The Simple Life with Issy Morgans

"I live a very simple life" Issy Morgans                                   

Where do I start? This girl is complicated. I don't think I've ever received a more bewildering personal profile from a climber. But lets begin. Issy Morgans is a tight ass. Her words, not mine.

She works for a tight ass, my words not hers, in a climbing gym in Logan on the south side of Brisbane that not only doesn't have the internet but doesn't even have a computer.  How tight is that?

                                                     

Morgan(s) my bad.

Last time I posted photos of Issy I was stuck for a single word to describe her style. Lee Cujes offered "composed".
The composure runs deep. She not only plans every meal for a week ahead, she plans every little  thing she will do for a year. Climbers, I have stopped laughing at driven people and started taking lessons. I admire the dedication I see in people who are working hard on improvement.

Issy doesn't watch TV, hasn't watched a movie for over a year, doesn't eat out.
She says, "I work hard and save hard, I'm persistent and routine".

A fear of leading kept her indoor for nine years. Look at her now.
Let the pictures tell the story.

Here's Issy's answers to the quiz:

Q: Fave crags - A: Coolum and the Blue Mountains

Q: Fave music - A: Listen to the radio most of the time jjj and Nova
Q: Fave movie - A: haven't watched a normal movie in over 12 months!
Q: Fave mag - A: I guess this would have to be Rock mag as its the only mag I have bought since I was a teenager!
Q: Fave celeb -A:  Couldn't name any apart from Chris Sharma
Q: Fave cafe - A: Grandmas kitchen, I don't eat out!
A: Dogs - The question was "Cats or Dogs"?
A: Rock -  The question was "Rock or Rap"?
A: Jeans - The question was "Frocks or Jeans"?
Issy scored 8/9 on the quiz. The correct answer was "Frocks"

The simple lunch - a rice cracker and water.

If I can re-phrase her words just a little, she says one of the things she is planning to do is to be more spontaneous.

Enjoy the simple things Issy.

We love your positive style.

jj

Max power - warning puns ahead.

AKA Max Pietrzak

Max is amped to meet his potential.

Starting from way back in the field and staying positive, Max has charged ahead.

Climbers, I won't tell you what max does for a living. I don't want you to bug him endlessly for advice on treatments for your sore tendons and muscles.

Max has generated some renewed energy for this Coolum Cave problem.

 I got excited and plugged in for some of this action myself.

jjobrien

Is that not the sexiest pair of Red Chili Matadors you've seen?

Back to Max 

Static moves? Resistance training?

This was no flash. Maxy ran circuits on this problem till he had it wired, and got the send today.
 Onya Max, the boulder editor at jjobrienclimbing admires persistence.

Every trick in the book.

He's got a job at the new Coles. He's got his P licence. 2 weeks of school left. But something is missing. A new tick.

Matt pauses at the start of his new second pitch route to allow the camera to make a wardrobe decision. Yellow La Sportiva?

And we go with the white Bob Dylan singlet.

He gets the gear sorted, I work out the angles, and it's go time.

The route straight away sucks him in close with a gaston, undercling, stem combo.

It pushes him deeper into the scoop, unknowingly playing to his flexibility strengths.

Kneepads by Upskill

 It goads him onto it's thorny bollards and tries to lure him into cutting loose, thus ripping his fore arm flesh, he resists and stays firmly attached.

Then it's the old "hang on my magic hold till your arms drop off" trick.

. 

There's Bob staring at you.

He sees through it and punches on.

 Uh oh.        Climbers, we've all fallen for this one. 
It's the massive lunge off the slopey crimp and the end of the route story.

This route knows all the dirty tricks.

 Even Matty falls for it this time.

PS. Matt sent the route today 13/11/2011 calling it Tropic Thunder, 27

jj

Birthday Boy

 Remember the Straw Brothers?     Eric the elder just got older.

There's no particular story here, just the very photogenic Eric did some climbing and I took some snaps.

I don't always go with the fall shot, but this one I think retains all the energy and body tension of the move.

 I reckon if you hold that exact pose, but get a bit closer to the rock, you should be able to pull that move off.

Everyone deserves a Lei on their birthday.

The statistics on strangulation rates of tropical island belayers is higher than you might expect.
All the gang gobbled up this lush cake in his honour.

Chicken for Pink October

I couldn't find a model with bluer eyes, so here's Chicken Vuorinen. Chicken is his real name I think, but he gets Chicko a bit.

This is one organic Chicken, fed phat on folk music and permaculture.

He scratches a living in Outdoor Ed 

Let's get this story started. Get your shirt off Chicken

Chicken says he doesn't have a style.

jjobrienclimbing&style says he does.   Mate, you're a HIPPIE.

ink by: jjobrienclimbing

October is the Cancer Councils' pink ribbon month.  jjobrienclimbing endorses the cause and encourages climbers to spend and raise pink dollars all this month.
Chicken does his bit for conscience raising in this pink accessories ensemble of cap, rope and knee pads, framing a pink heart necklace.

Flightless here on Coolum's steepest,  this Chicken thrives on a rope but is just a comfortable free ranging on blocs.
Chicken has been working his way up Queensland climbing's pecking order for a lot of years now.
Not one to be cooped up, Chicken likes to get around and although he rates Coolum as world class his favorite run is Mallorca DWS.

Climbers, you can get Chickens very tasty look at  Red Phoenix (site currently under re-construction)

jj