Tuesday, November 12, 2013

2014 OURAY ICE FESTIVAL CLINICS!!

The 2014 Ouray Ice Festival is coming soon and the calendar of events is up on the web.
I will be teaching 3 clinics, 2 on Friday and 1 on Sunday.
Get your spot before they are fill up looking forward to see you there!!!!
Check out the Ouray Ice Festival Clinic Schedule



A Great Day of Early Season Ice Climbing in Ouray!!



This season here in Ouray, CO we are having an incredible start to the Winter with tons of Ice climbing and great skiing.

My training for the upcoming competitions and climbing projects is going super well, and most importantly very fun.

I have couple of days in between training cycles, so I decided to go and have fun ice climbing in the backcountry for two days in a row.  The first route I did it with my girlfriend Annie, we climbed the Ribbon WI-4 200M.  The second was with Bryan Gilmore who is one of my favorite climbing partners. We climbed the Talisman WI6, M6R 220M.

I usually start my day with a smoothie to get energy and my body in tune. 
Here is one of my recipes:



1 Banana
3 Chard lives 
1/2 Apple 
1/4 Cup of Berries
1/4 Cup of yogurt
1/4 Almond milk 
3 scoops of GU RECOVERY SMOOTHIE!!!!!
Some ice, put it all on the blender and you will get the most awesome 
smoothie. A great way to start your day!

  
While drinking my yummy smoothie, I'm putting together the gear that I'm taking for a long day of hard alpine ice climbing:
THE  ROCTANE and ELECTROLYTE BREW is a great and efficient way to stay hydrated after long approaches and to keep energy levels high, so they are one of the items I make sure to have with me!!    
   


After the approach from the trail head to the base of route a warm ROCTANE cup and a ROCTANE GU will get you ready to start climbing hard!!!!


  
There we go climbing time!!! Keeping the BREW and GU up will make me fill like a Rockstar or I should say an Ice star!!!! The route in this photo is called The Talisman. Right now (early conditions) the route it is really hard!!!

It is pretty incredible how you feel with good overall nutrition and products like the ones GU offers. Performance will always be up when you stay on top of providing your body with fuel.

Thanks to GU for keeping me always energized for my adventures, competitions, and expeditions all over the world!!!!   
 All best, 

Friday, September 6, 2013

IMAGES FROM PERU!!

Here are some images from the trip to Alpamayo in Peru.

This is a view from our hotel in Huaraz of Huazcaran  which is the tallest peak in Peru.  


Typical food of Peru where is all natural and delicious.....

Our acclimatization hike to some pre Inca ruins.....


After living Huaraz our next stop was Cachapampa where we pack all the gear in Burros and start hiking in. I took a photo with the future alpinist of Peru....


The trail to our first camp was really cool.....


We hike by a huge lake the view from here was fantastic.....


Some of the rock formations here where pretty tall like a big wall.....


In our rest break our porters and cook took really good care of us with awesome food....


Getting closer to BC of Alpamayo...... 


 Once establish in BC the 360 view offer beautiful panorama.....


 Taking a breakfast before going to a hike. Here is most  of the team.......


This photo is taking from our camp 3. we can see from here the glacier that we need it to cross in order to get to high camp....

Getting all the gear ready including the Blue Water Ropes to head up HC, getting there we need it to do some technical climbing.....


Once a HC a great view of Alpamayo and the route that we climbed super great view from this camp...


Most of the way up!!!! This face was about 400 meters long with super fun ice climbing....


After 5 hours of climbing all the team was at the summit 19,511 feet great to be up there......



After our summit we came down to BC to rest and eat some amazing food that our cook Max had ready for us!!!



This photo is taking from Alpamayo BC, this Mountain is call Artesonraju......

All and all a super fun trip I'm totally looking forward to climb more in the Cordillera Blanca next year!!!!







































Monday, August 12, 2013

PERU!!!



Our expedition was just in credible.
Every moment was juts fantastic, in our journey to the top of Alpamayo: 
from our long bus ride from Lima to Huaraz, meeting great people in Huaraz,
putting all our gear together in H town, taking the bus to Cachapampa, the magic hike through the majestic canyons that took us to our first camp where we spend the our first night out where we can hear the Santa Cruz River running with its clear water. 
Our next day hike to Base camp where the first view of our objective and lots of other just stunning mountains that captive our attention. 
Once at BC the UNO games start and the scores start to acumulate. 
The meals that Max (our chef) made for us where out of a 5 stars mountain hotel. Our way up making carries and getting and higher we got to see different side of the hills side and the glacier open right to our view. 
Moraine camp at the foot of the main glacier was a great place to observe our surounding. After spending the night there it was time for us to head up an get to Col camp, where cool glacier travel and little of climbing was waiting for us.
We also witness the strengh of our porters Zacarias and Pelayo, that carrying 90 pounds of stuff did not slow them down a bit to climb steep snow at 16,000. 
Once Col camp the hole entire face of Alpamayo was just in front of us with its dreamy looking ice runnels that go from the top all the way to the base. After the rest day, it was time for us to atemtp the summit. 
We woke up super early alpine start early and start heading to the base of the route. 
300M 45 to 60 degree ice runnel was waiting for us. 
The climb was just fun super sticky ice and dreamy snow took us to the top of Alpamayo where, we all enjoy our success. We took some photos and start rappelling the face. 
It was a very long route 10 hours round trip of just fun climbing and rappelling, before we knew it, we find ourselves back in camp, a rest day was in order and then we start back tracking our way down to BC where Rodrigo and Max had plan a fun day of rest and eating  for us. 
They made a very special plate call PACHAMANCA. 
It takes long time to make since they make a fire first, dig a hole put all the food in the hole cover it and let it cook for 45 min. It was a great feast. 
The next day it was time for us to start our hike down to Huaraz. 
We spend couple of days there and we all flew back home safe and sound. All and all it was a superb expedition full of great time and incredible views and company. I'm totally looking forward to do it again next year. I also wanted to thank Ted, Chris, Julie, Charles, Rodrigo and company for such incredible times.

Sunday, June 16, 2013

ALASKA VIDEO

Check this video that I made from our trip to AK with Katie Bono other Millet athlete. We climb the central west face of Kahiltna Queen the route was very cool and conditions juts fantastic.
Big thank for my partner Katie for a great company and fun climbing.
 http://vimeo.com/68154415

Sunday, April 28, 2013

Friday, March 15, 2013

ROCK AND ICE NEWS!!!


ANDRES MARIN SENDS OURAY'S HARDEST MIXED LINES IN A DAY

08-Jan-2013
By Shelby Carpenter

Local climber Andres Marin just sent five of the hardest mixed lines in Ouray's Posers Cave in a single day. "My  first visit to the cave was about six years ago," Marin writes in an email toRock and Ice. "I  remember being overwhelmed by the place and how steep the climbing is."

"I also remember hearing that one of my climbing heroes Will Gadd did a session in which he dispatched all the routes in the same day."
On December 29, 2012, Marin did the same series of routes: Cinnamon and Cider (M11), theGrand Traverse of the Cave (M11), Gold Line(M10), Fist Full of Steel (M10-), and Troglodyte(M9).
In the past, Marin, who originally hails from Colombia, has sent hard mixed routes on gear such as Chinese Water Torture (M8+RX) andMithy Aphrodite (M9RX). His next big plans involve training for the Alaska alpine season and preparing for an ice climbing demonstration in a bid to include the sport in then 2014 winter Olympics.

Top photo courtesy of Andres Marin. Bottom photo by Jason Thompson Photography.

Monday, February 11, 2013

BOZEMAN ICE FEST RECAP


The Bozeman ice fest was a blast!!!
A fun weekend full of great climbing, fun clinics, super good friends and beautiful place overall.

The weekend start with some climbing and shooting some photos at the bingo world cave with my friends Tyler, Laura and Jason.
We play in a route that is call North West passage M11.

http://www.jthompsonphotography.com/motion

Next day the fest was in full speed. I spend the day teaching a clinic about ice climbing the day was really fun many athletes and students all learning and having great time.
I had the opportunity to teach a clinic for Petzl about ice climbing.



On Saturday the competition took place down town Bozeman!!!!
The structure was pretty cool and the ambience was great.
All and all a great times.





On te last day of the fest Jason T, Tyler J, Gilbert and Laura J did some photo work for Millet
Jason photos turn out being really cool!!!!











Super awesome times in Bozeman what a great event and totally looking forward to be there next year!!!!! 

Monday, February 4, 2013

LONG TIME PROJECT FINISHED!!!!

Winter is my favorite time of the year, where I get to opportunity to train hard and keep a super strict routine. Also, it is competition season, so work ethic needs to be at 100% focused.
With strong work ethic and hard training results are awesome and goals that can be accomplished.
Earlier this Winter I finished a long time project of mine.
About 6 years ago I was introduce to hard mixed climbing and the place where I was taken soon became my favorite place to climb and train. The cave is call The Posers Lounge. This cave located  above Ouray, Colorado, hard mixed climbing there began in the early 90s.
One of my first times climbing in this place I remember my friend Pablo telling me that Will Gadd did all of the routes in the same day. This place it is extremely overhanging, I remember wondering how could somebody climb all the routes in the same day?

The years went by and I started to work one route at a time, and last year I finished my a goal of climbing them all. Once I finished the last route, my new goal started. I told myself that I will climb them all, in the same day.
After hard sessions of training and climbing with the help of great friends Like Will Gadd, Steve house and Brian Gilmore, I headed to the cave with my girlfriend Annie. That day I wasn't sure if I will try them all, so I told myself that I will be doing one at the time and see how goes.
I started with Cinnamon and Cider M11. Then I climbed the traverse M11, moved to Gold Line M10. I was feeling really good, so I start Fist Full of Steel M10-, once back down on the ground I just had to climb one more route in order to accomplish a long time goal and a dream too. Tragolodite was the last route for me to do. I eat 2 GU's feeling ready to go, I bumped the sound system up, now Pantera is blasting very loud and I started climbing. Half way up the route I got this feeling of anxiety. I told myself, "Andres just relax and keep climbing." Half-way up, where the crux is, my ice axe got stuck!!!! I yell fuck my tool is stuck and on that point I thought that was the end. If I can just finish this section the rest of the route it is easy come on just stay focus slow down and figure a way to get the axe back. Try once try twice, finally!!! The axe came out. Keep climbing, turn the last roof, and easy terrain took me to the top of the route. Once a the top I was so STOKED!!!!! What a great feeling my long time goal was accomplished.