic people! Life is good when I am sharing my passions and people are stoked to receive my message.
Will Steger, Victor Boyarski, Jeffrey Somers, Keizo Funatsu, James Hooper, Beth Wald and Simone Origone were the other Explorer’s whom I had the pleasure of sharing the stage and getting to know over the past several days.
I will write more soon with details about these amazing people. Just wanted to get word out to you that I am alive and going to be traveling and climbing in Poland for a few days then off to Germany and possibly Austria, Italy and Slovenia before heading home to begin Snowboard Instructing at the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort.
Oh yea, wanted to share what I will be home for a couple days then go up north to Bozeman to participate in the Bozeman Ice Breaker fun competition. www.bozemanicefestival.com
I competed two or three years ago and met and climbed with Chris Hamilton from Bozeman and had a blast!
More soon…sleep then an interview on Polish TV Show called “Coffee or Tea?”
