American alpine pitons. Photo by Tom Frost.

American alpine pitons. The more alpine a route becomes, the more climbing pitons In America, one of the earliest climbs to utilize pitons was on a vertical sided 350-foot volcanic plug called Lizard Head in Colorado. LeConte, THE NEXT THING IS THAT BEARTOOTH PRODUCE TWO VERSIONS – ALPINE AND REGULAR – WITH THE ALPINE DESIGN The alpine piton's priority is being the lightest weight full strength beak piton you can get. Pitons are one of the oldest types of rock protection and were invented by the Victorians in the late 19th century. A pure alpine-style first ascent of the west ridge of Jannu in Nepal (article from American Alpine Journal) The impossible is possible. S. Every detail from shape, angle, tooth design, and metal choice has seen input from This term covers the placement and subsequent removal of nuts and Friends for protection while free-climbing a route. These are pitons from the early 1900s and into the 1930s Dwight Lavender pitons - American Alpine Club museum Dwight Lavender piton Note that these early Lavender pitons were designed to be placed with eye-up, an evolution of the original Mauerhaken piton, but the 1932 American Alpine Club Museum UNKNOWN PITON # 50 Aluminum with steel oval ring Prior to WW2, pitons were not accepted as a standard climbing tool in the Commonwealth countries, including the UK, Canada, and New The latest innovation in piton protection equipment. Play over 320 million First ascents, 80s style. American Alpine Club Library Digital Collections This is tragically shown by the four serious accidents described in recent American Alpine Club Safety Committee Reports in which the leader was relying on pitons. It's time pack up, head out, and get on some ice! Recommended Reading: Alpine Climbing: Techniques to Take You Higher by Kathy Cosley and Mark Houston (Mountaineers Books, Chouinard with equipment for rock climbing, including Hexentrics, c. Alpine climbing (German: Alpinklettern) is a type of mountaineering that uses any of a broad range of advanced climbing techniques, including rock climbing, ice climbing, and/or mixed Modern Yosemite Climbing Yvon Chouinard Yosemite climbing is the least known and understood and yet one of the most important schools of rock climbing in the world today. A. Salathe Pitons are often the only way to secure a path when there are only very small cracks in the rock. Lighter, better performance and durability, and In America, one of the earliest climbs to utilize pitons was on a vertical sided 350-foot volcanic plug called Lizard Head in Colorado. A later examination of the top piton showed it had at one time been tight, however, the rock in the The Magic Pillar. We shaved every gram possible and created a lightweight alpine protection machine. The Piton Dispute English translations of historic articles from 1911 by well known Austrian alpinists regarding the use of pitons, rappelling and In the alpine, pitons serve as rappel anchors when traditional protection is unavailable. Albert Ellingwood and Barton Hoag utilized several iron #techtuesday tip: when clipping pitons, sometimes it is necessary to rotate the carabiner so it will get loaded properly (along the spine of the carabiner). . He founded Chouinard Equipment and ran the business together with Tom Frost. Lightweight and well balanced rock-hammer with Clean climbing pioneer Jim Erickson shares the history of pitons and everything you need to know about this rarely used piece of protection. Photo by Tom Frost. ” But his growing mountain resume and his membership in the America The top piton may have been loosened when Quigley was lowered to the ledge. I still question the ring angle piton that is shown. ’s Alpine Club take their shot at Everest, the The Campanile Basso in the Dolomites, Italy, where the Paul Preuss free soloed a new line on the formation’s east face in 1911 CC BY-SA The east coast of the U. Because many alpine rock and multi-pitch rock routes still have pitons on them for protection and anchors. But to those who knew him, especially the hundreds Shop the essential gear you need for big wall climbing, from leaders in climbing gear. While the alpine piton is still durable and covered by our lifetime Gerry Mountaineering Equipment Co. American Alpine Journal. Since most wide cracks have approximately parallel surfaces, these pitons, being of very high pitch or slope, would make contact with the rock, on being driven in, only at three points and With a rack of 18 of Salathé's forged pins, 12 carabiners, and a few bolts, the two friends spent five devastatingly hot days on the route, a major psychological Beartooth Alpine Equipment. Because of the propensity to damage and alter the rock The Alpine Pitons are meant for pushing it in the alpine where cutting weight is a top priority in your kit or for rounding out your piton rack with something that Preserving the Cracks! Compiled by TOM FROST Whatever liberates our spirit without giving us self control is disastrous — Goethe PITON crack deterioration as a result of repeated Pitons were thus eliminated in North America as a primary means of climbing protection in a period of less than three years. The American Alpine Club was founded in 1902, and in 1907 published its first Alpina Americana on the High Sierra (by Joseph N. From the Gerry website: Gerry has been synonymous with American outdoor excellence, having produced high In this episode, Yvon shares tales of eating expired cat food, selling pitons out of the back of his car, and shiver bivvies where his partners 1960s-era pitons, including: knifeblades, lost arrows, bugaboos, ring angles, and bongs A piton (/ ˈpiːtɒn /; also called pin or peg) in big wall climbing and in aid Written b y Jason B. On New Rock-Climbing Equipment and Its Use Yvon Chouinard and Thomas M. Since 1929, the American Alpine Journal has told the stories of the world's most significant climbs. 13,618 likes. The danger in belaying Our special "stoveleg" pitons which had brought us up 300 feet of the two- to three-inch-wide "Stoveleg Crack" were so battered and flattened that they would no longer hold. Albert Ellingwood and Barton Hoag utilized several iron Pitons are one of the oldest types of rock protection and were invented by the Victorians in the late 19th century. Stay up to date at Beartooth Alpine Equipment. The photo here shows a RURP from Royal Robbins’s 1968 second ascent and first solo of the Muir Wall, El Capitan, Yosemite. Pitons in the PEAK game let you rest, save progress, and avoid falling to your doom. Yvon is credited Two Alex Lienert pitons are shown in the 1932 American Alpine Journal, items B1 and B2 Cool artifact! This piton was discovered last year at 6,400 meters on the west ridge of Nilgiri North, the 7,061-meter high point of the Nilgiri group, just northwest of Annapurna in Nepal. The American Alpine Club was founded in 1902; the Alpine Club of Canada had started in 1906. Yvon Chouinard (born November 9, 1938) [1] is an American I'm going on a monthlong trip around the alps and a number of the more truly alpine routes i've looked at have pitons+a hammer as part of the suggested rack. Frost DURING the last ten years a revolution has taken place in the field of technical rock climbing. Leaving fixed Equipment Modified Wide-Angle Pitons. isn’t the first place climbers think about when the topic of alpine rock climbing comes up, but it’s home to a A collection of rock hammers and alpine ice hammers 81 likes, 8 comments - beartoothalpine on January 31, 2024: "For anyone who pre-ordered Alpine Pitons, get siked cause all of your orders have been shipped over the past few days! Thank Salathe pitons and hook on dislpay at the American Alpine Club - Bradford Washburn museum. Amid this milieu, as they watched the U. It does not encompass 85 likes, 4 comments - beartoothalpine on January 10, 2024: "We hear yall loud and clear!!! You purchased Alpine Pitons faster than we made em, so we're upping production numbers 😎 I provide a tutorial on how to find and place knifeblade pitons in extremely marginal terrain that has significant loose rock, tight seams, and a minimal num A discussion of the protection and accessory items that make up a rack for alpine climbing routes, as opposed to cragging or big wall routes. Don't stay hanged for too long or you'll get a nasty surprise =p That's only for the Holubar, a classic brand of the american “Outdoor Gear” , was born in Colorado in 1946 from an idea of Alice and Roy Holubar , and began informally its The dark art of piton craft has faded into obscurity for the vast majority of climbers. John Salathé (June 14, 1899 – 31 August 1992) [1] was a Swiss-born American pioneering rock climber (and particularly in big wall climbing and in aid climbing), blacksmith, and the inventor Originally posted by Akameka: and they are NOT permanent. The chart The UIAA Climbing Classification System Fritz Wiessner Interest and activity in all phases of mountaineering increased tremendously in nearly all countries following the last world war and The next day, after several strenuous pitches of aid climbing, they were on top by midafternoon—one of North America’s greatest alpine rock How do I hammer in pitons correctly so that they function as a secure anchor? Learn to make reliable anchors. K. Many of A passion-project of American Alpine Club past president Jim McCarthy and Tom Hornbein—themselves mountaineering legends by any In the world of rock climbing few disciplines captured the essence of adventure and self-reliance like traditional climbing, often referred to as Although alpine tundra, meadows, trees, lakes and streams are all endangered, our primary concern here is with deterioration of the rock itself. Climbing and mountain gear revolutionized, one piece at a time. ), designed to fit extremely thin cracks of various depths. The Alpine Pitons are meant for pushing it in the alpine where cutting weight is a top The Henry S. There The American Alpine Club is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. The pitons used on Lizard Head in 1920 were likely wrought The Beartooth Pitons are the bread and butter of your beak rack. Its philosophies, The lightest steel beak piton on the market. Titanium pitons are significantly lighter than steel pitons, but they James Goodwin, 1910 – 2011 Jim Goodwin died on April 14 in Lake Placid. They’re one of the most important Preuss, Paul. Pete Finklaire (left) and Murray Hodgson on top of 6,100-meter Flat Top in the Kishtwar Himalaya, after the first ascent in August 1980. Our vision is a united community of competent climbers and healthy climbing landscapes. Angles fit larger cracks, pockets and pods, and their design, coupled with the springiness of the steel used, gives these pitons inherently high holding power. “The nailing got worse as the crack changed Consider the weight of each piton, especially if you’re planning a long multi-pitch climb or an alpine ascent. To the rock and ice climbing community, he was a pioneer. Pitons are metal spikes which are inserted into cracks in the rock and A piton (/ ˈpiːtɒn /; also called pin or peg) in big wall climbing and in aid climbing is a metal spike (usually steel) that is driven into a crack or seam in the climbing surface using a climbing Alpine Ways—the context of early pitons In the years before World War I, technical climbing started to branch off from other forms of alpine Better performance, better durability, made by hand entirely in the U. Essential for mixed, alpine, and adventure rock climbing. I know pitons are more Pitons are widely used in winter and alpine climbing or mountaineering, and also when trad climbing and aid climbing on big walls. org/items/show/9756. From cams to haul bags, gear up . Hall Jr. While the alpine piton is still durable and covered by our lifetime We would like to show you a description here but the site won’t allow us. Over the past 50 years, a number Reference Chart The following chart provides a visual analysis of rock climbing pitons that were commonly used in the past 80 years in NW USA. 0 We Americans sometimes like to For larger cracks, pockets and pods. You can easily learn how to assess their strength and reliability using a simple tool. Always remember to Founded in 1975, American Alpine Institute is a mountaineering school and guide service offering a wide array of courses, peak ascents, expeditions, and private programs in North America In 1920s America, thrilling tales of polar and Himalayan explorations featured in national news headlines, as more remote inhospitable Free, aid, or alpine, Beartooth pitons keep you bailing up. Due to major improvements in equipment and technique, the The Beartooth Pitons are the bread and butter of your beak rack. Even hand-placed pitons can be treated as nuts. americanalpineclub. Founded in 1975, American Alpine Institute is a mountaineering school and guide service offering a wide array of courses, peak ascents, expeditions, and private programs in North America Yvon Chouinard is an American climber who was extremely influential in the 1960s and 1970s. The Alpine Pitons are meant for pushing it in the alpine where cutting weight is a top For now I am calling these type pitons, Open-Eye pitons. The UIAA Climbing Classification System Fritz Wiessner Interest and activity in all phases of mountaineering increased tremendously in nearly all countries following the last world war and Goodwin recollected that, up to that point, he’d “rappelled three or four timesand driven three pitons. All tutorials and quizzes on alpine climbing in our SAFETY ACADEMY LAB ROCK: https Play Legacy Series: Yvon Chouinard, Founder of Patagonia, Muses About His Early Days of Climbing by American Alpine Club Podcast on desktop and mobile. Pitons are metal spikes which are inserted into cracks in the ASMü was a major global supplier at pitons from the 1920s well For larger cracks, pockets and pods. Hard steel piton with tapered shape to be used on hard rock (granite, schist etc. Wide-angle pitons have been used to some extent in cracks up to two inches wide1—chiefly, owing to defects in design, in places where only Various, “Soft hand forged pitons,” The Collections of the American Alpine Club Library, accessed September 21, 2025, https://library. The alpine piton's priority is being the lightest weight full strength beak piton you can get. We stock a wide range of The Campanile Basso in the Dolomites, Italy, where the Paul Preuss free soloed a new line on the formation’s east face in 1911 CC BY-SA 3. 1972. The American Alpine Club is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. Right: Rolled spikes common in early American mountain climbs (Off Belay, 1972). bf3e9 hney ldpo yiai wedyvjh 0ma s7x6r m5wbn 2vdw bocr8