Name: Steve Schultz

Birthday: March 27, 1984

Occupation: student/ employee at Boulder's climbing gym in Madison, WI

 

The Challenge

March 13-19 

1 V9 
1 V8 
2 V7's 
3 V6's 
4 V5's 
5 V4's 
1 5.13 and for good measure, since you all know how much i love the highball, lets toss in 5 scary highballs. 

The second part of my challenge is gonna take place on the wonderful frictionless quartzite we've grown to love at devils lake. 

March 25 

1. Highball Slab at Burma-V2 
2. Voodoo eliminate at Burma-V4/5 
3. Pinball Arete-V5 
4. Lunge on top of the West Bluff-V3 
5. 45 degree left-V4 
6. Anchorpoint-V7 
7. Beautiful Soup-V7/8 
8. Smooth Operator-V4 
9. The greatest arete-V? 
10. Bark Biter-V4 
11. Green seam-V5 
12. Show Me The Kind-V4 
13. Barking Slab-V1 
14. Bulbous Left center-V7 
15. The Zipper-V6 
16. The Flatiron-V4 
17. Tombstone Classic-V2 
18. Beer Buzz-V2 
19. Jenga-V7 
20. Mantle Project-V? 
21. Slope of Dadaism-V3 
22. Warmup at Burma-V0 As everyone associated with birthday challenges knows, a challenge just isnt complete without some fritters involved. 
23. eat 3 fritters on the 25th.

 

 

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Part 1: Chaos Happens
Chaos makes everything more interesting.  The first day went great at the holies sending the first V7, turkey jerky, and a couple other classics as well as a highball.  We stopped at Casey's to get gas and start to drive to alabama for some sandstoney goodness.  As we tried to leave Tony's car decided that it had gone far enough and wouldnt start.  The tow truck arrived and we packed all of the essentials into 2 cars and stayed the night thinking it was just the timing belt and we could get it fixed in the morning.  Turns out that the timing belt pretty much exploded taking as much with it as possible.  After a failed attempt of acquiring a u-haul we strapped all 9 pads onto the tops of the element and the explorer.  Packed 5 people into the explorer and 4 in the element along with almost all of the gear we had arrived with, we headed for HP40.

When we arrived Alexis gave us in car directions to the "good" campsite.  We pulled up a mere 50 from the nearest boulder.  After a quick dinner we put the headlights on and started up again after a mandatory rest day.  The first V4 was fairly quick to go down but a blast and a great start to the trip with a fun traverse and an uber slopey topout.  After the first problem we started working a roof next to it.  I pretty quickly decided to save my skin but Steve Day and Dane gave it some real good goes.

A quick note about what a dab is though.  A dab is when your foot or any part of your body hits something not on the problem, like a tree, a person or the ground/pad.  Even if it just touches for a millisecond it stops
your swing for a bit or it helps you stay on the problem.   its cheating, and it pisses me off.  This problem was made for dabbing and the whole time we were at our site people were trying this problem and dabbing to their hearts content.  Alright, rant over.

The first full day at HP40 was spent getting an "awesome problem" tour from Alexis.  I was able to get the rest of the 4's that day and 2 of the 5's.  Every single problem i got on was a blast.  Really fun lower section to a crazy slopey topout.  We ended the day on millipede and bum boy, 2 classic sandbags.  Steve Day and Dane were crushed, after working both problems for an hour and a half,  when we told them that there weren't any sit starts but i give them a ton of credit on millipede.  That sit start was brilliant. 
 

The next day started off by doing the wasp and a couple of 6's next to it as well as another 5.  All were once again awesome problems.  After lunch we started wandering around and made our way over to turtle head and slushy puppy.  After i humped the living daylights out of the turtle head we got on slushy puppy and slabolicious.  Slushy puppy went down in 2 goes and the 6's were officially done. it was by far my favorite problem of the trip.

Soon after everyone started working it and all had a good time with alexis taking 3 big falls off of the top moves, and soon after vowing to come back the next day.  Jason, Kelsen and I booted up to try the low start which goes at V8.  We were all just sort of dinking around on it until Jason barely missed the hold.  Kelsen and I jumped at the chance to get it first.  After a few goes I was able to stick the lockoff and pull through the lower section and into the stand start.  Screaming the whole way up i fell on an easier move
near the lip that i hadn't tried before.  Kelsen got it the next go for his first V8.  Seeing him get that honestly made my trip worthwhile.

"oh well, i'll get it tomorrow" My plan was to get slushy puppy low right away and then head over to slider and work it till i bled. Turns out i was wrong.  i fell 2 more times on the upper crux, once because i screwed up the beta again, and another when my left hand popped.  both times i smacked into the tree behind me.  This became my project for the day but after about 30 goes on the lower lockoff and a heartbreaking dab i was done except for a few failed goes late in the day.  Alexis came through with her promise to get it the next day and cruised it.

We had to leave without going to the red so the 5.13 will have to wait for another day.  The weather is looking perfect for this saturday and we should have a decent little crew going up to the lake.  Gonna be good!!

steve

 

Part 2: Oh, So Sweet Failure!
The day started out so positive, Jason showed up on time and we headed over to Steve #2's apartment with fritters in tow.
  I started eating the first fritter on the way up the stairs and then all hell broke loose.  #2 tried to 
explain what was going on amidst compliments of my fritter.  We had already lost one member of the support team and #2  was getting ready to pick up 
Kelsen.  Jason and I headed off to Alexis's place while #2 went to go pick up Kelsen.  I couldn't be too much happier though.  
I was eating my first Greenbush fritter in 2 years, my car sounded like a jet, and I was wearing a bright shiny purple jumpsuit.  Wonderful.

We arrived at the lake and after a brief intake of fritter, headed to the first set of problems on the list.  The first two went down without a 
hitch and both reminded me how good the bouldering can be at the lake.  Kelsen and #2 showed up as I was finishing the slab and we headed over to Steve's 
Eliminate.  It had been a while since i had done this problem so i had to get #2 to show me the beta again.  He's pretty good at that and 1 try 
later i sucked my butt in and sent.  With #2 festering about how he still couldn't do the next move i went over to clean off the top of Pinball Arete.

Definitely considered the mental crux for me since i hadn't tried the problem in 2 years i was a bit nervous.  The problem goes up an arete 
on small holds before busting up to slopers on the topout.  While clocking in at about V5 it was definitely not the hardest problem on my list but 
the landing makes it more than memorable.  Another boulder waits about 4 feet behind the arete to smack you around a bit and then push you into 
either a pit or another talus block.  Classic!  While i was cleaning off the topout holds Kelsen came over to give me a hand.  He told me to "Be careful 
and don't fall."  I said, with a bit of attitude, i was alright and asked him for his chalk ball and promptly bit the dust and skidded off the topout 
stick brush in hand.

"I'm Alright!  I think."  Kelsen quickly made his way down into the pit to see if i was still alive.  All i remember seeing was the boulder in 
back of pinball getting closer and then lying on the starting block.  After lying there for about 5 minutes talking with Kelsen and Alexis we all went 
over to where #2 and Jason were.  The only injury i could feel was in my right thigh but i could still walk on it so the challenge was still on!  With a 
stupid smile I told #2 that i had just fallen off of the top of pinball without pads and he promptly asked where all the blood was.  We showed Jason 
the problem and the landing and all #2 could say was "So, Pinball is off the list right?"  With that we headed over to Smooth Operator and Bud 
White.

It had been a while since i got shutdown on a V4 so it felt kinda good to get spit off of smooth operator so many times so quickly.  About 10 
tries in a blood blister started in on my pinkie finger.  It was really starting to feel like a birthday challenge!  I was so happy.  Kelsen was the 
closest to sending but none of us could muster the sketchy topout.  We went over to Show Me The Kind, another classic V4 that i hadn't tried in 2 years and 
proceeded to get shut down once again.  I had completely forgotten the beta and couldn't weight my right foot at all thanks to pinball.  My leg 
started to turn into a log and soon after i called the challenge a true and honest failure.

That night after completely freaking out about the fall i decided to at least try to finish the fritter portion of the challenge.  I ended up 
getting 2.5 down before i could take no more. I tend to evaluate my challenge by how i feel the next day.  If i hold 
true to that idea then this challenge was as successful as any of my others.  
I couldn't walk up stairs or move my head too fast.  My back was killing me and i was still full from the fritters.  2 days later i felt completely 
opposite.  I could move my leg again, my neck and back were doing fine and i was climbing again, albeit gingerly.  After taking one of the worst 
falls i've ever taken i was lucky to be walking, let alone climbing!

To make myself feel better i keep on telling everyone that if you complete a challenge it was too easy.  The redemption challenge will be coming 
soon though.  Just you wait.  We may even have a triple challenge coming up too. 22 5.12's at the lake in 2 days is sounding mighty tasty right now.

Steve

alright, so we've figured out the redemption challenge.

1.  By september 1st i'll redpoint every 5.12 at the lake.  (50 total)
2.  In early september, dates tba, i will climb 22 5.12's in 2 consecutive
days.
3.  Someday in september i need to do 3 one arm pull ups, lock off, and
drink something.  we haven't figured out just what i'll be drinking
yet.

hopefully this goes a little better than the last challenge. 

steve