All in all the 5.10 was a little more physical, but not much more heady than the 5.6 I had lead the previous hour. Both were run out but it was all there. Unlike 5.6ıs in the limestone wold, these climbs are well worth doing and their ³classicness² should not be disregarded due to a low rating.

After lunch and a chill in the meadow, we accompanied Chad and Dr. Dan, wife Lorene and Sterling (the felon not the rope) to the yet unbeaten (by Chad that is) Machine World V5. Chad had been beating this problem into submission for two summers, but had not yet nailed it. I realized it was a traverse problem and hesitated on sharing my view that traverse problems are dumb. (I am glad I did because it is pretty damn fun). I cranked on most of the moves linking about 50 percent at any one time when my elbow told me it was quitting time.

Chad started squirreling up the moves as I spotted suddenly he put his foot down. "What the HELL?!" I yelled. ³You arenıt going to get to Sydney quitting halfway." That's when Chad informed me that he was just warming up and there is no climbing in the summer Olympics. "Ice climbing during the winter?" I donıt think so.

To make a long story short, Chad nailed it, he took a cool rest and powered through. He is the champ and everyone made insincere promises to buy him a beer as they patted him on the back.

We hiked around and I got on some foolish, but albeit bitchin' hand and fist 5.6 which I tripped out on halfway up with loosening fists, but held it together and staggered on up. Phenomenal. We ended up bouldering a while to the cool sounds of Curtis Mayfield at which time I learned what a rip-off artist he was, stealing from the likes of the Beastie Boys and Fishbone. Heıs hung up on the retro deal singing about 501 super flies or Levis or some shit.

The last day held a classic line up a well-trekked dome. Families, Germans, Hearty and Seasoned 60-year-old women were teaching newbie, out of shape counter parts on the fly, yelling to other climbers, "Is his harness double backed up?" "Do you know how to put the rope through the ATC? Just give me plenty of slack. I am almost to the belay." Just some zany shit, and yes, I backed off another pitch. Being accustomed to "sewing it up" Chad was urging me to place less although it did not feel secure about the out of sight, shallow placements I had cammed. But I will assert that I am not a puss, Chad was offering to lead, we had people on our asses and in a better or worse situation, I would have hung on the gear, sized up the moves and busted them out.

When I did lead the slab pitch I was shitting cookies. Windy slab climbing 30ft above my belayer and wife. The route was indiscernible and the bolts may as well have been invisible as I climbed right past one as I was looking for it. And Still, it was all there The temperature was dropping quickly. I belayed both Chad and Suzie at the same time, grabbed my windbreaker and Chad lead up the last crack to the summit.The low hanging clouds blew in. We dodged the direct wind on the way down and the Germans were getting down at the same time. The young family and the seasoned leader had rapped off the climb when the cold weather blew in.

The desire to climb later that day was met with gastro intestinal maladies of the #2 kind. Suzie and I got some hiking in and took some posed photos as the sun was setting and a sleepless and cold last night was coming forth.

Our lasting impressions of the Tuolomne meadows will be the beautiful climbing, cool weather, and breathtaking scenery. And next year I am going back to climb that El Cap.

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