Pants-Shitting Offwidth Master (God Bless Cedar, Andrew…and Jason)

by Rob Coppolillo on August 21, 2010

Climbing can be dirty business, especially offwidth climbing. An offwidth, for those of you with a life and better things to do with your time, is any crack that is too wide for one’s hands to gain purchase, but also too small to simply slide your whole carcass inside–that would be a chimney…duh!

Many a burl-ass climber has shredded him/herself climbing offwidths, removing skin from shoulders, knuckles, knees, ankles, elbows, and plain-and-simple any old body part. Because a  hand or foot won’t lodge in the crack, the climber must wedge hands stacked atop one another, cam a knee, or slide a bent arm into the maw in the hopes of “staying on”. When things get steep, or don’t go as planned, all manner of carnage may ensue.

Which brings us to the video linked HERE. Many enjoyable stories chronicle offwidth exploits. Men and women have grunted, groaned, and thrashed their way up these maligned fissures. The video you’ll see above takes offwidth lore to another level. Well, planet, really. Filmed by intrepid climbers Andrew Burr and Cedar Wright, and starring Canadian Jason Kruk, this cinematic revelation really is something all should see. Especially those considering racking up and tackling some offwidth.

Titanic props to the boys for recording the exploit. Young people around the globe will probably flock to the sheer cliffs of Yosemite, the alluring escarpment of Eldorado once they see this. And can you blame them?

http://tinyurl.com/2f8g63k


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{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }

pc August 22, 2010 at 7:35 pm

Beautiful!

pc August 22, 2010 at 7:35 pm

Beautiful!

pc August 22, 2010 at 7:35 pm

Beautiful!

rob August 22, 2010 at 7:52 pm

beautiful…well, not sure if that captures the experience….but yes, in a strange way…..beautiful!

rob August 22, 2010 at 7:52 pm

beautiful…well, not sure if that captures the experience….but yes, in a strange way…..beautiful!

rob August 22, 2010 at 7:52 pm

beautiful…well, not sure if that captures the experience….but yes, in a strange way…..beautiful!