As most of us already know climbing ultra light will usually improve our chances of success. Usually this involves cutting our toothbrush in half, taking only a bivy sack instead of sleeping bag and weighing all of our gear to get the lightest possible results. This can also be taken to extremes as we see here. By eliminating all clothing this keeps your body in tune with your environment and allows you to become one with nature. This is also a way of setting yourself apart when trying to get your photo included in your favorite climbing rag. Climbing nude keeps the pressure on to keep moving to prevent frostbite and tool placement becomes critical. Just remember that if you are the belayer it is wise to keep yourself poised from being directly under the climber, depending on what he had for dinner the night before.

Demonstrated here by Dave "Nestea" Smith is an example of applying creative use of various body parts to milk an off-width crack for all it is worth. Many avoid the use  the head-jam, stating "it's just too damn painful". For most average climbers simply keeping enough suction applied to stick to a sketchy off-width is too much. "You have to be creative!" says Nestea," In this move I also threw in the Big Johnson to keep my hips in and balanced under my chin". Just as a side note, Dave Smith got his nickname "Nestea" while climbing at Smith Rock, Oregon. It was a hot sunny day and we had decided to climb one last route before heading back to camp. Dave was leading Tammy Baker's Face 5.10c and was having some trouble making the move over the crux. He was up there quite a while and was extremely persistent to take numerous whippers leading it, which became known as the "Nestea" plunge.

Sometimes you just have to take matters into your own hands. During one of our trips to Smith Rock Oregon Jeff was all psyched up to spend money at the climbing t-shirt capital of the world, the Rockhard climbing store. We had been climbing and camping at Smith for three days, making daily trips to this little store. By day four Jeff was getting pretty upset that the store still wasn't open. He was tired of making the trip to the store everyday just to find it closed. In a fit of anger he picked up this big boulder and was ready to chuck it through the store window. instead I convinced him to just prop the rock in front the door that way we could drive by and look and see if the boulder had been moved. If the rock was moved that meant the owner was back in town. Luckily on our last day there the rock disappeared, the store opened and Jeff ended up spending $200 on t-shirts and posters. To this day I still think that this was a ploy by the owner to let Jeff's buying fever to boil to an overwhelming state so he would buy more toys.

Route finding has never been one of my greater skills. If you ever forget your guidebook back at camp there is an easy way to find the base of the routes. All you have to do is to find these warning signs and you know you are getting close. And since most climbers have a streak of rebellion in them we weren't going to let a simple sign like this ruin our day. Furthermore if we waited for every locked gate to be opened or waited for every falcon nest to be abandoned, we would never get any climbing done. Now I'm not advocating breaking the law or to defiantly trespass on private land but sometimes the rules have to be bent a little. As I remember this picture was taken near Manure Pile Buttress, Yosemite Valley. Obviously we weren't taking this sign too seriously but instead used it for a comical photo opportunity.

Buildering is the climbing of city structures for the use of staying in shape or for some, as a sport all in own. Obviously this fellow had been neglecting his workouts and had spent more time at the "all you can eat" buffet that on a campus board. His annual membership had run out at his local climbing gym and this had plunged him into the abyss of depression. Taking matters into his own hands, he began buildering the local city walls. His ultimate demise came from not having any friends that would belay him and that his harness no longer fit him. Let this also be a reminder to those of us out there that think it is un-cool to wear a helmet, it can a lot of times can save your life. His upcoming contract with Splat© crash pads has been canceled due to this tragedy.

For those of us with hectic business schedules, sometimes the only way squeeze in any climbing time at the local crag is to take it with us. Here we see a committed climber who takes his sport seriously. By hauling his laptop up the wall to the next belay he is able to keep his job intact and work on those next day conferences. Driving straight from the jobsite to the wall without changing his clothes also adds to his efficiency. Notice he didn't even stop to take his tie off? For those of you that haven't tried it, ties are the new rage for wiping off sweat off the brow, just remember to tie them short enough so they don't get hung up in any belay devices.

Motivation is one of the key elements to climbing. At City of Rocks , Idaho we came across this boulder that we deemed "nipple rock". This six foot diameter boulder looks suspiciously like a giant boob. It is these small subtitles in the environment that keep us as climbers laughing and motivated to keep exploring the terrain around us. In this new millennium when life is traveling at breakneck speed, with cell phones, beepers, faxes, videoconferences and the like we need all the help we can get. Sometimes just taking a minute to slow down and check out the things around you will greatly improve your outlook on life. So don't forget to always keep your eyes open, your headlamps fired up, and to never stop exploring. Believe me, I am still looking for the other one because I know they always come in pairs.

Is this some new radical surgery to replace my tendons with piano wire , or maybe a botched suicide attempt? Sure everyone has heard of collagen implants for those movie star lips, but what about forearm implants for that Popeye look? Guess again. This is how I spent my summer vacation last year. With the nine inch cut they put in my chest and these two on my forearms,  now I've definitely got that Stigmata look. In May last year I was out for one of my walks around Gold Bar when my chest kind of felt tight and I was short of breath. A few days later on another walk this same feeling happened and I ended up walking back slowly to my house. Had thought maybe this was some kind of chest congestion or something because I had a cold and cough a few days before. Then the next day while mowing my large yard the shortness of breath and discomfort became more intense. This time I was scared. Called my dad on the phone and ended up in the hospital over night so the nurses could watch my vitals. After many tests and x-rays it was determined that I had a slight heart attack or angina. After more tests in Everett, an angiogram and electrocardiogram they hit me with the bad news. I needed a double by-pass surgery for clogged arteries. For all of my friends and neighbors this was a shock because I was the most healthy person they knew. It turned out the the hospital nurses were on strike that week and so it was postponed until May 8. After determining with tests that the arteries in my arms could be used, the operation began. Everything went fairly smooth and I was up and strolling the hospital halls the next day. Now it was time for the fun to begin. The only bonus of this ordeal was that I would get a two month vacation. Like clockwork my dad was out prodding me to walk, walk, walk. I lost 18 pounds the next few weeks and slowly began to gain some stamina. Went back to work after 6 weeks and started thinking about climbing again. Took quite a while for those arms to heal since there had been over fifty stitches. The first time at the gym was interesting wondering if those stitches would blow out. Started indoor climbing again and looking forward to a road trip. Jeff Jacobson and I just got back from climbing at Red Rocks Nevada and we had a blast. For sure I don't think I was climbing at my peak performance, but am still trying to recover Hopefully I will never have to go through that surgery again, but the odds are probably against me. In the meantime, is there such a thing as forearm implants? Hmm, I wonder.