I need a holiday....

See ya L8terz, after the holiday-break.

Old days in Val di Mello

In my early days of climbing the Van der Linden-brothers took me to all sorts of magic climbing places. From the limestone cliffs in the Gesäuse (Austria) to the long and sustained climbing on granite in Val di Mello (Italy). Specially the latter became a mecca for me, and still has many good memories to reminisce about. The pics below are taken in the famous 'Luna Nascente' (Birth of the Moon) where the descent was an even greater adventure than the climb itself !

Although it was a fine and beautiful route, nothing can beat the thrill of climbing 'Oceano Irrationale', with lots of spectacular climbing in fissures, requiring the famous Timmy 'O Neil moves. That route is branded in my memory as one of the finest climbs ever.

(source Luna Nascente pictures: Martijn van der Linden, source other pictures:unknown)

Variations on Homo Universalis - Leonardo da Vinci

I stumbled upon some nice variations of the drawing Homo Universalis, Leonardo da Vinci once made. Funny parodies I found you can see below:

Why Men Die Younger

In this times of crisis humour is needed. This one is an oldie from the Wallis 'Dress to Kill' campaign, but worth to post again. I like the last one the best because of the book the man is reading....

New Website Dutch Competition Climber Truong Ngo

Online from the 11th of May the new website from the Dutch competition climber Truong Ngo. Nicely designed and everything you want to know is on it: pics, info, results, news, etc. Check it out.

(source: joost.climbing.nl)

Climb- and Boulder Photo Contest Netherlands

(Picture by: Maurice Licher - Tim van der Linden Shadow Climbing at Red Rock Canyon, Nevada, USA)

Although the Netherlands don't have rocks to climb on there are many climbers who take the sport/lifestyle pretty serious. And won't you believe it, we also have a climbing magazine which is actually super cool. It's called BLOK, dutch for Magzine About Climbing (so in english it would be called MAC), and it focusses at all climbing aspects but Alpine climbing.

The magazine thrives on the input from many, amongst the readers themselves. So there's a Photo Contest every now and then and the readers can vote on them. Check this link and don't forget to give your vote to the most beautifull, stunning or artistic photo. To find previous pics got to this link.

(source: http://www.bladoverklimmen.nl/)

Bouldering at the Beach

Woah!! Yesterday the sunday wasn't about lazing on a sunday at all. Although enjoying a pleasant 25 degrees I spend most of the time building sand castles (see above) and transporting sea water to make it sturdy enough. But the good thing is that I love doing that, especially since my daugther enjoys it equally.

And guess what, not even summer yet but BAZ (Boulderen aan Zee or Bouldering at the Sea for ya English linguals) is on it's way !! The last news letter announces august 29 and 30 as the date to remember. Scheveningen beach (The Netherlands) will be the host of the fouth BAZ and it will be a mix of great bouldering problems (hundereds of them), sun (they hope...), sand/sea and exiting finals and a great party.

Enlistment is open from the 17th of may but check the site http://www.boulderenaanzee.org/ for more details. To give an impression of what the finals 2008 looked like go to www.youtube.com/boulderenaanzee

(source: boulderenaanzee.org)

Klimhal Centraal and KnocK Productions present: INSTANTE

In the European tour Toca la Roca visits the Netherlands. In the climbing gym Klimmuur Centraal (Amsterdam) you can watch the 'film that astounded Mexico (!?)' and 'experience a new(?) concept of climbing films with international climbers(? filmed in various climbing spots arount the world''.
All the question marks must be an invitation to come and watch on the 16th of May at 9pm in Klimmuur Centraal - Amsterdam.

Click the flyer to see a preview of the film.

(source: Klimmuur Centraal)

New Climbing Gym Amsterdam - Silo Re-use Contest

The Amsterdam city council recently held 'the silo competition' which involved the adaptive and reuse design for two former sewage treatment silos in the city's zeeburg district. for the competition NL Architects proposed silos dedicated to climbing, sports and culture. In their design the existing structures were extended to the maximum height to benefit from the views.

The most stunning thing is that the designers themselfes seem to be climbers, considering the major climbing fascilities they created.

This is what they have in mind:

The top level will be dedicated to a restaurant with 360 views and a roof terrace. Using the cylinder of the silo as a basis they created a 40 meter high artificial cave that consists of challenging cantilevers and overhangs for climbers. Since climbing walls essentially are oblique, a section can allow for an increase in space between the inside and outside, allowing useable floor areas on a higher level (see last picture). on the level above is a hotel, training facilities and a square that can be used in multiple ways. On the ground level is a public cafe, connected to the climbing tower through a hole in the floor above it and is surrounded by the boulder (!!) area. Cimbing grips will be placed on the outside of the silo too. The exterior as such becomes part of the 'program' climbers will activate the facade. By pushing the silo wall from the inside several swellings form on the outside; these bulges create more challenging routes.

Ain't that amazing ??!! I wonder how this plan will fit into the development plan, since Amsterdam already has three indoor climbing gyms. My thought is that, if being selected and build, it will become a serious rival to the other climbing gyms and maybe will result in lower prices.... See and judge.

(source: Tim van der Linden :)) thanks mate! - http://www.designboom.com/)

Tis the Season (Spring) - part 2

Haaaa !! in this case no rock climbing or bouldering but the tulip fields in Holland. Every (working) day I pass these amazing displays of bright colored flowers and I can't get enough of them. From a distance that is, because I think the flower itself is plain boring.... Nevertheless milions of foreigners visit these tulip fields each spring.

BigUP Productions - Tis the Season

Foahh, watch the new Fall bouldering clip from BigUP Productions. Niiiice shots and boulders in an even better setting. Click the Picture to open the link.

(source: BigUP Productions)

The Confrontation - Rock Climbing Graphic Novel by Mike Meijnhard

Yesh !!! Long awaited and back from the depths of a digital storage medium. The mini graphic novel about what consumes the mind during rock climbing. A piece of art about the mind game which every climber awaits and has to conquer.

The Dutch rock- and boulder climber Mike Meijnhard once made a bunch of beautiful comics about rock- and indoor climbing. Besides that he also made some fine cartoons about climbing in general and mostly concerning the psyche of the climber or the habits climbers have.

Most of his work can't be found on the internet nowadays. But for once I will give you the link to my previous posts of late 2007 and beginning of 2008 where most of his comics about Deepzly Motivated can be found.

- Deepzly Motivated (Bluff)

- Deepzly Motivated (I'm the best)

- Deepzly Motivated (Do you know those guys?)

- Deepzly Motivated (A great day for bouldering)

- Deepzly Motivated (Route Grading)

- Deepzly Motivated (Bad news)

- Deepzly Motivated (Justifications....)

- Deepzly Motivated (The real Alpinist)

- Deepzly Motivated (A great day in the outdoors)

- The burglar

- Crashpad

Njoy and tell others about the comics of Mike Meijnhard!!

(All comics and the graphic novel are posted with the consent of Mike Meijnhard)

Every Day an Earth Day

The funny pages are yukking it up for the environment with Earth Day-themed strips on Tuesday, April 22nd. Forty-five King Features cartoonists are taking part in this first-of-its-kind comics initiative to raise awareness about the environment and the health of the planet.
Participating strips include favorites such as Blondie, Hägar the Horrible, Beetle Bailey, Mutts, Zits, Baby Blues, Bizarro, and Dennis the Menace, as well as King Features’ newer strips such as Arctic Circle, The Pajama Diaries, Retail, Ollie, and Quentin and Tina’s Groove.

My favourite is Mutts by Patrick McDonnell. Check out http://www.kingdigital.com/earthdaycomics/

Trailer Footage Chris Sharma climbing in China

Check the footage from Mike Call (Momentum VM) as a trailer for their newest DVD. Not too much climbing but the atmosphere is cool enough.

Also have a look at the other previews at 8a.nu - global.

(source: 8a.nu)

BigUP Productions - Catalunya Full Swing

Put two of the most amazing sports climbers now existing (Chris Sharma and Adam Ondra) together in a potential 'heavy' climbing area and let them attack the rock. Film the whole caboodle and shake it up with some cool music. Voila! Result: another awe inspiring video. Hopefuly there will be news in short notice. Check the site of BigUP Productions.

(source: Bigupproductions, pics by: Pete O' Donnovan)

Footage Bouldering Fontainebleau - Roman v/d Werf

Check out this Dutch Dude at Bleau. Good footage of four equally good boulders: Tigre et Dragon (8a), La balance sans (7c+), Carnage-Berezina (7c+) and Ecaille de lune (7c). Click the picture to get directly to the site with all four video's.

(source: http://www.romanvanderwerf.nl/)

Climbing holds: Quantity VS Quality

OK, variety and quantity counts a lot where it concerns a bouldering gym, but I get a bit dazed by this.....

Spring Time - Climbing and Gardening

With the beginning of spring Maru becomes eager to spend lots of time outdoors. In this case climbing in the trees in the dunes and sowing the seeds of many flowers together with her niece. Let the sun shine and the good times roll.

Asics Commercial - Mabona Origami

Once upon a time there was an origami artist from Switzerland (!) who became even famous in the land of the origing of the paper-folding-art. Sipho Mabona's origami covers a great range of different styles from very intricate representational designs to abstract geometrical shapes. The impeccable folding and his great sense for lines and shapes distinguishes Mabona's work of art.

Watch the award winning Asics corporate movie “Origami in the Pursuit of Perfection”. Sipho has exhibited his work in galleries in Tokyo and Vancouver, was the invited guest at Japan Origami Academic Society (JOAS) Convention 2008 and was the first foreigner whose model graced the cover of the JOAS Convention book.

(source: coolmarketingthoughts.com)

Fifa 3 Street - Screaming Super Soccer Reprise

Ehrmm, do try this at home !! World Cup Soccer 2010 is on it's way. Soccer accrobats perform tricks unheard of and the clipstyle way of the footage helps sure enough. Made as a trailer for the Fifa3 Soccer game. Be amazed and stunned!! (click the pic).

And if that isn't good enough check this link to see how they made this clip possilble with the help of martial arts specialists Team Ryouko. Love it :P