Accordion Items

» COLORADO 14ers «

My Favorite 14er Climb Stories


» OTHER CLIMBS «
Other Climb Stories
  • Buffalo Peaks: A Pair of Challenging 13ers
    The Buffaloes are a pair of thirteeners sitting all by themselves surrounded by fourteeners. Not to be intimidated, they present their own set of challenges, not the least of which a sparsity of information on how to climb them. We figured it out, at times, the hard way.
  • Mt. Daly – the “one with the stripe”
    Mt. Daly is on the other side of the saddle from Capitol Peak. It is one of the most visible mountains to those traveling between Aspen and Snowmass. While not a 14er, it is a named 13er with a fun Class 3 ridge-crest climb that is less frequently done. There is also not much written about the best way up, solved here in this story.
  • Mountain Boy Peak Climb – Two Routes … You Choose.
    Difficulty:  Class 2 Exposure:  None Summit: 13,193’ Elevation Gain: 1800’ Roundtrip: 7 miles Trailhead: Independence Pass parking lot at 12,050’ Climbers: Route 1: Rick Crandall; Rick Peckham  July 11, 2015 Route 2: Rick Crandall, Shan Stuart & Emme the 14er Dog July 20, 2006 
  • Flatiron and Superstition Mountain – Arizona
    Superstition Mountain – hidden gold, subterranean extra-terrestrials, Indian legends and a big day of bouldering and rock climbing. Fortunately no cactus jabs or rattlesnake strikes.
  • Twining Peak – A High Thirteener near Aspen
    Twining Peak, 13,711’ near Aspen, Class 2 and dog-friendly. Also called Blue Peak, it is approached on a largely unmarked route that summits Blarney Peak first in order to access a saddle and ridge to Twining. Emme and Alfie, Australian Terriers made the summit with us.
  • Grizzly Peak “A” 13,995′ – East Ridge
    Grizzly Peak is the tallest of all 584 thirteeners in Colorado. We did some route finding to get the best way up – and got up close and personal with "gendarmes."
  • Mt. Sopris via Northeast Ridge
    Mt. Sopris is the icon of the Aspen/Roaring Fork Valley – Happy Birthday to Brett Crandall! This has some route detail since there is not much Mt. Sopris route information that I could find. While not a fourteener, it is a big mountain from bottom to top!


» EARLY MUSIC MACHINES «
  • The Music of Coinola “O-Roll” Automatic Instruments
    “Listen to a selection of O-Roll music played on the Coinola SO – scroll down, click on any tune or sheet music cover” The history of the development of Coinola machines and the O-Roll format can be found at https://www.rickcrandall.net/a-nickel-for-music-in-the-early-1900s-evolution-of-the-american-orchestrion/ . The O-roll was introduced in 1913. It features perforations for extra instruments plus a […]
  • Operators Coinola O-Roll Rollography
    Over 700 of the total 1270 “O” Rolls estimated ever made by QRS, Columbia, Capitol and Clark are catalogued and presented including tune composers.
  • Hupfeld Phonoliszt-Violina Rollography and “Reference Set” Recut Roll Project
    The complete catalog of all 933 music rolls ever originally produced by Hupfeld for the Phonoliszt-Violina: Catalog Sorted by Roll Number Catalog Sorted by Composer. Also provided is the catalog of the 268 rolls chosen from over 20 collections and museums – and recut with the goal of producing the "reference set" of music for the PV.
  • Evolution of the American Coin-op Orchestrion
    The heyday of American coin-operated automatic music instruments was from 1898 – 1928. Perforated-paper music rolls were an important medium for national distribution of music including blues, jazz, rags and dance tunes. The Coinola SO “super orchestrion,” rare today, was the pinnacle of American-made music machines playing the highly-acclaimed Columbia and Capitol O-roll arrangements.
  • Ultimate Music Collectible: Automatic Violin-Piano
    Phonoliszt-Violina: In the 1900 to 1930's the automatic music machine replaced live performers accelerated by union pressures for uneconomic rates for performers. Many types of player pianos, orchestrions, and violin and banjo players) grew rapidly as an early musical media for playing music in commercial locations and homes.
  • Engelhardt Banjorchestra
    1915 coin-operated mechanical orchestra with banjo made by Engelhardt Piano Company; helped make ragtime a national music form;; music by National Music Roll Co.;
  • Peerless – First Coin Pianos
    The Peerless line of coin-op player pianos, nickelodeons and orchestrions were the earliest roll-operated coin-operated music machines on the market; Companies involved were the Roth & Engelhardt Co., Peerless Piano Player Co., National Music Roll Co., Engelhardt Seybold Co. and Engelhardt Piano Company.
  • J. W. WHITLOCK AND HIS AUTOMATIC HARP
    The Automatic Harp invented by J.W. Whitlock and popularized by the Wurlitzer Company. Whitlock was a classic American inventor, business leader and entrepreneur who became the heart and soul of Rising Sun, Indiana in the early 1900’s. His life, his inventions, his boat-racing competitions on the Ohio River and his businesses are described in a storied life pursuing the American Dream. The Harp is an early automatic music machine that helped spread ragtime as a national music...
  • Diary Disclosures of John Gabel, A Pioneer In Automatic Music
    The Gabel Automatic Entertainer dates to 1905 and is the very first disc record-changing multi-selection phonograph invented by John Gabel; His Automatic Machine and Tool Company competed with Victor in massive patent fights that Gabel finally won. The Entertainer took first in several Exposition competitions for tone quality including over Victor and others. This article includes important disclosures from the diary that John Gabel kept while he was doing his inventing of both...
  • Popper Orchestrion
    1910 German-made mechanical orchestra shipped through newly-opened Panama Canal to Nevada City, California to play in a gold rush saloon owned by Ernie Schreiber. Named the Popper Felix orchestrion, it has extensive instrumentation for playing classical as well as popular music. Uncovered by Rick Crandall, restored by Hayes McClaren and now in the Jim Krughoff collection.
  • 1981 Ann Arbor Scene Magazine Article
    Coin-operated musical instruments; Gay 90’s America; coin-op nickelodeon Encore Automatic Banjo; Mills Novelty Company slot machines; Violano Virtuoso automatic violin player; scuba underwater photography; Wildflower photography.
  • The Encore Automatic Banjo
    The Encore Automatic Banjo is one of the first commercialized automatic coin-op music machines in1897. It operated from a perforated paper roll controlled in similar fashion to player pianos. This article is based on original company records of the American Automusic Company and the Auto-Manufacturing Company.


» EARLY INVENTIONS «
  • Automatic Crystal Parlor Fountains
    Based on a pneumatic principle by physicist Heron of Alexandria in AD 62, the Automatic Crystal Fountain combines beauty with captivating geyser-like fountain using no apparent motive power.
  • John Gabel: Immigrant Achieving the American Dream
    John Gabel: His personal account of immigrating to America, overcoming great odds; his role creating the gaming machines that fueled the early growth of the Mills Novelty Company (the Klondyke, Monte Carlo, Kalamazoo and The Owl). Then in 1897 he started his own company, the Automatic Machine & Tool Company, inc. rising to success creating and selling coin-op gambling, music and automatic vending machines.
  • Pelstar, LLC: 91 Years evolution of the Health o meter Doctors beam scale; Rick Crandall, Executive Chairman.
    Pelstar, LLC: 97 Years of evolution from the original invention of the Health o meter™ doctor’s beam scale. In 2016 Pelstar was honored with the Private Company Board of the Year Award, growing at triple the market rate and achieving top market share in the Americas while practicing exceptional Board and Company governance. Rick Crandall, Executive Chairman
  • Cash Register History
    James Ritty invention of the cash register 1878; Incorruptible Cashier; Cash Recording Machine first cash register; National Cash Register Company (NCR) founded by John Patterson, history of marketing; Thomas Watson Sr. fired from NCR, founded IBM based on International Time Recording Company & Computer-Tabulating-Recording; Rick Crandall and Sam Robins authors. Out of print but some available: Purchase at https://www.rickcrandall.net/shop-3/
  • The Caille Silver Cup – A Break from the 3-Reelers
    Created by Charles Fey circa 1907 and followed by Caille in 1911, both seeking a departure from the onslaught of 3-reel slot machines. Fancy graphics and interesting play kept this machine in the lineup for over a decade.
  • The DOMINO – A Blend of European Design and American Taste for Mechanized Entertainment
    The Domino is a payout gambling machine that was invented by an Englishman, based in France, manufactured in Germany and sold mainly for the U.S. market in the 1920’s.
  • Uncle Sam in Machine Art – the Caille Uncle Sam Arcade Strength Tester
    The origins of the famous Uncle Sam national imagery and how it made its way into Arcade machine “art.” The very rare Caille and Howard Uncle Sam coin-operated strength tester machines.
  • Invention in San Francisco: 80 Years before Silicon Valley
    The 1890's: Pioneering risk-takers defined by the California Gold Rush; battle-tested by the 1906 earthquake; Charlie Fey invents the Liberty Bell slot machine creating an industry that persists to this day.
  • Penny Arcade – Mills Arcade
    Caille coin-op machines; player pianos; coin-operated gambling; trade stimulators; Automatic Chime Bells; Toledo Orchestrion; Berliner Multiphone; music boxes;
  • Boyer Coin-Op Museum
    1930’s Alden Scott Boyer created Chicago Coin Club and the Chicago Coin Device Museum; first coin-op machines museum; roll-operated musical instruments; player piano; coin-operated machines; perforated roll music; pneumatic mechanisms; collecting coin-op machines; Svoboda’s Nickelodeon Tavern


» COMPUTER HISTORY «
  • The 1966 SDS 940 and the Internet
    First computer host to connect to the Internet; SDS 930; Scientific Data Systems; Stanford Research Institute (SRI); Bolt, Berenak & Newman IMP, IMP2; ARPA Network; Where the Wizards Stay Up Late;
  • Rick Crandall BIO by IEEE Annals of Computing
    Founding of Comshare 1966; Rick Crandall timesharing pioneer; joint development with Tymshare, U. Cal. Berkeley; interactive computing; SDS930; SDS940; Scientific Data Systems Sigma 9; timesharing operating systems; early tech IPO in 1968; Crandall Chairman of ADAPSO; ITAA; transition to software products; System W; decision support system; multi-dimensional modeling; On Line Analytical Processing (OLAP), distributed computing; Xerox PARC; interactivity; EIS; Executive Information...
  • Apple 1: The Microcomputer Emerges
    Steve Wosniak and Steve Jobs invention of the Apple 1; formation of Apple Computer Company; major improvement over the Teletype; forshadowing the eventual decline of timesharing; Southwest Technical Products PR 40 alphanumeric printer for Apple I; Larry Nelson original Apple 1 owner and sale to Rick Crandall.
  • Comshare Oral History: Software History Center
    Starting in 1964 University of Michigan Computing Center; Joint development among Comshare (Rick Crandall), Tymshare (Tom O’Rourke, Dave Schmidt, Ann Hardy, Norm Hardy), SDS & U Cal Berkeley (Butler Lampson, Mel Pirtle and Peter Deutsch) in 1965 to 1966; start of multiplexors and networks; transition to software; IBM partnership; ADAPSO IIA merger attempt; partnership with Dow Jones; decision support systems; EIS and Xerox PARC; Enterprise Software Roundtable – software CEO...
  • 1989 Software Magazine Cover Story
    Comshare partnership with IBM; EIS marketplace; IBM Cooperative Software Agreement: competition in Executive Information Systems; Execuchart; EIS Briefing Book; IBM Systems Application Architecture, SAA partners; Dow Jones partnership with a software company; partnership with MSA Management Sciences America John Imlay; Comshare transition from timesharing to a software company.
  • 1986 Adapso 25th Anniversary Keynote Speech
    History of computer software and services; competition with IBM, history of Adapso advocacy; formation and growth of ADAPSO; Non-tariff trade barriers; software as a distinct industry; software international balance of payments; example of ADAPSO helping ComShare transition to a software company
  • Invention of Graphical Executive Information Systems EIS)
    influence of Xerox PARC visit in 1978; Xerox Alto; first mouse, icons, graphical human interfaces; GUI,WYSIWYG, development of Executive Information Systems 1984; EIS; touch screen graphical human factors; Commander EIS; Executive use of computers; executive computing; the CEO Goes On Line; Jack Rockart, business graphics; Strategic Information At Your Fingertips; Warren Mcfarlan at Harvard Business School teaching EIS; first ISV partnership with IBM Information Center; IBM marketing...
  • 1981 Scene Magazine Cover Story
    Comshare history; Comshare timeline chronology; transition from timesharing to software; Execuchart mouse based graphics terminal; Executive team Kevin Kalkhoven; Dick Eidswick; Ian McNaught Davis; Don Devine; Wally Wrathall; Ann Arbor, Michigan’s focus on research and technology
  • 1969 Time-Sharing Article
    the early challenges managing time-sharing systems; load balancing, scalability, human factors; interactive languages; review of in-house vs. commercial timesharing services


» OTHER STORIES «
  • Climbing a New York City Skyscraper
    In Hudson Yards, NYC there is a building called the Edge that has the highest cantilevered deck in North America at the 100th floor. We elevatored to there and then went outside to climb to the top!
  • Eight Days Rafting the Entire Grand Canyon
    Rafting the Entire 288- Mile Grand Canyon in 8 Days When: August 5 – 13, 2022 Rafters: Mona and Rick, Lorrie and Larry Winnerman plus about 15 others in two rafts This definitely qualifies as an adventure trip. Eight days on a raft, camping on strips of sand along the Colorado River running through the […]
  • Emme Levy Crandall January 31, 2001 to August 27, 2015
    A Tribute to Emme, Our Australian Terrier, and Her Amazing Life Click the button below to view the story.
  • Corporate BOARD MEMBER – Giga Chairman
    Giga Information Group; new-model technology advisory; separation of Chairman and CEO positions.
  • Diving in Palau Perhaps the Top Site in the World for Serious, Varied Diving
    Brett and Rick on a dive adventure beginning with the tail end of Typhoon Haiyen and then featuring sharks, mantas, caves, wrecks, a lake with 5 million jellyfish and the elusive but astonishing Mandarin fish. We were on a live-aboard, the Ocean Hunter I, a small boat well-suited to our quest for adventure.
  • Las Torres del Paine in the Chilean Patagonia
    Near the tip of South America, highly sculptured towers and horns emerging abruptly from the pampas. 65 miles of hiking accomplishing the “W” signature series to the Italian, French and British camps where climbers have attempted these fearsome towers mostly unsuccessfully due to freezing cold, incessant high winds and challenging climbing.
  • Colorado Mountain Living
    Aspen Sojourner article on the Crandall home in Aspen: “Combine work, fitness, active lifestyle in mountain setting, Aspen, Colorado;” Also Wall St. Journal Article and Photos: “Views Plus Totem Pole.”
  • A Soldier’s Personal Account of World War II
    Nat Crandall in the historic 45th (Thunderbird) Division landing at Anzio Beach; following Patton across France; crossing the Siegfried Line; Bronze star heroics; fighting the German Winter Elite troops, Dachau liberation – and the saving, restoring and putting back into service of Holocaust Torah Scrolls.
  • Galapagos Diving: Hammerheads, Orcas and Riding a Whale Shark!
    Brett and Rick: The Galapagos’ remote islands of Wolf and Darwin has some of the most exciting “big fish” diving with Galapagos Sharks, Orcas, Sea Lions, hundreds of Hammerhead sharks and the biggest fish in the ocean – the Whale Shark.
  • Creation of Authentic Northwest Indian Totem Pole
    The famous carver, Duane Pasco studied the original carving styles of the Pacific Northwest from pre-1900 and re-discovered a nearly lost art. He created this pole in the authentic style and now teaches authentic carving to the native carvers in the Northwest. Includes mythical stories of Thunderbird, Frog, Dolphin and more.
  • Brother Wayne Doing More Than Just Dancing with a Dolphin
    This was shot in Israel in the Red Sea. Rick, son Brett and brother Wayne Crandall went snorkeling with dolphins. I have always felt there is nothing better than wild animal contact, but that stops short of having sex with them.         But then a dolphin picks out Wayne and gets excited. […]