The EZ Variation

Two Thumps Up!!

2010-10-19T10:32:00.000-05:00

Great big shout out and thanks for all the donations that were made to this blog!! Lee has recieved the cash and has expressed his deepest appreciation for everyones' help and prayers!

Lee is still recovering and feels a little bit stronger each day but he still needs our support. There will be a benefit for Lee on December 11 at Outdoor Chattanooga. Below is a link to his official page. If anyone needs more details or still wants to donate money they can get more info there. I have removed the paypal link and will be shutting down the email. If anyone wants info Lee is available himself now.
Lee is still accepting donations at the official Give Forward donation site: http://www.giveforward.com/2thumpsup
Lee wishes to thank everyone for the support. Please keep him in your thoughts and consider attending the event at Outdoor Chattanooga. We'll see you there!

EZ

Update

2010-09-08T08:56:00.000-05:00

Hey guys, I haven't posted any updates because I assume most of you are getting info from Lee's facebook, but for the ones who aren't:

Lee's home in Birmingham with his mom. I talked to him Saturday and he said he is feeling much better but is still week from being posted up for two weeks. He said everytime he eats he gets more energy.

On another note thanks for all the donations, I think last time I check we had well over $600.00 thats's just awesome!

If anything changes I'll let everyone know.

Peace,
Ben

Whoa

2010-09-03T15:09:00.000-05:00

Over $500.00 keep it coming peeps, I'd love to present Lee with a $1000.00 check at his fundraiser!!

Lee may be getting out of the hospital today!

Thanks for the contributions

2010-09-02T09:28:00.000-05:00

Guys thanks for the contributions!! We have almost $600 in his paypal.

Some of you are wondering why you can't see the money. I am waiting to verify the account info and this takes up to a week. Once I get the account verified I will be able to accept the contributions.

I just got off the phone with paypal and she confirmed that the 7th of Sept will be when I can confirm the account.

Thanks, and Keep it coming!!

UPDATE:
I know a lot of you has seen Lee's messages on facebook, but for the ones that haven't here whats going on.

After a minor set back on Sunday, Lee is doing better. He was moved on Monday to another floor and out of ICU!! He had his permanent pacemaker put in yesterday and his in great spirits. The man really fought his ass off and for sure my hero!

If you have any questions again you can email me at leemeansisourhero@gmail.com

Peace!!

Ben

It's time to start helping out!!

2010-08-26T11:27:00.000-05:00

ok guys, so here's a bit of other bad news.

When this tragedy happened Lee was in transition to a new job. This left Lee without health insurance. I'm sure everyone knows just how expensive medical bills can be. Lee has been in the hospital now since Saturday 08/21/2010 with several procedures and had to fly in a helicopter to Vanderbilt. This as you might imagine is going to be super pricey.

I am right now setting up a paypal account and a facebook page for Lee so that we can start donating any money we can to help our friend and brother out.

Also, we are planning a fundraiser in Chatty for sometime around the end of September. This is gonna be a blowout with live music and drink ect. I'll let everyone know more as we work out the details. Please try and remember to check back in for updates as we really need to make this thing big. Lee needs our help!

If anyone has any questions or wants to start helping out you can email me at LeeMeansIsOurHero@gmail.com

Thanks

Irene Means

2010-08-26T11:16:00.000-05:00

Irene (Lee's mom) has called me to express her deepest appreciation for all the love you guys are spreading about Lee. She asked me to let everyone know that she is incredbly touched by the each and everyone of you, and is amazed and extremely proud of the type of people Lee has chosen to call his friends.

Guys and Gals, please keep these messages coming via Facebook, this blog, text if you want I can pass word along, which I've been doing, just keep them coming until he is home and chillin.

Thanks,

Ben

Still Fighting

2010-08-25T10:44:00.002-05:00

So after a few minor set backs yesterday, it appears Lee is doing better!

This just in from Julie:

"I am in the room with him right now and they say his heart is doing GREAT! They are going to keep him intubated today so his heart can heal as much as possible. The doctors sound very promising :) he looks good! They said 'you have a fighter on your hands, you better watch out'. Ha! It's True. Love this Kid!"

Keep the good vibes and prayers coming his way!!

Stay Tuned,
Ben

PS Keep sending him positive messages on his facebook, he is getting them it's keeping him syked to fight!!

Good News!!

2010-08-24T17:05:00.000-05:00

This just in from Julie:

Julie has talked to Lee's mom and she said Lee is off the machines and working to get healthy on his own. The kids got more heart than Rocky when he knocked the Russian out the ring!

More to come!!

Update 08/24/2010

2010-08-24T08:53:00.000-05:00

Morning everyone, This just in from Lee's mom:

"They took his breathing tube out! He is alert and talking still a long way to go but in the right direction. You would not believe the difference since yesterday!"

Mista Lee Means aka Soldier Boy!

2010-08-23T23:23:00.001-05:00

Hey everybody, A lot of you probably do not know me. My name is Ben Henson and I've considered Lee one of my best friends for many many years now. Not only is Lee my friend but he is also one of my main climbing partners and for you climbers reading this, you know the type of bond that is developed over years of amazing climbing adventures together.

I know theres a lot of you wondering what in the hell is going on with our great friend Lee. I cannot log on Facebook at work, so I'll do my best to keep everyone updated on this blog as I get more info from his mom and from Julie.

WHAT HAPPENED: (I'm no doctor this is the information I got from Irene-Lee's mom)

Several days ago Lee began feeling sick. He had a tightness in his chest and was running a fever. He assumed he was coming down with Pneumonia. Like any straight G would do he pretty much shrugged it off and figured he'd get better in a few days,(something most of us have done a million times) but instead of getting better he continued getting worse. Finally Julie stepped in and convinced Lee to go to the hospital (thank God for Julie) in which the doctors decided to run some last minutes checks which included an EKG. Irene said the docs were blown away by what they discovered. Lee had some sort of infection to develop in his heart muscle otherwise known as Myocardidtis. This was causing Lee's heart muscle to barely pump blood into his body. They rushed him into surgery and placed a balloon in his heart to help it pump blood. This worked but the Balloon has an expiration of 24 hours. After the balloon expired Lee went into cardiac arrest and coded but thanks to the amazing hospital staff and Lee's strength he pulled through and his heart started back again. The Chatty hospital knew it was time for Lee to leave their wonderful care and make the journey to a better suited hospital. Vanderbilt was contacted and a Helicopter dispatched immediately to come get Lee. He arrived yesterday(Sunday) at Vanderbilt and the doctors there began immediately working on Lee. The began by placing a stint in his heart and hooking it up to electrodes to help it beat while it was recovering. This was working fine, but at 4:15am, this morning, he went back into cardiac arrest. Again thanks to the amazing hospital staff they were able to revive him. At this time the doctors called in the transplant team to decided if Lee needed to undergo an emergency heart transplant. The doctors decided they were going to try one more thing and immediately placed a Pace Maker in Lee's heart. At this time Irene told me she whispered to Lee that he was to fight his ass off and beat this. She said he was able to move his eyes and squeeze her hand, and Lee has done just that he has been fighting his ass off all day today.

I got to the hospital today along with another great friend and this was what happened:

Paul and I got in his room where he was heavily sedated. His mom said he was doing a lot better and I could tell that was the truth. He had all his color back and his hands were warm. After a few minutes of talking to him he woke from sedation. He was able to scribble us a message which read in true Mista Lee fashion, 'THANKS FOR COMING.."MEANS" ALOT'. We talked to him full of confidence that he was going to return to us all and we were going to continue this amazing party we call life. We told him his only job was to fight his ass off and he nodded his head. I'll be honest I've known Lee a very long time and he has been one of my main climbing partners and not until today did I realize just how damn strong Lee really is. So after a few minutes we knew he needed to get back to sleep and as we left he squeezed my hand, through a peace sign and a thumbs up and though he couldn't raise his arm gave Paul and me knuckles!

As for Lee's mom she is very optimistic and appears to be doing well. It is still imperative that we continue to pray for Lee as much as we can until he is back to chillin with us. He's not out of the water by any means but as I said before he is doing better and is fighting his ass off.

I really want to thanks Julie for being so positive and keeping us updated through this hard times. I know this is hard but hang in there Julie and keep sending our boy all that positive energy.

Thanks

Ben

Dedication to Courtney

2010-07-15T17:23:00.000-05:00

Thanks babe for putting up with all my shit due to my perpetual love for climbing up rock! I love you!!!

All Natural

2010-07-15T16:46:00.001-05:00

Done no more shit in my system!! Maybe My head will quit spinning sometime soon!

Bout to get surious biotches

love

Routes

2010-06-28T09:08:00.000-05:00

It's been a crazy long time since I've been on a rope. Here in da souf the bouldering game in the winter is just too damn fantastic to worry about lactic acid, however this doesn't mean I don't love route climbing cause I do. When I first started climbing in 01 Sandrock was the place of choice; there were access issues a this place called Horsepens and you had to sneak in, plus there was always this tall blond headed dude and his posse staring you down, I mean who wanted that? Now fast forward almost 10 years later I still love Sandrock, the routes are awesome, I spend most my days at Horsepens and that tall blond dude is now the kingpin and a pretty nice dude. I love climbing!

OK, so I went to Sandrock yesterday after being out of the route game since early last fall. As usual I got my ass kicked climbed a couple moderates and after about 2 hours felt like I could lay down and sleep about 20 hours. It's easy to forget just how taxing route climbing is. First you have to load this heavy pack full of gear and walk, then unload your shit, strap your nuts in a vice which coincidentally is a key piece of gear for protecting your life, then you boulder like 5-10 boulder problems back to back, come down stare up for 10 minutes until your neck feels like its breaking, pack up and start all over. No wonder route climbers are usually such skinny fucks!

So this sounds like a terrible time but alas it's amazing, and I love it! I just wish I could climb full time so I could really dedicate more time to getting better at it before it gets really cold and boulders begin to shimmer with friction.

So the moral of this story is damn I need to train more I'm such a puss!

Love you all,

EZ

Ps, Tyler and Katie killed it as usual with some new hard sends! Oh what it must be like to be a young prodigy with no body fat and all the time in the world!

174 and dropping!

2010-06-25T11:15:00.000-05:00

That's right the first time since August of 09 I'm under 175 biotches!

So I challenged myself to a 100 day of running. I have to run at least 1 mile although I always try for more for at least 100 days. I'm on day 25 I've lost 8lbs since I started! Also I'm eating as close to Paleo as possible with a few cheats like brown rice. Haven't had a slice of bread in two weeks either, most of my carb intake has been coming from bananas and apples and the brown rice. Oh yeah and I pretty much cut alcohol out of my diet too. I know what you might be saying...EZ just aint EZ without his nalgene full of vodka and redbull, but fear not as soon as I hit my goals I'll be back running round the boulders drink in hand get my send on!

Last week was a rest week for training I finished my 12 weeks of initial power to try and regain some of what I had lost over the last year. This week started a Power Endurance cycle which will last 3 weeks. Basically I run circuit laps on the bouldering wall until I can't hold on any more and do this over and over. I was able to hold on for a little over 3 minutes which is shit if you're a route climber. My goal is 10 minutes by the end if this cycle. Then I'll start another 6 week power cycle to start gearing up for the season.

Oh yeah and I'm planning on adding some p90 to my workouts too. I've done p90 in the past and it definitely works, however this time I'm planning on altering the plan to eliminate and leg exercises and replace those days for the core synergictics. If you know me then you know legs are the last thing I need to work on since I'm built more like an MMA fighter than a rock climber--F U GENETICS I WILL OVERCOME! haha just kidding

Now on to some goals for the next 6 months:

Routes               Boulders
4-12a's                5-v6's
3-12b's                4-v7's
2-12c's                3-v8's
1-12d                  v9

If I send anything harder awesome if I complete my goals awesome if I dont still awesome that I am still healthy to climb and I'll work harder!

Peacers
EZ

Training Journal

2010-06-15T14:13:00.000-05:00

So I moved to Birmingham in March with the worst fitness I've ever had. I was fat, weak, tired but that had to change!! I got determined, syked, pissed off what ever you wanna call it but in short I got motivated to get stronger than I've ever been. The scene in Birmingham has really exploded in the last year with the opening of First Ave http://firstaverocks.com/. The place is rad! Dedicated pretty much to training the FAR hosts several sick angle boulder walls along with a School Room Moon wall, two system walls, a campus board, hangboard station with my favorite hangboard (the Moon Board) as well as full fledged crossfit area. It was time to get to business. Now I'm no stranger to training as a matter of fact several years ago I was known for my intensity during sessions, if I wasn't screaming I wasn't trying hard enough, but where'd it all go. Well it's back and more syked than ever to push through the weakness and pain and help me get my shit back together.
So here's a short summary of each week from my journal entry to get you guys syked, not gonna post everything this biotch would be too long.

Week 1: Went to the bldrfields twice felt fucking weak v2s were hard couldn't make the 2nd move on pile. A good friend came in town from NC and I took the rest of the week off drank beer shit! gotta get more syked. Weight - 185lbs BF 25%

Week 2: Jogged 4 days, Went to the bldrfields Monday-Wed and the climbing gym (FAR) on Thursday still feel very week and heavy. Did a good set of deadhangs on the Moonboard top edges 5 sets of 10 seconds and killed a core work out. Rested the weekend.

Week 3: Jogged 1.5 miles Monday-Friday. Mon. & Tues. went to the bldrfields starting to feel a bit stronger sent a couple v4s and made it to the end of a Pile v6 but no send. Wed. went to the FAR did a sick deadhang workout crimps, slopes pinches, campus brd w/ feet on, also did chest, shoulders, tri's and core!! Thurs. went back to bldrfields sent a v4 that I work on Tues. tried a bunch other problems! Gettin stronger so syked!

Week 4: Jogged everyday but Tues. Monday FAR - 5 sets 4x4's; System training, fingerboard, forearm curls. Tues. played bball did some pullups at the playground, chest/tris/shoulders. Wed. bldrfields feeling stronger. Thurs. bldrfields sent Pile v6. Sat FAR fingerboard, weighted pullups, core, forearm curls. 178lbs-24.5bf

Week 5: Mon. bldrfields worked Trip v5 and The Tree v7. Tues ran before work and at lunch went to the FAR bouldered 1 hour, fingerboard, forearm and core. Wed. jogged 2 miles played bball 45 minutes pullups on the monkey bars. Thurs. Super tired took a nap after work, went to the gym bouldered v4-v5 problems, 3 sets of 4x4's feeling pumped, fingerboard, core and pushups. Friday ran. Sat ran, pushups, arm burn out: bi's/tris/shoulders- 176.4lbs 21.9%bf

Week 6: Mon- Fri ran 2 miles ran twice on Tues and Fri. Mon FAR strength weight pullups, one arm locks, frenchies. Tues bball pushups and dips. Wed bldrfields feeling stronger work the Tree. Thurs FAR climbed 1 hour worked the fingerbrd. Fri FAR fingerbrd, pullups, core. Sat pushups.

Week 7: Super tired, No running ate bad, Tues went to bldrfields tired, Wed FAR tired, rested rest of the week

Week 8: Off week, did go to the bldrfields on Wed but felt tired. no motivation ate bad. Figured out why I have been so tired I'm allergic to b12 I started taking 500mcg 2 weeks ago stopped on Thurs of this week felt almost 100% by Sat.

Week 9: Mon feeling better FAR bouldered 1 hour v3-v5, system wall lockoffs, down campus, one arm locks big rubber band, killed core, fingerboard. Bldrfields worked Reignition v9 hard barely made the 2nd and 3rd moves, left went to climbing gym bouldered some more, chest and shoulders. Wed rest. Thurs. bldrfields climbed for fun.

Week 10: Ran every day this week. Mon FAR power, 10 hard boulder problem attempts, followed by 3 PE laps, 3x10 system wall deadpoints, deadpoints right and left hand grabs, 5x6 explosive pullups, 10 feet cuts. Tues. 10 hard boulders, 3 sets system locks-weak, 5 campus to lockoff-weak, 3 x system walls (slopers, gaston, undercling, pinches)-weak, core. Wed-antagonists, Thurs bldrfields Reiginition made 5 moves feeling stronger v3/4 circuit

Week 11: Ran everyday. Mon rest, Tues. ADD-ON Barrel wall 45 minutes, 3 system lock off, frenchies-weak, 3x4 lockoffs medium band, core. Wed - antagonists, Thurs - Boulderfields reignition rained out.

Week 12: Ran everyday. Mon bldrfields stuck crimp pinch for the first time and held on Reignition that rig is gonna go first cool day. Tues. FAR climbed 1 hour, 3 system campus-weak, 5 square lock offs on crimp system, Killed core! Wed- antagonists. Thurs. climbed 30 minutes elbow starting to hurt need a rest week.

Week 13: This week will be a rest week for climbing plan on running a ton and killing my core. Starting Power endurance next week.

OK well this was longer than I planned hope you were able to sort through it. It's been a successful 12 weeks of power and strength. I feel I improved on both a good bit. Still not pleased got a long way to go. Holler if you have any questions!

Peace,
EZ

Moving Sucks

2010-06-14T10:01:00.001-05:00

nuff said!!

Second Go

2010-06-11T11:36:00.001-05:00

So here it is, I quit this rig already once. Figured why would I post a blog, I'm a nobody and with so many interesting peeps out there doing the same thing it was pointless. But then I realized this bloggy blog is to pay homage to my true homeboys that I kick it with on the regular trying to succeed in this pointless yet obsessive sport we call rock climbing, for my homies that I've met in travels that may stumble across this site and wonder what in the hell that crazy ass kid from Bamer has been up to, and most importantly for me. I love going back and looking at my post from a year ago. Seeing what I was up to, what I looked like and how I've changed. So I've changed this blog up a bit gave it a new name, new look, and dusted the cob webs off. The goal is to start posting more on my training in my ever long quest to obtain fitness, my conquests on the rock, what my boys have been doing, and maybe some personal thoughts followed by lots of pics.

OK so I think my last post was in October sometime, I was living in Huntsville and probably incredibly syked about the season coming. However by the time October rolled around I had gained to my all time heaviest which was due to work, beer, and borderline depression from living in Huntsville. Gaining weight is a funny thing, because you don't really realize you are gaining until it's too late. In December I crimped too hard for a fat boy and popped a tendon. BOOM POP done for the season, major depression set in, but also a new determination fire was lit in my belly and fuck it I was gonna get back in shape, as a matter of fact my "New Year's Resolution" was to be in the best physical climbing shape ever for the season 2010! I've had a long standing goal of accomplishing v10 by my 30th birthday, this leaves one more season!

Fast forward several months and a lot of shit has changed. So here I am I quit my job at NASA and took a job in Birmingham working with an environmental engineering company so that I could be closer to a "real climbing scene" and so that I could start to get my train on to accomplish my goals. This is where I'm gonna leave you. Up next will be some posts from my training journal and what I've accomplished these last two months.

Hope this finds everyone well and in good spirits!

~EZ

Some Pics

2009-10-14T16:49:00.004-05:00

IT WAS ALL A DREAM...

2009-10-14T16:18:00.003-05:00

Alright so I had this badass blog, probably the greatest blog ever written redefining blogging as we know it, but it got erased!! That was about three months ago; I got pissed swore off blogging forever...

"Look who's back, back again"

So this will be short and sweet, maybe my reintroduction, maybe my last who knows! By now I'm sure you all are sick of reading play by plays of Houndears. If you were there then you already know what happened if you weren't then I'm sure you heard.

The trip was sort of epic for Brad, Lee and myself. We climbed and got shutdown at Rumbling Bald, popped into Asheville and caught the Reel Rock Tour which was rad (Progression is without a doubt the best climbing film ever released), drove drunk throughout the wee hours of the morning circling Boone and never actually finding it, climbed multi-pitch in a storm, chilled at Houndears, rapped on stage, forgot my sleeping bag and had to bum hotel floors, ate McDonald's, ran out of money (literally none left in my wallet or bank account), met all sorts of amazing people, got some free shit, drank a ton of alcohol, and made it back alive just in time to catch Entourage's season finally.

So there you have it my accounts of the weekend. Now as for what's been going on the last few months---ROUTES ROUTES and MORE ROUTES!

I climbed routes all season never gained an ounce of endurance, guess I was built for bouldering. Oh well, I'll leave you with a few pics from the last few months!

Don't Kill The Weed

2009-03-23T12:21:00.003-05:00

The sickest of the sick, the raddest of the rad!! Horse Shoe Canyon Ranch is the BBBOMB!

So it's been a while, haven't been motivated to write on this here bloggy thing, but a good friend sent me a little reminder letting me know it was about time.

So the last few months have been rad, lots of climbing! Most recently took a trip with some very cool hombres to HCR in Arkansas! The trip started out sort of epic, pouring rain, almost dry draining the gas tank in the middle buttfuc Arkansas, and the ability to get lost walking to car made the approach a bit hesitant, but we made it.

Upon waking the next morn we discovered a valley surrounded by more rock than at a nickelback concert ( I hate nickelback with all my soul). There were blue and orange sandstone cliff as far as the eyes could see and at the base big beautiful boulders just screaming.

After some caffeine and some food, we booked it up to the boulders and I managed to get almost too psyched, literally running to each group of peeps that were trying different boulder problems and just climbing the shit out of all of them. Sent bunches of stuff most in the v3-v5 range. Oh and did I mention it was sprinkling that morning so some of the send were wet! EPICCC

The next day we woke up sore and tired, but managed to make the trek up to the North Forty for some route climbing. Warmed up on some 7 and 8s then onsighted an 11a which the whole group, guy and girl jumped on the send train and crushed! AWESOME I swear I love watching my friends surprise themselves get psyched and send hard shit more then I actually love sending shit myself. After everyone had a successful go at that 11a we walked down to a 12a that suited me just perfect. The route started with a stone jump into slopey yet amazing pockets the continue up hard moves until you hit jugs. The its prolly 10a to the top!! Stellar I sent on my second go after falling trying to figure out the second move. The send was a bit confusing because I got really caught up in the movement and didn't pay attention as to where I was going and ended up climbing high and left to the anchors of a 5.9 then had to down climb back into the 12 unclipping along the way and finish the route correctly so basically I sent 2 routes on the same go! Shit Finished the day by flashing a classic v2 call CrackHo, which had super stellar movement! And also worked the move to 2 v7s and a hard 3 move v10 called Tang!

The next final day we woke up extremely sore, whole body hurting, but I was still extremely psyched to get back out. I had to get everyone motivated so after some peer pressure everyone was padded up and hiking back to the boulders. When we got there I was able to muster up some motivation and sent this little v5 which had one of the coolest starting moves I've ever done! (Thanks Cessie and Nathan for the collaboration on the BETA not sure if I would have figured those moves out) Then moved on to a classic 4 (which I thought was chossy) did it second go, most others in the group flashed. THENNN we discovered a new highball classic just put up the say before by some locals. After trying to figure out the start for a few minutes one of the guys who worked on the FA walked up to go for the second. He showed me the beta for the start and I flashed up to the high point jug (around 15 feet) but back off the top moves. After rest and motivation from watching the local kid send I jumped back on and climbed to the top and with a hand foot match, mantle gaston high reach I still couldn't reach the last hold and after reaching and pressing I blew off taking about a 20ft'r but great spots and pad placements kept me safe. Then we walked back over to the weekend project a v6 call Chuckwagon and to my dismay just couldn't muster up the energy and after giving it all I had could real in the dyno!! BUMMER.

Oh well we walked out packed up and headed back to BAMA. The trip was totally one to remember and we'll all vowed to return SOON!! Maybe this weekend! Pics as usual will follow. Later!

Whoah..Chill Out

2009-01-05T16:22:00.002-06:00

Man, at the risk of being shunned in a community that takes pride in climbing up rocks in the southeastern US, people you need to chill out!

I'm talking about the freak out everyone had when they heard a RUMOR that Joe Kinder was bolting another line in the Canyon. I know I know I understand there are rules and we could loose access blah blah I know, but the point is Joe Kinder didn't bolt any new lines, he simply added a harder, cooler whatever finish to an already hard route. The bolt was already there. Rumors are just that Rumors and they suck, I mean damn sometimes the climbing community is nothing but an overgrown highschool.

I don't know Joe personally, he doesn't call me when he's in town or whatever, but I am a climbing media freak. Climbing is all I think about, read about, watch, you get the point which means yes I am a nerd and yes I read other peoples blogs. They get me through a long day in the cubicle and to the weekend where I get to climb. And yes I been reading Joe's blog for a good long while now, in fact it's one of the most well written blogs out there, and personally I don't believe Joe to be a bad guy in fact I think he has pretty damn high ethics. I mean he was the first person to call out another climber for bashing hangers at the red, and I don't think he would go out and bolt a new line without permission from not only the park service but prolly the SCC as well.

So you folks out there all pissed b/c he's down crushin projects and sending hard shit need to chill out and grab hold dem granny pannies and yank em out yo crack! PEACE

Pics

2008-12-19T17:04:00.007-06:00

Road Trippin..

2008-12-19T15:54:00.007-06:00

I don't really know what it is about the idea of road tripping that appeals to so many climbers. I think it's a subconscious effort to explore the same way our ancestors did, or maybe it's just because road trips are fun as hell. I dunno, but like all climbers I love a good road trip. But after sitting and thinking about it, there really is no reason for myself or any other southeastern climber to ever strive to get away. I mean I can think of at least 30 different amazing climbing crags located within 2 hours driving distant from my house in Huntsville, Alabama, and this is just off the top of my head because there are a shit ton small secret areas and access sensitive places that we try and stay away from. I bet if I sat down with some friends and thought about it we could come up with 100 solid crags located right here in the dirty,maybe more, and this doesn't even include North Carolina, Kentucky, West Virginia, and the rash but climbable South Carolina.

Now for those of you who are picturing a random boulder here or a chossy face there, you're wrong; every crag I can think of is amazing. Amazing not only because of the quantity, but also the quality. When you go climbing in the south you aren't going out to visit one random face; every area is packed full of rock. Most areas host hundreds of routes and problems, and there are always potential for more.

Over the last 8 years I've climbed a good few places in the country, and to find places with so much potential for new lines is very rare. For example, in a lot of the other popular areas in the country you find the new routes or boulder problems being established are just extensions of old ones, or they're just contrived line of older problems, but not here! If I were a betting man I would be willing to say there are still thousands upon thousands of fresh lines all over the south, even in the most developed areas, just waiting for the right person to come along.

A good example is about 2 years ago my buddy Nathan and I got tired of climbing other people lines at the famous but over developed Horse pens 40 and began picking our own lines. This takes work and a certain eye, which I think come from experience, but every now and then we 'd spot a boulder with some excellent moves stuck right between two classics, and boom there you have a solid FA. Some lines are more beautiful than others, but none the less each one is perfect in the mind of the creator. These problems usually never get named or graded, and will probably get written off never to be published unless one of "the boys" sees the chalk, climbs the line and declares it another one of their FA's, but even that doesn't matter. Sometimes the art is not in the boulder problem itself but in the actual creation of the line. Sort of like a beautiful song played directly from a musician's mind never to be written down or remembered. That musician is creating something so personal and special that the moment doesn't have to last forever, it's perfect as is. Not all art has to be tangible sometimes the act of creation is what is so special.

Next time you're out climbing, take a gander, find a fresh line and climb it, cherish it, love it because it's yours, no one can take that away from you, it's your art, your interpretation of what rock climbing should be. Until next time, here are a fews pics of the southeast.

InSaNe

2008-12-18T10:17:00.005-06:00

I injured my finger exactly 18 days ago. I'm not new to this game I know everything there is to know about finger injuries and everything that goes along with it. I been resting for 18 days now no climbing, hardly any pullups pretty much can't do anything that requires pulling. I'm going crazy I usually injure my self during summers trying too hard on plastic, but now I'm missing the season! and I'm only getting older, if you think about it I only prolly got 10 more seasons before I start getting all old and broken.

Anyways..........check out the video of Chris Sharma on his new route Golpe de Estado 5.15b!!!!!!!!!! INSANE and totally inspiring. Next time your working your project and you get a bit down on yourself just remember the mantra "what one man can do another can do" and try just a bit harder.

http://www.bigupproductions.com/#/clips/

Missing in Action..........and a bit of history

2008-12-16T09:21:00.004-06:00

For the few buddies who read this: in case you've been wondering where I've been the last couple weeks, the ole finger is still screwed to hell!! Did pull ups on a bar yesterday for the first time in about a month and there was still a lot of pain. I'm thinking it's now gonna be at least a couple more weeks. Just know that I miss you and I may be completely insane soon if I can't get back out.

The MeatLocker II is coming together well. I've had a lot of time to work on it due to lack of actual climbing. As of now I have a 8ft long by 11ft high wall at 45 degrees, an 18ft long by 4ft wide roof that start about 4ft off the ground and runs at a slight angle to the top of my garage door and has a campus box sit start (rad!!), and a 5ft long by 11ft high power enduro wall that isn't quite as overhung as the 45 wall but is still gonna be baller! Next, I'll be building a pretty substantial campus board which will be about 6ft wide by 8ft tall with several different type rungs! I'm hoping to have the whole thing finished in the next couple weeks.

Now for holds??? I have about 150, but am gonna need much more than that to outfit the wall. If anyone out there has some old ones laying around and would like to donate to the Meatlocker II, shoot me an email at henson12@gmail.com. I would really appreciate it and could return the favor with a place to pull when it's raining or even a guided tour of the south. I may even take you to a few secret spots!!

Last but not least, I was reading a very interesting article on Sonnie Trotter's site about the history of training, and it got me thinking about all the time I've spent researching and reading everything I could find about climbing and the history of climbing. I really think it's important to know the history behind anything you're passionate about. I know that majority of climbers are younger now and probably haven't taken the time to sit down and learn about our sport, so I recommend that the next time you're surfing the web to read a bit about the history of rock climbing. It's important to know how we've come so far in a still little known sport, and to pay respect to the pioneers, rebels, free spirits who said fuck society and getting a job, I'm going climbing. They're the reason we have routes and boulder problems. They are the reason we can run to the local shop and grab a rope or crash pad. If it wasn't for them we would be just another group of lost souls searching for their place on this earth. Here are a few sites, you can take it from here. Peace and until next time, Lay off dem holiday carbs your climbing will thank you come January!

http://sonnietrotter.com/history/

http://www.johngill.net/

......

2008-12-05T00:52:00.002-06:00

latley i've been addicted to Sonnie Trotter's blog. the guy is awesome and is definitley someone I look up to. check his site at http://sonnietrotter.com/roadlife/. i've decided his blog was so interesting because most entries were short and to the point. not always about climbing but relevant. anyway i am going to start using his style, maybe get a few folks to read my stuff.

ok now that that's out of the way thought I'd let you guys know that the meatlocker II is coming along well. i finished framing the steep wall and the cave, and plan on finishing the power endurance wall and campus board tomorrow. i know there are a bunch of psyched huntsville climbers awaiting the grand opening so I'm working as fast as possible. I been thinking about maybe getting insurance and charging peeps just the bare minimium to pay the insurance. Sort of a non-profit gym with a cardio machines, kettle balls, crossfit equipment etc. anyway if anyone from huntsville reads this let me know what you think of that. I don't plan on charging much maybe $10 a month, just have to see about the insurance. anyway if i could get enough climbers psyched on the meatlocker maybe i would actually move it into an old warehouse and build a propper gym.

I was planning on posting some pics of the gym's progress, but have decided to keep it a secret until i finish it. i promise its gonna be rad, the new spot to breed the next generation southern mutants. if you have any questions about the gym, training, or injuries dont be scared to contact me.

climb on
ben

INJURIES!!!!!

2008-11-26T12:47:00.002-06:00

(WARNING: I am not a doctor and have scientific evidence to back to following statements. If you are injured please see a certified sports medicine doctor, and take extreme caution when rehabbing injured fingers. I am in no way responsible for any injury caused by following advice given below. This is how I do it and should be taken as advice only. Again please see a doctor if injured.)

WTF!! I mean I've been injury free for a year and three months. Climbed my ass off over the summer nothing- no tendinitis, no finger issues -nothing. Now the temps drops out the bottom and what happens, I strain my A1 on my right ring finger and my A2 on my left ring finger. PAIN, no crimp no jug hauling, nothing. Makes me sick I'm getting old a ripe 27 years; how much longer am I gonna be able to pull hard? Who knows but it really makes me anxious wasting any cold weather!

DAMN OK so for now here's the a little secret for you guys. If you don't know I been climbing for almost 9 years pretty long compared to some of the kids who are out breaking barriers crushing stone. I may not be breaking barriers but I have picked up a few tricks along the way. For finger injuries I discovered a technique that involves short cold/hot sessions. First get a bowl and fill it with water and a few cubes of ice. It's important to get the water cold but not freezing you want it to hurt a bit but still be able to keep your hand in.(Warning: Do not freeze your fingers. If the water is too cold you can kill the tissue and could potentially give your self frost bite) Start by placing the injured finger/hand into the cold water for five minutes, then have a bowl with hot water, again not boiling, hot enough that it stings but you are able to leave you hand in without extreme pain. Place you hang in the hot water, you should feel the blood rush into you hand and the injury will really tingle. If you can feel the tingle in the injured section of you finger then you are on the right track. Once you finish five minutes in the hot water pull out your hand and massage and stretch the injured finger. Its important to repeat about three times. Do three to five sessions a day and take a very low dose of Advil. I recommend staying off prescription anti-inflammatory. They tend to be too strong and when the inflammation is reduced too drastically you loose the blood which carries the nutrients needed to heal injuries. Plus a lot of them can cause weight gain as well as internal bleeding, liver problems and other harmful side effects. After a couple weeks tape the fingers up and do a few light hangs from the large rails of a finger board. I recommend not climbing anything steep, crimpy, or hard until there is zero pain. If there is pain, there is still an injury. After you can hang from a finger board with no pain tape up and start climbing. Begin slow give it a few weeks to regain strength and in no time you should be healthy.

Triple Crowwnnnn!!!! Part I

2008-11-12T21:47:00.018-06:00

One simple word comes to mind when I think back on the Houndears Comp... Debauchery!!!! The weekend started off right with a midnight drive through the foot hills of the Appalachians. My boy Lee and I arrived at Table Rock just in time to catch the sunrise. Well not quite, but we did dock around 3am, a bit late to catch enough ZZZs for the planned alpine start. Our plans were to climb as many multipitch routes as possible and then head over to Grandfather and set the Mammut booth. In true southern form we slept til about 10 and by the time we made it up to the parking for Table Rock the lot was for the most part full.

No worries, so we grabbed our gear and hucked into the forest in search of our first route. After getting lost several times and bush wacking some, we finally made it. We chose a sweet little 4/5 pitch route with runout bolts called Jim Dandy. Lee set off with the first lead and after about a half an hour we were climbing over some of the most beautiful stone with the most amazing views I've ever seen.

The 1st through the 3rd pitchs were all pretty straight forward, except the third pitch was about 50 feet unprotected, but at about 5.4 it was a pretty easy lead for Lee. The 4th pitch was another story. It was about 90-110 feet with two bolts! It was also the hardest climbing of the day at a whopping 5.7! OK, so the climb wasn't that difficult, but being close to 45 feet above the last bolt and not bringing any pro, it was extremely eye opening and I was pretty much scared shitless to say the least. After sending and setting up some shitty protection I yelled for Lee to start climbing. We then proceeded to run up a sketchy and very exposed scramble to the summit.After a few summit photos we booked down the trail to retrieve our gear and then down to the truck for ice cold beer.

Is That Chocolate on Your Face Mother Fucker !!!

After arriving at the camp grounds and saying our hellos, we preceded to set up the booth and begin the party. We partied till everyone was asleep and then turned in ready for the next days comp. Around early as fuck a.m., alarms began going off all over the camp ground. All I wanted was to stay in my warm bag, but was soon annoyed enough to get up. It was freezing!! The coldest it's been since last winter and I was miserable. I jumped in the truck, turned on the heat and waited for everyone to pack in so we could go get coffee and head for the boulderfields. Soon we were warm, and setup and were awaiting instructions from Jim and Chad. The parking lot was full of peeps ready to crush all in the name of free gear. I wasn't psyched as usual so we decided to hang around and chill for a while. After the competitors evacuated into the boulder fields, I slowly made my way in and began warming up. The day was long and the climbing good. I climbed as many problems as I could and damn I was tired and sore! After the comp we jetted back to the camp grounds and cracked open the booze. The awards ceremony was awesome and we killed all the beers, the pint of Makers Mark, the pint of Vodka, and the handle of Jack that Ronnie and Julie brought! Needless to say the crew was a bit unruly and several wrestling matches along with dance offs, tables slides, and bottle kicking ensued. Not long after, ole Lee went missing and was later discovered trying to break into an unknown jeep. We guided to his truck and he decided to cram himself in the back like a sardine. After some photos of the night, we carried Lee to his tent to let him pass out. The party was almost over and after walking around to a few camp fires decided to call it a night. The next morning we were all surprisingly chipper so we headed into downtown Boone for some delicious breakfast. After breakfast we said goodbye to all our friends and pointed the truck south. I'll have to say this may have been the most fun Triple Crown event I've ever attended!! Thanks to all my homeboys and homechicas that participated and congrats to the winners!!! Peace

The Promised

2008-10-01T11:02:00.016-05:00

I'm Back!

2008-10-01T09:53:00.005-05:00

Ok, so it's been almost forever since I've updated my blog. Just a quick update of what has been going on in my life. Spent the whole summer climbing routes. Didn't boulder much, but now that my hommies are back from Squamish I been bouldering a bit more.

I feel out of shape and am beginning to start back working on my fitness. My goal is a southern 8a by the spring! I am about to dedicate a good bit of time to training and routes to try and accomplish this. I'd also like to boulder southern v9 by the spring as well!

This weekend should be awesome. I'm headed up the Boone for the first leg of the Triple Croooown! Its gonna be a NRR repeat with Mista Lee Means and Ronnie Jenkins!! jeeeyahh and we're gonna start the weekend off right with some multi-pitch stuff at Table Rock!

Aight I'm out, but be on the look out for a trip report soon! I gonna plan on updating this thing more regular. And the post won't all be as damn boring as this one!

Peace

Here a few pics from the Virgin Gorda, The Red, and some sweet spots spread through out the south.

Whoooaaaaa

2008-06-11T15:50:00.001-05:00

OK, so much has happened in the last few weeks I can't even begin to explain, but I'll ty anyways.

Ok first and foremost, I got married!! That's right Easy is off the market fo good!! The wedding was the shizznit! Everything went as planned and the after party was superdope!! Courtney looked beautiful and I think she got the wedding she dreamed of, which is awesome!!!!

Now lets back up a bit.

New River Rendezvous!!!!!!!!!!! was the bizomb. I hung with my boys Mista Lee Means and Ronnie the jank super strong Jenkins, Shane the heartbreaker Messer, the Mammut crew Ian, Peter, and the lord of all lords Dean Lord, and the Metolius crew.

The weekend started off right with a trip to The Mix in downtown Chatt to chill and listen to some local song writers, but if you know me then you know I'm not much of a chiller and by 2 am we were dropppin shots of Patrone like hot stones! After which I stumbled my way on stage and sang a few ditties.

The next morning came fast and Jenkins was at the house at 8am! OUCH!!! Never mind the headache or the fact that I could still taste Tequila, we were psyched to be hitting the road! We managed to turn a 5 hour drive into an 8 hour drive, but eventually we arrived to the beautiful New River Gorge.

BUMMER..... it was raining, and it didn't look like it was gonna give up so we set up camp next to the Mammut motor home and headed over to Kenny's, the event organizer's cabin. There we chilled with the "VIP" crowd and grubbed delicious burgers washed down with ice cold keg beer. We hung there most of the night clownin on a certain few individuals--cough cough Charley cough. The next morning we woke to more rain!! Sucked, no climbing to be had so Ronnie, Shane, the Metolius crew and I walked to the overhung boulders at the end of the campground and worked eliminates. I got spanked by Ronnie and Shane's problems which inspired me to train more. After the session was over there wasn't much to do but drink so we popped the bottle of Grey Goose "and got loose". Pretty soon the kegs were tapped and we helped ourselves to some ice cold beverages.

The next morning I awoke to Lee banging on my tent at 6am! We had to head over to the courthouse to set up the Mammut booth and get the demos ready for the comp. I'm not sure if it was the rock gods or Dean Lord himself, but sky was hosting the richest blue I had ever seen, and the warm sun felt amazing on our pasty hungover faces. It was time to climb... finally!! After the the demo was over, we stuffed out faces with Aspirin, Red bull, and other various pain killers and took off for Hawk's Nest for a bad ass session. For those who don't know Hawk's Nest is the shit, big beautiful sandstone boulders with nice landings set along side a river. The only thing that kinda sucks is the giant spillway located a few hundred yards away. As soon as we were there we didn't waste anytime and Ronnie, Lee, ODUB, Dean, and myself threw our shoes on and began running up everything in site. We didn't even have a pad. It was like we were children all over out playing in the woods, never mind that there was a bouldering comp going on around us, we were there to have fun! A lot of the climbers looked at us like we were crazy; they were totally focused on their "gotta win" attitude and taking the problems way too serious. I've been there I know. I thought it was dope if I won comps so I would out and be all serious and get worked up and nervous over a free pair of shoes and at-shirt. That's not climbing, man climbing all about going out with your homeys, searching for a buzz, becoming one with your surroundings and and having the best time possible. That's what I'm talking about!!

So after a long day of sending and getting shutdown (White Eyebrow!!!), we headed back to the campground to do what we do best. That's right, start drinking. The rain was starting to pick back up, but it didn't matter we had already had an awesome day and the beer was flowing strong, there was nothing that could go wrong! Around dark the Dyno Comp started which was sick! Shout out to those guys over at ProjectHolds, they did an awesome job with the comp, and their holds are the best holds you can put on your wall!!

After the Dyno Comp, the band set up and began jammin. They were rad so Ronnie, Lee, Dean, and myself filled the cups and took off for some dancin. We danced our asses off right up until dome random drunk ass girl punched Ronnie smack in the eye!! It was hilarious. Pretty soon her and her drunk ass friend were wrestling some dude on the nasty wet floor with everyone watching, that poor guy got punched right in the balls!! Next the girl jumped up and started frantically looking for her flip flops, which later we found out Ronnie had chucked into the woods as payment for that bitch slap he'd received earlier. I told the girl that Lee had her flops in his coat so she ran over and punched him in the face!! HAHAHA, Oh man then she straight picked his pocket and stole his precious "party favors." Things were starting to go a little far so Kurt the regulator Smith made the girls leave, both of them crying.

We stumbled back to the motor home and drank till we passed out. The next morning we broke down camp...in the rain, and counted our losses (stolen demo gear). We then cruised over the Pie-n-Pints for some of the best pizza ever. We were gonna finish Sunday off with some sport climbing, but the rain held steady so we just decided to head back to Chatt. The trip went well, except for the Tornado that almost killed us right outside Chatt, and pretty soon I was sitting back in Huntsville recollecting the weekend in my head, and wishing it wasn't over.

Although not much climbing was had, the trip was totally awesome and I can't wait till next year!!

Want to shout out to all my boys new and old, it was a blast!!! And also say thanks to Ian and Mammut for putting us up and hooking me up with some sweet gear.

Pictures will be coming soon, And be on the look out for a full write up and some super rad photos from the Virgin Gorda!!!

Alright off to my next adventure, Peace!!

Hand Grenades, Pirates, and Tranny Strippers

2008-04-23T11:37:00.000-05:00

I just got back from from my bachelor's party this weekend. My friends and I sacrificed body, mind and soul for one glorious weekend in New Orleans. It was an absolute blast! There was a pirate convention at our hotel, which meant a lot of weird humans running around acting like Captain Jack Sparrow. It was pretty amazing to see how people really believe they are pirates.

We arrived Friday evening, and had already began participating in party favors, meaning most of us already had a pretty good buzz. After a small glitch with the hotels, we settled in and quickly rushed to Bourbon Street. We headed straight for our old stomping ground, Fat Catz and Huge Ass Beers. Unfortunately, the band we were hoping to see was no longer at Fat Catz, so we settled for an ice cold 32oz beer. The night was spent bar hopping and dancing with very large black women. I couldn't have asked for a better first night!

The next day was sort of ruff. I slept a bit longer than everyone else, but eventually made my way to Bourbon Street where I indulged in nasty ass Krystals (what was I thinking). I began drinking trying to catch up with everyone, and did a pretty good job pounding two delicious Hand Grenades from Tropical Isles. After hanging on Bourbon for a while, we walked back to the hotel and got ready for the night. That night went about the same as the night before Huge Ass Beers and bar hopping, which led a few of us to some locals bar at 5:30 in the morning. I ordered my last beer of the night at 5:45 am! Where else can you drink all night and never go home!

All and the whole weekend went well, no one was arrested and several of us watched the sun rise. Anyway thanks guys, you all are the best buds a guy could ask for.

Number One

2008-04-07T11:18:00.000-05:00

Hello cyberworld, this is my first ever attempt to create a blog! I'm not all that computer savvy, but thought this would be a cool attempt to document my life, my training, and my climbing.

First off, I'm 26 years old and work a boring desk job. I usually spend my days trying to figure out how I can afford to climb full time and still live a decent life, you know financially. I love rock climbing with all my heart, and if this were a perfect world I would spend every day climbing or bouldering somewhere awesome! But it's not, and to be able to climb full time you pretty much have to give up everything including relationships and family, not to mention you'd be totally broke. So for now, I'm gonna go as hard as I can go, train as hard as I can train, and climb every minute I can climb!