UKC

RARE 1970’s EXTREME TECHNICAL AID CLIMBING GEAR – CRACK AND UP (x4), SKYHOOK (x6), RURP (x6), MASHIE (x3)
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/RARE-1970-s-EXTREME-TECHNICAL-AID-CLIMBING-GEAR-C...

An assortment including some very unusual and rare items, amongst which are four ‘specials’ hand-made by the legendary climber Tony Yaniro, with whom I had the privilege to do a few climbs in Yosemite in 1978. Auction on eBay ends this Sunday 15th February, or Buy It Now price of £75. More pics on eBay.


5 RURPs, 1 micro RURP, 4 Crack And Ups, 6 Skyhooks, 2 Mashies, 1 Copperhead

All are designed for placement on aid climbs, in the thinnest and gnarliest of situations.

RURP is an acronym for Realised Ultimate Reality Piton. They are about the size of a postage stamp, for hammering into a tiny crack. Imagine, then, what a micro RURP is! This is one of the pieces made by Tony Yaniro, part of an arsenal that helped him make some insanely daring first ascents.

‘CRACK AND UP’s were a 1975 invention of one of Yosemite’s pioneers, Yvon Chouinard, who started the Great Pacific Ironworks equipment company, which later became Black Diamond. This is what CRAG magazine had to say about them:

Recently, the most bizarre looking nut ever seen came on the market called the 'Crack and Up', once again by Chouinard who has this knack for producing the unexpected. As can be seen from the diagram, it looks basically very similar to a skyhook. But, the hook part is wedge-shaped and is slid into the crack in the same way as any nut. However, the arm is offset and when a downward force is applied there is the twin action of wedging and camming. They work amazingly well for aid and given an ounce of nerve for protection. They are available in five different sizes from wafer-thin to just below the smallest nut size—but at £1.90 each might prove difficult to leave the shops.

I acquired this set of four (sizes 3,4,5 & 6) in the Yosemite store, but have never seen them anywhere else. They are obviously the fore-runner for what Black Diamond now market as Pecker Pitons. A genuine rarity for collectors.

SKYHOOKS (or Cliffhanger Hooks), are designed for hooking small flakes or edges that would provide only fingernail purchase. This set of six includes one manufactured by CLOG (Wales), two by Great Pacific Ironworks, and three Tony Yaniro specials.

MASHIES (and Copperheads) are for places where none of the above will work! They consist of soft metal on a swaged wire, and the idea is that you hammer them into a groove, or around some prominent crystals, and pray that it will take your weight.

The RURP is still a current item in the Black Diamond catalog, retailing at $15 each. However, given the history of this lot, I’m imagining it will be of greater value to collectors. Obviously, if you choose to use second-hand climbing equipment it is entirely your responsibility and at your own risk.

P&P £7.50 by Royal Mail 2nd Class Signed For. International postage handled by eBay Global Shipping.