Zoo

Nice

Apes were my favourite

I knew this blog was needing a few pics to brighten it up.

Blogpost 101

This works out as blog post 101, but only cos I've written some and not posted them. I've not read 1984, so this isn't going to be some parady or tribute. It's going to be about the Peak, cos I went there last weekend with Dan.

Bit epic, think on this: I had borrowed Nic's big Moon bouldering pad which has a protective cover. The cover is too big for the pad so I thought I'd stuff it full of other things that I needed. These were:
Alpkit bouldering pad
Tent
Sleeping bag
Shoes and chalk
Bit of food

Looked a bit silly, like a giant bodybag for spongebob square pants. We wanted to go to Froggat so got off the train at Grindelford. It was midnight, raining and we had no clue which way froggat was. We had crappy guidebook maps which didn't mark on all the roads. We made it to a signpost which said Froggat was through a field, but it was pretty dark and we couldn't see a path due to dim head torches. I found I had a good/terrible combination of being bent double from carrying the pads and only being able to see a few feet infront, meaning I could at least see the ground. At one point we ended up surrounded by cows, there eyes reflecting off our almost-out-of-battery headlamps. One started towards us and we made a hasty retreat. At about 2am we got to the crag and put the tent up.

Froggat wasn't that good for bouldering and I joined in with Dan on some solos, Downhill racer and Great Slab were highlights. It's interesting. On routes like this where it's easy climbing, you can see the move in your minds eye. From here, whether or not you do is just mental. Being able to trust your minds eye seems to only happen when you turn your brain off which is a bit of a contradiction. You never know if you can trust your minds eye untill after! One thing that helped me get up stuff was thinking about a highball project in inverness; I needed to practice being bold. We got some banter with a team of bumblies. Our hankerings after a lift not registering with them, goddamnit.

We did some more walking, this time to Burbage. Bouldering here was better and did some pretty special arete problems around 7a. The next day we had short sessions mixed up with a trip to hathersage for cakes. I was trying Blind Date and got all the moves but couldn't get it in the bag for some reason. I think it's a bit easier than QED at Ruthven, so reckon 7C for QED is ok. Soloing The Knock that evening was pretty good aswell. We had pads, but I still reckon you'd be crippled if you blew the top; good training.

Next day, I went up to a problem called West Side Story which I tried in January in the snow. Conditions were maybe too hot this time... but I didn't care. It's brilliant to feel warm after freezing in a tent all night. I was trying WSS, but just in a pottering about kind of way. I took a photo of it on my phone and made it my wallpaper. Did the top out, but my feel were sore and my skin was thin and red. That was the end of the trip.

I do wonder if I'm getting too old for this kind of thing. Me and Dan were both longing to have a car on this trip... we did so much trekking around the peak and wasted time waiting for late buses. We just got knackered. Suppose it helped pace the climbing so skin held on to the end, but it was pretty miserable at times. Maybe walking at the side of the road was the worst bit.

Dominos

I never used to like pizza when I was a kid. Didn't eat much food except cereal and pasta and cheese. Today is tuesday which can only mean one thing - Dominos two for one. One for dinner, one for breakfast tomorrow. The order is on it's way. Times have changed and I think I've gone too far the other way. I think I'll end up like dave douglas.

Keeping this blog uptodate is a pain in butt, but here's what happened since last time. Don't think pongo is 8a. Did SPA training. Got the ruthven project in the bag after about 3 years trying it on and off, it's not 8a either, but don't let that put you off. I'd like some more repeaters of my problems please!! risking sounding like a dweeb, but at least I'm not like Will who leave anon comments trying to get people psyched for his problems! Only joking. Go check out Electric Feel next time your at Uppercave crag, it's almost permadry I reckon, no run off. If you need directions I wrote them on an old blog post or just go hunting below the crag. Get lost in the woods. It's fun. Better than waiting for them top roping idiots puntering hamish teds to get out the way.

Murdoch Danny Andy and I went to France on a tour de tout le best escalade et half cooked attempts at speaking en francais (french). We went Verdon to Ceuse to Chateuxvert. Key themes were ping pong epics up to 5 (win by two clear points), A big orange tarp called the BOOST 600, at verdon we had epics where SPA skills came in handy (esp italian hitch), at Ceuse I felt great after getting Changement de Look done and at chateuxvert I found I was still too tired after the walk-in sometimes.

Got pretty weak again since, just with uni starting and bad weather - I've been to dumby twice and that's about it. Good thing about being weak is getting that 'worked' feeling is pretty easy. I know I'll be better next time.

Pizza's here....

Pongo

Managed Pongo (8A version) yesterday! Get in. Probably one of the most focused efforts in terms of tactics and dedication I've done - I wanted to get it in the bag before I turned 21 on the 27th.

Went out on Saturday with my bro so spent most my time showing him around, doing classics that I've not done in ages. I'm going to big up "lunik" as a good problem here. So when I went out yesterday I was hoping for some good karma. The crack was weeping. Got it reasonably dry and managed to get pongo (6C+ version (more like 7a)) first go. Got the jump from the block start pretty quickly, then worked out the stand start move and topped that out. With the forecast bad till the 27th I didn't have much choice but to go for it until my body gave in. Got to work on the sitter moves and started slapping at the crux. Eventually stuck the hold, made loads of small mistakes which all added up and almost blew it topping out, my chalk felt like tiny ball bearings rolling me off the jugs, not nice! I ended up throwing myself at something I'd never used before and luckily it was good - maybe thanks to karma in the end.

Pretty made up about it and hopefully on track to catch up with the rest of the Dumby youth scene. Guess Sabotage next... ugg. Although turning 21, I'm not sure if I qualify as a youth anymore... double uggg!

Getting back into it

Had a bit of a blip in my climbing keen-ness for the past wee while, probably for longer than I think because time seems to be flying by and I'm at the end of the summer hols already. I made a decision to stay down in Glasgow this summer because I thought it'd be easier to get a job. Can't really compare it, but once again I didn't really get what I wanted in the job department. Just now I'm cleaning an office 6 hours a week which is at least something.

In a bid to bulk up my C.V. I went to some volunteering website and clicked "apply" to everything I had the remotest interest in. So now I'm a volunteer boxing coach at a kids boxing club at Whiteinch. Now, I have a mate who's into boxing, but that's about as far as my interest goes. Nonetheless I said I'd give it a go which seemed fine to the coach and there I was, trying to take part in the warm up amongst these local youths... I never mastered the skipping rope at primary school, and I kept tripping over it here. Managed to play it cool and got away with it. Anyway, quite good fun to be feeling out my depth, there were little jobs that kept me busy, and also punched a bag a bit.

Also had a couple trips to dumby, I'm on pongo sit start. Seems like this is becoming a trade route with a good handful of guys getting up it. It's amazing how different a scene dumby has compared to the rest of Scottish bouldering. That pongo boulder must be one of the busiest bits of rock in the UK.

I'm making progress on pongo, and just want to put now a marker now so I can look back. My best link so far is to jump start from the block to the flange, crimp it, foot in crack, cross over to pinch, foot up to block, up to left hand sloper, and fall off trying to get the finger lock match. I think my next link has got to be link the jump start to the top, then from the stand start, then back a move at a time. I really don't want to fall off the top section! Could so easily be done... Anyway I'm back checking forecasts, getting anal about skin and hanging on some finger board holds that I made the other week:

Nice! Click on it for a larger view.

So the problem generally, that knuckle jam - There's no way I could use it unless I taped up and sponged out my fingers. Well there might be a way. I don't really care. I take the "I-want-to-do-what-malc-smith-did" approach, in which i think crimping the top on the block is acceptable seeing as it's just a different way of holding the same hold. I think what's going on is the sense of sentimentality is out-weighing the sense of contrivancy which is why a lot of people are going for the original sequence. Not a bad thing.

Bit of coe action

I reckon I've climbed at tunnel wall 5 or 6 times now and still not done a route. It just isn't my thing. Meh, what you gonna do. I'm getting pretty close to Admission now, learning redpoint tactics from the master redpointer, Dave Redpath. Yup, flicking between holds and getting camped into rests are now part of my skill repertoire. Doing moves that you find easy over and over again can be a bit boring, and I'm not sure if it'll be worth it having never done a mega stamina fest before, but I'm quite psyched to get at least one under my belt. Other good bits about my day at tunnel wall were getting ski jump legs and star jump arms going at the same time, and swinging between Fated Mission and Admission to get the clips out.

The next day we made it up to the lost valley amid lots of funny looks from the tourists and odd comments such as 'now that's a rucksack!' from some walkers. This was because we were carrying boulder pads! Worth it? I thought so! Though Dave spent most of the time asleep, I got stuck into the leaning blocks crimps. Diesel Canary and Helipad are both quality problems and better from sitters. I had a minor epic on Helipad sitter, I think I put a tick mark in the wrong place. Eventually stuck the move but fell off the next move. Got it in the bag after working the next move without using the ground to jump.

I headed over the Glass Is Greener, which gets 7C,(7C+ when you factor in the walk). It took me a while to have a proper go at it, I couldn't find any real footholds. I never actually fully worked out the beta, until I stuck the first move to the micro crimp. From here I looked down at my feet. My right was on a tiny edge, I reckoned I needed it on the next one up. In the mean time I needed to find a left foothold. There wasn't any so I stuck it on the one earmarked for my right. Suddenly the problem made sense, I could stand up on my left and get my right just below my hand on a good foothold. Went for the sharp finger jug from here, my foot popped and I was left hanging by some skin which had caught the sharp lip... nice! I got my foot back on and went to re-adjust when my skin ripped and I was off. Gutted, but even more gutted when I looked at my finger which had lost a chunk of skin and was bleeding.

Dave had arisen at this point and was going to wait for me in the car. I figured ripping a flapper is probably a good point to call it a day, and still be psyched to go back!

Jawa Boulder

Went out bouldering the other day with Cath, made another vid. I don't like this one as much, it's too long. I wanted to show how fustrating I found these problems, but I think with these vids the best bet is to keep um short, sweet and simple.