Today was my second try on Doubleissima. I’d like to believe that one more try will do it, but it depends on how soon I can get back on it and how brave I am that day. I was pleased that I started up it, pleased that I pushed through when I was pumped, pleased even to take the whipper on the green Alien. Perhaps less pleased that I hadn’t backed it up since if it hadn’t held, I’d have gone a long way onto another single piece. Trouble is, it’s hard to place even one piece at a time from those stances, never mind two.

The funny story of the day was Scott and the squirrel. Getting ready at the base of Doubleissima (by which I mean dithering and peeing every five minutes), I glanced over and saw Scott wrestling a dead squirrel from a dog.

“Scott! Don’t touch that! It’s not good for you.”

“What?” He throws the furry thing down the slope and the dog chases. “I’m just playing with the dog.”

“Oh. It’s a dog toy. I thought it was a dead squirrel.”

“Aaa! It’s a dead squirrel. I touched a dead squirrel!”

Luckily the dog’s owner had some Purell in her pack.

Bloody Mary, 5.6+ (P1: Scott)
Morning After, 5.8- (P1: Dawn)
Size Matters, 10c (Scott)
Doubleissima, 10 (P1 & 2: Dawn)
Apoplexy, 5.9 (Scott)