Sardine Foundry Sardinia

This may be the last post for a week, as I am off to Sardinia! I can't wait! Not going with any real climbing intentions, although I probably will take my anasazis as I understand theres some bouldering somewhere in the area we are staying.

This week has been major climbing overload (as I am effectively having a week off next week). On Monday I went to the board but I didnt pull on (fingers hurt from sunday) instead I did some skipping, then called James who was coming down to train in the rings and diverted him to the pub. A wise choice. It was hot. Made a curry, went to bed (not with James).

Tuesday I went to the Tor with the mighty Foley to go and get back on Rooster Booster. It was well hot. Had decided on the way out to try and do Sardine (I TR flashed the straight version - tomato sauce is it? years ago, so I cant claim the flash but I have never actually done it) but there were punters already in situ, so got the pads out and got started. Good to see Joe Le Sausage who was bouldering on pinches wall with the guy whose name (I think) is Dale. Joe and I went to get on the traverses and I had a good lap on PB falling out of the last move for no good reason (again). Had a few goes on the Staminaband start, making it through on all but the first move when I got one of the undercuts wrongly, but the transition move feels about 8c. Its really hot and my fingers are probably swollen, and theres no friction! excuses excuses. Halfheartedly try Stamina Humps but again am climbing like a sac de merde and make no progress. Pure people have arrived by now. Adam Lincoln, r_man, Dave Mason, Tom and Rae and no doubt others whom I will have forgotten. Ah yes, Ted rupert bear. And Scut.

Sack bouldering in favour of ropes. there are now three lots of people vying for the first 10 feet of sardine. Ross Cowie (crumblefish), Not_Dan_Varian (in brine), spiros (can this be his real name? fantastic! - sardine)and James and I who are on Rooster Booster. It feels fucking desperate and I get nowhere. Not_Dan_Varian makes a sequence suggestion which takes the heat out of the first crux section. I can do it comfortably from sitting on the bolt, but I cant do it from the ground as I am pumped out of my mind and my fingers hurt. Ah well. Consign it to the bin for another day. Am keen to do it, as its quite fun. Strip the route (or rather, James does), and wander off up Sardine. I am pumped! I get to, but fall off the crux, then I have to shuffle from bolt to bolt to put the rest of the clips in. I am so pumped. James has a valiant effort but is also pumped and falls. He continues to the top, lowers off and I have another go. Again, I pump out just before the crux, try hard but have nothing left and cant get through. I lower off and he has a go, then me and so on until its dark and we are the only people at the crag. Its 2200! head home. Have a bit of food and eventually retire at midnight (or thereabouts).

Next morning I am tired. Work is ok and I head home at 1600. James gets stuck in traffic but we meet at about 1830 at the Foundry. Far from the heat of the day before, its fully tipping it down and quite cool. Dont even boulder, campus or anything. Its straight on with the harness and we are rumbling up really easy routes on the left. Have a great evening, ticking a bunch of steady but fun climbing routes and wander why I havent spent more time at the foundry over winter doing routes - they are great! Get involved with a fun green route in the main roof right at the end and its genius! swinging around in the middle of the roof makes me feel like I'm francois legrand! have a great time and sack it home at 2100.

So, its been a good week in climbing terms. The Honey monster is back from torquay tonight and its her birthday. I would offer to take her out, but I think she has people coming around to see us. No work for me tomorrow - am so psyched for the honey holiday! weather forecast is good out there! Was thinking about taking my blackberry so as to be able to write blog updates, but to be honest, I will end up looking at the emails on it and so I'm not going to!

Wales - where the sun never sets

What a fab day. Got up at 8 and made breakfast. Left house at 930 and delivered the honey monster to Manchester where I met her boss and a minibus. Continued on to Llandudno, ultimately arriving at about 1200. Temperature in the car = 24.5degrees! basically - well well hot.

Drove past the cave and spied Mr Robinson, stripped to the waist and doing a few curls with his bag to get his burl on. Nearly crashed the car. Parked up and collected belongings. Walked back down with armfuls of stuff. Within moments Foley, Huffy and Dylan had arrived.

It was boiling.

Really - there was no sense in climbing, we should have gone downstairs (LPT) or just chilled our boots until evening. But we didn't. We were psyched, so we got involved. Huffy as good as did Lou Ferrino - amazing. He looked strong and able. I couldn't do a single move, it felt fully desperate! quite disappointed. Pulled on Rockattrocity and blazed out to the end - felt great, had loads left, adjusted, sorted the feet and fell off! damn it! it's these classic 7c's that I can't do. I can climb harder and easier, but not 7c classics. Rock attrocity and powerband are bogey problems for me. Got to the end three more times, all of them in complete control, but each time ended in failure.

Doyle and Mawson showed up and were going downstairs. Have a few goes on Trigger cut but don't really get anywhere. Manage to rouse some support for LPT and the team descend with ropes and gear (Tom Newman, Micky and Liam Desroy arrive at the cave). On arrival downstairs we weigh up Night glue and Under the board walk. They look good. The crag looks good - I am psyched, but at least partially spent. Decide to do Under the boardwalk which is 6b+. I onsight it, placing the clips as I go - its brilliant and I have a great time. Thoroughly enjoyable climbing with some fun run outs. Still not scared (which is good) and love every minute of it. Lower off and James adds his name to the list of flashes. Both agree its fully fully boiling and that trying mussel beach would be folly. Walk to the right and although the tide is imminent, get started on Night Glue. I feel pumped still - hmm. Hands are soft and red.

Night Glue is even better! Rumble up the incredibly sharp pockets to a massive undercut. Clip. Right hand up, no thats wrong, left hand up - oh I can't see whats going on here, I'll just campus to the next jug! do so and its all fine but what am I doing!? foot off campus dynos between holds are not generally part of the scenery on 7a+'s! continue on up and right and get to a nice rest. Chill my boots for a few minutes, but the sea is fully lapping at the heels of Dylan on belay duty and I can't see what to do! theres a rat crimp, but I can't see that that would be it! but it is! I have a bit of a go at the move, but it hurts, and my fingers feel way sore and I think - fuck it. So I slump back onto the rope and look at where I was going and just after the rat crimp is a massive sinker of a jug. Am gutted. Only had to commit to the move and that would have been it. Bloody onsighting. Thread the bolt and lower off. Run away before the sea gets us.

Back at the cave Micky and Tom Newman are still hanging out. Mickey looks well strong. I do LWT and am preparing to wait 5 mins for another lap when huffy announces plans to go to Pill box wall. Never been there so sack LWT in its favour. We pile the stuff into the cars and zip round the corner. The Pill box wall is ace! its no cave substitute, but it is in a lovely lovely place, set up above the road, just around the corner from Normans wisdom. A beautiful 260degree view of the sea is wasted on your back as you face the dirty crimps of the wall. Huffy talks us through Pill box original and the whisky bitch. Pill box org seems a funny problem that basically involves standing on the floor. I don't want to stand on the floor as it seems gay, (oh sheffield, look at what you've done to me!) so I have three goes where it feels like its about 8c (its 7a) before having the floor pointed out. Have even more goes where I abortively wobble off the top. Work out what to do and take a back seat for a minute. Dylan looks like he could do it, but his fingers are hurting, James is too busy giving the passing pleasure cruisers an eyeful of his wall of muscle that he doesnt do it either, Huffy keeps getting to the top but doesnt finish it, but thankfully I manage to haul my ass to the top for a team ascent.

Huff pulls the pads to the whisky bitch. He shows us the way, nailing to the cross through but jumps off before really trying. Dylan has a go and looks strong, but again, his fingers are sore and he jumps rather than falls off. I clean all the holds and reconcile a sequence in my head. I speak it out loud and Huffy confirms. The problem starts from a good left hand pinchy hold, right underneath. Right foot is far down right on a rugosity. You power up right to a crimper, left foot back on the hold your right hand was on and cross the left hand through to another good crimp. right foot down to a rail, jump right hand to a positive edge - catch it, body and feet swing round - its just like a board! - left comes in for the match - feels a bit like I might be off, but aware that this is the flash I try quite hard and nail it. Quick pop for the jug and its done. Pleased, but it did suit me.

All sack it to the triband (?) chippy for fish and chips before caning back home (1hr53mins to broomhill). A great great day. Climbing to me is more than just about the moves, its about hanging out with cool people in nice places. I feel happy with the world. Huffy and I put the world to rights in the car on the way home. Marvellous.

The weekend cometh

More a speculative post about whats coming, rather than, as usual - a report on some lacklustre flailing at the tor. But first a microreport on lacklustre flailing, without which this blog would not be what it is.

 

Went to the works yesterday and did some fun problems. Have come round to thinking that its better to do some easy problems and get up them on my 'volume session' / 2nd day on. There's no point trying really hard as I haven't recovered from wednesday nights tor session, but can have great time doing a circuit. But is this doing me any good? is there any point in bimbling around doing problems well below my limit? its fun and it will give me new engrams, but it's not going to make me stronger. But then, stronger isn't everything! Talking of which, there's a hilarious thread on t'interweb where the age old battle between the "training is bad" and "training is good" rears its head. http://ukbouldering.com/board/index.php/topic,7446.0.html

 

On to this coming weekend. I will be climbing on Sunday. I am worried about this UKB North wales meet. http://ukbouldering.com/board/index.php/topic,7383.0.html I wonder how many people will actually go? The cynical part of me wonders if it’s a self promotion vehicle for CJD? I mean, you could see it that he's engineered a group of acolytes to fawn over him all weekend. Now, I have never met him and most people that have seem to think he is lovely, friendly and very nice and so on, but he does seem to go for self promotion when he has climbed hard things, and that troubles me a bit. Perhaps its a sponsors thing (sure he must be sponsored?) and he has to do it for them, but I value modesty over strength. Probably deeply unfair and as I say, I have never met him.

 

If the cave is going to be very busy, I wonder whether its even worth going. The holds in that cave need to rest between climbers. If you've got 25 R-mans scrabbling over them the whole place will be useless in half an hour! That said, its gfoing to be Sunday and they will likely be up late and hungover. If its raining (and they have a long way to get home), some of them will probably sack it when they get up. Plus, the Cave is an aquired taste. I dont know anything about the level of the people who will be going to the meet, but its fairly hardcore and not to everyones taste.

 

In my old age I don’t like having an audience. I want my friends there and noone else. That’s when it happens best for me, not in front of a crowd of gimps. I realise I am being an ar5e but I feel like I want to rebel against climbing becoming mainstream. Its my fun, and I liked it better when it was leftfield and noone else got it! Now its in the bloody telegraph for gods sake!

 

A long day

Although one that allowed me an hours lie in. I usually get up at 0555 so 0700 feels positively refreshing. Had a meeting with a supplier down in Slough at 11am. Got there on time, but noone else did - accidents everywhere apparently, so drank coffee whilst I waited. Strong coffee. The other attendees trickled in and at 1130 we got started. Did that round the table 'creeping death' thing, where people introduce themselves and state what their objectives are and that was all fine. When you go to lots of meetings like this, you just ramble on for a bit and thats that - used to find it really unnerving but it was fine yesterday. Then I had to speak first and I could feel my throat closing up (due to the coffee?), the more I concentrated on it the worse it got and I had to stop to get a glass of water. How embarrassing. Got into stride after that and switched from coffee to green tea. Its hard to eat healthy at these things as they always get a load of congealed chicken drumsticks, sandwiches and cream cakes for lunchtime. Someone interesting was in the room by then though, so I didnt eat much in favour of rambling on at them. Massively late, I finally got back in the car at 1547 and legged it back to the M40. On the way I called James and discussed options for the evenings climbing. Felt ok, bit thousand yard stare from the driving but ok. He sounded like a doubt chimp and was contemplating going to the Foundry. Reckoned on getting to the tor between 1800 and 1900 and considered that the heat would have died down by then so decided to press on.

 

As I waited at the Calver cross roads I saw James turn right in front of me. We arrived at the same time and considered the pub. Really warm and very quiet at the tor, just Rob Napier, Not_Dan_Varian and Rob Barker knocking around. After some pacing and procrastination we carried our stuff up and got involved. When Sardine area (which has no shelter) has been in the sun all afternoon the rocks get so warm, but the holds are mechanical, so it doesnt matter too much. Your feet slither around like they have been buttered, but the handholds are so good that again - it doesnt matter. Warming to the theme of the tor, although feeling tired, it feels good to be out and I feel light and keen (that bloody coffee again). Cofe and Parry turn up and begin their standard warm ups. Amuses me that everyone has a warm up circuit which they tend to stick to. Mine is the easy bimble under the sardine start a couple of times, then up the toilet start and verbal abuse, then a little extra and some pinches wall. Sometimes I will do weedkiller to if I am planning on getting my pump on.

 

Cofe and I move camp to the RHS. I get halfway on Stamina band - feels feasible. He says I am climbing too slow. I feel like I am considered in my movement, but that slowing it down is to get it right? then get wondering whether I am trying to do every move perfectly rather than really trying and going for it whether I think I have stuffed a move or not. Jon and I spoke about this the other night and he was saying that when he watches others climb, if they think they have done a move wrong usually they will be off within two moves. Need to change this thought process.

 

Cofield is looking handy on Powerhumps and works the moves to get reaquainted (funny how this is necessary when you were probably only last on it two days ago), we've moved the pads and given the holds a scrub. He pulls on from the powerband pockets, locks up to the left hand slot, shuffles the feet, right hand into the powerband slot (I take up a spotting position), rolls over to the right hand crimper and swaps his feet - looks like he's struggling, but he gets his left hand through to the higher edge, walks his feet through, slaps the pinchy thing - oooh hes off! o0oooh he's not! he's held it - effort the cofield! takes the jug and lets out a blood curdling power scream. Effort. Get all excited about trying stamina humps. Get to the move up to the crimps and it feels way hard. They all reckon I am climbing like a sloth again. Cofield switches his attention to OOMT and after a couple of goes he's done that too. Man of the match award? perhaps so...

 

Dave Parry has been working on Staminaband. It looks more on for him than it does for me to be honest. He races through the start section and struggles into the start of powerband. Struggle or not he is still climbing and beasts his way all the way to the end of the problem, getting his left hand down to the finishing pillar, before he can match he drops the problem but its a valiant effort and it looks like it would be on. I need to get my finger out! Perhaps a bit of rivalry is what I need...

 

Dave Thomas is lurking in the cave and I dont think is very pleased to see me carry my pad in. Pull on and climb out to the lip, but blow it on the up section at the end. Am utterly utterly pumped. Have 5 and fall off weedkiller traverse. Thats my barometer - if I cant do that then it really is time to go home. A good night at the tor, good atmosphere and always a great feeling to buzz off someone else' sendage. Effort Cofield.

 

Solo Ringolo

As I arrived at the board last night I thought to myself that training in the rings was clearly a great idea when the weather is as hot as it is at the moment. The car showed 22degrees on the way through sheffield - it felt really close - not good for pulling on small holds. Hence training in the rings is a good use of time when its like this. Theres a new notice on the way in :

Didnt even put my shoes on - just got involved with the campus board. Managed to do 1-4-7 several times which is progress.

Then got the rings down and pushed on. Its really hard to motivate yourself to go that extra mile when you are on your own. Theres a definate tendency to let yourself off.

Some discussion and general keenness around Sunday in the Cave on yesterdays comments which is great! sounds like we might be able to muster a team... My situation/aspirations are thus:

I have to deliver the Honey monster to Manchester. She has a conference thing in Torquay which she travels down to on Sunday night. I will be on my Jack Jones until Thursday night, which is good and bad all in the same sentence. Good because I will climb every night, and bad because I will miss her. So, I will take her to Ashton for whenever she has to set off - probably 10 or 11. That puts be 1.5hrs from the cave (traffic permitting) so really, looking at being there ready to climb from 1300. The tides are good at LPT on Sunday - low water is at 12:19, so downstairs would be an option too....

So, if there are now potentially three people keen, Robbo may already be there and James and Dylan are keen to go? On one hand it would be ok to take others with me and it makes sense to share a car, but on the other hand James and Dylan could go earlier under their own steam - and possibly Ed may or may not have set out on friday and might also be driving over? Also, I want to see the Honey Monster off properly. What do you think? we definately go but how do we get there?

Tepid Tor

Drinking (for all the fun that it entails) I can conclude, has an adverse affect on climbing performance. Friday night came and I ended up in the Rising Sun feeding my worrying real ale addiction (worrying because it makes you fat). During the night I had a wierdness turn when I went for a p155, and ultimately I woke feeling distinctly hung over. Alka Seltzer required. She had to be in Dukinfield for 1115 so I drove us over and then headed back to the tor, making it to the crag for 1200. A good crowd in attendance, but the main disappointment was the air temperature which was like bath water.

 

The ever present Stone was in situ on Mecca, Foley and Dylan about to leave, Juha (not norwegian national champ after all), JOHN COFIELD - for that is he, Jon Fullwood, Rotherham's brightest star - Dave Parry and tomboy traversing champ Rae (and scut, and some others I will have forgotten). Apparently Steve Mac had said it was a shit day and left early. Not only was it boiling hot, but it was actually quite wet. JF put a rope on PUTP and confirmed that it was too hot for small holds, I failed to do just about anything and had an epic getting through the stamina band start. Everyone went by 1400 so I had a couple of 'training' laps on Powerband (but not doing the last move, just getting there) and then sacked it. Back to Barton Grange garden center to pick up the Honey monster and then back to Sheff in time to meet our friend Helen with whom we were to sample the delights of the new curry shop thats nearly opposite our house (Its called Panahar).

 

Drunk again. Hungover on Sunday morning, cleaned the car, did the food shopping and bimbled around the house. Roasted a chicken for tea which is always a pleasant end to the weekend. This weeks climbing starts tonight with ring training. Wednesday I have a meeting in Slough. It finishes at 1500 so I hope to be Torwards by 1800. Thursday I will go to the works or something, and then I might climb on Friday at Leeds. Not going to climb saturday as she is going away on Sunday, and I will be delivering her to Ashton which is from where she sets off. Am thinking of continuing on to the cave of power.... Would you be keen? Sunday afternoon/evening in the cave? fish and chip supper in 'dudno then back....

 

Unfamiliar wet brown rocks

She had to go to a charidee thing last night (but only for an hour) so I went for a walk up to the Plantpot. Dont think I have ever been there in June before! Anyway, could see from Burbage that it was going to be bed, and lordy lordy it was. Nice light though, and I didnt really want to climb anything, just fancied a bimble. Walked up to the edge for a change - doesnt Unfamiliar look good? :

Is it E7 or E8? which side of the arete do you climb? Felt quite nervous just walking round it and having a feel of the holds. I remember once helping someone down who had fallen off it and bust his ankle. Me and Joe Picalli as I remember it.

Aretes are great features, think this one is the best looking of them all :

What are they? one of them is a moffatt thing?

Waddage! anyway, a beautiful evening, really nice to walk about and have the place to myself. Honestly, it was so quiet - it was gorgeous, like cleansing the soul!

This blog has lost a reader! well, a regular reader at least. Jon Fullwood finished work yesterday and in a month (or so) sets off round Europe in a van with Fi. Jealous!