Our 5.10 Days Of May event is here! We’re giving away over $1,000 in prizes, and you’ll have 10 unique ways to enter for a chance to win. Below are instructions for entering each day’s contest; check back each day for updates on how to win a pair of Five Ten shoes!
- Day 1 (Sunday, May 1): Head on over to this post on Rock/Creek’s Facebook discussion board, and tell us about your first climbing trip. How did you get into the sport? Advice to beginners?
- Day 2 (Monday, May 2): Follow @rockcreekdeals on Twitter and re-tweet this post.
- Day 3 (Tuesday, May 3): Write a review of your favorite Five Ten product and enter your e-mail address to become a “verified reviewer.” One reviewer will win a pair of shoes, and all verified reviewers will also be entered in our ongoing $1,000 giveaway.
- Day 4 (Wednesday, May 4): “Like” Wild Trails on Facebook for today’s chance to win a pair of Five Ten shoes. Wild Trails is our 501(3)(c) non-profit focused on the expansion, protection and use of trails for all users. Funded in part by funds raised during the Triple Crown of Bouldering, this group is helping to secure climbing access in the Chattanooga area.
- Day 5 (Thursday, May 5): Post a photo on our Facebook wall that shares a “Five Ten story.” Maybe it’s the summit of your best climb to-date, or maybe it’s your dog wandering off with your climbing shoes… it’s up to you to tell us what that story is. If you don’t have Facebook, email your photo to [email protected] and we’ll post it for you.
- Day 6 (Friday, May 6): Tell us about your favorite climbing route or bouldering problem in a comment below this blog post. Was it your proudest send, or just the perfect day in a special place? A project or problem you’d been working on for a long time and finally conquered? What made it your favorite?
- Day 7 (Saturday, May 7): To enter today’s contest, “Like” the Triple Crown Bouldering Series on Facebook. This series of bouldering events, at three of the Southeast’s premier boulder fields, raises money for the Southeastern Climbers’ Coalition and the Carolina Climbers’ Coalition. Both groups have been instrumental in the acquisition of land for the climbing community.
- Day 8 (Sunday, May 8): Post about your most memorable climbing-related road trip in this post on our Facebook discussion forum. What went right (or wrong) to make the journey so memorable?
- Day 9 (Monday, May 9): “Like” any Five Ten shoe on rockcreek.com, then post on our Facebook wall with a link to the product you liked. Let’s see which Five Tens get the most love!
- Day 10 (Tuesday, May 10): Comment on this Facebook post and tell us your dream climbing trip or destination. Where would you most like to go, and what would you do when you got there?
Entrants have until May 10th to enter each of the contests, at which point we’ll select and announce the winners. Want to receive the daily instructions directly via email? Follow these instructions to sign up on our website with Five Ten as one of your interests.
Meanwhile, go shop Five Ten and pick out the shoes you’d choose if you win. We have most shoes on sale 10-30% off during the 5.10 Days of May: https://www.rockcreek.com/five-ten.rc
Jeff Bartlett says
Day 6 contest entries go here! We’ll share an example from a friend, to get you started:
—
“One of my favorite routes is Spinal Twist (5.12), at an area called
The Dry in Southern Arizona. The route climbs an obvious line of tufas
to the lip of the Bee Cave, an ice cream scoop from a massive
cliffband in the Whetstone Mountains. The place is remote, requiring
4wd and a long approach, but the payoff is epic exposure and great
climbing on steep limestone, which is pretty much unique in an area
known for slabby granite.”
“A photo from the climb was also the first photo I ever had
published in a magazine – it went double-truck in Outside Magazine in
2001 – so it is kind of a talisman for me. If you continue up the
cliffband, past some 3rd-class sections, you’ll get to the monstrous
Celebrity Cave, which has got to be one of the best places in the
world to watch a desert sunrise.”
– Andrew Kornylak
Jacob Current says
My favorite route that I’ve ever climbed would have to be one called Egyptian Airbus (5.12c) at the Horseshoe Canyon Ranch. For me, it was one of my proudest sends and one of the coolest routes in the canyon. Really interesting and fun technical slab climbing leads into a 20 foot roof with a huge crux move. Besides the epic climbing, the route marked the end of one of the best climbing trips I’ve ever been on. A group of friends of mine, my girlfriend, and I all made the trip from Ohio out to AR for our spring break weekend. On the trip nearly all of us sent a project or met a personal goal, and the vibes of the entire group and at the Ranch were awesome. I sent this route on the last day of the trip right as the sun was setting, and I ended up getting lowered off in the dark. My friends and girlfriend were all there encouraging me to send and doing so at the last absolute minute was awesome. A long winter of training had finally paid off and I got to do it amongst some of my closest friends. The send was definitely one of my hardest and it was perfect punctuation to the end of an even more perfect climbing trip.
Beth says
Just a perfect day in a perfect place. On our first trip to Yosemite, we climbed at Five and Dime. The view from where we set up shop was one of the most spectacular I’ve ever seen. The weather was beautiful – sun shining, cool breeze, not a single mosquito. It was possibly the most peaceful and happy I’ve felt in recent years. It made the climbing all the more enjoyable.
Max Pelli says
Personally, I can only answer with my favorite climb to date. I started climbing in January of this year at my local rock gym. I’ve never been much of an athlete, but climbing is different. I caught the climbing bug almost instantly. There was one route in the gym that just looked so awesome. It was an unnamed v3 that followed along the ceiling. The marker tape was blue so that kind of became its namesake. I had only been climbing for about three weeks when I started projecting this bad boy. The more advance climbers called it a campus route, but I was lucky if I could campus even the first move…I must have done the start 100 times. I probably worked on it for two weeks. I asked so many people for beta on that thing that I would forget what I was even climbing. Then one day, I was there all alone and just nailed it. It was beautiful. I had never felt satisfaction like that. It was seriously the greatest feeling in the world to have worked and worked at something and then finally get it. It was like a turning point from a beginner to a serious climber.
I’ve since advanced past v3, but I climbed Blue every time I went. Eventually I could campus through it. A few more days and I could campus there and back. They just recently took it down and replaced it, but it will always be my first real, successful project. I know that one day it will be just “one” of my “favorites”. Climb on people.
(Sorry this was long…it just got away from me.)
Stephen says
I don’t think any climb can beat that first line that just fits your style. On a trip with my girlfriend to McAfee Knob in VA we experienced a climbing trips worst nightmare, rain. Fortunately we didn’t allow it to dampen our spirits, even though our crash pad sure fell victim. The rain forced us into an overhang sporting this juggy roof line with a few big throws. This was both of our first attempts at climbing such a steep overhang but the problem just clicked for me. An hour and a half of rain later and I had discovered my favorite climb to date. Now if only I could remember how to find it again.
Bobby Lanie says
So far, I’ve had many really fun and intense projects that scared the shit out of me and boosted my confidence level, but my favorite problem to date is “Heavenly Path.” It’s a v1 at the Happy Boulders in Bishop, CA. I’m fairly new to climbing, so a v1 is challenging, but not tough enough to have to project.
But anyway, it was our first day in Bishop and our first real climbing trip ever, so we looked through the guidebook for what looked relatively easy but also beautiful and inspiring. There was a picture of “Heavenly Path” that made my jaw drop and I had no choice. I had to climb it.
When we got to the boulder we were amazed by how tall it was. It really scared us, but got us psyched at the same time. As we set up the pads and got our shoes on, we talked about where the spotters would be and who would get to go first. I was the lucky one.
I onsighted the problem, but right at the 15 foot mark when the slab corners and angles in, my mind turned off. The climb was the only thing processing in my mind. I felt more engulfed in the moment on that climb than I had ever felt before, and I loved it. I repeated it two times that day and had the same feeling each time.
That climb taught me so much about climbing, and so much about myself.
Vance Macdonald says
I discovered my favorite climbing route last night, it was one called Cash Money, it is at the Gainesville Rock Gym in Florida! This route was posted for a endurance competition last night, it was a giant long route that started on a boulder wall and went around and all the way up the side. This route definetly took endurance but I testede the bouldering half just simply playing a game of take away with a friend before the competition. I have never had so much fun, it had crimp parts, slaps, punches, but never so hard that you couldn’t finish it with the right determination.
Eduardo "Samurai" Meirelles says
It was one year after I started climbing and I was really psyched with lead climbing. I just have done an 5.11c flash and we travelled to Iporá in Goiás state in the middle of Brazil. This is kind a private peak which my fellows conquered the lines from 5.10 to a supposed 5.13. In my oppinion this place is one of the most hard in our state due to the holds and negativity and the lines too. So there is an 5.12b called Jumento Gordo which is a vertical line with specifics holds. My friend Fernando was trying this route which had only 2 ascents until this day and he would like to be the 3th climber to do it. The line is so beautifull that I needed try it just to see how would go.
I did the first try and my foot slipped on the first move. I thought it would be very hard after this first sight. Another one try and I got to the first hold, but the next move was so hard that I couldn’t reach the hold. Another try and the foot slipped again on the start foot. “What I’m doing here!! This is not my grade to keep trying.” was my thought, but the line is so cool!! I must get myself to the monofinger that all the guys talk about. This monofinger is like a V which your finger pinch as a nut. Amazing. So I did the next try, and everything was perfect!!
I started climbing and keep going. Got to the third plate and there was the monofinger. Four movements to reach it with alternate foot and hand holds. PERFECT monofinger. And I reached it.
I kept going on and the next clip was a little bit delicate with a foot like a rock leaf but with a good hand hold. So a clipped this one and realized I was on the middle to complete the line. The next step would need I jump to two big holds and in my oppinion it’s the hardest crux of the line. I didn’t reach the big hold and fell down. Damn. I got so far to fall, but wasn’t easy to get there and although this wasn’t my grade. Ok then. I made all the other moves to complete the line. There is a hold before the last clip which is has the form of a boot and we call it the Italy hold.
I didn’t got the send this day, but I knew I was to close and if I try another shot I could make it, so the next day I foccused all my energy on this line. My first route was Jumento Gordo, and I think this was the perfect day to this line, because I needed just one try this day and got it. My first 5.12b even before sending and 5.12a or a 5.11d. If other climbers which climbs my grade did the route I could think the grade was overvalued, but this route still have only 4 ascents including mine, so this was my great day on climb and my proudest and favorite route climbed.
Ryan Stott says
For me, climbing is about progression. Although I enjoy many aspects of climbing, my favorite part is the never-ending opportunity I have to push myself and improve at something I love. Climbing is simply a battle between me and my limitations.
For years, I was stuck in a plateau of progression. After many failed attempts at increasing my climbing level above the 5.11 range, I realized something had to change. A fire lit inside me, and I became obsessed with breaking into the 5.12 range of climbs. Every book, video, coach, and friendly piece of advice were consumed until I overflowed with fuel for improving my ability. I dedicated myself to escaping the plateau with intense strength, mental, and movement training.
Maple Canyon in Utah is one of the most unique places I’ve ever climbed in my life. I had made several trips there, which included many failed attempts at redpointing climbs in the 5.12 range. One of my projects there was a 5.12a/b called Lunchables, a steep, pumpy climb. Working this climb was a struggle, but after lot of determination and mental perserverance, I finally reached my goal of sending this 5.12. My hard work had paid off in a satisfying fight against the pump and my body’s desire to give up.
Although I sent this climb at my limit, this is not my end goal, but merely a milestone in the progression of my climbing, a progression which will hopefully continue for years to come.
Katrin says
I was getting ready for my first trip of the season to the Stone Fort, TN last year. Since my car was the only one capable of making the seven hour trip, I started getting it ready the day before. Little did I know I would soon be laying on the floor in ridiculous pain! Clumsy me ended up dropping an art clipboard directly on the toe-bed of my left big toe.. Ouch! From then on, I took all precautions to make it better. Nothing helped. The end result brought me to the ER the following morning. (In the best way for me to explain it, the Dr had to “fix” the complication). Nothing was broken.. but definitely sore. However, I was not going to give up on this trip. I had a feeling about this one. For, the few months before, I began feeling stronger. Plus I also wanted to document some great photos while there!
The first day I took it easy. I dubbed it as my healing/photography day. Though the next day I was feeling pretty good. I tried my climbing shoe on and I was pretty excited to see that it wasn’t really painful at all! I still took precaution throughout the day, only climbing easy problems. After that, the last day of the trip I felt “as good as new.” Even though the toe was sore, I knew I was back to climbing my regular grades. We eventually walked by this specific climb that stuck my eye. This boulder problem was something I worked in the years past. I always felt so close.. but it never seemed to work out. Usually the skin on the tip of my fingers would give out due to the sharp crimpy section of the climb. I didn’t care how my foot was feeling, I had to try it! My second attempt I sent it! And of all trips, it was this one where I was slightly injured!: Life Is Goodlet V6
-The climb is this beautiful/easy traverse ..up until the mid section where it requires much technique and crimp strength.
In all, my trip was made after that send; I knew I had no regrets for making myself travel along, even through the pain!