Wow, so today was a big day! I headed out to Rubicon at about 0830 this morning, for me thats a bit of a lie in. Anyway, turned up and got started - felt quite sparky. Moved the stuff to the kudos wall and did the Press. Ok. Had five minutes then did it from kneeling - whoa! feels smegtastic - shit, am I gonna be able to do this after all? shit! Have a rest. Try the low left start, sloper feels rubbish, I fluff my feet and am back on the pad pretty sharpish. Declare an exclusion zone around the sloper, it doesnt work and I feel rubbish. The stress is setting in. I actively opt out of the banter and sit quietly brooding on the moves and whats going wrong. Change my boots and have a much better go. The key to the low left start (if you are climbing it the way it was originally done) is to make no mistakes with your feet. Be precise and be definate. The V10s are great and I did low right in them but they feel a bit dulled whilst the dragons feel dead sharp. Anyway, I set the countdown timer for 8 minutes and sit quietly with a coffee. The youthful exuberance of the other two is apparent. Noone touches my hold! Pull on, walk feet through to the spike on the right, match the sloper, arrange my fingers so that my thumb can bite and drop right hand down to the good edge, adjust the feet and left to the pocket, sort the right good edge and take a couple of gasped breaths. Left hand to the gaston, its not quite right but I can weedle it in, change the feet and roll the gaston into my shoulder, right moves up to the press crimp and I paste my left back on, the right hand is so not in the right place, but I dont think I can move it, just go! you cant drop it here, but you have done before - dont think about that! go! jump! arrrrrghhh! and I've made contact! feet swing off but I am settled on the jug of justice and its over! Yeeeeaaaaaahhh! I've done it! Give the lads a hug and regain my own youthful exuberance. Fully bouncing around like a giddy kipper - fucking awesome! I am delighted.
I get home, send out some texts to my friends and message the mighty Keithinator on Gtalk. He is congratulatory but says 'You know its going to be downgraded?' and I'm like what? and he points out that its had a disproportionately high number of ascents for an 8a+ - its not representative of others in the peak. And he does have a point, it has had a higher number of ascents than others in the Peak, but I think thats less to do with it not being 8a+ than it is to do with where it is and that its basic. Of other problems of a similar grade the difficulty is in learning a trick move, or in getting the right conditions - the press low left is basic - if you are strong enough you will be able to do it. Plus, consider that its at rubicon, its mega accessible and therefore more people go and try it more regularly, ergo it will get more ascents. If the Press is 7b+ (I think its stiff for 7b+) then kneeling is easy 2 grades harder, and although low right is an easy few moves it certainly warrants a grade (maybe its low in the grade), but low left is a totally different proposition altogether. Its much harder, so yes, I think it IS 8a+. Also, I have had the good fortune to train and climb with Tim Clifford over the last couple of years. Clearly no stranger to hard moves and (more importantly) from Yorkshire and famously tight with his grades he says its 8a+.
So wheres the video? well, I was making such a meal of it at first that the lads put their cameras away. After I did it I tried to get a repeat for the cameras, but I was lacking that bite needed to succeed. SO thats it - done and dusted. We will see if the grade stands. I am very happy. Its certainly the hardest piece of climbing I have done!
4 comments:
Awesome stuff yoot!
Keith suggesting a downgrade, surely not, whoever heard such a thing ;) .
In my highly unqualified opinion I dare say in the larger scheme of things i.e. the rest of country/world rather than the great peak grade black hole, it'd be solid at the grade. But what would I know?
Nice work dobbin! It looks like you are cruising on the vid of the low right! I've been having an epic on the sitter for quite a long time now. I managed to get the stand up pretty wired a couple of months ago, so started trying it from lower. have no probs getting the gaston, or getting the intermediate if I start from rail and gaston, but doing the whole sequence feels very hard (and strange). I can't get the 'bounce again' move from the intermediate to the crimp, and every time i try it from sitting either left hand or right foot pops off.
With more luck than judgement i did the kneel with top of gaston and RF closer in, with a blind reach straight to the crimp.
You got any tips for the move, or for training it?
dan
Jon - if I have learnt one thing from your friendship its that you are almost always right. When you said about sanding skin thats bad right down I was sceptical, but since I have heeded this advice my skin has recovered better. Basically, you are almost always right, except where sequences are concerned! Your Blockbuster and hulk sequences are 'wack' - at least if you are not a technique laden grit monster! Re the grade for the sitter, TC has always said that it was a good one to do at the grade as its basic and its an old school tick for the grade, i.e. nailing up on small holds!
Dan - cheers! I think the key for doing the move from the kneeling start is in the right foot. The left slightly outside edge is on that thing low down and the right is on a not much used notch. You fire your left to the gaston and settle your hand, then its right foot move higher to the press foot hold and roll it in to your shoulder, theres a point at which you can lock your shoulder out when you reach for the intemediate - which is crap, but its just enough to pull out of the position where you have no power and into the press crimp. Not sure that I have explained that very well, but I know what I mean!
Funny you should say that, I tried your Hulk RF in Superman foothold beta and it worked. That's the way I did it in fact.
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