Chipping Wood

Smoothing edges, sanding the curves and keeping the grains vivid…these are what has been occupying some of the slack in the early goings of this year.

These are not merely climbing holds made from recycled wood.  It's art. This is what I consider them to be. Expressions made of wood, inspired by climbing.

Here are a few of the fine products of time and effort that will be finding their way on either the bouldering wall or the traverse area at TS.  Maybe Monday . . .

What is DRIVEN ? It's not a brand. It's not a product. It's an idea.

Beam Me Up Scotty !

It's one of those special days . . . rainy, dark, the biting cold, the wet kind, the time usually best used for a rest day but my mind can't seem to shake off the "sending feel".  The slow days have been really, really good.  I think it started last Wednesday, going thru the motions of the daily grind and then pushing at night in the climbing gym.  Climbing felt like gushing water.  Not the turbulent kind yet strong and powerful like fluid music, it gets to your core and just keeps you moving.  I'm pleased at the progress of my recovery and the gains I've made to my climbing in the last few weeks.  Sad though I can't instantly be  at the crag to uncage everything.  "Beam me up Scotty!", is just way too futuristic.  Bad timing…I've some 3 more months before weather starts to get better.  It's been a busy first half of the year.  Mostly indoors and competitions.  I find myself staring at my fingertips and just start to wonder how nice it will be to get them babies on real rock.  I'm itching to do a project again!  Finally it's back!  A Darth Vadery feel - a presence in the force I haven't felt since . . . it has been too long and now I'm excited to push a little bit fuh-tha.  Sustaining this until the weather gets better will be a challenge !

In the meantime . . . 6 days of work . . .

 Next up . . . the secret formula !

Woodworking Day 3

It's day three in the workshop.  It's all sawdust, sun and home improvement day.  Nothing much, tired but the extra joule burning, BTU cookin', calorie depleting activities have restored some of the fibers in my forearm.  Lookin' forward to final recovery days.  

My man has been chucking away at all the plywood ℅ PSC.  We've been at it for 3 days in a row and hopefully the woodwork gets done by the end of the week or at least early next week at the latest. After that we're off to the paint finishing.  Here's a few photos of the new volumes coming along.

Volumes

"What's up?", she said.   "Nothin' much", I said.  "Same-same but different", just like what Wee, the old hippie at Tonsai always says.  I guess, we all see a glimpse of the past in the present.  We started something different at the old VX.  While the gym in itself lived only for 3 years, some of it's legacy lives on and though the memory of it carries some sour notes, I'm glad the steps were taken and I'm proud to say it was something brave.  

Xtian Guerrero and Cara Young at VX Boulder - Photo by Arturo Tuscano

Volumes of the past . . . - Photo by Arturo Tuscano

The Sport Climbing - PNG, Philippine National Games, will be off on June 9th-10th, 2012.  Steps are being taken so it becomes something worth immortality.  Together with POC-PSC, SCAPI, Power-Up/ROX, the next wave of competition climbing in the Philippines  is sure to take-off again.  Sure it's indoor, but the thing is . . . a hold is a hold . . . you pull on it and it's still called climbing. I'm a firm believer of getting in as much climbing as possible, indoor, outdoor, fun, serious, sport, trad, bouldering, lead . . . climbing is climbing.  

Volumes of the future…everything of the future looks big ! Coming to you at PNG !!!