Tactical abstinence

I could get to Caley today by 1530. Its been minty dry and windy over the weekend, and today looks pretty good too - it will be almost certainly be dry. I even have my pads in the car, so you could say the planets are aligned. But, I shall not be going.... why on earth not? madness perhaps? nope - tactics. Professionalism and Lowrider. I went out yesterday afternoon and got oh so close, closer than ever before, so much so that had I found what I found at the end of yesterday at the start of the session, it would have been 'in the satch' now, but thats just not the way these things work. I am supremely confident it can be satched up on my next visit, and I am now in that exciting headspace of desperately scuttling to find an opportunity to get back there.

 

But, thats not explained the tactics being employed here. This year for the first time I can remember, the biggest problem for me hasn't been not getting out enough, its been that I have been out so much I perpetually have no skin. I am tactically going indoors today with a view to preserving what I have left (and letting it grow back to be nearly perfect on wednesday), and recognising that an indoor session a week keeps the hand in. I'm being focussed too. My goal at the moment is the magnificent Low Rider (and on wednesday, chip shop brawl), and until thats done I shouldnt be channel surfing.

 

It is definately true that you get back what you put in to climbing. The moments that have meant more to me arent the ones where I did a climb quickly, its the ones that I had to work for that feel more special. All those things on the Kudos wall - they took ages, and they were like great waves of euphoria crashing over me when they were done. The Joker - that was the most pleased I have been in ages - it felt so great to do it, I was buzzing for days. Zeke, again, the amount of effort expended getting there, working it out - the journey from bolt to bolting and it feeling impossible to actually climbing it without weighting the rope - it makes it all worthwhile, those little golden moments of joy when everything comes together. I wonder if this is why I am so bad at comps? I love the journey, I dont want my experiences to be a flash in the pan, I want to get into something, become fascinated by it and then finish it, close the chapter and move on.

 

Sigh. Life is great!