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The Art of Projecting and Climbing Development
24 March 2011, 12:40 pm

Hey Guys!

I have just completed my first project in Spain! I am so happy right now, I have been falling from the last move loads of times over the past couple of days and have been getting rather frustrated at the continual denial with the chains so close in sight, but I suppose I wouldn’t be learning as much if I was getting to the top of everything first go : P

I thought I’d talk a bit about my experiences of projecting and what I have found works well for me when attempting them. I remember, the four biggest projects I’ve had in my climbing career so far:

"Toadall Recall" (8a), Malham

• Raindogs (8a) – Malham Cove
• Rollito Sharma (8b+) – Santa Linya
• Gaia (8b) – Kalymnos
• Preventiva (8b) – Disblia

Raindogs was a big thing for me when I was trying it. It would have been my first 8a at the time but I was having major issues grabbing those chains! On my first ever day trying it, I managed to make it all the way from the ground to the last move, but just couldn’t stick it! A few weekends more trying to latch those chains and still no success. I could practically lap the route until the chains but each time would be spat of with nothing more than a tickle of those glistening metal ringlets… DAMN!

I was all set for a trip out to Spain and left the UK having not ticked Raindogs yet. My coach Neil Mcgeachy had said, “get an 8a ticked out in Spain and come back and see how Raindogs feels afterwards”, so out I headed to seek my first 8a! Low and behold, within the first week I had ticked my first 8a “Trio Ternura”, a bouldery 8a at the Santa Linya cave. After returning to the UK, Neil and I organized a weekend at Malham for me to try and finish of the project. Within the first session back on Raindogs, I ticked the bloody route without so much as a sweat. The fact that I had overcome the 8a grade in Spain meant that my anxiousness towards climbing that grade had been settled and no longer was I thwarted by lack of confidence at the chains. This was a huge stage in my development as a climber and is definitely a huge factor in all my climbing achievements since! Confidence is a massive player in a climbers performance, and its not just your ability to say “I can do this route”, it is an intrinsic idea that needs to have manifested itself from success on previous routes. Why do you think once you climb one route at a grade, a lot more come so soon after? Its not coincidence…

Paul Williamson doing onsight mileage on 7c+ at Kalymnos - "Raptors Maw" 7c+ FA Rollito Sharma was the next big lesson in my climbing career. I tried this route for three weeks solid! I got so close to completing it but unfortunately had to retreat and return home without the tick : ( In some ways, I look back and think, what a bloody waste of time! If I’m honest, I wouldn’t do what I did with Rollito again i.e. constantly try one route for 3 weeks or more. I think it was a learning stage for me, I realized what I was capable of, but also that climbing is more than just grades and ticking a bigger number, and in order to see improvements, you must experience the mileage throughout your development. I have had a think about the different stages of my development as a climber and what type of climbing I was into at each stage, and it looks a bit like this:

Stage 1 (Outdoor Climbing Starts) – Mileage on lots of varying styles of routes at an easy grade level of 6a-7a (I had climbed 7b/+ indoors at the time)

Stage 2 (Developing my Outdoor Climbing) – Onsight mileage i.e. climbing lots of routes at just below hardest onsight grade. At the time was climbing 8a redpoint indoors and 7c onsight so was aiming to onsight lots of 7a-b+’s outdoors and any I didn’t do onsight I would do 2^nd or 3^rd go.

Stage 3 (Consolidating Onsight Grade Outdoors) – Harder Onsight Mileage i.e. Attempting to onsight at total limit! Still had only onsighted 7c indoors but was now going for 7c and 7c+ onsight outdoors and any I didn’t do onsight I would do 2^nd or 3^rd go afterwards!

Have a look at my 8a scorecard in 2008 to see what I got up to during this phase (http://8a.nu/)

Stage 4 (Consolidating Redpoint Grade Outdoors) – A couple of years later and I start to consolidate my redpoint grade and deal with mental strategies and the mind as my limiting factor in performance. Have now onsighted 8a indoors and redpointed 8b so outdoors I am aiming for quick redpoints i.e. nothing that will take longer than a week (8a+ – 8b+) – This is the stage I am currently in…

Its amazing looking at this on paper now, it is a natural progression for a climber to take and I am positive that the majority of climbers out there will be on a similarly progressive developmental structure. Looking at the two younglings out with us here in Spain right now, Ross Kirkland and Calum Forsyth, it is evident that they are doing exactly what I have done only at a slightly different pace and grade level.

Adam Ondra in the zone - does he get redpoint stress? Anyway, the next big project that stood out was probably “Gaia” in Kalymnos late last year. It was something that I had seen being attempted years before by one of Britains top climbers and it even spat him of for several days! “Gaia” is very short and powerful, probably my anti-style to be honest, so this was very much a “is this possible for me?” kind of project. It took me a few days of hard work, but in the end, I saw the fruits of my labour and sent it. I think that it was necessary for me to establish my redpoint grade in a style that I wasn’t strong at, and because I did with “Gaia”, I am now more confident than ever of my abilities to climb hard in different styles as well as even harder in the styles that suit me.

The final big project for me was of course “Preventiva”, which I did only a few days ago. This was another big thing for me, not because of the grade really, but because of the style. It is very bouldery with good rests in-between. The final section of climbing is solid and it leaves the hardest move of the whole climb right until the end, a burly move from big undercuts and bad smears out right to a good jug. The reason why I was adamant to complete this route was merely the fact that the last section was so hard. It was amazing climbing until the final crux and probably about 8a+ to get there. I had what I refer to as “Raindogs syndrome” here. I fell at that last move about a million times, I could more or less lap the route to the last move, then I would fall. The beautiful thing about my attempts on this though wasn’t that I was learning new climbing techniques, but I was dealing with my redpoint stress better than ever before! Although I would be angry for a very brief period after falling from the final move, I would quickly calm down, and be psyched out of my mind ready for the next attempt. This is something I have been striving to achieve all my climbing career, a mindset where I am totally at peace after failing again and again from the final move on a route and be ready to give 110% to the next effort without feeling the effects of redpoint stress (something I have suffered from heavily all my climbing life). The funny thing with me which you will certainly notice if you are at the same crag, is that I take massive paddy’s when I fall of a hard redpoint… I am sorry if you are there for it, but it’s an unfortunate habit I have. I tried to control it but its something I can’t help and I feel that its almost become a part of my routine as a climber to do when I fail. The funny thing in the past was that I would be angry and stressed for at least an hour after failing and when the next attempt on the route came round, I would be dreading it even to the point of getting shakes and a feeling of illness. This was taking it way too far and I needed to sort this out! Now when I fall, I have at most 5 minutes of frustration with myself, then I come to my senses and become more psyched than ever to crush the route into submission next time round!

Me, Tom and Geek chatting about serious climbing training stuff : P I believe that we as climbers are always developing, from when we are children until old men and women. We can always learn more about ourselves and how we approach climbing and only by striving for perfection will we continue to improve. Right now, I have made huge leaps in my ability to deal with stress on redpoints, but I am positive I have so much more to learn and will not stop developing until the day I die (unless they have crags in the afterlife?). The next step for me is to continue to develop my confidence climbing in the 8b-8b+ grade range and possibly to move onto a harder project – 8c? I have already checked out the Rollito Sharma Extension (8c), which definitely seems like something within my limits right now… We will see : ) I’m just going to enjoy climbing out here in Spain for as long as I can and everyday push my limits!

Keep up the crushing guys!

ROBZ OUT

Source: Robbie's Blog

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Spain (UPDATE)
28 March 2011, 8:28 pm

Hey everyone!

So we are still out here having a great time. Things tapered off a bit for much of the crew after our last big sends, I think the projecting can take a lot out of you mentally as well as physically. Mcgeek did his 8b project “Blomu” and Ross did his 8a project “Celda da Castigo”. Ross also managed an awesome 2nd go on “Asaltin Bankis” 7b+ the other day and Mcgeek ticked about a hundred 7b+ – 7c+’s at another local crag (what he calls a mileage day).

Alex Barrows on "Fabella" 8c Calum has been ticking a way the mileage, getting used to climbing on rock and has made steady progress. He is building himself up for a big onsight attempt tomorrow on “Blomu” part 1 (7c).

I had a good day today, ticking “Rollito Sharma” 8b+. This is my first at the grade so am pretty happy with that! I had a bit of an epic on it, I could practically lap the route until the crux dyno move, fall, then repeat lapping it until that move! Last go off the day today though was the money moment and I grabbed that pinch on the dyno and didn’t let go! Next on my tick list is “Santa Linya” (8b) and “Blomu” (8b).

Its also been pretty awesome hanging out with the English crew at the crag, Alex Barrows and Rob Lamey. Alex has been trying “Febella” (8c), making good links. Rob has been on “Blomu” (8b) and is looking very close! He fell off the last move today on his final burn, its almost in the bag!!!

Alex Barrows on "Fabella" 8c Today, Geek, Ross and Calum decided to do something different, so whilst I was at the cave with Alex and Rob, they headed to do some multi-pitching at another crag. They did a 120m 6a+ which sounded like quite an epic, especially with Calum and Ross as part of the team : P

All in all, its been pretty good so far, I am just looking forward now to getting stuck into something new! Nat, Busby, Gary and Jonny are coming out to join us in the next couple of days as well, so looking forward to having the whole crew out : ) Think we will head to Terradets as well for a few days to get the others used to climbing on rock again. Geek and I have our eyes set on a couple of 8b’s there also, “Non Stop” for me and “Golpe de Gas” for Geek!

Wish us luck!!!

ROBZ OUT

Source: Robbie's Blog

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Spain (UPDATE) – Moving into Onsight mode!
2 April 2011, 7:56 pm

Hey guys!

Its been an awesome trip so far. The whole crew is out now, Jonny (Stocking) arrived a few days ago and the day after him came everyone else – Nat, Buz and Gary! Since they’ve arrived we’ve had a good few days out on the rock! The first day Jonny got stuck right into trying “Blomu” (8b) and quickly onsighted the (7c) start for a warm up. Gary got stuck right into trying “Rollito Sharma” (8b+) on the first day! He’s been having steady progress and has already made it to the crux in one go, so its looking hopeful for a quick ascent. Buz has been getting back into climbing steadily yet has already ticked a 7b+ and 7c. Nat has properly been thrown in the deep end, she has only had 10 days on rock in the past year so this is a bit of a shock but she has already climbed a 7b+!

"Paris Hilton" (8b) - Entering the rest Getting into the way of climbing on rock is hard even between trips, but for someone who has barely climbed outdoors at all, its even harder! I watched Nat come close to onsighting 8a in Ceuse last summer after having a pretty hard first week there… it just takes time.

Yesterday we went to a new crag we hadn’t been to before called “Regina”. It was an absolutely stunning crag and reminded me massively of the Gran Boveda in Rodellar i.e. huge tufas and steep overhanging walls up to 40m high! I went for an 8a onsight and fell of just getting into the crux. I felt it was a very stiff route to onsight as the sequences through the crux where very hard to read and decipher under pressure. Later on in the day after I had figured out the sequence I went for another go and fell off snapping one of the holds just before the crux : (  Not a crucial hold but annoying since I was feeling strong for the 2nd go : P  I then witnessed both Jonny and Neil flash the route as I shouted beta to them from the ground – Nice one guys!

We also went back to Santa Ana to try a techy 8b called “Paris Hilton”. I had climbed well on it a few days previously having a really good onsight burn in which i made it all the way up into the final part of the climb just at the crux of the route. That day we had both good weather and skin conditions and we were psyched for the send. Both me and Neil were close to redpointing it and Ross and Mark were wanting to work it. On the second try of the day I sent it making it my third 8b of the trip! Neil made one really good redpoint attempt but headed away onto different routes after wrecking his skin on the crimpy crux. Mark and Ross made some very impressive links and are psyched to go back for more! After sending the route, I checked out the vert 8b+ next door and apart from being totally shut down by the hideous finger crack finish, I actually did really well and got nearly every sequence first go!

Ross Kirkland on "Paris Hilton" (8b) Anyway, we are heading off tomorrow to check out a new crag, Tres Ponts! There are meant to be countless 7c+’s, 8a’s and 8a+’s ripe for the onsight there so should be a good wee trip. Lynne has just been telling me about a amazing 8a called “El Segre” so it looks like that is on the tick list for tomorrow! I am definitely going to have to turn my onsight head back on for the next week and a bit as all I’ve been doing so far is projecting.

Anyway, psyched up for tomorrow and the 6am start : ( Will update again in the next few days!

PEACE

ROBZ OUT

@ the last move of "Paris Hilton" (8b) - Also the CRUX!!!

Source: Robbie's Blog

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Spain (Update) – Siurana Projects and Coaching Begin!
9 April 2011, 9:22 am

Hey guys!

So we’ve all moved to Siurana after our little trip to Tres Ponts. We had a pretty good time there, I wasn’t as keen for the place as everyonelse but it was certainly an awesome crag with a totally different style of climbing than any I have experienced before. The style feels a bit like climbing on glued on plates, everything sticks out the way and its a bit like climbing at an indoor wall, but I find the holds very sharp and unpleasant to hold onto for long periods of time.

Jonny Stocking on an 8a+ @ Tres Ponts I found the warm up routes below 7b absolutely horrible, very sharp and crimp with no feet… quite unpleasant for warming up on, you may as well jump on any one of the 50m 8a’s or 8a+’s to warm up on : P at least they have big jugs to hold onto! The first thing I tried was a spicy 8a+ on the right side of the main sector, it was very bouldery and basically all came down to a section no more than a few metres long which both me and Jonny (Stocking) figured out to be about V7ish? To get there you climb a nice juggy section with one small crux which would weigh in at abut f7c probably? We were kind of close to doing it but a sharp crimp half-way through the crux was causing me a lot of pain so I opted out after my 2nd go failed. Jonny went for a 3rd go but fell off just at the end of the crux and sacked it for the day.

Me on an 8a+ @ Tres Ponts I then watched an awesome performance by young Kirkland (Ross) as he slapped his way up a 55m long 8a called “El Segre”! Complying to standard Kirkland performance, he looked nearly off on every single move from the first 10m right up until the final 5m of crack laybacking before the chains! Despite the flailing, he crushed the route on the flash to give him his second 8a flash of all time and his third 8a in total! Mcgeek unfortunately duffed the crux of “El Segre” up on the onsight and instead got a very cool second go without even trying the final 45m of route. I then got the third repeat of the day by flashing it also. A bit of an epic came about after I lowered and was told that no one wanted to do the route anymore and so I had to slog back up the route again and get the draws out… : ( I the dark I retrieved the draws and we went back home.

After a day of rest in Santa Linya, me, Neil, Mark and Nat headed to Siurana. Here we have been for the past few days. On the first day we checked out an easier crag for the kids we are coaching later on in the week and the past couple of days we’ve been getting in a bit of personal climbing. I tried an 8b called “Ramadan” on the second day, I managed to flash the first cruxy bit but then fell at the second. After dogging to the top, I quickly sussed all the moves and after an hour of rest went for a second go… I fell right at the last move of the crux : ( A bit gutted, but psyched I had done so well on my first 8b at Siurana! I came back and on my first shot, dispatched it without too much effort. I was well psyched about this route, its been on my ticklist for a while and I was pretty happy to find it so easy. Feeling how comfortable “Ramadan” (8b) and “Paris Hilton” (8b) went for me, it makes me confident that potentially onsighting 8b isn’t that far off…

Me sending "Ramadan" (8b) in Siurana After I did “Ramadan”, Mark got stuck into trying a 7c+ next to it called “L’escamarla” and had a couple of shots working out the moves. He is psyched to get back on it overt he next few days to go for the redpoint! Me and Nat then headed off to L’olla sector further down the valley and tried the famous 7c+ “Pota d’elefant”. I tried to onsight it putting clips in, and my god I got a fright! I was expecting it to be tough but not that tough! I managed to make it to the last clip just before a mega bulge, but had no idea what I was doing, there was no chalk on any holds and the bulge was totally blind! I pumped out hanging of a mega jug with no footholds, then after hanging off the rope for a minute, discovered a little crimp just over the bulge, totally blind for anyone who hasn’t been told its there already : P Nat tried out the moves and really enjoyed the climbing, so I think she may be back for this later in the trip?

Alex Bosi crushing a techy 6a+ in Siurana in the boiling sun! So anyway, all the kids for the MCofS coaching trip have arrived now and we are gearing up for a good week of climbing. Yesterday we headed out with the Bosi’s for an extra day of climbing since they had arrived early. William and Alex got stuck into some 4′s, 5′s and a spicy 6a+ whilst Cameron played at the second bolt of a tricky 5. After climbing with the kids, me, Nat, Neil and Mark all headed off climbing again. Mark went back on “L’escamarla” (7c+) and worked the route some more whilst me and Nat headed back to L’olla sector. I was keen to check out the famous 8b “Migranya”! This is another route thats been on my ticklist for a good few years now. I had one dogging session working out all the moves on it and luckily none of them felt too hard. I did nearly all of the moves on my first go, the crux took a few hangs to work out the correct sequence and I’m still positive that I am not doing it right, but thats all part of the process of redpointing. It looks like it will take a bit more effort than “Paris Hilton” (8b) and “Ramadan” (8b) but seems like a similar level and style to “Gaia” (8b) that I did in Kalymnos, maybe a little bit easier? PSYCHED!!!

William Bosi triumphant after sending his first 6a+ in Siurana! Anyway, coaching starts today so no major climbing for me for  the next few days, I think some rest is deserved after 4 weeks of intense climbing anyway : P Stay tuned for news and pics on the coaching week everybody!

ROBZ OUT

Source: Robbie's Blog

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Spanish MCofS Coaching Week and some more 8b’s!
18 April 2011, 5:06 pm

Hey Guys

Its been a hard past two weeks coaching, but now its over. We’ve been coaching since the 8^th of April and only finished on the 16^th, so that’s 9 days of hard work! There were around 15 kids on the coaching holiday of varying ages and levels. Kids from as young as 8 to 16 and climbing from F5 to F8a!

Jonny Stocking climbing a bouldery 8a! The coaches involved during the holiday were myself (Robbie Phillips), Neil Mcgeachy, Gary Vincent and Mark Mcgowan. Along to help out was Natalie Berry, Ross Kirkland and Calum Forsyth.

The coaching involved setting up top-ropes for the less experienced kids, putting clips in for leading, working out suitable routes for them to try, splitting the kids into appropriate groups and generally making sure every kid had the best experience they could possibly have.

For the majority of the week, I was working with young Buster Martin (15 years old from London). Buster is one of the most psyched up young climbers I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. I first met him a few years ago at a Ratho EYS Selection competition and even back then, he showed noticeable signs that he was going to be good. Buster arrived at the campsite the day before coaching was to take place, the week before he had successfully secured a place on the Junior British Climbing Team at the Team Selection Day so was definitely on form to be climbing well.

Rachel Carr about to take the biggest whipper of her life! The first day that Buster and me climbed together he managed to on-sight a techy F7a and climb his first F7b+ second go (“Mandragora”)! Buster’s goal for the trip was to climb 8a and onsight 7b+, so on the first day it was apparent that this was certainly not too much for him to handle. On the second day he bagged another 7b+ called “Bistec de Biceps” second go, missing the on-sight only by one move! At the end of the second day, I sent Buster up a classic 7c+ called “L’escamarla”. I thought this would be the perfect route for him to try, not only because it was a good step towards climbing 8a, but also because it had a link up to the 8b “Ramadan” next door to it which got 8a, meaning that if he did the 7c+, it wouldn’t be too much more work to do the link up into “Ramadan” giving him his first 8a!

After having a rest day, Buster got back on the 7c+ and made some impressive links but was exhausted after the days work, so we decided to make the next day a half-day and just get Buster to head out in the evening for a redpoint attempt on the 7c+. That next day, our tactics paid of well and Buster secured his first 7c+! Gary took over Busters sessions from that day onwards and after having another half-day the next day, Buster even managed to nab the link up into “Ramadan” for his first 8a! Nice one dude! As well as all this, he even on-sighted his first 7b+!

Buster trying Jonny's bouldery 8a (bad choice!) On the last few days of the trip, I was involved with the younger kids and got to work closely with young Eilidh Payne, Rhiannon Freireich and Megan Saunders. I coach Eilidh and Megan a bit back home but have only ever worked with Rhiannon once during BRYCS sessions (Jonny Stocking coaches Rhiannon). All their goals for the trip were very similar:

• To get more mileage out on rock
• To tick 7a!

The day I worked with Rhiannon and Megan we went to a really nice little sector behind the village of Siurana called “Grau dels Masets”. There are loads of F5’s and F6’s as well as a few F7’s for the kids to get stuck into here so it made sense to go as a whole group. Rhiannon managed to tick her first 6b on-sight on lead and Megan tried her first outdoor 7a. She made an impressive on-sight attempt on it and then rested for the remainder of the day with a plan to return on the next day for a red-point attempt!

On the next day, Rhiannon cleaned her first 7a on top-rope and Megan ticked the 7a on lead! On the same day, me, Rachel, Nat, Eleanor and Eilidh headed to the valley to try some different styles of routes before Eilidh left the next day. We warmed up at one of my favourite sectors, “Espero Primavera”. There is a good selection of routes of all grades here, from F5 to F8b and there is the best F6a, F6a+, F6b and F7b+ in Siurana at this one crag! To warm up, Eilidh, Rachel and Eleanor did the F6a and F6b (Rachel and Eleanor did the F6a+ as well). I had set up a F7a round the corner for Eilidh to try later on in the day after she was fully warmed up. The route is called “Ay Mamita”, it is 35m long and super physical the whole way! Eilidh is a bit scared of long routes, but I felt that doing this on top-rope would be a massive achievement for her and certainly a nice finishing touch to her trip to Spain. When it came to do the route, she simply walked up it, struggling a bit at the reachy crux, but managed to power her way through and topped out with not a lot of bother. This was Eilidh’s first 7a flash!

Rachel showing us how to crimp on a tricky 7b+ "Mandragora" What a good trip! Everyone achieved their goals and everyone had a great time. I have a funny feeling that this won’t be the last coaching trip out here for the crew as it was such a great success… Looking forward to the next one : )

On a personal note, I have managed to nab a few last minute ascents after the days coaching. I did the mega classic “Zona 0” on my second try and yesterday I did the power endurance test piece “Migranya” on my 6^th try. Both these routes are 8b so I am pretty chuffed with myself. Yesterday I also tried “Dogma” 8b or 8b+ (depending on who you talk to) and it looks like this should go quickly as well. Dogma has the same start to “Kallea Borokka” the super classic 8b+, so I think I will also use that as a starting point to doing this mega route at the same time. After I did “Migranya”, I took a look at the variation “Migranya Profunda” 8b+ and that didn’t seem to bad either from what I glimpsed of it. If I tick of “Dogma” and “Kallea Borokka” quick enough, maybe I will test myself on the “Migranya Profunda” (reckoned to be hard 8b+!).

Psyched!!!

ROBZ OUT

Source: Robbie's Blog

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Coming to an end…
29 April 2011, 9:10 pm

Hey Guys

So the trip is coming to an end… We have little less than a week until we return to the UK, but its not so bad really, we will be getting back for the UK sport climbing season which means plenty of fun on the yorkshire limestone clipping bolts and sunny days on the county sandstone falling onto bouldering mats. When I get back, I am being sent a new bouldering mat from Edelrid, “The Crux” crashpad!!! So it will be good to get out and test this mega beast in action : )

The trip to Spain has certainly been successful in the way of hard ticks. Everyone on the trip has made some significant ascents so far and there is still time left for some more. I think this has been my most successful redpointing trip for no other reason than simply the number of hard routes I’ve managed to tick so far. I have completed my objectives for Spain and more which has certainly filled me full of confidence for the next years trips and objectives, I don’t think 8c is far off : ) The issue with me is that I don’t want to just tick an 8c, I want to get to a significant level for which I can tick one fairly quickly. This is a very big objective as there are very few climbers in Britain that operate at this level, in fact I can only think of two Scottish climbers who are there currently and thats Dave Macleod and Alan Cassidy. Two climbers who have certainly inspired me over the years to push myself, so it would be amazing to be able to reach a similar standard.

Heres a list of the top sends of all the climbers in our party:

Ross Kirkland

Celda De Castigo, 8a, Redpoint

El Segre, 8a, Flash

Outback, 7c+, Redpoint

Papagora, 7c, Flash

Mandragora, 7b+, Onsight

Neil Mcgeachy

Celda De Castigo, 8a, Flash

Pren Nota, 8a, Onsight

Blomu, 8b, Redpoint

Mark Mcowan

Esfinx, 7c, Flash

L’escamarla, 7c+, Redpoint

Calum Forsyth

Asaltin bankis, 7b+, Redpoint

Papagora, 7c, Redpoint

Natalie Berry

Papagora, 7b+, Onsight

Hot Knife, 7c, 2nd Go

Outback, 7c+, Redpoint

L’escamarla, 7c+, Redpoint

Robbie Phillips

Celda De Castigo, 8a, Onsight

El Segre, 8a, Flash

Preventiva, 8b, Redpoint

Paris Hilton, 8b, Redpoint

Zona 0, 8b, Redpoint

Ramadan, 8b, Redpoint

Migranya, 8b, Redpoint

A Flash D’enemigo, 8b, Redpoint

Dogma, 8b/+, Redpoint

Rollito Sharma, 8b+, Redpoint

Lots of good ticks in there and potentially more to come : ) Mcgeek is close to ticking his current project “Dogma” (8b/+) and Calum is close to ticking his project “Papagora” (7b+). Natalie had an awesome 2nd go attempt at “Pren Nota” (8a) yesterday so she will try and work out the moves today and go for a quick redpoint of that. Mark also had a good burn on “Pren Nota” yesterday so I think he is planning on redpointing this as his first spanish 8a. Ross fell on the final crux of his project, “Zona 0″, we watched him throw his way up this mega classic yesterday so we are looking forward to the final attempt that will see him send it. And finally, I tried “Kallea Borroka” yesterday and thought it felt very do-able with a wee bit work, so i am going to try and tick this as well, which would round of the trip off very nicely indeed : )

Looking forward to getting home, but also for getting back out again… I think we are planning something in the Winter, possibly Siurana/Margalef for December-January when the conditions will be perfect… 8c time?

Keep Crushing

Robz

UPDATE

After writing this post, we went climbing and I did “Kallea Borroka” on my 4th go : ) I then went on to almost send another 8b called “Pati Pa Mi” which would have been amazing. Almost two 8b and harder in a day… but not quite : P Natalie managed to tick another 7c+ called “L’escamarla” and Calum finnaly nabbed his project, “Papagora” as well! Tomorrow is our last day in Siurana before we head back up to Santa Linya to see our friends, Tom and Lynne. Nat is going to try and tick an 8a tomorrow and I will use what little is left of my finger tips to climb a vertical filth 8b : P

PEACE

Source: Robbie's Blog

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What Have I Learned?
5 May 2011, 10:36 am

As I have said countless times before, every-time I go on a trip, I learn something new about myself that I didn’t know before, something that will help me excel in this crazy sport we call rock climbing! Early on in my career it was noticeable that I was certainly a more developed endurance athlete than strength or power, but I neglected training these areas and suffered because of this. It wasn’t until going out on trips that I learned what was needed to push me that extra bit further.

Getting gear sorted for the climb! Kalymnos 2010 taught me a harsh lesson, you can be as fit as you want, but when it comes to the hard moves, sometimes you just need to be able to pull hard! This lesson goes both ways though, as I remember on my second trip to Ceuse, it wasn’t just me getting schooled on the harsh technical faces but also my climbing partner Andy (sorry for bringing you into this mate). Andy having coming from a bouldering background had to deal with the reality of not having endurance on the 30+m long pitches common at this popular French sport climbing crag. This taught him that it wasn’t only about being able to pull off the hardest moves, but also being able to recover on the easier or more sustained ground.

Ceuse 2007, 2008 and 2010 taught me even more about climbing than ever before. They taught me that simply coming to the crag from pulling on plastic for a whole season wasn’t going to provide the results that I so desperately was after! It took me 3 years of trips to one crag to realize this, that was a tough lesson.

Nat chilling at the rest on "L'escamarla-Ramadan Link" (8a) I have been out in Spain for 8 weeks now, I am returning today and only in the past 2 weeks have I felt my climbing really start to take off. There is definitely something more to getting out on rock as much as you can, something it teaches you that the gym simply can’t. I have watched countless numbers of strong gym climbers thrash there way at the rock for endless weeks getting no where and simply giving up in the end. This is not the way forward! You have to really want to learn from the experiences the rock is giving you. If you are failing, you are failing for a reason, not always because you are too weak:

“Need to do more beastmaker!”

Not always because you are unfit:

“Need to do more laps!”

Nat happy from a successful climb : P I think generally its because you haven’t spent enough time learning what the rock is teaching you i.e. how to move your body, how to place your feet, how to pace yourself, how to use resting to your advantage… In truth, you will never stop learning and this is the amazing thing with climbing, because there are always new challenges that await us! The day when you stop challenging yourself with new and interesting climbs, and settle for what looks like you will tick the quickest, get the hardest grade or feel most like what you are used to is the day you stop improving! There is a reason why the best climbers in the world are also the ones who have done the most mileage on rock… it doesn’t take a brain surgeon to understand. It’s because they have learned the most from what the rock has to offer! Watch the videos of Adam Ondra climbing, its an amazing display of sheer athleticism, mental determination and tactical genius! He doesn’t just climb the route… he destroys it!

Me on "Ramadan" (8b) On this last trip to Spain, I have certainly ticked the most hard routes than ever before. On this trip, more than any before, I was on a mission to set a standard for myself. As I have said in previous posts, climbing is largely about confidence and building it up over time. When I went on my first Spanish climbing trip, I ticked my first 8a, that gave me the confidence to go back home and tick “Raindogs” (one of the hardest 8a’s in the country!). On this trip I have ticked 7 x 8b’s and 3 x 8b+’s as well as numerous 8a’s (onsight and flash). This has set my confidence at a good level for the next year which will allow me to build upon it and realize the next peak at which I am aiming to reach… which is of course 8c!

I have not really been slowed down by anything on this trip, I’ve just been moving from one project to the next and they all seemed to drop like flies one after another. But I don’t want to simply stop and say, “well that was a great trip and now I can have a rest”… Far from it! Now more than ever I need to be on my guard for what weaknesses still lie in my climbing and what skills I need to hone! And as long as I keep on doing this, I will continue to progress and see my dreams of climbing harder routes realized.

I think for me, my biggest weakness still lies in my strength. I am still a weak punter : P But I suppose I had only been focusing on the strength training for 3 months after Kalymnos and look at the gains I have made since then! More or less, this Spain trip has been of similar length as Kalymnos 2010 and the routes I have climbed have been far harder and more significant than then, which shows something substantial must have changed in my climbing! I reckon for this year I am going to continue to focus heavily on my strength and power issues with a keen focus on training my crimp strength and pocket strength (mono’s and front two). The reason for this is that I fancy a long trip back to Siurana in December/January and want to mix this with Margalef. If I can hone my pocket pulling skills, perhaps I can tick of some harder routes there such as “Darwin Dixit” (8b+) and possibly “Aitzol” (8c) if I am lucky?

I am also going to focus on the 15-25 move power endurance bracket that I so often neglect in my training. After climbing the popular 8a “Anabolica” in Siurana on our last day, I realized just how important sustained climbing on hard moves is if I want to continue pushing my level higher. “Migranya” (8b) in Siurana climbed quite easily for me and this was a similar style of climb, but If I want to continue to push the envelope with this style, I think much higher levels will be demanded!

Me on "Ramadan" (8b) I want to continue to maintain my climbing level outdoors and not let my technical development slip, so I a going to focus more on getting outside climbing in the UK between trips. Yorkshire, Wales and the South West offer lots of challenges for the sport climber working in the 8’s and some of the crags around Scotland have definitely peaked my interest. I plan on spending most of my time in Yorkshire climbing at Malham and Kilnsey, I have made a wee tick list for myself with routes such as these included:

• Predator (8b)
• The Groove (8a+)
• Totally Free (8b)
• Austrian Oak (8b)
• Magnetic Fields (8b)
• Full Tilt (8b)

There is a lot there, but that means plenty of challenge and lots of learning to be had from it : ) I can’t wait! Bring on the UK Limestone!!!

ROBZ OUT

Source: Robbie's Blog

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BUSY LIFE
10 June 2011, 7:47 pm

Hey Guys!

I have to apologise for I have not blogged in a wee while. The reason for this is a number of things:

1) Being Busy

2) Being Very Busy

3) I can’t think of anythingelse…

Well, since Spain I have been slammed back into reality with endless work writing, coaching, route setting and of course, lots of climbing : ) I haven’t managed to get out quite as much as I’d hoped when I got back from Spain, in fact, I haven’t got out at all! As soon as I got back from Spain, I was straight down to Sheffield only a day later with little time to prepare for the full on 3 day route setting course I was doing. After that, I was back up to Edinburgh for probably one of the most intense working weeks of my life! For those of you who don’t know, the European Youth Cup was held at EICA: Ratho earlier last month and I was one of the few guys chosen to route set for this world class climbing event. It was an honor and a privilege to set for such an event and it certainly was an experience of a lifetime, but I am hoping to get more chances for this again in the future. I was working with three of my close friends from Edinburgh, Neil Mcgeachy, Neill Busby and Gary Vincent as well as visiting fenchman and all-round international superstar WAD, Paul Dewilde. Paul was acting a chief routesetter for the competition, but he didn’t do much other than sit and watch us do all the hard work whilst eating croissants : P Only Joking! We all had a crazy week, working 7 days on the trot with no shifts shorter than 12 hours and up to a maximum shift of 21 hours long with a 2 hour break between that and the following days 15 hour shift! It was very obvious that during the evening of the final nights setting, we were all losing our minds slightly… I was going bi-polar – one minute i’d be in hysterics wondering what the hell we where doing setting at 4 in the morning and the next I was powering up an 8b+ psyched out of my mind! Geek and Buz where giggling to themselves high up on the wall in the cherry picker as if high on hold dust and Gary was hallucinating, claiming to be seeing twin holds where there weren’t any and footholds in the wrong places and at the wrong angle – “5 degrees anti-clockwise and move it two cm closer to the arete!” – things like this where heard about every 5 minutes or so : P  But we all had a great time and the competition was a massive success! My final route for the boys was very successful, separating everyone perfectly and even acted brilliantly as a crowd pleaser as the final competitor (Max Rudiger of Austria) topped the route in awesome style to take home a 1st place in the Junior Boys Category.

Since the competition, I have been doing quite a bit of coaching with various climbers both adults and children. I have had one session with two young kids from the competition team at Ratho, Sam and Emma. Both of these little guys are awesome climbers and the sessions I had with them where very successful. For Emma, it was her first session with me, so the main things I wanted to go over her was simply to practice her warm up for competitions and to spot any little technical faults in her performance. When working with the kids in the club, sometimes it is difficult to focus on one kid in particular since you have to spread yourself about all the children giving them all equal attention, so 1:1′s every now and again are really helpful for both the children and myself. Emma is one of the most talented girls I have seen coming up through the club, she is very good at climbing naturally, she has a very light build, strong fingers, has an amazing static lock and naturally understands how her body works on the wall. Sometimes she gets body position wrong and it would be good for her to focus a bit more on being dynamic, but these are all things we are looking at building on in the future.

This last week I have been route setting a lot at Ratho and have managed to set an unprecedented number of routes on both the main wall and comp walls between 5+ and 7c. My main focus during the weeks route setting was to create some truly sustained and interesting climbs without any stopper moves for the grade and in particular, without rests : )  I succeeded on the no rests part, however, there where a few noticeably cruxy parts of some routes and so I failed on that part. Its not a big deal though, the 7a+ I set became 7b with the crux bumping it up a notch, the 7b I set became 7b+ and the 7b+ became 7c. Sometimes it happens, perhaps if there was more rest the cruxes wouldn’t feel as bad but I was eager to challenge the regulars with something that tested their climbing efficiency on the wall as well as route reading and problem solving. The 6b I set on the old comp wall has since become the most popular route at Ratho, racking up a healthy queue behind it almost every night and its really great to see that the comp walls are busy as opposed to empty.

Climbing recently has been going alright as well, I have been maintaining my level well with the help of the bestmaker and our fine routes from the european cup. I have done 5 out of 7 of the remaining routes from the comp and only having had two route sessions on them, so I am pretty chuffed with that. That includes:

• 1 x 7c
• 1 x 7c+
• 2 x 8a+
• 1 x 8b

I almost did the other 8b final route the other day as well after having a very good first go burn, getting really high on it until I got sapped trying to pull on a big sloper in the roof!

So we don’t have long until Ceuse really, only 1 week left! I don’t think I am the fittest I have ever been, but I sure am the strongest, so hopefully my strength levels and base level endurance will hold me in good stead whilst in Ceuse for some good ticks : ) Out there I am hoping to do more 8b’s and 8b+’s and potentially try an 8c if I get the urge : P but there is no rush, its all good fun and I like to climb lots of routes and gain the experience and confidence before pushing on to the next level.

After Ceuse, Nat and I are doing our Yorkshire climbing trips for climbers of any ability to come and receive professional coaching whilst climbing at some of the very best British Sport Crags and as well as that, I will soon after be heading to Kalymnos in Greec for yet more coaching and a short holiday afterwards in an attempt to tick the famous 8c, “Jaws”!

Psyched!

ROBZ OUT

Source: Robbie's Blog

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UPDATED SITE!
17 June 2011, 11:41 pm

Lulu enjoying the sun at Glen Clova late last week : ) Hey guys!

Welcome to the new updated site! We now have a lot more fun features on the site including Natalie’s own blog, the training blog, a holidays page, a training program page, a terminology page and the updated articles and links section.   Natalie’s blog is for her own use. It will function as her personal blog in which she will chat about her life in climbing, training, coaching and university work and how she balances it all (not an easy task).   I have also brought in the training blog. I was inspired by Dave Macs blog for this one. I was really wanting to separate the blogs specific to my everyday life and the training blogs for the keen climbers and it was becoming difficult doing this solely by using the tagging. So now, if you want to read about training and new ways in which to improve your climbing, then all you have to do is go onto the training blog now instead of having to search through the maze of historic posts on my main blog.

The holidays page is built specifically to advertise any up and coming coaching trips we are running which will include all details of the trips from prices of the courses to details on the destination and who the course is aimed at.

The new training program page has been built to show you guys how I build training programs to suit every climber and will even include some examples of training programs i have built in the past for aspiring climbers who have since reached dizzying heights on the ladder to climbing success through following them.

Me seconding the first pitch of another classic E1 at Glen Clova - Lulu lead : P The links and articles page is to give every user of the site easy access to associated websites, training sites and friends pages. As well as this, I am going to provide pdf’s and links to all the articles I write for various websites and magazines so you can access the pool of training data easier in the future.   Finally, the new terminology section was built because I know how difficult it can be for many climbers to understand some of the weird words used to describe things in climbing.

Hopefully this should help and i will update this area as much as i can and whenever I can think of new terminology that needs explaining : )  So this is the new site guys and I hope you enjoy using it. Since I started the site, the number of hits has gone up every month almost exponentially and it was obvious that it needed an update, so here it is.   Nat and I are off to Ceuse, France on Saturday and will keep you all updated on our adventures through the blog as much as we can. Right now I am off to EICA: Ratho for some boulder setting as we have a collection of brand spanking new Lapis and Bleaustone volumes to stick on the wall : )

WOOHOO!!!

Stay Psyched Guys  Robz

Source: Robbie's Blog

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First 2 days in Ceuse!
21 June 2011, 9:31 am

Day 0

Currently I am in the plane heading to sunny Lyon (hopefully sunny that is). I am travelling with Natalie and Eleanor Hopkins plus her mum and dad. I went with them last year as well and it was a great trip, so here’s hoping this will become a tradition. Nat and I had a busy day yesterday packing and getting things sorted for our trip, we are away for 5 weeks in total so we are making sure we have all the necessaries:

Robbie

1. Climb On

2. Anti-Hydral

3. iPod (for the Ceuse walk in)

Natalie

1. Hairbrush

2. Sun glasses

3. Sandals

And of course everythingelse we probably don’t need – stressing out at the last minute as to why nats bag was 4kg over I discovered she had packed two foldaway chairs… Very necessary indeed.

As I said before, I was last in Ceuse only a year ago, but since then my personal climbing has improved a lot so I am hoping to tick some of the harder routes I didn’t quite manage last time. Last year we were only in ceuse for 10 days, not nearly enough time to acclimatise to the weather, walk in and style of climbing. Previous trips have been as long as 5 weeks but again, my personal level was not as high and i was content with ticking most of the routes in the 7c-8a grade bracket. This year I am hoping to up the ante and tick more of the 8a+-8b+ routes, but I know ceuse style is tricky and I have been shut down there a lot, so I am just psyched to go there, have fun and learn more on what I need to do to keep on improving. That’s what it’s all about for me, personal improvement and loving every minute of it!!!

Psyched for some spectacular limestone sport action tomorrow!

Day 1

So… turns out I forgot my sleeping bag and camping mat :’( Last night was very cold, so tomorrow we will go to Decathlon to get some new camping gear (woops).

We headed up to the crag early this morning as the sector we wanted to go to (Cascade) gets into the sun fairly early. Nat and Eleanor warmed up on a 6b, but it didn’t seem to make a difference as it was soooooo cold! The difference in temperature between the shade and the sun is phenomnal! I warmed up on an amazing 7b called “Super Mickey” then went to try the route I have been waiting to try for the past 4 years… “Violent Illusion” (8b). My first go was spend working the sequence out – some have said that the bottom section is graded at around V10 but I reckon its probably more V8+/9. I can’t tell really as I haven’t bouldered at all on limestone and have only done a few V9′s and one V10, but it actually went really quickly and on my second try, I did the boulder from the ground only for my hand to slip off the handhold as I was on the easier ground (7bish – agghhhhhhhh!!!!). That was almost my first “8b in a day” and the worst of it was, as my hand slipped of I split the top of my finger tip :’( Oh well… It was a good attempt and I will be back once my finger has healed. Nat then went for “Super Mickey” 7b which I had left the clips in from my warm up and did it first go… very easily…

Once the sun had shown up, we headed around the crag to get the shade. I was keen to do something a bit easier and possibly work out the moves on it so I could go for a send the next day. A friend of mine from Canada was trying an 8a called “Petit Tom”. He was trying the left-hand variant which is given 7c+, the direct is a lot harder by including a boulder problem start at around V6ish? After that you link back in with the variant and continue up a very sustained head wall at around 7c/+. I almost did the boulder problem on my first go but slipped at the 3rd clip. I then just opted for figuring out the sequence so I could go for an attempt tomorrow.

Day 2

Today we headed of to Gap early to grab some supplies before heading up to the crag in the afternoon for a session on “Petit Tom”. The conditions at the crag where a lot worse today, it was very hot and slimy, not great for sending hard crimpy routes : ( I warmed up with my friend Olly (who I was in Kalymnos with), he was trying “Carte Blanche” (8a) and getting very close to it, whilst I warmed up on the 7b right next to it called “Lapinerie”. The 7b has an outrageous dyno move right at the end, I was a little apprehensive of this as it was just my warm up, however, when I reached the move I felt really strong and managed to just static it entirely, an improvement in strength levels from last year!

After doing the 7b, I headed back to the sector called “Berlin” to try my 8a “Petit Tom”. On my first go I did the boulder problem but my foot popped off just as I was getting the jug. I decided to familiarise myself with the moves and just bolt to bolted it to the top. Nat was eager for a go as well, but she was still warming up with Eleanor on some 6c’s. After a little break, I went for another go and despite messing up the boulder massively, I managed to get to the top without falling : P Another 8a to the ticklist and my first hard route of the trip… YEAH!!! It would have been awesome to tick an 8b on the first day, but alas, sometimes its good to get pushed off in the face of victory so you can learn and return another day.

Now that I have figured out how the internet works here in Ceuse, the blog updates will be a bit more regular…

Hope everyone is enjoying the summer!

ROBZ OUT + PSYCHED!!!

Source: Robbie's Blog

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Violent Illusion
24 June 2011, 12:46 pm

Yesterday was a good day for Team GB! In the morning, Nat and I made the walk up the hill early at around 9:00 in the morning. It was very cloudy and looking like it was going to start raining any second. I was fed up of rain after two forced rest days and just wanted to go climbing regardless. We headed up to Cascade sector to see if “Violent Illusion” (8b) was dry, I had tried this the other day and had almost done it second go before my finger tip split open. The route takes the steepest line at the sector up a seemingly blank blue wall at around 45 degrees overhung and is probably one of the coolest looking lines in Ceuse. Checking on 8a.nu this morning I saw a number of people reckoning that the start boulder problem weighs in at around V9/10 and then into somewhere between 7a+ and 7b+ to top out. My opinion on this is slightly warped as I haven’t really done a lot of outdoor bouldering and no limestone bouldering whatsoever. My thoughts on the boulder are:

1) Its bloody sharp!

2) The holds are very small!

3) I’ve definitely done harder boulder problems outdoors

So compared to other problems that where of similar difficulty and style, I would say that it probably does way around the V8/9 mark for me and definitely in the way that I’ve done it, but I have seen other sequences that looked harder and way more physical than mine, so it is possible that if you mucked up the sequence a bit then the problem probably would be a lot harder.

When we arrived at the crag, the route was totally dry, however, above it was an ominous wet streak that seemed to creep down a few more inches every 10 minutes or so. After warming up on a 7b called “Keket Blues”, I went straight for it and managed to get the boulder on my first go without any difficulties. I then proceeded to climb the remainder of the route having no major problems with any of it until the very last clip (about 3m from the chain). In any other situation, this last section would probably way in at around f6b on its own, however, the wet streak which had previously occupied the section above the chain had creeped its way down onto my route and was now standing right between me and the chain. The holds are all slopey crimps and jugs here, perfectly easy when it was dry, but horribly slippy when wet. I attempted to climb the wet streak three times, each time being forced to down-climb back to my resting jug below the wet streak. After 5 minutes of scoping from my base, I spotted several dry “non-holds” outside of the wet streak that looked like a potential sequence to take me to the chains. Opting for this new sequence, I pressed on, first locking to a tiny razor blade crimp situated right next to a bomber sloping jug which happened to be sopping wet, then I built my feet up onto some small pockets (thankfully dry) and locked again into a tiny two finger pocket. As i locked of for it, my fingers scraped the wet streak and I had to brush my hands of on my jeans before reaching it making the hold feel a little more spoogie than I would have liked. Crimping up on the pocket I felt it slipping, I quickly raised my left leg onto a small foot smear and hastily pressed into the soaking wet gaston crimp just under the chains. I stood up into the gaston and took the jug undercut below the chains with my right hand, finally clipping the chain much to my relief!

Thank god I didn’t fall of that, I don’t know if I would have been strong enough mentally to get back on it after that : P

Anyway, after doing “Violent Illusion”, I belayed Nat on a 7c called “Hyper Mickey” which she managed to onsight. She had done the second half of the route before but to be honest, it doesn’t really add much compared to the bottom section which is about a V5/6 boulder problem. Nat will talk more about her experiences with that in her blog later on.

We also made a new friend at the crag today, a 17 year old boy from Australia called Matt. Matt doesn’t really climb indoors at all, this came as a wee bit of a shock to me since most young climbers nowadays get into climbing through walls then progress into outdoors, however, with Matt it was the opposite. Matt had a really good attempt at onsighting the classic 7b of the crag “Super Mickey”, then we all headed around the corner to the other crags.

The third big tick for Team GB today was Alex Barrows amazing tick of “The Black Bean” 8b+ at Biographie sector. This is definitely on my tick list, its a 65m long extension to the classic 8a “Les Colonettes” and is one of only 3 or four routes that go to the top of Biographie Sector. Alex spent four days working the route on a 100m long rope although apparently its OK to climb on an 80m rope, you just have to re-thread a lot more! Our adopted Team GB member, Julliet from Canada, also did “Les Colonettes” (8a) on his second try. Ollie Wheeldon (my mate from the South West) is still close to ticking “Carte Blanche” (8a) falling off very close to the top yesterday.

I finally tried “l’ami de tout le monde” (8b) at the end of the day. I had tried this once last year and left my clips in it hoping that Ollie could take them out. Ollie was too lazy and couldn’t be bothered meaning that my clips have been in it for almost a year now! Amazing that they hadn’t been stolen! So I had a go yesterday and on my fist try managed to do the first boulder problem first time without too much difficulty (apart from one big dyno) and then made it into the second crux of which i fell off. The first crux is about V7ish to a big jug rest, then straight into a V3 with a bad rest right afterwards followed by a tricky V5 and then a sustained 7b to top out. I think this is a bit harder mentally to do than “Violent Illusion” and is probably among the harder 8b’s I have tried. I think the only routes that compare to this in difficulty are “Gaia” in Kalymnos, “Preventiva” in Disblia (Spain) and possibly “Migranya” in Siurana, but I think this is a bit harder than “Migranya” as the rests aren’t as good and the boulders are lower percentage. I don’t think this will take too much work seeing as how quick I have managed to do the hardest bit of the route (for me) and I am looking forward to getting on some more of the classic 8b’s and 8b+’s in Ceuse soon such as:

1) Radote Jolie Pepere (8b)

2) Le Churigien Du Crepuscule (8b)

3) The Black Bean (8b+)

If I could tick these three routes as well as “Violent Illusion” and “L’ami de tout le Monde” then I think this would be a very productive trip! I am also looking at a few 8c’s such as “Dures Limites”, “Le Cadre” and one 8c+ called “Bah Bah Black Sheep” as potential big projects for the trip, but one of them would be good enough for me to try.

Anyway, I am off to the crag now, enough lazing about on the computer…

Hope everyone is having fun this summer!

ROBZ OUT – PEACE!

Source: Robbie's Blog

[Doylo]

Nice one. Didn't quite manage Violent, fell off just before the jug but thought it was 7c boulder to 7b+. L'ami is a harder route but probably in thick end of 8b.

[Robbie_Phillips]

Cheers dude! Yeah, I think Violent must be about that, as I said in the blog, I haven't done a lot of bouldering outdoors and the V9's I have done have been on sandstone. They felt around the same grade I think?

The top section is really funny, I can't tell how hard it is really. An aussie guy I know said 6c, but I thought he was mental! I reckoned at least 7a+, but didn't think it was as hard as 7b+ because there aren't really any tricky moves in it, but who knows? I read on 8a.nu that Daniel Woods reckons the bottom is V10! I would be bloody psyched at doing a V10 2nd go! But i don't think its that hard : P

I love L'ami de tout le monde! I think it is definitely harder (maybe not the individual moves). Its mentally more difficult since you have three distinct crux sections and you have to constantly be on your guard. I came close to doing it on my 4th try last night but unfortunately no cigar. Hopefully after a rest day : P  Definitely agree that its a tricky 8b!

On another note, saw a pic of your 8b/+ thing at LPT that Ioan was on. Has that been done yet or is it open? I would be well psyched to get on that, looks like one of the best bolted lines i've seen in the UK!

[Doylo]

It would be 7b+ for me as i'm so unfit! 

Don't know what pic you're referring too. ioan/lpt/my 8b doesn't make any sense to me but maybe if you describe the pic i'll know what you're referring too! 

[Robbie_Phillips]

I think its called "The Brute"?

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150234456560076&set=t.668906670&type=1&theater

This is a link to Ioan's picture of it, don't know if you'll be able to see it?

Maybe I am mistaken 

Off to do "L'ami" now  PSYCHED!!!

[Doylo]

ah, thats a project of mine on the Little Orme, tis good. Crush!

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L’ami de Tout le Monde
27 June 2011, 10:53 am

Yesterday was a great day for me… I finally ticked the a uber classic 8b of Ceuse, “L’ami de tout le monde”! This route has been in my sites ever since I first visited Ceuse and I haven’t been able to shift it from my mind. “L’ami” takes the steepest section of wall at the right hand sector “Les Maitres du Monde”. There are few routes at this sector, and to be fair, probably only two or three others that are worth climbing, but “L’ami” sets the standard of quality for 8b’s around the world!

I think the reason why “L’ami” is such a good route is simply because it encompasses such a large variety and style of climbing in only 25 or 30m of route. At the start, you are instantly engaged with a battle on probably the routes most physical crux, a small crimp into a half pad two finger pocket that you reach via a very high placed heel hook (an awkward position for me to get into). From the two finger pocket you reach a sharp but positive side pull pocket (from which you clip) then are instantly thrown into an extension of this boulder problem, a deep lock into another small crimp with your left, then another with your right, and finally the deadpoint to the massive jug which ends the lower crux!

Once at the jug, you can rest for all eternity if you want  Then you enter the second crux. This crux isn’t really all that hard, but its blowable, so keep your wits about ya! You get a positive crimp from the jug, then cross under into a really good undercut jug (one of the coolest moves ever!), then from the undercut, you press high up and right into a three finger jam, then lock into a really pad intermediate pinch which then gives you access into the higher crimp from which you jump (or static if you’re feeling it) into another big jug (definitely not as big as the last one).

You can then reach up into a good sloping ledge from which you rest at until heading into the final crux. This final crux isn’t anywhere near as hard as the first crux (despite what initially thought on subsequent attempts) but it is still very technical and possible to blow. The crazy beta that I needed for this was the very subtle and very un-readable finger sequence for the crux hold… thats right, I said finger “sequence”! Right index into first pocket, right ring into second pocket, thumb squeeze and middle into central divet for better crimpage power – THEN CRIMP UP!!! That finger sequence made the move feel easy as opposed to the impossible crux, proving that “every little counts”, Tesco’s don’t just do cheap chicken thighs

From the crux hold you lock of into some good pockets and then really, its just a bit of sustained climbing into good holds all the way to the top  When i clipped those chains I was so happy, but also a little sad. This route had been something of a benchmark for me, a route that I knew if I could climb, that I would be confident of my abilities to climb consistently in the 8b grade and push further beyond that level! After almost doing it on my 4th try, I was so psyched to be able to tick this route so quickly and on my 5th attempt it was sent  Its the end of an era, but the start of an epic, because right after I lowered from “L’ami’s” chains, I went straight over to Biographie wall and attempted the mega monolith that is “The Black Bean” (or Beau depending on who you talk to).

“The Black Bean” is a 70m long 8b+ extension to the famous 8a “Les Colonettes”. One of my dreams over the past 5 years has been to one day, top out of Ceuse and walk down the back… although this is not possible on the route, its one step closer to it than I have ever been before and It would be a massive achievement for me to clip those chains and lower of the top of Ceuse!

I was happy to retro-flash the 8a start “Les Colonettes” which I had done 3 years before. After that, I just started to work on the 8b+ part. Managing to do every section first go and then finding that the last 30m of it isn’t really that hard at all (probably 7b+) was a bit of a shock. The route is really long, but not that physical… you don’t really get boxed on it, just tired more than anything. When I came off the route I was mentally exhausted, climbing for 2 hours takes a lot out of you, especially when its 8b+ overall and your not really that sure what your doing. My plan for today is to go up later and try and do it first go, which would be my second try in total. This would be an amazing achievement for me, but we’ll see, its very long, very technical and there’s quite a few places where you can blow silly little sequences by being a bit sloppy. Alex Barrows (the last British Ascensionist) has been going through sequences with me this morning and his are quite a lot different and sound a lot better, which worries me slightly

We will see…

I have heard that there is a bit of a heat wave in the UK, so hope everyone is enjoying it out at the crags – and congratulations to all the kids who entered the YCS finals in Wolverhampton!

See ya’s

ROBZ OUT

Source: Robbie's Blog

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Topping out Céüse (well… nearly)
30 June 2011, 10:26 am

Yesterday I climbed the longest route of my life!

In the Biographie sector of Ceuse there are three main lines that go from the bottom all the way to the top:

• The Black Bean (8b+)
• No Futur (8c+)
• Realisation (9a+)

There are now other routes that go to the top, but none as impressive as these three outstanding lines. The line I took was of course, “The Black Bean” (8b+). I had a brief look at the route one evening after climbing another popular classic of Céüse, so didn’t have a lot of time to check it out, but enough to work out a viable sequence for the bottom crux and clamber my way through 30+m of 6c-7a+ climbing to reach the chains.

“The Black Bean” climbs up one of Céüse’s most popular 8a’s, “Les Colonettes” and then continues for another 40m to near the top of the crag. Immediately after “Les Colonettes”, you are confronted with 10m of very technical climbing (essentially the 8b+ crux). The climbing isn’t physically hard, but it’s quite technical and definitely a little more involved with the old footwork than you’d like after having already climbed 30m of 8a. My first attempt on the route saw me reach the mid-way point of this crux before my foot popped on one of the slippy, marble footholds. I both love and hate this kind of climbing, if you fail it feels crap because you know you’ve got to get back on it and deal with the slippy footholds again, but if you succeed, its an awesome feeling because for a brief amount of time after the ascent, you feel like you’re a really technical climber… before you fail on something else thats really techy.

I thought I would get this route on my third go, I was confident, I knew the sequence and the conditions where pretty good. I blasted through the first 30m of 8a, got established into the crux and seemed to cruise this without much effort. I was resting before the start of the last 30m of climbing, looking up into the endless overlaps of blue rock… I was scared… oh so very scared! All I had to do was a couple of big run-outs on 6c climbing then two more techy 7a+ish sections. Anyone who has done a route like this will know just how scary the last section of wall is, especially if its technical and you’ve just done a big hard section beforehand. Cutting a long story short, I managed to fall off 5m from the top on a bit of tech filth… I fluffed it royally!

After that horrible feeling of knowing that I had made such a big mistake, I swore to myself that it wouldn’t happen again… luckily I succeeded on my fourth attempt at the route despite the worst conditions I have experienced in Céüse this whole trip. It definitely didn’t feel as easy as the previous attempt but I certainly wasn’t going to let go on the account of if I did, I would have to climb it AGAIN!!! Maybe not the right attitude, but 70m routes do something a bit strange to your mind, especially if you have fallen off with the chains staring you straight in the face.

Regardless of a few slip ups, the route was an incredible experience and some of the best climbing I have done in Céüse. The 6c part was probably the best bit of climbing at that grade I have ever done, a shame you have to more or less climb 8b to get there : P

What’s next? I have decided to stick some quickdraws in the classic 8c, “Dures Limites” and try projecting that. At the same time I am going to attempt to tick of some of the classic 8a’s-8b’s between attempts in an attempt to maintain my chain clipping throughout the trip (which tends to stop when I start trying projects).

Also, friends from around the UK will be arriving in the next week, so psyched for that. Ed and Sam Hamer will be amongst the first to arrive I am guessing, followed by Londoners Kitty Wallace and Andre Hedger, then the Irish crew just after that lead by Eddie and Rachel Cooper!

PSYCHED!!!

ROBZ OUT

Source: Robbie's Blog

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Pyramids, Points + Prizes
3 July 2011, 11:41 am

My mate Alex told me my pyramid on 8a.nu was wonky… so I thought I better make it more… pyramid shaped…

Climbers all around the world follow the rules and ranking of the well known website 8a.nu. For those that haven’t heard of or seen this website before, I am sorry for you, because you don’t get to partake in the daily (sometimes hourly) checkings of the ranking board to see if your friends (sworn enemies) have beaten you yet.

Joking aside (but not really), the 8a.nu website I have found to be an incredibly useful tool to see my progression from year to year. You can do exactly the same thing on the UKC logbook, the only difference being if you have an ego as big as mine, then you feel inadequate not being ranked beside fellow climbers : P Over the years, I have seen steady progression in my climbing:

2006 – Onsighted my first 7c

2007 – Onsighted my first 7c+

2008 – Onsighted my first 8a, did a lot of 7c+’s second go!

2009 – Trained a lot, did comps, didn’t get out much, but onsighted some more 8a’s

2010/2011+ – Onsighted more 8a’s, Climbed 13 x 8b’s, 4 x 8b+’s and hopefully 8c in the next few weeks?

I see an obvious progression here over the years, I wouldn’t have seen this without a logbook of some sort to note down all my achievements in climbing. Of course I could have done it in a scrap book (I do this as well), but on a computer where it is planned out in front of you with progression charts and in a neat format is quite appealing to the eye. I also enjoy looking at my friends scorecards when they have done new climbs, or seeing what they have commented on about the same routes.Its also a very useful database when looking up routes that you want to try for the future!

I love the hilariousness of the daily routines of climbers in campsites at sport crags:

• Go to crag…
• Climb some routes…
• Update logbook…
• Make dinner…

Its great how the updating of one’s logbook comes before dinner – its importance is so high, the second it is updated is essential, some even do it from the crag if they have internet on their phone : P Some enjoy the competitiveness of the ranking (I know I do), just between friends and certainly not as a goal to aspire to be 1st in the UK/World, but it is good to have a bit of competitiveness in anything we do, it will make us try that little bit harder and become that little bit better. If I am honest, after a bad days climbing, it even makes me feel better logging on and looking at my past climbs (good days) : P

One thing I noticed on my logbook was that I had climbed so many 8b’s but very few 8a+’s! Yesterday I decided to take the first step to adjusting this scenario by climbing a popular 8a+ called “Dolce Vita”. I really want to onsight 8a+ soon, so I need to start getting on them and trying rather than chickening out and just going for redpoint attempts. I had a flash attempt of “Dolce Vita”, got to the crux, then fell. It wasn’t that bad really, definitely a bouldery 8a+ but a really good route. I should’ve done it second go but my hand slipped going for a jug, so I just did it on my 3rd go. Interestingly, most people think this is closer to 8b than 8a+… weird as I thought that “Petit Tom” (8a) right next to it was probably not much easier. Very similar in style i.e. Bouldery crux followed by a much easier finish, perhaps “Petit Tom” being a bit more sustained?

It’s funny how a grade can scare you. I am a bit fearful of 8a+, probably because I haven’t climbed many of them, whereas 8b’s are standard and I would expect to do them really quickly now. If I want to onsight 8a+ soon, it is essential that I start getting on more, going for onsights, then ticking them to get the mileage of 8a+’s in. This will make me a lot more confident at the grade and therefore a lot more likely to succeed at onsighting them.

So yesterday, as well as ticking “Dolce Vita”, I also had my first proper look at “Dures Limites” (8c). I was really happy with this, I managed every move pretty quickly and figured out a really good sequence. The top wasn’t nearly as hard as I expected but still very blowable. The route is probably around f7b+ until a big rest in a bulging roof section followed by the crux of the whole route, seven or eight very intense moves between very small holds with very bad feet : ) My guess at the boulder grade of this section of wall is around F7B+. I say this because I don’t think its physically as hard as the “Violent Illusion” (8b) crux (V9) but way more technical and subtle with body positions and foot movements. Also, how you hold holds is very important! After this crux, there is an easier section of positive crimps and pockets, then a good rest on a sideways sloper and an edge with good footholds. You can more or less fully recover here (i think?) then you have the final crux, probably 6-8 moves of much less hard climbing. The hardest move on this section is a really deep drop knee cross through from a small half pad crimp into a 2 or 3 finger crack that you crimp the edge of (I challenge those that want to jam it), from there you turn into a bad crimp over the lip of the bulge and bump again into the good pocket, from there to the top it isn’t that hard. The boulder problem of this is probably on V3 or V4, but sketchy since you’ve just climbed the meat of an 8c to get there.

Here’s hoping it feels easier next time : )

Hope everyone is enjoying the summer weather, get out and keep cranking

ROBZ OUT



Source: Robbie's Blog

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Moving on up…
4 July 2011, 7:20 am

Hey guys!

Yesterday was a pretty good day for me, I finally managed to flash 8a+! Well kind of… technically I had tried the route before, but only very briefly and only the bottom section. I couldn’t remember what the route was about and had no recollection of any of the sequence so it was for me definitely a flash attempt. I could have used some beta for the lower crux as I got totally wrong handed and mucked up, but managed to sort myself out in time to stick the crux and continue onward to the final bulges. On reaching the final section of wall, I was very nervous, the holds where all positive but quite small and on small flat edges for feet, but thankfully I managed to stay collected and continue up the wall to the anchors without any problems.

After my success on the 8a+ I then went to try “Dures Limites” (8c). A wicked strong and super cool spanish climber called Daniel Moreno had just come of from it coming so close to sending it. He was fighting through both cruxes but managed to get all the way to the last move before falling of! Gutted! This guy has flashed 8c and climbed 9a, so if he was struggling on it, then there wouldn’t be much hope for me. He reckons its a pretty hard 8c, a nice thing to hear seeing as the moves feel desperate, but I still reckon I can do it. My attempt yesterday wasn’t as good as my first attempt the other day as my skin was so sore and I was also a little tired, but I learned some new beta for the bottom crux and refined my sequence.

Today is a rest day, think we might head down to a little gorge that our friends know off, its meant to be a nice place for a swim with some sick jumps of boulders! YEAH!!!

Also, forgot to say, Luke Tilley, Ethan Walker, Ed and Sam Hamer have just arrived. They have been here for two or three days now and are ripping it up! Ed and Luke flashed the classic 8a, “Carte Blanche” yesterday as well as a 7c and 7c+ flash the other day as well. Sam also flashed the famous 7c “Vagabond D’occident”! Keep ripping it up guys!

ROBZ OUT

Source: Robbie's Blog

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The Hard Limit
6 July 2011, 11:32 am

Hey Guys

I was a little lost yesterday… I had in my mind that I wanted to try and onsight an 8a+ and have at least one attempt on “Dures Limites”, but in the end I got stuck hanging off a rope taking video footage of people on “Lapinerie” (7b) and “Seurs Froides” (8a+). It seemed that everyone in our group was up for a go on “Lapinerie” that day and despite a good number of attempts by everyone, only one got the send. Tom Butterworth nabbed the 7b on his third try, Nice!

At the same time, Jacob, fresh from his first hard route of the trip (Carte Blanche, 8a) was eager to try the stunning 8a+, “Seurs Froides” to the left. He had only been on it once before and had not really tried the top section much so was still a little hazy with beta, but keen just to give it a bash and see what happens, he went for it with me shouting beta from a hanging rope : P BETA ORB!

In the evening after everyone had left, I decided to go for “Dures Limites” (8c) my project. This was my third attempt at the route, Jacob belayed me and Nat was hanging of the rope videoing. I breezed up through the first section of wall into the bulge before the crux. I waited around for a while to give Nat some time to get into a good position to video, then I went for it! From the big jug, I crossed into a good slot then slapped out into the first small crimp of the crux. I went again with my right into the crappy pinch and readjusted my feet. From there, I did a big drop knee, bumped my left foot up and slapped into the bad two finger pocket over the bulge. I have been struggling to reach this hold before but found some key beta for it which has made it much easier. From the two finger, i stabbed into a better left hand crimp, then bumped up my right into the first sloper crimp, then into the second sloper crimp with my left… I was struggling now but only had two moves left of the crux until I was into easier ground. I slapped up with my right hand into the awkward 3 finger pocket (PSAHHHHHH!!!), tried to adjust, then fell… PHEWWWW! One more move and I am into the easier section of the route, then a rest, then one more crux at about V6ish?

After a couple more blasts through this sectin, reinforcing my sequence, I discovered something amazing! The horrible pocket that I am struggling to get into with 3 fingers turns out to be better and stronger with… BACK 2!!! I couldn’t believe it, my first back 2 pocket outdoors – possibly ever come to think of it? Amazing that this happened, I am so psyched by it hahaha It feels quite comfortable moving into it, then holding it, but moving of it still feels pretty hard but at least it feels easier than with three fingers. Psyched!

The route is tearing chunks out my fingers so I have to try it sparingly. I am at last happy that I have found something truly inspiring to try day in and day out as well as challenging me to my limit. This year has been amazing, but I have yet to get on something that has pushed me to the edge, I have a feeling that this will take me as close as I have ever been. If I don’t do it before I leave, I won’t be disheartened, because at least I will know that it defeated me in 2011, but I will return to face it after another year of training in 2012!

I am psyched today to get on an 8a+ called “Femme Blanche” that I tried last night as well. Its really slabby and technical and will challenge me in a different way than any other route has this trip, its also really scarey with mega runouts… FUN!

ROBZ OUT

Source: Robbie's Blog

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Demi Lune Action
7 July 2011, 10:45 am

Hey Guys

Today is a rest day… finally! For some reason, the last two days have felt like an age, I don’t know why? Possibly because I’ve been on quite a number of different routes, learning lots of sequences and dealing with lots of different styles of climbing. Yesterday I was hoping to get on “Femme Blanche” (8a+) in an attempt to do it second go after my failed onsight attempt, however, the draws had been stripped and I couldn’t really be bothered scaring myself on the top slab whilst placing quickdraws… good attitude I know : P So instead, I opted for the much harder 8b/+ just to the right. The route is called “La Chirugien du Crepiscule”, its long, vertical and bouldery! I had spoken briefly with a friend of mine, Jan Hojer from Germany, about the route very briefly at the last European Youth Cup in Edinburgh. He told me it was desperate for 8b and no doubt would be 8b+ anywhere else! I took his warnings too lightly I think…

Demi Lune Sector, Ceuse I managed the first 4 to 5 clips with not much problem, until the crux showed its ugly head. Spaced just over a clip, a series of really locky, twisted moves of small one finger and two finger pockets lead its way up the slightly overhung wall (with no feet) to one really powerful slap into a sharp two finger pocket then a desperate catch into a gaston left two finger press! It was absolutely desperate… I managed to get past the crux once but couldn’t stabilise myself on the press and would always slip of adjusting my feet.  After this first crux, you are again encountered with some tricky climbing of small pockets, nowhere near as hard as the initial moves, but tricky none the less. After this you gain some easier territory then after a rest are confronted with a heinous sequence on really sharp crimps with big locks between them. Thankfully you gain another rest of a deeper two finger pocket right after this and can chill for a bit… before the heinous technical slab for the last two bolts! LOVELY JUBBLY!

Working "Dures Limites" (8c) In short, I sacked that for the day. Its an amazing route (but very sharp) however, I think this route in particular might be more inviting next year after another years training (and skin growth from the damage it has done).  After trying that, I went back over to “Carte Blanche” sector to film Nat and Jacob on a couple of routes. Nat had her second attempt on “Carte Blanche” (8a) and I honestly thought she was going to do it! She fell right at the very end on the last section of wall – VERY IMPRESSIVE!

Nat high on "Carte Blanche" (8a) Also to mention, both Ollie Wheeldon and Jacob Cook sent yet another 8a! The famous “Bourinator” fell to there attacks with Ollie only taking a couple of days and Jacob doing it on his second try. BEAST!  Late in the day as everyone was packing up, I tried to convince our new Team GB member, Tom Newberry, to get on “Radote Jolie Pepere” (8b) with me just to try out the moves. We where both absolutely knackered from the days climbing, but I figured if we are having a rest day the next day, we may as well go up, figure the moves out and then go for the send on our next climbing day. In the end, Tom chickened out : P but I went up to take a look…  I was pleasantly surprised, despite being totally wasted from the days climbing, I onsighted the route all the way up through the first section of hard climbing, right up until the crux moves. I hung upside down in the daunting roof, a 30m drop below me… I was spying out the obvious crux, a blank grey featureless bulge leading out left to the hanging arete. After hanging for a few minutes recovering I pressed on into the crux, I locked deep at my waist and straight into a sharp sidepull. I rolled over my heel which had been hooking a big scoop in the rock and pressed into a nasty crimper, I went again with my left into a worse crimp and fell into the first one with my right! In my final moments on the wall, I gave a pretty pathetic slump sideways in an attempt to grab the final hold of the crux, then fell… I pulled back up the rope, did a bit of scoping about, brushed some holds and went to the top (which from there is about 6c?). Despite being totally destroyed, I managed to get really high on the onsight and even pull of some hard moves, this is yet another experience thats left me feeling that perhaps 8b onsight will be achievable in the future : )

PSYCHED!!!  Stay tuned for some video of Nat on “Carte Blanche” soon!

ROBZ OUT

P.S. Hamers, Walker and Tilley are all still crushing! Ed onsighted “Seurs Froides” (8a+), Sam ticked “Carte Blanche” (8a) and Ethan did his first 7b of the trip, “Lapinerie”.

Source: Robbie's Blog

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Flapper Fun
16 July 2011, 2:33 pm

Hey Guys

So I haven’t blogged in the last week, basically because nothing exciting has happened with my climbing. About a week ago my hand slipped whilst redpointing an 8b in Demi Lune and I suffered a massive flapper on the tip of my middle finger. It basically took half my pad off and its pretty darn deep too. It’s been one week since then and I still haven’t been able to climb with it. Looking at it now, even after one week of skin growth, the pad is still red raw and stings to touch :’(

I guess this is just one of the many annoyances that pushing hard on the rock can give. One of my goals this trip was to get on an 8c to see how it feels and possibly give it a good bash at ticking. After having around 5 attempts on “Dures Limites” (8c), I now know that 8c definitely is within my grasp and hopefully within the next year of training and getting outside climbing, I will see my first 8c redpoint.

Natalie Berry cruising up her first 8a+, "Dolce Vita" I am in no big rush, currently, for my own climbing, I don’t really believe in spending endless weeks or months projecting a hard route to see a chance success eventually. Right now I am trying to improve myself as a climber by ticking a multitude of hard routes in different styles quicker… variety is the spice of life.

By getting on “Dures Limites”, I have learned what is required of me to climb this type of 8c quickly. I reckon if I had chosen an 8c that was more sustained, then perhaps I would have ticked it quickly, but a bouldery style? Maybe not. If I want to build my level up from ticking 8b’s in quick style across the board to 8b+’s and 8c’s, then I need to focus on what my weak points are. Funnily enough, after the last cycle of dedicated training focussed on bouldering, strength and power is still my weak area. On “Dures Limites”, the first boulder problem always seemed very hard for me, despite being probably only about F7B+ in retrospect. Looking at other 8c’s in Ceuse, some are more bouldery and others more sustained, but they are all in common bloody hard routes (because they are 8c). “Chronique de la Haine” (8c) has two F7B+ boulders followed by an 8a+ route according to Arnaud Petit. “Bah Bah Black Sheep” which has now been downgraded from 8c+ to 8c due to a change of sequence or possibly change of bolt placements has a route 7b+ start into a F8A then into a 7b route to finish. Basically, this is screaming to me that I need to get stronger as a boulderer, I have ticked boulder 8b’s, endurance 8b’s and power endurance 8b’s all pretty quickly, but now I need to up my game and take it to the next level.

I have been climbing out here with a number of the British Climbing Team as well as other from teams across Europe. Its awesome watching everyone ticking hard routes and seeing the multitude of different styles in action. Ed Hamer, Sam Hamer and Luke Tilley are amongst the team ticking hard out here. Sam has been on form making quick succession of a lot of 8a’s and 8a+’s, Luke has even managed to flash two 8a+’s in different styles and Ed has been demolishing everything like its a warm up. I have known Ed for years, but I only get to see him at competitions and training days. Out here I have been watching him climbing everything, making it look all pretty easy.

Ed Hamer on "Realisation" (9a+) - at least he might as well be : P Actually he's just making "Blocage Violent" (7b+) look bloody nails! I honestly believe that his strength far exceeds what he is climbing on routes, he is a power house with endurance and is without a doubt one of the strongest guys operating in the UK sport climbing scene. I am positive he could climb 9a if he wanted, but I like his style, ticking of lots of routes, having fun and not putting any pressure on himself (unlike me). I am going to take a page out of his book for a while with regards to my new training strategy at home (which probably won’t come into effect until November due to work/trips).

Anyway, although i haven’t been ticking, Nat has truly come into her element! She has made very quick ticks of four classic 8a’s here in Ceuse as well as ticking her first 8a+ “Dolce Vita” in only 3 tries! Despite being very bouldery and considered top end 8a+, she made it look pretty easy and I think that this could be the start of an amazing year for her sport climbing. With Yorkshire trips in August, Kalymnos in October and Spain early next year, I can’t quite imagine yet what she is going to do…

Hope everyone is having a good summer still, looking forward to returning to the UK for some Yorkshire limestone action : )

ROBZ

Source: Robbie's Blog

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Home + Away
25 July 2011, 10:09 pm

So…

We have returned from yet another sport climbing adventure in Europe. The last 2 weeks of our trip where a bit tough, what with my skin injury and Nat being ill, but hey, its been a pretty awesome year for climbing so far so what’s two weeks? As Nat said in her blog, we learned a lot from the trip and as soon as we had left the crag on our way home, we were already planning our next moves towards overcoming our new challenges and seeing our climbing goals met this year. Both Nat and I built ourselves a new set of goals for the next year and a training plan to follow. Our plan is based on a few different things i.e.

• Weaknesses we have discovered this year on trips
• New training techniques learned
• Climbing trips still to come (lots!) : P
• Goals we aim to achieve

So our new training plan is based on the above. Weaknesses we have discovered need ironed out, training techniques we have learned over the year need applied, climbing trips need to be made the most of with appropriate goals and training strategies set towards them.

We have 3 weeks until Yorkshire, then another 3-4 weeks spent there. We won’t have a car for that time so it will be interesting to see how we survive : P We decided to base ourselves at Malham for the most part of it because its a crag we love to climb at and we have plenty to go at there.

After Yorkshire, I have probably around 2 weeks to train until a trip to Verdon with Alex Barrows. Out there we hope to climb the iconic tufa line of “Tom et Je Ris”. This has been something on the tick list for a while now so when Alex gave me the call and asked if I was keen, I jumped at the opportunity! If we manage to tick this amazing line, then I would love to get stuck into some of the hard multipitch the Verdon has to offer, but I have a funny feeling that I might get totally spanked : P

After Verdon, I have around 2-3 weeks more to train before I head of to Kalymnos for coaching and climbing! I absolutely love Kalymnos, I have been there five times now and I am still not sick of it. This year I want to bring Nat along with me for a week or two so she can experience Kalymnos again after 8 years since she was last there. My plan for Kalymnos this year is to attempt more 8a and 8a+ onsights as well as gearing up for my first 8c and potentially some more 8b+’s? “O’dracinian Devil” is on the cards…

After Kalymnos, I am taking some time out of trips and outdoor climbing for a few months over the winter and getting stuck into some solid training! I have big plans for a Spain trip in March and I need to be on fighting form for then. Additionally, having a good trip in Spain will set me up well for yet another training cycle geared towards the ultimate trip, Ceuse 2012! My 12 month plan is built with this in mind… Ceuse is my dream crag, a place where I am always humbled and brought down a notch. That magical limestone paradise teaches me new things everytime I go there and I can’t resist learning more from it. I plan on being fitter, stronger and better than ever before by August next year and I have my whole year planned out to get me there…

BRING IT ON!!!

ROBZ OUT

by worklessclimbmore

Source: Robbie's Blog

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Yorkshire Coaching + Climbing
18 August 2011, 10:25 pm

Hey Guys

Apologise for not blogging at all this past wee while. I have been mega busy with work recently and haven’t had a spare moment to write anything up. For the past few weeks, my life has been building up to the next 3-4 months of work/trips. I had been training like a demon in Ratho, building my strength and power back up since Ceuse for the brief periods of climbing I will get in between coaching work in Yorkshire. I had been focussing solely on recruiting my contact strength that I had lost climbing longer routes in France so that the shorter routes at Malham won’t feel nearly as grim as they usually do. My strategy has been very much on the side of strict finger boarding and campus board regimes topped up with a bit of campus bouldering and some hard routes once a week to keep my head in the game of clipping bolts and taking big whippers.

Nat eyeing the chains on "Raindogs" (8a) Before I left for Yorkshire, I managed some PB’s on both the campus board and fingerboard, taking some small steps closer to my February training goals. I even managed a very good onsight attempt on Lisandros new Yellow 8a+ on the main wall at Ratho which I was very satisfied with – one hold further and I’m sure it would have been guaranteed. I scraped a third go ascent in after my second attempt was flustered by the removal of a key jug volume and replaced with a big sloper!

Now we are down in Yorkshire, we have already finished our first coaching weekend which has went down very well. Our clients, Ben and Peter had an excellent time climbing in the Yorkshire dales at some superb crags such as:

1) Robin Proctors Scar (Day 1 + 2)

2) Trow Gill (Day 3)

3) Malham Cove (Day 4)

The first day was spent getting used to climbing on rock, both Peter and Ben haven’t climbed too much on outdoor sport and needed a bit of a reminder of how to place your feet on the little limestone edges and to get used to the exposed nature of outdoor cliffs. In one day, both of them managed an impressive ticklist covering 9 routes each!!! Ben lead a 6b+ on the first day whilst Peter made impressive links on the same rope on top rope with an aim to leading it the following day. Ben also started work on a 6c+, to be his first of the grade outdoors.

Ben and I sitting down, examining the guidebook for Ben's next challenge! On the second day, both Ben and Pete made some more impressive ascents and saw massive progress in their performance. They totalled 7 routes each including Bens first 6c+ lead despite not cleaning it on toprope beforehand (seems his fear of falling is getting better) whilst Peter sent his first 6b+ lead and followed up with 6a+ onsight on lead as well! Ben also went on to flash his first 6c on toprope as a final route to the day.

On the third day, the guys eager for more opted for a new choice of venue, so we headed towards Trow Gill. Despite the long walk, an excellent crag and superb quality routes from f5 to f7c (the harder stuff looked a bit choss if im honest). Peter totally conquered his fear of falling this day with a mega onsight of the classic 6a groove at the crag – committing and techy! Pete also took some mega whippers fighting for the red point of the incredibly bouldery and overhung 6b to the left. Despite falling numerous times, he still came back for more right up until his final attempt when he fell literally at the jaws of victory staring straight at the chains! One for next time. Ben truly showed his improvements from the trip, he was confidently climbing the lower 6′s and looking good for 6b+’s onsight on lead (falling at the final moves). He even went for the filthiest 6c+ at the crag (later discovered to be 7a on UKC) confidently with his head held high, a big improvement from the start of the trip.

On the final date at Malham Cove, despite three days of hardcore climbing, both Pete and Ben where at the crag gunning for “Rose Coronary” 7a! Peter made some good links and will definitely be back for more, but it was Ben who made the day with his first Top rope 7a clean! He then went on to more lead attempts failing only due to lack of skin and energy – next time mate!

Overall, a very successful first coaching trip, a really great bunch of guys who where a pleasure to work with made it a really enjoyable trip for Nat, Will and myself. Psyched for the next one!

Nat and I walking out from Malham on our last coaching day On a personal climbing note, we have had a couple of climbing days to ourselves. Nat has been occupied with the classic of the crag “Raindogs” (8a), she had two days on it properly and on her third morning managed to tick the route! The funny thing about this route is that you can be as close as can be on your first go, but it still takes a few more to grab that chain! Nat looked like she was going to tick the route second go, I have never seen anyone make an 8a (especially this one) look so easy. She did it on her 7th go after 5 previous attempts seeing the chains slip through her fingertips…

Will Carroll (our friend and photographer for the coaching weekends) has had his sights on the crimp fest 7b known as “Bongo Fury”. After two very close attempts (2nd and 3rd) he finally managed to clip this chains on his 4th – whilst I was filming so stay tuned!

He is now working on it’s 7b+ brother to the right – “Wasted Youth” – possibly the dirtiest looking 7b+ on the planet, you wouldn’t catch me dead on those razors!

All my routes have unfortunately been wet. I was eager for the classic 8b “Austrian Oak”, after a very promising first go I was keen to go for a second attempt at it the next day only to find that the rain has soaked the vital jug rests : ( My other option was “Predator” but the top of that is wet meaning a 4/5th ascent is only possible. The only decent route dry was “Overnite Sensation”, so after an onsight attempt fail after the first bolt : P  some work on the dog (and some very nice beta from Toby Dunn – thank you very much) I managed a very nice second go which I am rather pleased about. This is my hardest at Malham so far, but didn’t feel at all too complex or testing for what I always expect Malham 8′s to be like, hopefully this is a good start to a half decent Yorkshire tick list this year – bring on the Malham polish!

Me climbing "Overnite Sensation" (8a+) - 2nd go So anyway, we have a few more coaching weekends to look forward to and hopefully some more time having fun at the cove, stay tuned for the video of Nat doing “Raindogs”, Will on “Bongo Fury” and me on “Overnite Sensation”

Peace

Robz Out

P.s. Images to follow

Source: Robbie's Blog