Document type : vocene
Date : 2007-03-28
Description : VOCene #29
Content :
VOCene #29 - Mar 28, 2007
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In this VOCene:

I. Letter from the Editor
II. Work Hikes
III. News
IV. Slide Shows
V. Upcoming Trips
     1) Leavenworth/Vantage
     2) Cliffhanger
     3) Banquet
VI.  Trip Reports
     1) St Paddy's Day Celebrations	
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I. Letter From the Editor

Any trip can be salvaged with a little bit of nudity.

II. Workhikes

1) Europa (formally known as Crap Crags)
When: Always
Where: The Chief

Jeff needs two suckers to help him clean Europa during the Easter break.

III. News

-March 29, the Conservation Section of Nature Vancouver will host a forum on the current state of BC’s provincial parks entitled “BC’S PROVINCIAL PARKS: CAN THE IMAGE BE RESTORED?”. Guest speakers will be Derek Thompson, a former Deputy Minister for Ministry of Environment; Scott Benton, Executive Director for Parks & Protected Areas, Ministry of Environment; and Ben West, a former Green Party candidate and the organizer of the 2006 BC Park Lovers Tour. If you want details about time contact Tim Blair at (tjblair 'at' interchange.ubc.ca). The Forum will be held in the Parish Hall of St. Mary’s Kerrisdale, 2490 West 37th Avenue (at Larch).

IV. Slide Shows   
When: 7pm
Where: Clubroom
Wiki: http://www.ubc-voc.com/wiki/Slide_shows

* March 28: Climbing and mountaineering in Oz and New Zealand, by Krystil

V. Upcoming Trips

1) Son of Rock
When: April 6-9
Where: Somewhere that is dry and has climbable rock
Wiki: http://www.ubc-voc.com/wiki/Leavenworth_and_Vantage_Climbing_Trip

Weather forecast looks good all weekend. Go learn some cool skills that will impress all of your climbing friends. 

2) Leavenworth/Vantage
When: April 6-9
Where: Somewhere that is dry and has climbable rock
Wiki: http://www.ubc-voc.com/wiki/Leavenworth_and_Vantage_Climbing_Trip

This is going to be the first road trip of the season for most of us. Time to pull out your old gear and see if the moths have chewed core shots into your rope and find out if your cams have rusted into one immobile position. Go find your nuts (pun fully intended) in the closet and proudly display them for everyone to see. Remember how good it feels to grab the right piece after groping your rack frantically just before you pump out.  

This trip offers no official instruction because the people going are all too busy trying to remember everything they forgot over the winter to safely teach.

3) Cliffhanger

Climbing at cliffhanger with other people who are too lazy to find a regular climbing partner. The times are 6pm on Monday and Thursday, switching to Tuesday and Thursday at 6pm after the Leavenworth trip (April 6-9). Usually food and other shenanigans available on Thursday evening.

4) Banquet
When: April 4
Where: ANZA Club, 3 West 8th Avenue Vancouver, BC
Wiki: http://www.ubc-voc.com/wiki/Banquet

We have a DJ (Arlin), dance floor and beer, wine and cider. If you show up before 6pm, cover is $2, and $7 if you show up after 6pm. This is the annual general meeting and we have a few really important issues to discuss including electing next years executive, passing the budget and a few other items. The dinner is supplied, dessert is pot luck. There is going to be a slideshow by Robin Walshaw on his 2003 Everest Expedition. This event is formal, so if you own something nice, I'd wear it. If you don't own anything nice, go to value village and try and buy a suit for under $20, I bet no one can tell the difference between your $20 suit and the ones others payed full price for. Duct tape tuxedos and birthday suits are accepted, although one of the two may get you arrested. 

VI. Trip Reports
1) Burton Hut   

If you have low enough standards, nothing can go wrong. All you have to do is define everything barring complete disaster as normal. I highly recommend adopting this strategy when plannig any type of VOC trip that is available to anyone dumb enough to join.

The trip started as an a simple weekend hut ski that turned into a 48 hour, not even close to an epic, epic. No one almost died, we didn't do anything risky (I don't think), but people did suffered a great deal of pain and discomfort. You would figure the pain and discomfort would be something to avoid, but it is actually really funny when it isn't happening to you.  

The trip started on Friday night. It was Charlie's birthday and I had planned a toga party at my place. There was about 20 people dressed in varying styles of togas that slowly got more and more revealing as the night progressed. I highly recommend loin cloths, the Roman slaves were onto something. It was just so free and simple. Charlie cut her ice cream cake with my snow saw, I thought it was a fitting use. Everyone in my car crashed on my floor, and were all passed out by 2am. We didn't get much sleep as I woke everyone at 6am to leave by 6:45. I was impressed at their dedication to torture. Charlie should have been brutally hung over, but managed to escape unscathed from a night that she barely remembers. Charlie didn't have a sleeping bag (Stu lost it in his ruck sack) as of 6:30am on Saturday morning, but we were able to fix that without waking up too many people.

In the end, it didn't matter that my car was almost on time. Seth called us to inform me that he had managed to forget his Beacon, and had gone back to fetch it. I decided to go to the trail head, send the others ahead, and wait for Seth and Rick. This turned out to be a good move because neither Line's or Charlie's VOC bindings fit their boots. Baker fixed up Line while I managed to get Charlie's skis attach to her feet. Baker, Charlie and Line headed off while I waited for the other two. After a long time, I called Seth to find out that ontop of the forgotten beacon, Rick had forgotten his skins and that they had stopped at Valhalla to see what they could do.

The two eventually showed up. We put kick wax on Rick's skis which was eventually replaced by a duct tape tread that effectively made his skis into snow shoes. We were off by an early bird start of 10am. The forcast was for 50cm of snow, which meant 5cm of rain at lower elevations. We had ~16km, 1000m vertical to go, were all drenched, had less than 4 hours of sleep, were hung over, had a group with two sets of VOC bindings that did not work properly and a third guy on VOC gear with no skins. We were all in pretty good moods considering the circumstances. I was calling for an epic, but I am not known for my predictive powers. At least we were in the mountains.

The slog up was pretty uneventful besides the rain. Rick was saved by rock hard snow for most of the way and the success of the duct tape. I didn't hear much bitching from Rick, but that could be because he was pretty far behind and I just couldn't hear him. I have a feeling that Rick will never forget his skins again. The guy is a tropper. He kept up with us all weekend, mostly. I am truly impressed.   

It was a relief to find the hut with no difficulties. We were soon stripped down to whatever dry cloths we had left. The hut was in great shape and the stove, heater and lamp all worked. That night, Line managed to find herself wedged between two warm men, can you blame her?  

That night, the forecast did what it was suppose to which completely surprised us. It got cold and cleared up which meant that the next day was actually going to be nice with reasonable avalanche hazard. We picked some random direction to head off in and went. Rick had no problems until the switch backs. The snow was soft, deep and steep. I also didn't set the nicest of tracks. Rick percevered and followed us up. We had lots of time to dig snow pits, eat, talk, and rest while Rick caught up. We skied up to a ridge which we walked up until we hit a local maxima we all decided to call a peak www.ubc-voc.com/gallery/v/sethadams_/Sphinx+Hut+Trip/DSC00780.JPG.html. 

Then the highlight of the trip came. On the way up, Seth asked Charlie, in casual jest, if she would ski nekkid for a donut. She quickly agreed to such a proposition as she was obviously craving a donut. I too, craving a donut, decided it was a worth while exchange. Rick, Line and Baker also seemed to think standing nude in the freezing cold was well worth a donut too. The idea was quickly shelved as we climbed higher into winter. However, spring returned on the ski down. Seth and I quickly became bored waiting at the bottom, and since we were standing on the last slope until the hut, it was now or never. Cloths were quickly packed into bags, Seth headed part way down the slope, and we skied by his clicking camera one by one, wearing only our hats, gloves and boots www.ubc-voc.com/gallery/v/sethadams_/Sphinx+Hut+Trip/DSC00810.JPG.html. The pictures of people falling in the snow were by far the funniest www.ubc-voc.com/gallery/v/sethadams_/Sphinx+Hut+Trip/DSC00815.JPG.html. We took one last pg-13 rated picture of us all nekkid covering the sensitive bits www.ubc-voc.com/gallery/v/sethadams_/Sphinx+Hut+Trip/DSC00838.JPG.html and headed back to the hut where we all finally got dressed.  

The return to the car was uneventful with all of us making it well before dark. We all met up at my house for some nachos which were at least as delicious and much cheaper than going to the Brew Pub. The hut tub was nice too although it really stung when hot water hit skin that was roughed up by nekkid crashes. It was a great weekend with some ups far out weighed the downs.   

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Question of the Week: ""The best climber in the world is the one who's having the most fun."    
Alex Lowe.
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