Wholistic Fitness

�Is there value in fear? Panic and dread have no virtue, but in fear is there not the force which gives equilibrium to action? Is it not the source of motivation for assessing ones weaknesses? Action without consciousness can bring spectacular successes but are they not equally fleeting? Fear should never master action but should be an alloy to it, tempering it and lending it greater value and strength.�

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�There are things we all must do to forge our path through the senseless. Things which cannot be be judged from the outside. Moments when decision creates a door we can swiftly pass through. It is our fate, our lot; to move, to unlock doors, to peer forward into the loom with energy and with optimism!�

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these words adorn the tags from from clothes manufactured by Christian Griffith, my Boulder, Colorado high school rock climbing bro.

many of you in our Tribe may know his fame. It was with outlandish flair, ability, and unmistakable charisma that Christian led the charge into the sport climbing explosion of the early 1980�s. Christian�s routes like poetry made granite (sandstone as the case may be!). his routes are aesthetically beautiful lines hallmarked with bewilderingly difficult gymnastic sequences.

�CG� and i both lived and lusted to free climb hard routes that our elders employed pitons and rope ladders to ascend. i was already a multisport athlete when i met CG and our competitive, anti-authority natures were in tune. we�d got fueled by reading Nietsche and starving ourselves to improve our strength-to-weight ratio. as ritual, we�d never pass through a doorway without first cranking off several fingertip pull ups. we�d practice our autographs and company logos for when we�d get famous.

to chill from our high-risk, high-adrenalin days, we�d use the night to paint our fingernails, cut symbols into our neon colored hair, and hang out to the music of Dylan, the Police, and Aerosmith. late nights were spent skateboarding to our buildering (climbing up walls of buildings) problems around town. we wore lycra constantly (see my first book, THE OUTDOOR ATHLETE, for proof!). quarters were often stolen to play more Centipede and Galga.

we felt wealthiest when clinging onto terrain few others could. we felt most at home hundreds of feet off the canyon floor surrounded only by Colorado sky and the darting antics of cliff swallows pestered by occasional hawks. during belays, we�d debate things like Bruce Lee�s philosophies versus Ninja warriorism principles. chasing feeble pine shade on Flagstaff mountain, we�d wait for fingertip blisters to soothe before attempting another flesh-eating bouldering problem. during long approach hikes to South Platte or Lumpy Ridge routes, we�d discuss whether moral goodness was truly required to facilitate genuine happiness.

i think we both agreed it was not.

The scrapbook of my mind sways with recollected laughter, fear, and omnipotence from those days with him along with our other adolescent rock climbing punks, many of whom are now dead in one way or another. it requires extra-ordinary perseverance to keep climbing in life. most people don�t have the gumption nor resolve to do so and thus wither into atrophied aspects of their Divinely given potential. CG and i figured that most people died spiritually long before their hearts stopped to beat. rappelling into a streaming Eldorado sunset, he and i vowed not to live a life marred by regret at not risking it.

CG�s physicality – not just his philosophies – were just as fetching. he had all the bodyfat of bamboo and moved in a catlike manner with muscularity that seemed ideally suited to his way of being. CG climbed with an inherent lyricism that was fluid, regardless of danger or difficulty. rarely did he hesistate..hesitation implies and fosters self doubt and that would be too, well, too un-Nietschesque! i would spend hours mimicking Christian�s athletic elegance and bravado on the rock, as if his genetic polish would somehow rub off on my own.

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�The dance of climbing is based upon movement guided by nature. By flowing working with natural elements, we are able to find the inner core strength, balance and rhythm that brings one closer to the natural being of the self.

The rock cannot be conquered without first being given respect and understanding. Once this relationship has been established, can you further experience the beauty of rock climbing. And the desire to conquer to conquer is replaced by the quest for unity.�

– Christian Griffith

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CG and i went on to establish our own Paths in life. i created WF and followed yoga. CG kept climbing and created a successful company, VERVE, that makes the finest rock climbing clothes in the world.

kathy and i pretty much live in VERVE clothes non-stop. they are as ideal for yoga and the gym as they are for granite, though CG is shy to market that fact. however, this summer he and i are working together to produce a yoga specific pant for his company.

do yourself a favor. call CG for a catalog. he doesn�t have a website. like anything genuine, you gotta work to gather those things that are truly beneficial for the Ascent Ever Higher! Pro golfer and WF Student, Ken Doyle, says that VERVE clothes are the absolute best for golf. Fore!

phone: 303 443 7010

email: cgverve@aol.com

May your Practice be strong and sincere today..

�That which kills me not, makes me stronger.�

Nietsche

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