Here at Gregory, we definitely play harder than we work (shhhh, don’t tell the boss-man) and try to get out as much as possible. Molly from Customer Service and Dustin from the warehouse recently road tripped to the Ouray Ice Festival in Ouray, CO to do just that. We weren’t exhibiting there this year, but they were able to see some awesome slide shows, drink a couple of well deserved beers, get a little star struck, and of course test out some of Gregory’s new 2010 product with friends before it hits the shelves in February. Check out Molly’s recap and photos of her long weekend away from the office (we’re a bit jealous too).
So Dustin and I headed to Ouray, CO for the Ice Fest with a few key things on our agenda: climb some ice, try our hand at cross-country skiing, go snowboarding (or in my case, ride down the hill on my backside), chat up the folks at the local gear shop, and slide shows, slide shows, slide shows!
After 16 hours in a car we met up with some old climbing buddies from 
Phoenix and were super stoked to test out the new Gregory Fusion LTS packs for the first time. They are awesome by the way, launch in February, and were perfect for everything we did this weekend. Stay tuned for more info on those packs and my full review in the next couple of weeks.
On Thursday before the event started, we decided to climb in the Ice Park to find some good routes and to try to beat the crowd. Dustin had never climbed ice before and was a pro in no time. After a few hours it was back to town to check out Caroline George and Andres Marin give some awesome slide shows, complete with delicious (and complimentary) Fat Tire beers.
The next day, when the comps and clinics started in the Ice Park, we went out in search of the Ironton Park Ski Area. I remember being the fastest cross-country skier EVER…when I was 12. Three and a half hours, and a few extra trails later, we made it back to the car. Needless to say, we had earned our right to those free beers during tonight’s slide shows from Steve House and Majka Burhardt. Maika’s slide show “Waypoint Namibia” was stellar, though I might be biased because she signed a frisbee for me.
On Saturday, we headed out to find some fresh pow and a jump we had heard about from the local gear shop (huge thank you to Ouray Mountain Sports). I was the professional photographer for the day, 
as Dustin, again, looked like a pro. We headed back to the Park just in time to see the finals and Josh Wharton and Ines Papert win the Ouray Ice Comp. We were able to check out some of the other vendor’s booths and gear, and I’m not really sure which is my favorite part of a climbing festival - the raffles and free gear, or the slide shows and free beer. We ended the night with a special premiere of the movie “North Face“, which was great. Side note, if you are 4′11″, check to see if the movie you are about to watch has subtitles, and if so, don’t sit behind the only 6′5″ person in the room.
Our trip was wrapping up, but there was one thing left on my to-do list that I have thus far forgotten to mention: get Conrad Anker’s autograph and a picture with him. SUCCESS! Not only did he give me his autograph, he signed my hatchet, AND drew mountains on the other side. My 2010 is off to a pretty amazing start.
