Author: Kelsey Shaw

Photo: alpinedave.com

Alpinist Magazine announced Sunday that Mazama member John Frieh has received a 2013 Mugs Stump Award for his second attempt on the unclimbed Middle Peak of Alaska’s Saint Elias range.  This year, Frieh’s team will include Colin Haley and Daniel Harro.

The Bureau of Land Management controls two and a half million acres of public land in western Oregon.

Right now, the BLM is preparing to revise its management plans for the area, and they invite you to weigh in with information about what you like to do on public lands, and where you like to do it.

As the Outdoor Alliance puts it in a recent press release, “Instead of just commenting on a plan after it’s written, this time we get to inform the BLM’s thinking before they write the plan.”

The BLM is providing a variety of ways for you to make your voice heard in the process.  Continue reading to get the details and a variety of web links to get you started.

Interested in something a little more face-to-face? Plan to attend one of these upcoming workshops:

• January 29th, Medford, OR 
• January 30th, Roseburg, OR 
• January 31st, Eugene, OR 
• February 5th, Portland, OR [at Mazamas Mountaineering Center]

Photo courtesy Whatcom Museum Photo Archives

The year was 1911 and Bellingham, Washington, was a sleepy little town in the shadow of Mount Baker, on the northern shores of Puget Sound. Logging and fishing were the economic mainstays but, as the leaders of the Mount Baker Club, a local business organization, saw it, the town needed something more.  Thus begins “The Toughest Race You’ve Ever Heard Of,” a recent article in Trail Runner Magazine that tells the unlikely story of the Mount Baker Marathon: “America’s first mountain adventure race.”

The Mount Baker Marathon took place from 1911 to 1913, and constituted the city of Bellingham’s most audacious public relations stunt in its competition for tourist dollars against the just-created Mount Rainier National Park.  It is the subject of a recent documentary, The Mountain Runners that is currently taking the film world by storm.

The Mountain Runners will be showing on January 24 at the Northwest Film Center in downtown Portland.  You can purchase tickets at their website.

Between Friday January 4 and Sunday January 20, Mazamas should expect a heavy accumulation of exclusive deals at Oregon Mountain Community.  You’ll need a shovel for all the money you save — show your proof of membership and get up to 35% off on a long list of discounted items and brands.  Read on for a complete list of discounts and details about the sale.

Mazama Winter Deals
Discounts

Available from January 4th – 20th, 2013 
Deals are available in store only.  Stock on hand only, no special orders.
You will receive your discount or the sale price, whichever is greater.
Please show Mazama membership card to get the discounts. 

• Snowshoes from Atlas, Tubbs and MSR 25% off retail 
• All Sock Brands 30% off retail 
• Patagonia clothing 30% off retail 
• Mountain Hardwear clothing 30% off retail 
• Mountain Hardwear tents (not 4 season) 30% off retail 
• Marmot clothing 30% off retail 
• The North Face clothing 30% off retail 
• Madshus, Fischer, Voile ski products 25% off retail 
• Mammut, BCA, Ortovox Avy Beacons 25% off retail 
• G3, Black Diamond, BCA shovels & probes 25% off retail 
• Black Diamond Gloves 30% off retail 
• Outdoor Research Accessories 30% off retail 
• All Icebreaker and Ibex 30% off retail 
• All baselayers 30% off retail 
• Steripen 30% off retail 
• Optimus stoves 30% off retail 
• All books 20% off retail 
• Freeze dried food 35% off retail 
• Shakes, energy bars 20% off retail

Sport lead climbing is on the short list for the 2020 Olympics. According to Climbing Magazine, the International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC) met in Switzerland with the International Olympic Committee Program Commission on December 19 to make its final pitch for inclusion.  Sport lead climbing is in competition with six other sports: baseball/softball, karate, roller sports, squash, wakeboarding, and wushu.  A decision on the matter is expected in September 2013.

Ortovox is recalling its new 3+ avalanche transceiver because in recent testing, some of the devices from a group shipped to vendors after October 17, 2012 “switched to transmission mode unintentionally after 120 seconds in search mode.” If you own an Ortovox 3+, follow this link to check your device’s serial number. Recalled devices will be inspected and given any needed upgrades.

Khumbu Glacier –  Pumori 2012

If you have a few minutes to kill and a computer with good RAM, have a look at this amazing image.  Can you zoom in and find the climbers?  What about Everest Base Camp?

If you’d like to get a feel for how much the Khumbu Glacier has receded in the modern era, check out this link.

Wild Country is voluntarily recalling units of the popular Helium carabiner purchased after July 15, 2012, having discovered a problem with the gate on some units.  You can read details about the recall here.