I had to put this up. Jason's new board is making waves. Available soon at So iLL...

Greenpeace

I was sitting at my desk in my apt, on the phone a few minutes ago, a few minutes before 9pm, eastern time. My conversation was broken, slightly, by the sound of footsteps up my stairs. With my front door wide open for the fresh evening breeze to circulate, I accosted a Greenpeace door door "salesman", if you wish. I invited him in, as I rarely do to anyone, and I signed on for 12$ a month donations.

I encourage everyone to do the same.

And stop eating tuna god dam-it.

CLICK<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

The Zanskar Odyssey Part 5

From Abbey Smiths' and Caroline Treadways' Website

Last fall Colorado climbers Abbey Smith, Jason Kehl, Pete Takeda and Mick Follari journeyed to the Indian Himalayas in search of adventure, a fresh perspective, and the most aesthetic boulders in the world's greatest mountain range.
With only 10 days remaining the team has to get serious in order to complete their final projects. This is their last chance to send before leaving their bouldering utopia behind.
This is Ten! is the final episode of the Zanskar Odyssey web series. Be sure to keep an eye out for the full length film featuring more climbing footage and a closer look into the inspiration behind the trip.

I miss you MIKE

June 10th 2011

I spent this precious day, thinking a lot about the last few years. I spent it while working with Sly, one of canada's top crack climbers and one of my closets friends.

The day dreams kept popping up, about the past, about what was wrong and about what was to be set right, about fault, about blame, and most important, how to try and make it right.

I started my day, like any other. I left home a little past 5 am and went to the gym for a 30 min run at 12km/h on a 5% incline and hit the bar for a couple of sets.

The truck packed and ready, I went from call to call, home to home, and I spent it in a daze of what was to be today.

With Mike's recent death, a lot has come into focus for me. It has affected me harder and stronger than I would have expected.

I was never the nostalgic type. I like the moment and the past is the past. But for some reason, I came to understand that without understanding the past, the future is a very gloomy place.

Time spent reflecting has given me hope for the future, and maybe a life I would have had should I have been more in-tune with the present, that is now, my affected tragic past.

yeah.

New Obed Guidebook out

I got a txt from a little lady down in kentucky who happened to get her hands on the new OBED guidebook and caught a glimpes of some quebecer climbing some rock in a picture. I called Jim Thornburg and turns out a couple pics of me are in the guide book. How sweet.

You can check out the guidebook at all fine retailers and here at Greengrass Publishing.

Cheers boys and girls.

One week

I will never get to see my friend again.

I will never here him yell at me, louder than 11, even though I am wearing headphones.

I will never again see him smile after his sends, or drink redbull.

Never again can I talk about climbing with my friend, or girls, or climbing girls.

Never can I ask him to belay me.

I will never smell his god awful hippie smell, ever again.

Nor will I ever be able to laugh at his dirty socks, long-johns or mister muffler Mountain Hardware pants, that he loved so much.

Never will we crash in the same tent in Chonta, cause the pussy that I am, I am afraid of sleeping alone.

We will never sit, cutting up vegetables together, not talking, just listening to the deep empty of life pushing at our backs.

I will never understand again, because Mike is not there to make sense of it for me.

I will never climb the same again, because mike will be there watching me, every time.

I will miss his stickclip, cause I refuse to own one.

I will miss his hair, getting caught in the grigri, time and time again.

I will miss him hitting on girls, when you know its all for show.

I will never believe again, because the truth was always laid out by him.

It will be hard to breath again, because Mike was the life blood of my life.

It will be harder to keep secrets, cause now I really have no one to tell them too.

I will have trouble hearing lies, cause Mike will be there to guide me towards the truth.

I will miss my friend.

I will miss him very much.

I will.

I will...

The Music Could Never be to Loud

Mike Bohorquez 11/23/1966 - 5/22/2011

It never occurred to me that I would one day have to write an obituary. Then, on the morning of May 25th, the clock coming close to 6am, my ears heard the worse words come through the cellular connection of my mobile phone. My best friend; confidante, my shinning star amongst all wrong and wild things on this earth, was gone.

Mike Bohorquez was born in Newfoundland, Canada, on November 23^rd, 1966. He studied at private schools and universities across the Americas and toured with the Grateful Dead, until climbing came to play a rampart part in turning him into the outgoing and amazing person he never failed to be. His body was found in a hotel room in Bogota, Columbia, on May 22th 2011.

Mike lived his life at the utmost pase. He drove his Harley, or 56 panhead hardtail, as he repeatedly corrected me, all over the Colorado highways. When asked about where he lived, he always replied, ‘’from here, for now. ‘’ His mailing address was stamped on his Metolius haul bags, which

he used to travel, and to climb the walls of El Cap, to which, if he had a home, it would be. He spoke of his life as if it had no beginning and no end. He spoke with purity and laughter and spent his days trying his best.

What I remember the most about Mike was his girly screams falling from the anchors of his current projects and his headphones gushing out loud metal music camouflaged in his blonde dreads, which he would never cut. We would sit on the main street in the village of Cienega, waiting for the sun to hit us every morning, he with his coffee, imported and the most expensive money could buy. He took great pleasure in brewing his cups in the morning, and if anyone had a routine, that was his.

No amount of free gear was good enough for Mike, and in the past few years he had convinced Evolv, Bluewater and Metolius to put him on their grassroots team. This, above all else, gave Mike a motivation and drive to excel at his sport.

He spent his life living, and, for the most part, making sure we all remembered to do so as well. He was always looking out for his friends. He was always there. Mike always reminded me, that if I ever needed anyone taken out, hacked to pieces and made to disappear, he would do it. Mike loved his weapons, and was always close to his knives. He spoke about his guns as Shakespeare would about love. Never a day would go buy should we not hear something about him shooting off rounds in the dessert of Colorado.

We parted ways a few days into March of 2011, he went south and I, north. Plans to go to china in Oct. We both went our way, towards what we gravitate too. Mike had plans to travel for an undetermined amount of time. Our next meeting will now have to wait, just a little bit longer.

Here I am now, sitting on the floor of my apt, writing this for you. I have lost many friends over the past few years, but you are the one who will be sorely missed. I hope you Watch over me, us, with great wide eyes. May we make you proud. Maybe you take my dog for walks, where you both are, and may you never forget, that we will never stop remembering you, in our daily chores, activities and lives. You surround us, and bring us the strength and knowledge to forge on ahead, even though sometimes, we no not where we go.

In loving memeory of Mike Bohorquez

Mike Bohorquez: The last climb

Update June 9 2011:

After a week of delays, I finally got to call Mike's mom. She is having a great hard time dealing with the release of Mike's body and personal effects. The consulate, ambassadors and state dept from both Columbia and the United States are all involved. The FBI is refusing to investigate the seemingly suspicious turn of Mike's demise. All told, Mike will be cremated in Columbia unless we can get his body back state-side asap.

I have no news of services or any other information.

I told Mike's mom that I would look into my personal political connections here in Canada to see if we can't get things moving faster and more efficiently. Obviously, Mike is not the top priority for anyone down there, less Alain Denis who has been a godsend to us for the past few weeks.

I urge everyone to call your senator and ask him to put pressure in any way they can so we can start to get things moving.

After my conversation with Mike's mom, all I want to do is fly to Bogota get shit done myself.

Update May 27 2011:

Here is the latest update. I figured I would put it on top, I guess its easier for everyone.

So Alain has been updating me over the past few days. Mike was found in his hotel room late Sunday morning after the staff was not able to reach him for check out. The circumstances surrounding his death are still under examination, but it seems it was of natural causes. I will miss Mike, but I do not think this is a sad way to go. Mike always lived, spoke and acted like a rock star, and today, he gets to go out like one. Passing on in a hotel room in Bogota, Columbia seems like the perfect way for Mike to go, if there is such a thing. I encourage people to post comments about mike, fun facts we might not all already know, anecdotes and even Obituaries if you feel like it. I think Mike would have wanted us to give him credit. He always gave credit where it was due, and I think we should do the same for him. I will update this again over the next few days, as word comes through. I am sure his family will hold services once his body is released from the investigation, so I will give you that info as well, when I have it.

Party on Mike.

May 25th 2011:

As you all may have heard the rumours over the past few days, becomes reality for us today. Alain Denis, on assignment in Columbia, confirmed the passing of my best friend and climbing partner, Mike Bohorquez.

The details as of right now are very limited, but so far, we know that after a couple days of climbing and shooting pictures with Alain in Suesca, Columbia, Mike left the party on Saturday, May 21st to go see a Football match in Bogota. A few days later his mother got a phone call from the Canadian Embassy in Columbia notifying that Mike had passed away sometime on Sunday May 22nd.

In respect to any other details, I will refrain from any rumours or unspecific facts for the time being.

I will try and update this information as much as I can as I get word from the south.

Mike will be greatly missed. He was my best friend, confidant, brother and belayer star.

If you have any comments please feel free to leave them, but please refrain from any details in public. If you have such information, please email them to me so they can be verified, and that way, we can respect the family and memory of Mike.

On a worse note, and a worse day of all.

Ulric

• • 
    

WELCOME TO THE.....REVOLUTION

The Swiss Account • Official Trailer from Carlo Traversi on Vimeo.

Quote of the Week.

"It's only after you've lost everything, that you are free to do anything."

Tyler Durden

Trance track of the week

Breakfast - Air Guitar (Original Mix)
Better make this one, go to Eleven. Turn up the cruise control people, turn up the volume. This track rules.

Song of the Week

If your gonna climb to a soundtrack, it better kick ass.
( Put it on with headphones or a booming bass system. It will give you shivers. )

Hammer & Bennett - Language [Santiago Nino Dub Tech Long Mix]

Ohhhhhhhhhhhh yeah

The ABS 12 National Championships: Stop #1 of the 2011 UBC Pro Tour. Boulder, CO. from NE2C on Vimeo.

This is what happens...

I thought this was pretty interesting. Watch!

Sleep and Ski

After a cold and sleepless truck bivy outside Winnipeg, this sign appears off to my right on the Trans-Canada Hwy 1. I think it says it all...

Circa 2008

:)

Pour toi, ces soir.

Bonne Nuit.

:)

My friend and always inspiring cool chick Ali Geiser keeps us in the loop...

With this new series of videos, coming soon to high speed internet connection near you!

You can check her blog out at here or click on her link on my blog followers list. Enjoy.

Good luck Ali, I'm sure the coming vids will be really sweet.

Adventure Training Episode 1 from Just Rite Media on Vimeo.

ahhhhhhh climbing.

5:59 AM

I wish sometimes my life was a little different. Doesn't everyone? I wake up early, but when I step outside, its not an ocean view, or for kids running to school. It's not to run in Central Park before a helicopter ride to my office, and its not because I have a special power and a cape.

Its because, like most of you this morning, I have to start my day so I can end it with money in my pocket.

This is a great song to wake up too, to resound in your head during the day, to hum at the water cooler, or just notice that nice things can become of Humans after all.

Enjoy. :)

Have a good day, to everyone.

Had to post this

Kurt Smith

Navy SEALS kick butt!

Yesterday at 9:48am · ·

• Donny Goetz, Joseph Smith and 17 others like this.
• • 

    Scott Loomis Team America, worlds police.

    10 hours ago ·
  • 

    Kurt Smith efff yea!

    8 hours ago ·
  • 

    Mike Bohorquez it only took how many years, how many billions of dollars, how many wounded and dead GI's and how many innocent civilian lives to kill ( supposedly) one man..?

    6 hours ago ·
  • 

    Ulric Rousseau Kurt. You cannot be that naive, please? Dude when is the US elections again? why bury him in the ocean, was he in the navy? come on. they are feeding you bullshit and you are eating up with a silver spoon. pleasekurt, say it aint so./

    4 hours ago · · 1 person
  • 

    Mike Bohorquez i agree with ulric..where is the fucken body..? he was the most wanted man on the face of the planet....no body..? no pics..? bullshit once again !

    39 minutes ago ·
  • 

    Ulric Rousseau bullshit all the way. i cant believe americans are so fucking gulable. you are so intensly occupied by debt and reality tv, fox news and cnn that not even lies disrupt the intelegent in a country founded on honesty and morals.

    35 minutes ago · · 1 person
  • 

    Ulric Rousseau a fuck it. whatever. 300,000,000 people too busy eating hagendaz made in china

    34 minutes ago · · 1 person

Tonights time, well wasted

James Brown turns 78 today. FYI

Climbing Tunes

I just read an article in DPM, actually, an interview with Obe Carrion, an old friend of mine. He talks about how important music is and how it relates to climbing and life in general. And I soooooooooooo agree.

Obe likes hip hop and urban styles. I prefer trance when I climb. It really sets a mood. I go through my podcasts and find the perfect 20 or 30 minute part of a set, the one that feels the mood of the climb, and I push play.

This is a link to what I think is the best trance sets around right now. Trance Around the World with Above and Beyond. You can get all the sets via podcasts on iTunes.

OK. Thats enough for one day. I'm going to bed. Goodnight everyone

:)

Quote of the Day

"I don't want to be the best, I just want to be one step ahead of the rest."

Frankie Bones

Frankie Bones was one of my favourite djs growing up, and still is. His brother Adam X and him used to come to Montreal on a regular basis to play for raves I promoted back in the day.

Fun Fact: Straight from the airport pick up, one chilly fall afternoon, they wanted to hit the used record stores of Montreal. I was about to cross the street when my jacket was pulled back with a strong jerk and I fell flat on my ass on the curb. Instantly, a car whizzed by going 80km/h. Frankie Bones saved my life, or at least saved me from a few days in a hospital. After which, I spent 4 hours record shopping and diving into old bins for used vinyls with 2 of the biggest names in Techno.

First Shot

This was my first photo shoot with a pro photographer, Corey Rich. The pics are clean and he shoots Voyeur, so its not staged. Its pretty interesting to climb all day and not notice a photographer getting world class shots of you. I was 21 when this took place, bleached hair, prana shirt and my first pair of Cobras.
Thats my update for the day.

PS. Hello to everyone in Russia who keeps tabs on me and the whole Cordless crew. Feel free to drop us some msgs in Russian on our FB Page.

Lost Vids

This is maybe my all time favorite Vid of Chris.

Chris has always been at the forfront of sport climbing and he continues to be. Big up to the boys at BIG UP.

Revolution Climbing

At no point during your lifetime is there a greater sense of truth, than making choices for the future. What we do in life, echoes across the pages of history in eternity.

We make choices that refelct who we are, what we identify with, and where we wish to go.

And at those junctions, at those crossroads, we find we can choose between money and power, stress and debt, or fulfilment and truth.

What do you think people who work for Cordless choose?

What we live, on our own, at the tips of our fingers everyday, whether we cut school for a proj or miss the last bus for an extra run on the campus board, at the end of the day, its all about you. Yourself. Alone. Watch.

November Rain

I wrote this a couple years ago, while I was visiting friends on the west coast of Canada. Circa 2007

I stepped out the door from my best friends’ trailer, fumbled down the

steps and walked about half a mile into the endless rows of win

e grape vines among the 1000acre layout they lay amongst.
The sun is drowning behind a shadowy storm front. Lightning strikes in the distance but is heard only a solid minute later, were I stand. Above me, the sky is clear and the stars faintly starting to make their appearance as her majesty sets in the hollowing thunder.

I decide to sit and wait. To see what will, what can happen?
The silence is eerie. The wine season and her harvest are well over with, and all that is left is bare vines and rows of never stopping hibernation. I feel a sense of kinship growing. I feel somewhat at home, somehow responsible for this. The plants have given all they had to me, to us, to everyone, and yet now, as much attention as t

hey have had over the last 8 months, they are now left stranded, weeping for sunlight that barely shows

itself in the winter months to come. The thunder strikes closer now. Every so real! The storm seems to head in my direct-

ion,as surely as there is oxygen in my lungs, it begins to drizzle. The cold air feeding into me, to the bone, with the humid dawn she draws.

And yet the tour continues. My journey must go on. I stand, wet on the bottom from the dead humid grass, and walk back towards my secure home for the night.I see my friends watch television, and tell myself that a much superior spectacle is happening outside, a much better experience, a better way of seeing real life. But I cannot tell them this; they are not ready for it. Not ready for the truth.

So I settle into the couch, for it is my bed for the night until the sun warms this place up again in the light of morning. At which time, with everything packed and ready, I will head into the next and last portion of my travels. I will head west, the way of the cowboy and the lonely wanderer, into the unknown. What could become only one person knows, and he or she is not letting me in on any of that!

The Last Battle Lost

I know this is a blog about me and climbing. But I really can't resist these days. For some reason, I feel impurvious to the fact of being silent and saying nothing. Watch GASLAND here or go to FAST PASS TV and choose your link to watch it.

Its important not only to water, but to the earth and our future generations. Oh and on a side-note, "they" are already drilling in the Canadian Shield Up North and already there are reports of huge amounts of water contamination, sporadic flam-ups from the land and faucets, and children getting sick from local water in camps and villages.

Please just watch and sign the petition.

Ulric

Slayer and the dog that saved his Karma

Once upon a time, there was a mean young man, who, with the help of his friends, saw the possible money involved in Capturing dogs and cats and other domestic animals when they escaped from their homes or just got abandoned. They didn't like animals very much, but they sure did like money.

So one day, they started up this " Society" and named it the Berger Blanc. After seeing a couple adds in the yellow pages and having nowhere else to turn too, citizens of Montreal started calling the Berger Blanc to pick up the

stray dog in their backyards, or the cat that pooped on his lawn.

But behind the smiles and the clean white vans was a wall of denial. Once inside the fortress the animals where beaten, they where fed left overs, sometimes from other animals. They did not have spacious lofts like we do, no. They had to stay in confined spaces with hundreds of other cats and dogs, living in faeces, vomit, urine and the decaying bodies of there comrades.

So there they waited, to be rescued from their masters and/or from an adoptive parent. But with so many cats and with no control on who comes in or out, finding your pet was almost impossible.

So after a couple days, shorter than even the SPCA, he Wicked Witch of the North End of Montreal would stomp into the cages, throw the animals in a barrel, and execute them in plain sight.

And so this went on. For years, people lost there pets due to lack of control in the pick up and tagging process or simply because the Berger Blanc never checked for Electronic tags.

And so it continued. The angry man who runs this business has many cars, many houses and many wives. But he also as many canines waiting for him up high.

And this is all possible due, in part, by the lack of compassion from the City of Montreal and the Government of Canada, especially the conservative party, who cares little about anything else than buying military jets.

I would urge you all to sign this petition to make sure this does not continue. Go and read about all this at the Mirror's site and pass this on to your friends on blogs, FB, twitter or just scream out-load.

I also urge you to visit this site, Chiot Nordique, which, in co-operation with the SPCA, is saving puppies and dogs from gruesome conditions. I have already applied for one myself.

Watch this Video

I know this is a little morbid for a Saturday morning, but this had to be said.

Ulric

Jason Kehl

Jason is a good friend and one of the raddest humans I have ever met. He's honest, down to earth, and climbs cause he loves to do it. He works his ass off for all his sponsors and this is some of his creations on vid. Check it out.

The Process: The art of shaping. from CryptoChild on Vimeo.

Cordless has supported Jason from the beginning, and this is his Homage to Clark, Johnny and the whole crew in SLC who spend countless hours for rice and beans pay to bring you innovative, high quality products for training, sport climbing and bouldering. This is a great video.

Revolution Crash Pads from CryptoChild on Vimeo.

Pusher

And I cannot forget to embrace my boys from Cordless. This is what started it all.

So iLL

So iLL has such cool graphics on the website I just had to post them. That's it, that's all!

Music

Placebo - Running up That Hill

The end of the Affair with...

Here is my response ( or more like support ) to one of this weeks Mirror articles, The Front, about just one more idiot in office. I sent it to the weekly rag, we'll see if they publish it. Enjoy.

Alex is part of the Project Montreal party or whatever you want to call it, here is the FB page should you want to see where you dollars are going.

The Front
Time, terresses

Where Does it End?

By Ulric Rousseau

Its really starting to get to me.

All this political shit in the papers, 4 elections in 7 years c

osting us millions, Charest taking a 6 day,

100,000.00$ trip

to Russia on my dime. Now, they want to chop off the legs of those who pay their salaries. Mille End city counselor Alex Norr

is decides that 1 am is late enough for us? Just because you go to bed at 9pm ( I do too ) doesn’t mean everyone should. What is this, communist China? You know, I

do not mind a cut in the biz hours of operations on the establishments, but shouldn’t a cut in income to the owners and workers come with a cut in their

taxes across the board? I mean, if you are making 20% less because some over the hill burnout who has nothing better to do on a Monday morning but to conjure up some lame reason to address an issue that is, in my opinion, the last to be addressed, then shouldn’t you be paying 20% less in your land yaxes, income taxes, booze taxes, licenses fees ect? I mean, in all fairness, when the government idiots in parliament ups its annual salaries, don’t they up our taxes and fees? Doesn’t Mr Norris have anything else better to do? How about walking over to the Laurier station and stopping drug dealers, or maybe walking the beat making sure women are safe in alleys across the city, or picking up needles before our 4 year olds poke themselves with them. Really. Our attention is entirely focused on issues that have no importance. If people want to stay up until 4 am spending money and infusing there capital into the system to pay your salary, then, MR. Norris, I suggest you let them. What is it they say, oh yeah, don’t bite the hand that feeds you. Really. Are we paying this idiot or is he doing this as a hobby out of his mothers basement? Oh, and btw, if you are out of ideas on what to do next with your time Mr. Norris, here are a couple. Fixing the potholes in your burrow, making bike paths, planting a tree, adopt a dog at the spca and shut down le Berger Blanc. How about cleaning the bus stop shelters of its stench, focus on getting the city to shut down to cars, or make it easy for people to drive motorcycles, or how about opening an orphanage, or making it easy for loving people ( gay or straight ) to adopt a Canadian kid instead of sending our money over seas or making sure our mayor is not spending his nights going over spy cams in his office, giving people a reason to go out and vote, ect. I could go on.

El Salto Guide up-date

Here is the link to the updated El Salto Guide. Its free and will be updated with pics soon.

El Salto, Mexico

Easy on Sunday moring

This is the classic Sunday morning ritual when I am home. Orange juice and a documentary.

Watch Home, a documentary about our planet and the evolution of life.

We would have climbed today but the weather ( -4c ) and the rain and snow are making sure we stay inside.

Good Sunday morning to all...

Back from the dead

Sorry. I have been interrupted by millions of things over the past few months and have gotten lost off path.

This is the rebirth of my blog.

Since my last post, many things have changed. I am no longer with Evolv or Bluewater. Some would ask why, but I guess, its safe to say, a Gentleman never gives details. I was somewhat upset, to say the least. Having my contract terminated

by email was a very sad day for me. But, thanks to Jim Sanford and LaSportiva, I am climbing in the shoes with which it all started for me. I am happier and more "in tune" now that I have ever been.

Above all, we just spent three months in Mexico putting up new routes ( see pic ), laughing and hangin out at the petting zoo ( our campground ). We made great friends, new encounters and had dog for a couple months. Living in this mode really showed me that this is what we are meant to be doing. LIVING.

I also made a point to change a couple things in my life during this trip. Sorta of a little new year resolution. I will update this blog every week. I will climb harder this summer than any past year. I will also make it a point to adopt a dog in the coming weeks. I seem to be needing something around me, and the more i think about it, the more i believe that I miss my dog so much more than I realize.

Cheers peeps...

GRIPPED June 2011

Here is an insider for all your cravings. Gripped is publishing an article about Quebec climbing. I think this is a first for any mag, let me know if I am wrong. Also will have nice pics of PeeWee sending hard cracks, some nice bikini shots, and other pictures, some taken by Francois Lebeau for example. Can't post anything yet, but here is just a teaser.

"I love living in Montreal. The city is overflowing with charming and beautiful people, there is a vibrant culture of swingers, non-stop parties and countless crags are within an easy drive of all this debauchery. Welcome to La Belle Province.

Within a 100 km radius of Montreal, there are over 60 climbing areas covering every aspect of modern rock climbing. Expand that radius to 350 km and Montreal-based climbers have access to the Bas St-Laurent region, which leads north to desert beach bouldering in the Appalachians or white pocketed granite climbing in Kamouraska.

Like the nightlife in Montreal, the climbing in Quebec is always engaging. Sport routes often have spicy runouts, which help keep the energy and true spirit of climbing alive. The granite trad climbs also very entertaining. The rock is hard to read with very technical and pumpy climbing.

Here are 10 of the top Quebec areas that any road-tripping climbers should visit."

Make sure you keep a look out and come join us this summer in Quebec for some good times and a little bit of rock.

Vid Yo

If anyone wants to see what El Salto looks like. Here it it.

Not sure why, but the video is not centred, so your controls are fucked. Play around and you will figure it out.