In the Los Angeles Times

Check it out. Me in the LA Times:

Update 9 May 08:

article on the Muscle Beach

Stoney Point

Bouldering at the Pile Ups. Kevin gave me the beta on the Pile Lieback Sit Start:

Harlan strung a line over Sculpture Canyon:

It took about 2 1/2 hours to rig the line. I was impressed with the setup: 11mm static cordallettes for the anchors, threaded tubular to anchor the backup line, steel carabiners. Though the backup line was merely hand tightened, he was able to tape it tight to the main line without any Christmas garlands. A 3 inch O-ring to connect the leash to the line. With three good bolts on either end, the line looked safe. The leash was a bit short.

How to Setup a Long Slackline

Long slackline setup demonstration as requested by kyle. We’ve used this technique to set up a 200 ft line with less than 5 ft of sag.

Most of the equipment can be obtained in a climbing store. The Slackline Brothers pulleys are available online.

Slacklining in Riverside

We set up a 201 foot slackline in Hunter Hobby Park and I managed to cross it once, making it my record. There was only seven feet of unused slackline, so I may thread a longer line soon.

We threaded this line in October. That day we rigged up a 180 footer using the slack daddy, but the line had eight feet of sag, and we found it impossible to walk. I didn’t think I would be walking the full length any time soon. But my brother got some SBI pulleys and a hundred feet of static cord in December, and by supplementing that with a traxion pully, a ropeman, a Petzel ascender, and some extra pulleys, we’ve been able to set up a 200 footer with less than five feet of sag. Walking the long lines is more a feat of engineering than slacklining skill.

I think our setup time is about an hour. On our last two lines, we ran out of room in our tightening system on the first go, and had to tediously back it out and reset the pulling point on the slackline further out. When we have the ascender and the ropeman in the system, we have a theoretical 36 to 1 advantage. It goes fastest with one person working as the monkey, alternately advancing the ropeman and the ascender between pulls, and the other person working as the horse. Even for the 200 foot line, we haven’t needed to have two people pulling on the line, as long as the horse has a clove hitched carabiner to pull on.

The sequence of pieces as you travel along the static cord, starting with the fixed point, is

• SBI pulley (anchor side)
• SBI pulley (slackline side)
• SBI pulley (anchor side)
• SBI pulley (slackline side)
• traxion pulley (anchor side)
• ascender/pulley (slackline side)
• pulley (anchor side)
• ropeman/pulley (slackline side)

Slacklining

I walked my record length line, a 175 footer set up at Cheviot Hills Recreation Center.

The video is of Grant on the line.

Arcadia: 28 January

We set up a 155 foot line in Arcadia County Park, which I managed to walk twice.

Slacklining in Arcadia

We slacklined in Arcadia Country Park on Sunday. I rigged a way to get stable shots with my N93 using a $30 tripod and duct tape. I also experimented with duct taping the camera to a hat for a point-of-view shot.

My brother put up a 121 foot line with his pulleys. There was about 3 or 4 feet of sag, making the line much easier to walk that long lines we’ve put up in the past. We ate dinner at the oddly named Sushi of Naples. Central Park in Pasadena looks like a good place to set up a slackline.

Stoney Point, Malibu Creek, Riverside Quarry

Stoney Point, 2 September 2006

Set up a highline at Aron’s gap and walked it. Video on youtube.com

Malibu Creek, 2 September 2006

Finally figured out how to get into the creek. Attempted a 10d route, I think it was called Johnny Come Lately. Clipped 3 bolts and then hung. Hang-dogged my way up another 2 bolts. Climbed up to the anchors, but didn’t have the guts to clip. A more experienced climber told me there was a good jug to the left to clip from.

Riverside Quarry, 20 August 2006

Yo-yo ascent of a 10a route. Clipped about 3 or 4 bolts, but then couldn’t figure out the crux move where you need to move right and grab a sloping ledge. Grant went up and did the move, advancing the rope a bolt or two. I then finished it off. I realized that I was not trusting the friction. Using a slabby boulder at the base, I was able to prove to myself that the friction was much better than you might think.