LookOutdoorNews.com

I would like to thank all the supporters of LookOutdoorNews.com! After over a year of being public, the site has seen over 56,000 visits from countries all over the world. We sponsored and organized last years Telluride MountainFilm Festival in Chattanooga and managed to raise over $2,000 for the Southeastern Climbers Coalition, Southern Off-Road Bicycle Association, and Appalachian Voices. The Voices Against MTR section managed to raise a lot of awareness on the ever growing problem of Mountain-Top Removal. All in all, this last year has been great! But with my photography and web design business growing, I no longer have time to regularly update the site. If there is anyone that would like to take over such duties, please contact me.

If you would like to keep up with my journeys in photography and web design, visit SamSilvey.com and HubDesignGroup.com. Once again, I really appreciate all the people who have supported LookOutdoorNews.com.

Sincerely,

Sam Silvey

SORBA-Chattanooga officially kicked off its 2010 fund raising campaign with Wine For The Climb, a wine and cheese event held on January 14 at the Outdoor Chattanooga building.

The event drew 150 people raising approximately $9,000 for the trail expansion project, in ticket sales, donations, and a silent auction of a piece of artwork created by artist Celeste Sneed. This amount represents about 17% of the funds necessary to fully complete the Raccoon Mountain trail expansion.

When complete, the trail expansion project will add approximately 9 miles of new natural surface single track trail to the trail network.

SORBA-Chattanooga would like to thanks all of our sponsors: Redwood Creek wines of California, Outdoor Chattanooga, Earth Fare, Diamondback Bicycles, 212 Market Restaurant, Fast Break Athletics, Stone Cup Roasting Co., Artist Celeste Sneed, Sam Silvey Photography, and Sound Force Entertainment.

Click Here For More Photos From The Event

This weekend the Urban Rocks Gym will host two climbing competitions, the ABS Regionals on Saturday and the Blitz Competition on Sunday. Each competition is free for spectators, so if you're not competing, drop by and watch some incredible climbing! Here is more information on the event courtesy of UrbanRocksGym.com .

ABS Youth Regionals
January 16, 2010

Urban Rocks is proud to bring the first ABS Regional to Chattanooga. The gym will be hosting the Youth Regional on January 16, 2010. Spectating is free so get ready to watch some of the region's best young climbers pull down hard!

Details:
Saturday January 16, 2010
Registration: 10AM - 11:45AM
Competition Time: 12PM - 4PM
Raffle and Food: 4:15PM - 4:30PM
Finalists Announced: 4:30PM
Finals Round: 6PM - 7:30PM
Awards Ceremony: 7:30PM - 8PM

Additional Information:

All ABS members wishing to be eligible for Nationals must register through USA Climbing's website. Anyone 19 and under may compete and can register for $40 at Urban Rocks Gym on the day of the competition.

The gym will be closed for non-competition climbing for the day of the compeition. The boulder will also be closed two days prior to the competition for setting.

1st Year Anniversary Party!
January 17, 2010

Celebrate Urban Rocks Gym's 1 Year Anniversary With:

Raffle Prizes with a total retail value of over $600!

The Boat Rock Bouldering Competition was postponed until Saturday, January 16 due to weather. Here is some more information on the event courtesy of Southeastern Climbers Coalition.

Presented by High Country Outfitters – Atlanta, Sweetwater, and Napoli's Pizza- and The Southeastern Climbers Coalition

Course setting by Bob Cormany & Team Boat Rock
All proceeds go to help save Boat Rock

$30.00 entry fee in advance - $35 at the event and Kids division (12 and under) for $20.00(includes bouldering, food and t-shirt)
Spectators $20.00 (includes food and t-shirt) Kids 12 and under - $20.00 to compete

Click here for online registration.

or mail check to address:
The SCC
275 Stone Mill Trail NE
Atlanta, GA 30328

Contact email: mbmcleod@mindspring.com or call 404-906-0726

Boat Rock is located at 1221 Boat Rock Road in southwest Atlanta, Georgia 30331.

Sponsors:
Sponsors: High Country Outfitters, The North Face, BlueWater Ropes, Red Bull, Metolius, FiveTen, REI, Atlanta Rocks, The Concourse Athletic Club, Unique Outfitters, Southeastern Outfitters, Sherpa Clothing, Boreal Shoes, Escalade Gym, Warriors Way, Adrenaline Gym, Julbo, Sickle, Mammut, PMI Ropes, Sterling Ropes, Voodoo Pads, The Climbing Store, WallCrawlers, Sweetwater Brew, Napoli's Pizza and Team Boat Rock

Competition Schedule:

To those of you who have not yet heard SORBA-Chattanooga has been given the green light to proceed with the expansion of the TVA Raccoon Mountain trail system. Our organization intends to build two separate trails, each with an 1100+ foot elevation gain traversing extremely difficult terrain. This endeavor will require significant funding and that is why we are announcing our fund raising campaign drive kick-off event, Wine for the Climb!!!

Wine for the Climb will feature wine provided by Redwook Creek winery and cheese from our local Earth Fare grocery store. We will be hosting this event in the Outdoor Chattanooga building on January 14, 2010 from 6-9pm.

To purchase tickets, visit SORBAChattanooga.org

Thats right, I said 100K. A little crazy, I know, but a great run from what I hear. Although most of us will never know what the entire 100K course is like, well, at least in one day. We can, however, sign up for the more mortal 10K run. Here is more information on both runs from RockCreek.com.

Introduction:
Finish off your year with the longest run in Chattanooga history! The 2009 Rock/Creek Trail Series Lookout Mountain 100k race is in its second offical year, with a 10k option to make this a great way to end the year for all running levels. Beautiful trails on the scenic and historic Lookout Mountain make this race a great goal for your training calendar. After all, the holidays can’t just be about parties and big dinners; how about a big race?

Now part of The Vasque Project , this year's increasingly popular Lookout Mountain 100k & 10k trail race promises to be an incredible experience before the holidays.
Presented by Rock/Creek & Vasque, sponsored by Marmot and SmartWool. Participants will receive a technical Wicked Tee from Marmot. Prizes and raffles will be provided as well.
Questions? Please check here, on the Boonies Forum page and if you can't find an answer email Jonathan at events@rockcreek.com

When:
December 19, 2009

Cost:
100k= $90.00
10k with the tee shirt= $35.00
10k without tee shirt = $20.00

Online Registration will close Wednesday, December 13th at 11:59pm for a Marmot Technical Race Tee Shirt.

From Outdoor Chattanooga's E-Blast. Author and cyclist Elle Colquitt will be at Greenlife Grocery, 301 Manufacturer’s Rd., this Saturday, Dec. 12, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. to sign copies of her new guide book to East Tennessee’s hiking and biking trails. "Off Road Trails" features 31 mountain bike trail systems from around Chattanooga, Knoxville, Nashville and the Tri-Cities area. The book includes detailed information about trailhead locations and amenities, as well as fold-out topographic maps. Mountain bikers Rebecca Shearer and Sam Edgemon will also be on hand to offer suggestions and advice about area off-road trails. To learn more, contact Elle Colquitt at (865) 661-5438.

You can find out more on the book online at: MiniAdventureSeries.com.

More photos from the comp coming soon!

This Saturday, December 5, the Triple Crown Bouldering Competition will make it's third and final stop at The Stone Fort on Mowbry Mountain. Some of the best climbers in the world will be coming to Chattanooga to take their hand at winning the overall title as the 2009 Triple Crown Bouldering Champion.

After two rounds of competition, the top two Open Men, Jimmy Webb and Brion Voges, and the top Open Female, Kasia Pietras, are all Chattanooga, TN residents. Having the home court advantage at The Stone Fort will be a nice benefit for Jimmy, Brion and Kasia. Here is some more information on the Triple Crown Bouldering Competition at The Stone Fort from TripleCrownBouldering.com".

The Stone Fort Competition Information
Very important information for all Triple Crown and Stone Fort competitors! Read EVERYTHING! There have been MANY updates to the event schedule!!

FRIDAY NIGHT DECEMBER 4
Pre-registration will be held at the Urban Rocks Gym in Chattanooga from 5pm to 8pm. Competitors will be able to PICK UP THEIR COMPETITION PACKET AND T-SHIRT.

To get there: Use Mapquest www.mapquest.com to customize directions:

Urban Rocks Climbing Gym, 1007 Appling Street, Chattanooga TN 37406

By: Luis Rodriguez

Jimmy Webb is undoubtedly the strongest climber in the Southeast today. He follows a long line of brutally strong, yet humble southern climbers who speak softly yet carry a whopping big club of power. Unlike most of the southern powerhouses that preceded him, Jimmy Webb is going beyond the local boulderfields and crags to compete with the United State's strongest climbers on the national level competitions. And competing he is: with a 7th place finish at the 2009 Gravity Brawl in NJ and a 4th place finish at the Mammut Bouldering Championships in SLC, he's competing against such notoriously strong climbers as Daniel Woods, Dave Graham, Sharma, Paul Robinson, Vasya Vorotnikov, and Rob D'anistasio. Where did this kid from, who is he and, more importantly, how and why does he do it? Read on...

Name: Jimmy Webb
Age: 21
Height/reach: 6 ft +2 ape
Weight: 180
Years Climbing: 6
Sponsors: Evolve, Organic, Verve Clothing, World Cup Climbing Holds
Favorite type of climbing: Bouldering
Favorite local area: Anywhere in the southeast
Home town: Maryville, Tn
Current homestead: Chattanooga, Tn
Future travels: Winter trip across the states: HorshoeCanyon Ranch, AR. Hueco, TX. Flagstaff AZ. Moe's Valley, UT. Joe's Valley, UT.

LU:Where are you from and how did you begin climbing?