behind those locked doors are the fearless ROCK’n & JAM’n routesetters, fully immersed in a cave and high volume setting day.  these are the days that we take the extra time to set in the lead cave as well as catch up on some easier graded routes that have been overlooked over the past weeks.  for example, on friday january 6, 2012, there were 5 setters, ng, jg, cc, la, and khn.  between us, 9 routes were set.  now i can’t personally take credit for the volume (neither can corey) as we got the cave routes (more on that later).  but lucas and keith each bucked up and set 2 routes apiece, while nathan was the real champ racking up 3 routes!  he counted up all the holds and found he had bolted 156 holds to the wall.  156!  and a lot of the holds that these guys used had to be washed.  they went up and down their ropes a lot! after a while, even in the most comfortable harness, limbs start to go numb.  plus hauling heavy buckets, filled to the brim with holds, up and down the walls can get a bit tiring, to say the least.

nathan on rope and ladder stripping and re-setting the 5.5, 5.6 and 5.7 on the slab wall

nathan hauling a big feature up the slab wall

gotta make sure you choose good holds. so many options...

5.12+ in the making. just need to come up with a sequence.

then there are the ladders.  they have names at rj1.  our largest ladder is a 35 ft extension ladder named ‘widow maker’.  i can’t say exactly how heavy this beast is, but a typical ladder of this size clocks in around 85 lbs.  and this isn’t a comfortable 85 lbs.  our second largest ladder (and the only other one to earn a name) is a 32 ft extension ladder named ‘bertha’.  she is definitely the little sister of ‘widow maker’, but is a force to be reckoned with all the same.  a typical 32 footer weighs around 70 lbs.  now we’re certainly not the largest guys around, but 4 days a week we’re hauling and moving these babies around.  you get good at finding balance points quickly, otherwise you’re dropping the ladder onto the mats.

so on a day like january 6, corey and i got to use the big ladders, since we were setting in the cave.  i started out with ‘widow’, corey on ‘bertha’.  we got them into the cave and started stripping our routes.  at this point, you might ask yourself: ‘what about the really steep section of the cave?  the wall doesn’t seem vertical enough to get the ladder to prop up against it.’  i was getting to that…you essentially pin the top of the ladder against the roof, and weight it enough to allow it to sink and shift into a stable position.  and sometimes it decides to sink and shift a little when you’re higher up which usually induces a bit of terror and a minor panic attack in me.  other setters reactions may differ.  and it gets really fun when you’re hauling up a heavy hold or a large volume.

corey on 'bertha', in the roof

once on your ladder, you may realize that the section of wall you need to either strip or set on, is too far away from your ‘comfortable’ perch.  so you have to squeeze your upper body through the rungs and lean through to the other side of the ladder.  this to me is absolutely terrifying, but sometimes it’s what the job requires.  january 6 had it’s fair share of these maneuvers.  and we were able to set both of our routes without the use of a rope, which is a rare but exciting feat to accomplish.  of course, it required standing near the very top of a fully extended ‘widow maker’.  but it’s just another day on the job.

me through the rungs near the top of 'widow maker', close to the top of the lead cave

corey on 'widow maker'

i guess that’s it for this episode of behind the wrenches.  hopefully this gives you, our faithful members and guests, a small bit of insight into what goes on during our typical setting sessions.  we certainly have off days, sometimes you just don’t feel like you have good moves.  it happens.  and we do need to hear about it.  many times, though, that’s the only feedback we hear.  keep in mind that some positive feedback from time to time lets us know what kinds of movement and climbing styles you guys enjoy, and also lets us know that all of the effort we put worth week in and week out isn’t all in vain.

3 brand new slab climbs (green, white and orange @ 5.7, 5.6 and 5.5 respectively)

straight up the center, red 5.11 (corey) and white 5.12+ (jamie)

1) I heard a rumor that you are training to run an ironmam or ultramarathon…why would you do that?

I signed up for the Leadville Silver Rush 50, which is a 50 mile ultra marathon in Leadville. I don’t know why I did that…

2) What do you think about when you set a route?

The other day I set a 5.9 (“Ghosts of Christmas”) in the Horseshoe Canyon at RJ2. After I compiled my bucket of holds, I went to the top of the wall and began dropping the previous route, and setting the new one from the top of the wall, down. As I pulled old holds off the wall I thought, “These holds are really old and dirty, and I wish we could replace all of them with a new line of mini-jugs from Egrips.” I continued to pull them off, and put up new ones. When I was about half-way down the wall I looked at the clock and thought, “Wow, I am setting really fast today- this method of setting from the top down while on a rope is really efficient. I should set this way everyday.” At this point, I looked up and realized that I had just set 10 feet of wall with all blue holds. I now had a bucket of all red and green Egrips mini-jugs, nice. It was three days before Christmas. I spent the remainder of my setting time (on the rope) thinking about where, or even if, I would be able to run Christmas Eve morning. The final touch to my route, which was looking very “Christmasy”, was the addition of three freaky looking holds that were molded into the shape of faces. I wish I could tell you who made these holds, but remembering holds/hold companies isn’t my forte. I used these freaky faces as footholds for the start of my route. LaMarcus walked over and looked at them. I told him, “Lucas, it’s a Christmas route with lots of red and green holds. These freaky looking faces here are the ghosts of Christmas past, present… and future.” Perfect. That worked out nicely. In between all of that, I’m sure many more pointless and uninteresting things passed through my brain.

3) What kind of bear is best?

False.

4) If you could be one character from Tombstone, who would it be and why?

I’ll have to go with Doc Holiday- mostly because he makes smoking, drinking, and dying of tuberculosis look… awesome.

5) What is the maximum airspeed of an unladen swallow?

I believe you mean; what is the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow? I’m going to guess it’s somewhere around… 7. Whatever it is, I can beat that time on my skateboard.

First things first, these are not “beginners” shoes.  These are meant for climbers looking for a very high-performance shoe.  That being said, after climbing in these shoes for the past two months, I have to say that they perform brilliantly on the terrain they are geared toward.  The middle Velcro strap helps keep the middle of the shoe and the heel “suctioned” to your foot, making foot placements, heel hooks, and heel scums feel extremely secure.  And with the non-stretching cotton heel, there is no sliding around on the inside, either.  The “knuckle box” gives your big toe extra room, and in conjunction with the “love bump”, allows your toes to curl without sacrificing comfort.  In other words, you don’t have to downsize these shoes to make them perform at the highest of levels.  I personally wear a size 9 street shoe and sized my Shaman’s at an 8½.  I feel like they can “grab” any foothold they need to, and I’m not doubled over in pain at the thought of slipping the shoes on.  The rubber is extremely sticky yet durable, and will give you the necessary confidence even on the most marginal smears.  I would say, pound for pound, these shoes compete with any of the top rated shoes for steep bouldering and sport-climbing.  They have become my shoe of choice for absolutely everything past vertical.  So if you’re drawn to the overhung rock, from 5.9 to 5.14 or v0 to v14, give ‘em a shot; you won’t be disappointed.

(Note: as with any shoe, you should try it on beforehand, if possible.  But if you have had a pair of Evolv shoes before, they should be sized the same as the Optimus Prime or Talon, or ½ a size larger than the Defy or Pontas)

Comparable shoes: La Sportiva Solution, Five Ten Team 5.10

Youth:

Colin Duffy (2168)

Mikey Lowe (1775)

Aliza Nishke (1754)

Women’s Recreational:

Jenna Park (2384 + Moonboard Climb-off)

Chelsea Battan (2384)

Men’s Recreational:

Emilio Espinoza (1627)

Women’s Intermediate:

Charise Denavit (3561)

Men’s Intermediate:

Walter Wood (4820)

Patrick Radecker (4660)

Daniel Hayes (4562)

Women’s Advanced:

Jacinda Maurer (5180)

Rochelle Rocha (3026)

Men’s Advanced:

Osiris Graves (6779)

Kevin Rust (6611)

Jamison Burt (6591)

Women’s Open:

Mercedes Pollmeier (5412)

Men’s Open:

Seth Lytton (8118 + 33 pullups)

Asher Shay-Nemirow (8118 + 24 pullups)

Jamie Emerson (7826)

Masters:

Silvia Luebben (4485)

Gary DeGroat (4203)

Hillary Nitshke (2089)

Photos of all the sports action are posted on our Facebook page. Thanks again to everyone who came!

There are seven full-time routesetters at RJ. You may know them as NG, JG, CP, CC, LA, KHN, and RA (even though it is obviously RM…). You may also know them as Natty Gray, Jameson, Chrispy, C-Note, LaMarcus, ‘KEITH!’ and Two Bills. Probably you just know them as Nathan, Jamie, Chris, Corey, Lucas, Keith, and Rylan.

These fine gentlemen begin their work day at 8am every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. While you may be surprised that any of them are able to leave bed before noon, let alone conquer mental and physical challenges at such hours, you should know that they are a cheery, good-natured bunch (coffee helps) of hard-working go-getters.

Between the hours of 8 and 11:30am, a setter will bring out buckets of holds from the hold closet, select holds for their new route, strip (or drop, in the parlance of our times) the old route, load dirty holds in the dishwasher, set the new route, cleanup, and forerun.

In a month, the boys will set roughly 85 routes and 100 boulder problems between the two gyms. That’s a lot. Somewhere near 4,500 vertical feet of climbing or so. No other gym in the state can match that productivity. They will also use over a mile of tape to mark the routes and problems.

The average lifespan of a route is just under two months, while boulder problems stick around for 3-4 weeks. It can be daunting to watch your creations exist for so short a time, but the lads handle the constant turnover admirably.

That does it for this episode of Behind the Wrenches. Tune in next time for an exclusive look at the tools of the routesetting trade.

And what better way to prepare for the holiday season than with a festive, cider-and-cookie-laden bouldering extravaganza? Enter the Winter Wonderland Comp:

Come climb on expertly set problems from V0 to V11, enjoy the aforementioned cookies and cider, partake in the supplementary dyno competition, and unwrap presents from Sharp End Publishing, eGrips, Trango, Camp, Hummingbird Mountaineering, Evolv and more. Also, Santa Claus. Seriously.

Stay tuned for more details…

Yes, fall Bouldering League is right around the corner. Starting in October, the League will be taking over the boulder at both gyms. Sign up, hang out with friends, meet some great new people, and enjoy the delectible boulder problems prepared fresh each week by our top movement chefs.

Look for more details in the coming weeks, including times, scoring format, and info on the end-of-League party!

It’s official, the Colorado Premiere of The Scene is September 6th at the Boulder Theater! With special guest appearances from athletes Kilian Fichhuber, Anna Stöhr , and Cody Roth. Plus, The Sheriff himself, Mr. Jamie Emerson, will be on-hand selling new copies of his RMNP and Mt. Evans Bouldering Guidebook. This is one show you can’t miss!

Doors at 7, movie at 8. Tickets $15 at the door, or $13.50 pre sale at Rockn’ & Jamn’ 1.

 Check out the trailer:

ROCK’n & JAM’n was my first employer and has continued to employ me in one way or another for the last thirteen years.  As a kid I was a gym climber and member of the ROCK’n & JAM’n Youth School.  By volunteering with the route setting crew for a Junior National Championship in Thornton I earned a position on the staff.  You might recall the early days of the gym and the precise procedures and organizational discipline one had to utilize to be considered a good employee.  As many can attest, young teenaged males are not necessarily inclined to be adept at such requirements and it’s a miraculous extension of generosity that I remained employed to this day.

I have had numerous other employers during my years with the gym and have not always been as involved as I am now.  I am thankful that the opportunity to work for John and Deb has always been an element of my life.  It is their belief in my abilities, however, that I am most thankful, and perhaps the two are one in the same.  There were times in the past that it would have been easy to relieve me of my duties and I wouldn’t have protested.  I was given room to grow and thus matured into the role that I have performed for the last couple of years.

Many of the aspects of the job are enjoyable, but none more than the people I was able to interact with every day.  The community of climbers that frequents the two facilities is full of warm, friendly, and thoughtful people.  Since I have never worked at any other gym I can’t speak on the qualities of gym climbers in general, but I would be surprised if ROCK’n & JAM’n isn’t near the top.  Thanks for welcoming me into your lives, if only for an hour or two a couple nights a week.

The future of ROCK’n & JAM’n will continue to be bright.  I have worked with Rylan Marshall and Nathan Gray for many years and can assure you that they are good setters and great people.  They share the same vision of a better climbing environment for our customers that pushed me to work hard for your benefit.  Please welcome them into their new roles and let them know when you really like something about a route or problem.  Positive feedback is essential.  It is far easier for route setters to repeat something that went well than to guess what you like to climb.  Don’t forget that there is a partnership between the climber and the setter and you are as important to their success as hard work.

I have not had the chance to personally tell everyone what my future holds, and perhaps you are curious.  My wife, Estee, was hired by the University of Western Montana to teach in their education department.  It is a small school in a slightly larger town, Dillon, settled into the ranches of a western sage brush valley.  The opportunities for exploration are as big as the sky, as exemplified by the journey Lewis and Clark took through the same valley years ago.  While the climbing in the immediate area is limited, we’ll be only four hours away from the Tetons as well as City of Rocks.  The nearest gym is two hours away in Bozeman, so I won’t be seeking a position on their setting staff.  I’ll have some time to enjoy the country and raise our daughter, Kestrel, before I look for a job, if I get around to it.

I couldn’t be more excited, while saddened about moving on, for the adventure to begin!  Thank you for being such a positive part of my life.  I will come back to the gym every once in a while to reconnect with the greatest part of being a climber, the community.

Sincerely,

Brendan Aiken