The Mazeno Ridge
The Mazeno Ridge divides the Diamir and Rupal Faces of Nanga Parbat. The 10 kilometre (6 mile) ridge with its eight 7000 metre peaks has never been climbed all the way to the summit.
Friday, 8 June 2012
Mazeno Ridge Expedition 2012
Tomorrow ME Pro partner Sandy Allan, Cathy O’Dowd and Rick Allen set out from the UK for Kathmandu to attempt the 1st ascent of Nanga Parbat via the Mazeno Ridge. The longest ridge on any 8000m peak, considered “the ultimate endurance challenge.” and one of the most coveted goals left in the Himalaya.
You can read more about this expedition, check out latest up dates, videos and location of the team through out their trip over at: http://www.mazenoridge.com
Wednesday, 6 June 2012
Video: Bleau Chapter
Heres a short video put together by ME Pro partner Juri Chiaramonte from his recent trip to Fontainebleau.
Wednesday, 30 May 2012
An evening on Pluto
With the long and light evenings of late Spring now well upon us, I took the opportunity for an evenings climb on Raven Crag. Its a superb venue for evening climbing, a short walk from the well placed Old Dungeon Ghyll and offering a great selection of accessible routes.
Long-term climbing buddy Chris was with me and with plenty of other teams on the easier classics we headed across to Pluto, a 3-pitch HVS offering a little bit of everything - some steepish crack climbing, a great traverse pitch and a final rib and slab. I hadnt climbed the route for several years and Chris never so it was perfect, a great route for a competent team, we'd obviously just have to scrape by!
Everything felt a little alien, having spent so much time fell running rather than climbing lately but everything quickly fell into place and it was one of the best evenings climbing I've had in ages and the perfect tonic to last weeks rather busy Summer 2013 sales launch!
Long-term climbing buddy Chris was with me and with plenty of other teams on the easier classics we headed across to Pluto, a 3-pitch HVS offering a little bit of everything - some steepish crack climbing, a great traverse pitch and a final rib and slab. I hadnt climbed the route for several years and Chris never so it was perfect, a great route for a competent team, we'd obviously just have to scrape by!
Everything felt a little alien, having spent so much time fell running rather than climbing lately but everything quickly fell into place and it was one of the best evenings climbing I've had in ages and the perfect tonic to last weeks rather busy Summer 2013 sales launch!
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| A late Spring evening in Langdale |
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| Pitch One - a steep crack |
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| Chris cruising on pitch one of Pluto |
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| Rich delicately traverses pitch 2 of Pluto |
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| Chris struggles with his rack |
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| Are you sure its this way? |
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| Rich traverses high above Langdale |
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| Chris high on the final pitch of Pluto |
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| 'I dont want to hear anymore about your new SS13 range' |
Echoes
The guys at Vertebrate Publishing have just release more information about Nick's first book 'Echoes' due for release September 2012
The Book
“As I sat cradling the man’s head, with his blood and brains sticking to my hands, I heard a voice – my own voice. It was asking me something. Asking how I had ended up like this, desperate and lost among people who thought nothing of caving in a man’s head and then standing back to watch him die.”
Nick Bullock was a prison officer working in a maximum-security jail with some of Britain’s most notorious criminals. Trapped in a world of aggression and fear, he felt frustrated and alone. Then he discovered the mountains.
Making up for lost time, Bullock soon became one of Britain’s best climbers, learning his trade in the mountains of Scotland and Wales, and travelling from Pakistan to Peru in his search for new routes and a new way of seeing the world – and ultimately an escape route from his life inside.
Told that no one ever leaves the service – the security, the stability, the ‘job for life’ – Bullock focused his existence on a single goal: to walk free, with no shackles, into a mountain life.
Echoes is a powerful and compelling exploration of freedom – and what it means to live life on your own terms.
About Nick
Nick Bullock was born on Christmas Day in 1965. After leaving school aged 16 he worked variously as a gamekeeper, a self-employed labourer and at Alton Towers (less exciting than it sounds) before joining Her Majesty’s Prison Service in 1987 where he was posted to the high security Gartree Prison as a Wing Officer, then a Punishment Block Officer. In 1992 he was introduced to climbing at Plas-y-Brenin while training as a Physical Education Instructor: his life was about to change dramatically.
Devoting all of his free time to climbing, Nick quickly established himself as one of the UK’s leading climbers, making bold repeats in fine style of many of the UK’s most renowned traditional climbs. A veteran of over 20 expeditions to the greater ranges and approximately 50 Alpine routes, it is in the mountains where Nick has truly demonstrated his imagination and abilities, making significant ascents and failing on some audacious attempts around the world with partners such as Jules Cartwright, Al Powell, Kenton Cool and, more recently, Andy Houseman. In 2003 he quit the prison service and has since devoted his life to climbing, writing and being frugal.
An accomplished writer, his work has been published in Alpinist, Climb Magazine, Vertical, UKClimbing.com, The Alpine Club Journal, The American Alpine Journal and more.
When not on expedition, Nick lives in Chamonix through the winter and in his van in North Wales through the summer. Echoes is his first book.
For more information head over to the Vertebrate website
The Book
“As I sat cradling the man’s head, with his blood and brains sticking to my hands, I heard a voice – my own voice. It was asking me something. Asking how I had ended up like this, desperate and lost among people who thought nothing of caving in a man’s head and then standing back to watch him die.”
Nick Bullock was a prison officer working in a maximum-security jail with some of Britain’s most notorious criminals. Trapped in a world of aggression and fear, he felt frustrated and alone. Then he discovered the mountains.
Making up for lost time, Bullock soon became one of Britain’s best climbers, learning his trade in the mountains of Scotland and Wales, and travelling from Pakistan to Peru in his search for new routes and a new way of seeing the world – and ultimately an escape route from his life inside.
Told that no one ever leaves the service – the security, the stability, the ‘job for life’ – Bullock focused his existence on a single goal: to walk free, with no shackles, into a mountain life.
Echoes is a powerful and compelling exploration of freedom – and what it means to live life on your own terms.
About Nick
Nick Bullock was born on Christmas Day in 1965. After leaving school aged 16 he worked variously as a gamekeeper, a self-employed labourer and at Alton Towers (less exciting than it sounds) before joining Her Majesty’s Prison Service in 1987 where he was posted to the high security Gartree Prison as a Wing Officer, then a Punishment Block Officer. In 1992 he was introduced to climbing at Plas-y-Brenin while training as a Physical Education Instructor: his life was about to change dramatically.
Devoting all of his free time to climbing, Nick quickly established himself as one of the UK’s leading climbers, making bold repeats in fine style of many of the UK’s most renowned traditional climbs. A veteran of over 20 expeditions to the greater ranges and approximately 50 Alpine routes, it is in the mountains where Nick has truly demonstrated his imagination and abilities, making significant ascents and failing on some audacious attempts around the world with partners such as Jules Cartwright, Al Powell, Kenton Cool and, more recently, Andy Houseman. In 2003 he quit the prison service and has since devoted his life to climbing, writing and being frugal.
An accomplished writer, his work has been published in Alpinist, Climb Magazine, Vertical, UKClimbing.com, The Alpine Club Journal, The American Alpine Journal and more.
When not on expedition, Nick lives in Chamonix through the winter and in his van in North Wales through the summer. Echoes is his first book.
For more information head over to the Vertebrate website
Friday, 25 May 2012
Thursday, 17 May 2012
Dave: The Trailer
We're all super psyched at Mountain Equipment to hook up with the guys from the Polished Project for their next film: Dave... due for release later this year, a taster of which you can watch below.
Dave... is a short film shot by the Polished Project aka friend of the brand and professional photographer Lukasz Warzecha and filmmaker Wojtek Kozakiewicz.
The film centres around Dave's (MacLeod) exploits on his recent bouldering trip to Switzerland's Magic Wood - climbing problems such as New Base Line, Mystic Stylez... set along side interviews about his career and life as a professional climber.
The 12 minute film will be released at international mountain festivals later this Summer with an extended edit going on free web release early in 2013.
For more information and other films by the Polished Project Team check out www.polishedproject.com
You can also read Dave's posts about his Magic Woods trip at his blog:
NEW BASE LINE - davemacleod.blogspot.se/2012/04/new-base-line.html
MYSTIC STYLEZ - davemacleod.blogspot.se/2012/05/mystic-stylez.html
Dave... is a short film shot by the Polished Project aka friend of the brand and professional photographer Lukasz Warzecha and filmmaker Wojtek Kozakiewicz.
The film centres around Dave's (MacLeod) exploits on his recent bouldering trip to Switzerland's Magic Wood - climbing problems such as New Base Line, Mystic Stylez... set along side interviews about his career and life as a professional climber.
The 12 minute film will be released at international mountain festivals later this Summer with an extended edit going on free web release early in 2013.
For more information and other films by the Polished Project Team check out www.polishedproject.com
You can also read Dave's posts about his Magic Woods trip at his blog:
NEW BASE LINE - davemacleod.blogspot.se/2012/04/new-base-line.html
MYSTIC STYLEZ - davemacleod.blogspot.se/2012/05/mystic-stylez.html
Monday, 14 May 2012
Coast: The Needles
If you didn't happen catch last nights episode of Coast then make sure you check it out over on BBC iplayer. The first episode of the new series features friend of the brand Andy Torbet and AMI instructor Dave Talbot as they climb the chalk faces of the Needles, Isle of Wright to collect a sample for the British Geological survey.
You can read more about the climb over at Dave's blog & watch the episode in full on BBC iplayer here (the Needles segment is about 24mins in)
Dave and Andy
You can read more about the climb over at Dave's blog & watch the episode in full on BBC iplayer here (the Needles segment is about 24mins in)
Dave climbing the South Face of the second fin, Needles, Isle of Wight
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