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Ceuse!!!
21 June 2011, 11:25 am

Hello from sunny Ceuse!

 

We are now on our first rest day after two days of long walk-ins, mosquito bites and of course plenty of quality climbing! Me and Robbie have based ourselves at the campsite amongst a lively crew of English speaking climbers from the UK, Australia and America.

We arrived at about 9pm on Saturday and set up camp, only to discover that we were lacking in a sleeping bag for Robbie, no air mattresses and no pillows! It proved to be a very long, cold and uncomfortable first night in the tent, sharing a sleeping bag and lying on the cold, hard floor! Not the best preparation for a day’s climbing!

Still shivering from the night before, we set off on the one hour walk-in – the first hurdle to ticking a route of any grade! Last year I found the walk-in incredibly strenuous and had to pace myself. This time it didn’t feel too bad as we set off at around 7:30am to avoid the sun and crippling heat. Eventually we made it to sector Cascade where we warmed up with fellow Team Gb member Eleanor Hopkins. I wanted to focus on starting off gently and getting used to the rock again.After warming up and getting some blood back into my fingers I decided to go for a flash attempt at a route I did last year – Super Mickey 7b. It’s a great route with a boulder problem at the start and another at the top, with steady climbing on big holds inbetween. I completed the route and felt confident that it went easier than last year and best of all – my fingers were giving me no trouble!

I reckon I am climbing smoother than normal on rock due to having done lots of easier mileage and gaining experience during our 5 week trip to Spain not so long ago! Thanks to borrowing an extra sleeping bag, we slept slightly better that night, and the next day we made the mandatory trip to Decathlon to buy everything we were lacking in followed by a jaunt to the supermarket to stock up on supplies. We climbed in the afternoon which meant a walk in the blazing sun, resulting in the ascent becoming considerably harder!

Relieved to have made it to Berlin sector, we sat in the shade and ate some lunch before warming up. I started off on a tricky 6b+ with Eleanor then started to focus on my project for the moment – Petit Tom 8a. I tried this route twice last year but never focussed fully on ticking it – we were only there for 12 days anyway! I could vaguely remember the holds and sequences but the footholds were a different story – hundreds of very similar tiny nodules and small crimpy holds meant that I couldn’t hang around for long! I did all the moves which felt much easier than last year and was happy that my fingers weren’t hurting at all. I had another blast on it later on but was too tired to give it my best efforts and decided to save it for another day. Hopefully it will go tomorrow! Robbie also tried the route last year, and did it today after a few attempts. Good effort!

Everyone is having fun whether it be at the crag or relaxing at the campsite – the atmosphere is laid back yet people are still focussed on projects and climbing to their best. Tomorrow I will be climbing at Cascade in the morning then Berlin in the afternoon. There has been talk of rain, but we don’t believe it!

 

Here’s to more action tomorrow!

 

Natalie

 

 

 

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Petit à petit!
25 June 2011, 10:31 am



Hey guys

 

Just a quick update from Ceuse! Unfortunately the internet hours at the campsite are limited, so we don’t have much time to update in detail

After the disappointment of a full day of rain two days ago, me and Robbie decided to risk it and braved the 1 hour walk-in intending to climb at Cascade sector. We knew we looked like loonies, being the only ones walking up the mountain and getting strange looks from fellow campers, but we got there and the rock was…partially dry! The clouds were drifting low in the valley and made the crag seem very atmospheric! There were intervals of rain which didn’t touch us due to the steepness of the crag, so for now we were right to have taken the risk. Some seepage was apparent on certain routes but we made the best of what we had…

 

We warmed up on a 7b called “Keket Blues” which was sustained with a boulder problem at the top. I started to get flash pump and cold hands halfway up but kept fighting, before coming off just at the crux. I was disappointed as the next hold I was about to go for was the biggest jug in the world, but never mind!

 

After belaying Robbie on his (wet!) 8b Violent Illusion, I was inspired to go for a flash attempt of Hypermickey, 7c. I did Supermickey 7b the other day, and Hypermickey is a variation on this route with a hard, bouldery start. I pulled hard in the bottom section, using holds that (according to Robbie) most people would not consider to be handholds! Sneakily using intermediates then making a big lunge for a positive hold, I continued up the 2nd half of Supermickey and topped out. Pumped but happy, I lowered to the ground with relief. I could feel myself getting more comfortable on the rock and moving a lot better. In the afternoon I had an attempt on Petit Tom 8a again, but came off in the cruxy bottom section and worked out a much better way of doing the sequence, which made me feel pretty confident about being able to get through those moves on a redpoint attempt. I finished the route off and we walked down to the campsite as night was falling.

 

The next day proved to be much hotter and sunnier, so armed with plenty of water and cool clothes we set off for Berlin sector. Plan for the day: Warm up on Petit Illusion 7a+, then go for an attempt on Petit Tom again. Petit Illusion was a fantastic route which I onsighted last year – really long with powerful tufa and flake sections before turning into vertical-slabby tech climbing near the top – with scary runouts! After completing this route, I belayed Rob on his new 8b project L’ami de tout le monde, which he made great progress on. I was getting psyched for my redpoint attempt on Petit Tom, and we walked back towards the Berlin sector and I started visualising the route.

 

I knew my new and improved sequence for the bottom off by heart, and felt confident that I could get through it. I began climbing and powered through the lower crux, becoming more and more determined to top the route and getting quite aggressive (yes, powerscreams were heard!) I kept going and shook out on the three “jug” rests which split the route into sections through which I knew I had to climb quickly and efficiently. After composing myself and fighting through the moves to the top crux, just two clips below the chain and followed by easier ground – I started getting a bit confused with my sequence. The rain had washed some tickmarks off and I started over-complicating my sequence. Started to get hideously pumped, I fought and fought before coming off going for a jug – the last hard move on the route! I was satisfied with my performance – I had overcome my expectations and had climbed well up to my new highpoint. I worked out the top sequence and embedded it in my mind and completed the last two clips. Sunday I will go in for the kill and hopefully tick this route!

 

Robbie had another go on L’ami and made good links. I fancied another go on Petit Tom, but it was getting dark and we were running out of food…so down we went to the campsite and cooked dinner (pasta and red again…with mackerel and tuna this time…oooh!)

Today we are resting in the sun and going shopping in Gap later…probably playing ping pong and getting a tan!

 

Tomorrow should be an exciting day with the pair of us getting so close to our projects…ALLEZ!!!!

 

Natalie

 

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Apples, Cookies and Cous-cous…
1 July 2011, 9:41 am

Yesterday was a good day! I managed to tick my first major project this trip – “Petit Tom” 8a. I first tried this route last year and made it an objective to complete it at some point! As we only spent 12 days here last year, I didn’t have enough time to focus on it, so it had to wait until yesterday!

Equally important to note is that the walk-in no longer feels like the hour-long, hot, sweaty and knackering slog that it used to – I think I am getting fitter and faster and don’t feel quite so flustered when I get to the top! I’m downgrading it from 8a – 7c+!

I had taken a break from trying the route for a few days before, as I felt as though it was hindering me from getting more mileage done by purely focussing on Petit Tom. Although it meant a lot to me, I knew I had to get more routes done and prevent myself from getting too affected by  the inevitable “redpoint stress”. I was confident that I could do the route, but many of my attempts were hindered by getting psyched-out at the upper crux – 5 moves on poor crimps then a long powerful move off the worst crimp to a jug….with quite a run-out! I had reached this section in a clean attempt two times, both times failing due to feeling pumped and worrying about the run-out. It would take a lot of commitment to go for the jump to the jug without the clip in – I could clip from a bad crimp after having rested on the clip below, but I knew it would be almost impossible to clip it before doing the jump on a redpoint attempt. Or so I thought…

After a day of terrible conditions on Wednesday, yesterday proved to offer less grease and a bit more friction! No thunderstorms in the distant mountain ranges causing high humidity like the day before, and a nice cooling breeze was blowing across the crag. Me and Robbie warmed up on an awesome 7a called “Gelati Dolomiti” – a classic of the crag! I on-sighted it, only just catching the hold on the reachy crux by the second clip. The rest of the route was a technical slab with amazing moves between perfect incut crimps (if a little sharp!) and wandering over bulges and finishing up a layback flake.

Feeling warm and psyched by the good conditions Robbie tried his route “Dures Limites” 8c and made some good links. He asked me if I wanted to go for Petit Tom, but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to try it or focus on mileage. I had been denied a decent attempt on it the day before due to the conditions, and had greased off the lower boulder crux. I felt apprehensive about getting back on it, feeling the redpoint stress and worrying about the lower moves which I’d pretty much always breezed through normally. I weighed up the options and decided to go for it – it was later and cooler and I might as well give it a go, I felt good and really wanted to get it ticked.

We walked to Berlin sector (busy as ever!) and met two friends there – Squib (an English guy we met in Siurana) and Dario (a crazy Italian guy!). They were trying a 7b+ beside Petit Tom and Dario was singing James Blunt songs such as “You’re Beautiful” and turning the song “Teenage Wasteland” into “Teenage Wasted”!. The atmosphere was light-hearted and quite hilarious. At first I thought my lack of focus was bad for my attempt, but in fact it relaxed me and I felt myself putting less pressure on getting the route done. I set off and felt strong, burling my way through the lower crux – crimp to two-finger pocket, to another two pockets, and another one, then crimp then JUG! I shook out and composed myself, overhearing conversations below about cous-cous…

I had split the route into sections, and to the next shake-out point I had to make 8 moves on crimps, including a powerful “go-again” move to a slopey jug from a shallow pocket. At the next rest “jugs” – basically the most positive crimps on the route! – I didn’t feel too pumped and knew it was going better than previous attempts. I decided not to hang around for too long, and powered through the next section which contains some rather tricky moves. I felt solid and got to the next rest on two slopey jugs, again not feeling as jaded as normal. I scoped out the sequence for the crux and went for it…crimp, crimp, crimp – clip! I made the clip from the bad crimp which I never thought I would manage on a successful attempt…then grabbed the poorest hold on the route and made the jump to the jug – but statically! I was surprised yet relieved, but still had a tricky technical section at the top. The moves aren’t hard, just balancy and they feel harder when tired! I traversed across to another rest point and breathed deeply, focussing on the last few moves. Eventually I was approaching the chain. I was nervous and my feet were shaking on the teetery crimps. I didn’t want to fall off now, not after how well everything else had gone. Flashbacks from Spain when the hold broke on my first 8a just below the chain haunted me, so I downclimbed two moves to a good hold and composed myself once more. Finally, I went for it with confidence, stepped my feet up , and reached up for the final jug – and clipped the chain! I was so relieved I had to rest for a minute before taking the quickdraws out. Tired but happy, I lowered down and was treated to a hug from Robbie, as well as half an apple and half a cookie from Squib and Dario!

I had achieved my first objective of the trip, and felt satisfied for the day as dusk was falling. I decided to have an on-sight attempt on a 7c called “La Chausse” near to Petit Tom. It was getting cold and dark but I wanted to give it my best attempt. The start was bouldery and hard, with extremely sharp holds! The sharpness of the holds and the coldness of my fingers gave me hot aches in my hands, which was very painful and I came off about half-way up. I was disappointed but pleased at the same time – I had given it my best shot, and was emotionally drained from doing the 8a! I continued to the top of the route and felt as though I could do it 2nd go, so watch this space!

We walked down in the dark and contemplated the day’s activities. What had I learned? My nerves had settled by taking a more relaxed approach to trying the route – and it worked. Rather than putting pressure on myself to get the route done just for the sake of it, I relaxed and enjoyed the climb. I think perhaps my competition head (which can be very intense!) was getting in the way – I was being too competitive with myself and the route rather than just climbing it for the sheer fun of it! I learned a very valuable lesson and hope that I can carry this forward when I try my next project  - which will be one of the following 8a’s:

• Carte Blanche
• Bourinator
• Les Colonettes

I have tried all of these at least once before (the first two last year) and think I now have the confidence and the correct attitude to complete these routes. I also want to continue gaining experience buy onsighting and flashing lots of easier routes, I have been doing this the last few sessions and it’s really helping me get into the right mindset for getting stuff “done”. I am also getting better at falling on slabs and vertical stuff (not that I want to get good at it, but just to feel more confident if it does happen!  )

 

Today is a well-earned rest day for many of us – Jacob ticked his 8a Carte Blanche yesterday too, and Olly climbed it the day before. Robbie is still tired from completing Black Bean so today we will be lazing about the campsite and trying to hitch a lift to Gap to get food!

 

P.s. I’m still no better at table tennis, despite Robbie’s desperate attempts at coaching me…

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Ticks! (not the blood-sucking kind!)
4 July 2011, 10:15 am

Salut! The campsite has been swamped with Brits over the last few days, as Ed, Sam, Luke and Ethan arrived a few nights ago. More are to come in the next few days, and I’m really looking forward to seeing everyone  Today is a rest day, and we planned to go swimming in a gorge but unfortunately the weather isn’t looking quite as glorious as it has been, so it looks as though we’ll take a trip to Gap and eat more pastries and pizzas

Over the last few days of climbing I have made more progress in getting routes ticked and gaining more confidence on rock. On Saturday I onsighted an amazing 7b called 2001 Odysee du Grimpeur as a warm-up and then tried my 7c project La Chose, hoping to get it second go. I made a silly mistake at the 3 rd clip and came off, but worked the move properly and came down to save myself for the next attempt. In the meantime Robbie ticked his 8a+ project Dolce Vita – a nice looking line which I want to try over the next few weeks. I got psyched up for another attempt at La Chose and worked my way up the bouldery bottom section. With lots of tiny pockets and crimps and sharp holds the first half feels considerably harder than 7c, then the top section eases off slightly until a hard last move clipping the chains! I took my time shaking out after the first half with the aim to go fast in the pumpy top half – I kept going, occasionally shaking out when I needed to. I was just before the last move and remembered what happened on Petit Tom – I got nervous and hung around too long unnecessarily – I decided just to go for it with confidence rather than risk getting pumped out. I did it! I was very happy and glad not to have to get my fingers shredded on the sharp pockets ever again

To finish off the day I had a great retro-flash attempt at Carte Blanche 8a – managing to get to the crux section halfway up the the steep bulge in one go. I found the crux move hard to work but was also pretty tired from the previous routes, but worked out the top section. Last year I did the same and flashed until the crux, but didn’t work past it. I really enjoyed the route and am psyched to get back on it!

Yesterday was also pretty successful in that I onsighted a very hard, technical and scary 7a+ on a slab called Angel Dust as a warm up – I had to keep constantly engaged in the climbing – it was so balancey and technical that one slip would throw you off! Afterwards I tried to onsight Changement de Look 7b+. I was going well up until the midway crux where I came off (very frutrated!) I tried working the sequence but it seemd so much harder than any move I’ve experienced on a 7b+. Fortunately I received beta off a very friendly German lady and managed to do the move and climbed it to the top. The following events were very annoying in that I wanted to try and redpoint “Changement” and do it 2nd go, and also try Carte Blanche again, but when I returned to both routes the clips had been taken out  I decided just to warm down by onsighting a 7a called Saint George’s Pecos – perhaps the best 7a I’ve done in Ceuse, a true classic!

Last night we said goodbye to our Australian mate Matt and his Mum Caroline – sad to say bye but see you in Australia! Other happenings worth mentioning was the great Felling of the Tree in the Gb camp – Dave attempted to put up a slackline and pulled it too tight, resulting in a tree falling down, much to the amusement of us and people around us in the campsite! Luckily it missed Hugh’s van and no people or dogs were injured in the process. I wish I had taken a photo of Tom, Robbie and Dave carrying the tree off into the thick wood beside the campsite – it was quite a funny sight!

Tomorrow I would like to get back on Carte Blanche and do Changement de Look – we shall see

 

Off to Gap now to splash out on Pain au Chocolats!

Natalie

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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The day I got angry!
7 July 2011, 11:36 am

Hey guys! Another rest day for us, and a very well-earned one I’d say! The last two days of climbing have been pretty intense – projects are becoming increasingly achievable and things have been going well on the on-sight front.

On Tuesday, despite being teased about my matching checked shirt and trousers (the ones that aren’t pyjamas!) I felt confident about getting back on “Changement de Look” 7b+ and knew I could do it 2nd go if I really went for the cruxy boulder move low down. After warming up by flashing “Lapinerie” 7b I felt ready. Luckily for me a Czech couple had just been trying the route and so they put my quickdraws in. Chatting to the guy who had just done the route, he reckoned it was “one of the hardest 7b+’s he’d ever done!” and that it was harder than the classic 7c “Berlin”. I got ready to climb and remembered the sequence which I had worked out before – if I was going to get through the hard section, I’d have to give it everything. The start is slightly tricky but I powered through and got to a good rest on a massive shield of rock and scoped out the next moves. I was at the crux – I bumped my right foot up, locked off and went again with my left hand from a tiny two-finger pocket to a good crimp, then locked off and twisted as I crossed into a good pocket and clipped. I had done the hardest part – but the rest was certainly not too easy! The next moves were very small on tiny holds and I had to constantly change my hand positions, swapping and matching. The next moves were easier and I had only the precarious slab to go – I smeared and bridged and palmed-off and got to one of the last moves. I remembered it being tricky but couldn’t remember exactly how I did it, I think I had climbed it more intuitively on the first go with less pressure after falling at the crux. I was hesitant and my feet were sore from standing on the tiny smears. I decided just to go for it and stop hanging around – I stood up and crossed through an I was just below the chain…two more moves and I clipped it! I was so relieved and happy – this route felt much harder than 7b+ and judging from what I’ve heard other people think the same!

Yesterday I warmed up on a 7a classic called “Un pont sur l’infini” – veryyy technical! I am really getting the hang of these long technical slabs now, I am actually starting to enjoy them rather than worrying about run-outs! I then set my eyes on “Carte Blanche” 8a – my current project. My first go since last year’s one and only half-hearted attempt had gone well, getting to the crux but not finding a way to do the move and pulling past it. Robbie jumared up a static line to get a video of me on the route. The pressure was on!  I felt confident and wanted to try and do it 2nd go – I needed to get ANGRY!! I am not known for being an aggressive climber and what followed I don’t really know where it came from…

I started climbing and jumped and powered through the long moves on good holds. I was over the first bulge and hanging from my feet in a good rest position below the crux. The atmosphere was a bit mental at the crag as the Americans and a young French crew were chatting to the Brits using what can only be described as “Franglish”. I was focussed but couldn’t help over-hearing the conversations consisting of “J’adore mon cheval” ( I love my horse) and “BAGUETTE!!” Somehow I conjured up the aggression to roar my way through the crux move – a massive move for me – and continued powerscreaming for about 6 or 7 moves until I reached the top section in a corner. Unfortunately I went wrong-handed to a pocket and was too pumped to correct it and came off going for the biggest jug ever in a really awkward way! I was about 5 moves from clipping the chain and very disappointed, but happy with the way I had climbed and approached the route. It was only my second attempt and I am aiming to get it next go! Our American friends and all the other Brits were quite taken aback by my noisy performance (and Robbie too I think!) and one said “I didn’t think you could make noises like that!” to which I responded “Neither did I!” Robbie got some awesome footage (apart from when the wind blew him around the rope just as I was nearing my highpoint!) which we will upload at some point.

Today we planned to go to the gorge to swim and jump but the weather has been a bit on-and-off, so just a lazy day unil a party tonight with our friends Squib and Dario  - to which we have been asked to bring the following:

• Alcohol
• Strippers
• Marshmallows
• Happyness

We were given this list and some directions written on the back of a cheese carton and were asked to invite as many people as possible, so please come along

Tomorrow is mission “Carte Blanche” for me. Stay tuned! Off for lunch now!

 

Natalie

 

 

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Changement is hard but is an old skool one i guess, still miles easier than Berlin which is 7c+ any day in my book, harder than Makach!

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Carte Blanche
9 July 2011, 10:53 am

Hey guys! After an “interesting” party the other night, the crew were feeling a bit jaded but a few still managed to have a good day at the crag! Yesterday was a great day, I managed to do my project “Carte Blanche” 8a on my 3rd try and Jacob managed to get “Les Colonettes” 8a second go! Robbie got very close on his 8b project and made it look like it’ll be getting done soon.

After getting so near to completing the route on my 2nd try I was psyched to try and get it next go – but also pretty nervous! Me and Robbie warmed up on the 7b classic “Lapinerie” and then got in line for “Carte Blanche” (Demi-Lune is always busy!)

Jon very kindly volunteered to video my attempt and provide support/heckling  I tried to relax but was also psyched up to get it ticked. The first moves flowed well and I shook out for a bit at the rest before the crux. Yet again, I unleashed a terrifying scream as I launched for the hold over the bulge – startling some people below. I made a silly mistake just after the crux but corrected my feet and composed myself – then another power roar followed! I climbed quickly through the next section and rested before the bit where I had fallen previously. I knew what I had to do now, now room for mistakes! I got the hold with the correct hand this time and made a big move to a jug – the end was in sight! I rested and continued up the technical arete – I made a silly mistake by going wrong-handed but luckily could correct it. Good crimp, cross under, feet up, a few moves and I had clipped the chain! “Done it!” I exclaimed in surprise and relief.

Hopefully we will get the footage up on here or Facebook soon

I was so happy to have ticked it in so few attempts, and straight after I went on my new project “Bourinator” 8a. I tried this route twice last year but didnt get to the top section. I had a flash attempt which was stopped when I came off just after the first crux, but I wasn’t disappointed as I hadn’t expected to make it through the crux in the first place  I worked the moves and felt much stronger than last year – today I am going up to try and get it second or third go!

I am really starting to get into the swing of things here now, my confidence is increasing and my fingers (touch wood) are still holding out – no pain which is amazing!

Off to play some table tennis now!

Natalie

 

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Blood, Sweat…and Bourinator!
10 July 2011, 10:45 am

Hey guys! Back on a lazy rest day today at the campsite so just a quick update on how things went yesterday. Once again I turned on the aggression and managed to tick “Bourinator” 8a on my second attempt this year (had two or three goes last year but never got past top boulder problem) I was confident that I could do all the moves, but I expected that linking them would be difficult as the route is pretty much my anti-style – steep and burly with lots of big, powerful moves! However, I was psyched to give it everything, and with Andre in place with the video camera the pressure was on to get it “done”!

Andre practiced with the camera, filming me reading the route and getting psyched up. I knew all the moves from my previous attempt the day before when I had worked out the best sequences, but this route would require a lot of burl and aggression to get me up it! I tied in and scrambled up the first easy section to clip the first quickdraw, chalked up and it had begun!

From a good sidepull I reached into a massive undercut, clipped and then moved into another undercut before powering up to a slot. Feet up, cross-over and into a good jug with poor feet. The next moves were the hardest for me – out to a two-finger pocket far right, then into an undercut beside it. Feet up high then a massive launch to a pocket which is awkward to catch and hard to see. I let out a powerscream and latched it, then followed the line of better holds up to a good rest. I composed myself and continued – the next section having awkward movs on good holds but awkward feet positions. I looked down and saw a trail of blood on the holds I had just used and thought “eurghh! Hope it’s not my hands!” I then looked at my left hand which had a massive flapper of skin on the little finger and blood leaking pretty heavily out of it. I tried my best to wipe it off on my trouser leg (eurghh!) and chalk it up (unpleasant!) and tried to forget about it. It made some moves a bit touch-and-go as my hand started slipping slightly, but I gritted my teeth and screamed through the next big moves…from a good hold to a pocket….then to a good edge….then a jug! I chilled out and heard friends from over on Demi Lune sector shouting “Come on Nat!” as they watched. The top section I remembered as being technical and crimpy, but I knew the moves weren’t too hard. I was fully recovered and did a deep lock to a crimp, then followed the small holds up the last vertical section. Finally I reached two good holds. I was jaded and felt worn out from my efforts, but was elated when I clipped the chain, almost in disbelief. I had fought an intense battle, made even more exciting with having a bloody hand! I was so tired that I found it impossible to strip the quickdraws off the route, so had to chill out a bit before taking them out!

The footage which Andre took is great, and will be put up soon I hope! The internet connection is very slow here which makes uploading difficult. Apparently (according to Robbie) my powerscreams attracted a lot of attention…and from watching the video I can see why!  I was so happy to get my 3rd 8a of the trip the day after my second, in so few attempts.I feel as though I am getting to grips with the tenacity required to tick hard routes – my confidnence is growing and after a year of finger injuries I seem to be overcoming them and making progress.

My next mission is to complete “Les Colonettes” 8a  - an amazing tufa line which I tried a few weeks back and am keen to get back on. I think it will be a tougher route for me to tick compared with the three 8a’s I have done so far this trip – big holds but big moves and pumpiness all round! I am also keen to try something harder like an 8a+ and an 8b…watch this space!

 

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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“Push it out!”
14 July 2011, 9:38 am

Hey guys! The last few days have been very busy indeed, well except for yesterday which was a very rainy rest day! We drove to Gap with our group of Irish friends and spent the day there to avoid the soggy campsite – after the disappointment of discovering that our favourite boulangerie was closed, we spent about 2 hours in the supermarket and had a relatively (compared to baguettes and salad!) extravagant lunch. We then ventured to the pet shop across the road where we saw turtles, a black chicken which looked like “Big Bird” and lots of reptiles, fish and fluffy things. Afterwards we went to the climbing shop for the 4th time in 4 weeks and walked for about an hour trying to find an internet cafe, eventually found one and wasted some time there before (FINALLY!) going for a pizza at the best pizza shack in La Fressinouse. We went there last year and have been desperate to go again! Me and Robbie shared a main course pizza then had a desert pizza with chocolate and raspberries (we traded two slices for two banana and chocolate ones from Michelle and Shane  ) After feeling suitably full and near to the point of explosion, we stopped eating for the day and returned to a slightly dryer camp and had some tea with Andre, Asha and Jerome.

Three days ago I warmed up and had a go on my project “Les Colonettes” 8a. I still couldn’t get past the tricky boulder at the start with a big move to a poor gaston hold and was getting a bit demotivated. I pulled past the move and tried to go for the 7c+ version redpoint from the jug after the boulder problem, which to me doesn’t feel like doing the route properly but I was psyched to try the rest of the route – an amazing line of tufas and pockets! Robbie was filming from above and I felt calm on the route, getting more used to the kneebars and clamps on the tufa-line. At the end of the tufas I reached the redpoint crux. Slightly pumped, the hold I was aiming for looked further away than ever, i got my foot up, went for it and missed. I was disappointed but happy that I had made progress compared to my last attempt. Afterwards I had a go on Robbie’s 8b project “Radote Joli Pepere”. It tarts up an easy slab section then goes over a massive roofy bulge with a boulder crux just over the lip. I worked the moves and did all of them except for the crux, by which point my skin was starting to shred! I really enjoyed trying something a lot harder and reckon this route is a possibility if I really go for it over the next week or so.

Tuesday was a good day, I warmed up by onsighting a 7a called “Nitassinan” in Biographie sector, a nice line with a tufa section at the top. The conditions were cooler and I felt good about getting back on “Les Colonettes”. Robbie was in position on the static rope to get footage and our friend Marten from Germany was on belay. I tried the boulder again and came off, frustrated. I tried it again a couple of times until one time I caught the gaston. I let go and lowered to the ground to try it in full. I got my left foot really high in a pocket then made a slightly dynamic move to the gaston, only just managing to catch it with my fingertips and creeping them up as far as I could. I locked into position and edged my right foot up and was in a very awkward position. I had to go for it, and jumped for the good ledge just beside the gaston, giving a powerscream as I latched it. I was surprised to have done the move but psyched, and chilled out before climbing through to the tufas. Knee-bar after knee-bar, I tried to get through the tufas quickly, as they can be pretty unrelenting on the forearms! Eventually I made it to the top of the blue streaks and rested on some good pockets. The next moves would be tricky after having completed the route from the start I reached the move where I had fallen last time, feeling pretty pumped. Luckily, I saw a good crimp which I had never used before, which enabled me to reach the good hold in a much more efficient fashion than before. Latching the good hold, I shook out and made a few harder moves to an even bigger jug before the final crux. I could hear Robbie willing me on from the static line and powered through the top section – including moves on pockets and monos! I grasped the final jug and clipped. Relieved, I lowered down completely knackered!

My 4th 8a of the trip! I was so psyched that I immediately got on a new project “Dolce Vita” 8a+ in Berlin which I found hard but managed to do all the moves. I think linking them will take a few goes but I’m feeling stronger and fitter each session, so I will see what happens when I go up today

Now we have lots of food again and everyone is psyched, as long as the rain and hailstones keep away! We said goodbye to our friends Olly, Tom and Will yesterday, and although the British camp is diminishing in size, we have friends from Canada and Germany who have joined our posse to keep the spirit alive

Natalie

 

 

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Livin’ la Dolce Vita!
17 July 2011, 6:28 pm

Two days ago I woke up, lazed around the campsite until 1pm then walked up to the crag. This was the day I wanted to tick off my 8a+ project “Dolce Vita”, and from my first try the session before I had worked out all the moves, but felt as though it would take time to knit them together. As Robbie’s finger was freshly cut from his 8b project, our German friend Marten was on hand to belay and Robbie resigned himself to taking pictures and videos (absolutely amazing ones at that!) We warmed up on a deceptive 6b and waited until it cooled down a bit – Marten taking on the 7b+ classic “Blocage Violent” and me getting psyched for “Dolce Vita”.

Ed and Sam kindly set up a static line for us and Robbie jumared up into position. It was freezing cold with a chilly wind blowing across Berlin sector – much colder than any day we had experienced in 4 weeks so far. I could remember all the moves, perhaps I was a little bit unsure of some footholds (the trickiest thing to work out on this route – the ideal foot positions!) but I was psyched to get it done. I managed the first section fairly easily and made it to the shake-out on a good jug just before the crux. The next few moves were fine, then I placed my foot high and went for the slopey pocket just before the crux and misjudged the catch, falling off in annoyance. I worked the move and the crux section and completed it to the top, stopping only for Robbie to get some footage from different angles.

I felt confident in the way that I had remembered and processed the moves, and thought that 3rd go may be a possibility. After Marten had had another attempt at “Blocage” I was fired up and ready to go. Robbie was back into position on the rope. I tied in, took a deep breath and climbed the bottom section carefully up until the rest. Everything was exactly as it was on the previous attempt, no change in sequence or foot positioning. I got to the move with the high foot and went for the pocket, this time latching it perfectly as I let out a powerscream! A bad crimp, an even worse crimp, an awkward clip and then the crux move – a massive launch to good pocket put right. I went for it but just didn’t quite catch it right and came off. I was frustrated but saw it as a chance to improve my sequence, finding a higher and better foothold to give me more power for the move.

It was getting late but I wanted another go – my skin was sore, I was getting more tired and cold but I was determined! I went for a run all the way from Berlin sector to Pont sur l’Infini and back to keep warm, chatting to people I knew along the way. They all offered me their encouragement and the adrenaline was building!

I felt slightly jaded from my previous attempts and said to myself that I had plenty of opportunity to try it again during the trip if things didn’t work out this time, which reassured me and I felt able to just enjoy climbing the route rather than pressure myself into doing it. I smoothly climbed to the jug rest. I remember my skin feeling raw and more painful than the last time, and in a way resigning myself to a possible failure at the crux again. I fought through the moves just before the launch to the pocket, placing my body in a slightly different position and nearly coming off due to not thinking properly – the fight had begun! I clipped and started positioning my feet, feeling a bit pumped and dazed, I looked up at the pocket and went for it…and to my surprise I caught it! I heard Robbie and people down below encouraging me as I roared and latched it, then brought my feet up and went again to a good pocket. The hardest part was over but the top section would still require intense concentration – techy moves on small crimps don’t leave room for complacency! I climbed every move assertively but with care – I have learnt that hesitation on technical sections can also be a downfall! The last tricky move was done and I knew in my mind (although I didn’t want to believe it too soon) that the route was “in the bag”. I clipped the chain and felt slightly dizzy – with fatigue and happiness! I lowered down to be congratulated by Robbie and Marten. I discovered that Robbie had got some footage from a distance, and playing it back was hilarious – his commentary was along the lines of a harsher version of “Bloomin’ heck!” as I got through the crux. I think I surprised him  I had done my first 8a+ in 4 goes, and a bouldery one at that!

That evening we went to a barbeque with the Irish crew which was lovely – good food and company! In all I think the best day of the trip so far, and we returned at 2am to the campsite where me, Luke and Gasper braved the cold showers and earned “lad points” in doing so!

The next day I felt tired from the day before’s exploits, so decided to have a mileage day of ticking easier routes fast. I warmed up on “Blocage Violent” 7b+, managing to on-site it despite getting massively pumped! I then went for an on-sight of “Berlin” 7c, coming off at the start (due to very polished footholds and a bad sequence!) but then worked it to the top and got it next go – one of the best routes I’ve done here I reckon.

We are now on rest day number two due to rain, but tomorrow is looking to be better on the weather front and Robbie’s finger is healing up nicely. He has made some fantastic videos and taken some awesome photos – some are on his blog, others you will have to wait for and be patient!  As for my next project, I’m not too sure what I’ll try next – perhaps another 8a or 8a+?

Time for tea now, hope all is well in the UK!

Natalie

 

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Ceuse Trip Summary
25 July 2011, 4:59 pm

I’m back in Scotland now and although it’s good to be home (especially as I am still ill!) I am missing the rock and the people we met during our trip! 5 weeks was a long time to spend in one place, and the combination of camping in a tent during cold nights and doing the epic hour-long walk-in roughly 25 times up and down certainly took its toll on us! Our last week was frustrating in that Robbie’s finger was split open on his 8b project and I fell ill with suspected food poisoning through handling raw chicken  – resulting in little to no climbing in the last week

However, the trip as a whole was both enjoyable and successful – we are definitely heading back next year! It was great to hang out with our friends from the GB Climbing Team in a non-competitive environment for a change, and just relax and enjoy the climbing. We also met loads of new and interesting people from all around the world, as well as learning about ourselves as climbers and what we need to work on for next year. In fact, Robbie and me were so psyched about our goals for next year that we listed them in a document at Lyon aiport and made a training programme in order to acheive them!

My main concern before I arrived was my finger injuries – I had two minor pulley tears (one on each ring finger) which had been holding me back both in training and performance. I had been climbing on them carefully and not following much structured training other than pure bouldering sessions. I saw gains in strength and power compared to last year, as I had never really just trained bouldering on its own before in 11 years of climbing, but still had to err on the side of caution and stop when it hurt too much – a necessary evil! :p Coping with an injury is frustrating and has an affect on the mind which can be almost as distressing as (if not more) than the physical pain in some cases. I had never really had a serious injury through climbing in 10 years before this (apart from two hernias, not necessarily due to climbing!) and always tried my best to avoid getting injured, so when the first one arrived after Ceuse last year, it was hard for me to accept. Just as this one was starting to heal up in February this year, the same injury occurred on my right hand – even more acute than the first one. I had just competed in the BBC’s and was feeling confident in my bouldering, I knew I had improved a lot and was reluctant to take it easy – I wanted to go to Spain and climb hard routes, this was the last thing I needed! In the end I had to ease off the gas and listen to my body (and Robbie!) I focussed on slopey holds and big dynamic moves between jugs, avoiding crimps and pinches or any move/hold which could hurt. I had a great trip in Spain, it was a real learning curve as I had to step back a fair bit and do lots of mileage to build confidence and movement skills on the rock. I found it harder to predict which holds and moves would be painful on the rock, and lacked aggression to really go for moves in fear of causing potentially permanent damage to my fingers. I ended up ticking my first 8a by working my way through the grades and picking an apprropriate route. I learned ways of climbing without over-straining my fingers on rock and overcame a massive hurdle in doing the 8a. I hoped I could learn from this experience and give it my best in Ceuse…

The first few days were all about mileage (and getting used to the walk-in!) - my fingers were slightly tweaky but felt different  after two or three days of climbing. I have no idea how or why my fingers healed so suddenly, but I reckon a combination of hot weather, Tiger Balm and the magical rock of Ceuse had something to do with it! It is slightly creepy that my first injury appeared the day after I got home from Ceuse last year, and upon my return both disappear! Despite the lack of pain, I was sceptical and still wary of pushing myself too hard too soon. I also felt relatively unfit on the rock, which was frustrating! 8 months of no route-climbing meant I was getting pumped quick, something I hadn’t experienced since returning to climbing after my operation last February (and that was only 10 weeks off!) As a result I lacked confidence – I was strong enough to do moves but felt pumped and unnerved by big run-outs on vertical/slabby ground (for which Ceuse is notorious!) I found it hard to get psyched when all I was worrying about was falling and hurting myself – it really detracted from the climbing and irritated me. Being on a rope again high up felt really unnatural after bouldering for so long, and I seemed to have acquired some kind of injury paranoia after dealing with two of them for a year. It took about 2 weeks to be fully comfortable with falling, I overcame it by warming up on tricky 7a/+ slabs and realising that the determination I had to do the route was more than the chance I had of hurting myself by falling.

I ticked ”Petit Tom” 8a, but it had been a case of getting redpoint stress and having a lack of confidence, which made it take a lot longer to do than it should have. I was also still building up my endurance and quite often I would just pump out and fall off! The major turning point of the trip was the day that I almost did “Carte Blanche” 8a second go. I don’t really know what came over me, or at what point I changed my outlook on redpointing, but I just remember feeling really angry with myself for not going for moves previously on routes. I wanted to show what I was capable of if I put my mind to it. There was a good gathering of people at Demi-Lune, and I remember being a bit put-off by the noise and activity at the crag. In fact, I think this encouraged me more to get psyched and really go for it – it was just like in competitions where there is noise and lots of distractions, but you have to zone-in to the climb and use the atmosphere to your advantage and feel the adrenaline! This was what I’d been doing for years and it had never fazed me – for some reason I’d had difficulty transferring it onto the rock. I think I had always doubted myself when it came to outdoors, believing that I was just a competition climber and would never be able to do hard routes outdoors. I had to deal with comments along this line from very narrow-minded adults (yes, adults!) a lot when I was younger, and if there’s one thing I enjoy doing, it’s proving people wrong and surprising those who doubt my abilities in some way.

I got on the route and made it to the rest before the crux. This was it, a massive move that required full committment. I looked at the pocket and went for it – powerscreaming and latching it. The next moves also required a lot of gutsiness -I did the same and roared as I caught the next holds. I was being aggressive and it was working! I made it to near the top before falling after getting my hand sequence wrong, I was annoyed at falling but satisfied with the way I had climbed. Everyone down below was quite taken-aback by my performance, as was I! I had always been a very cautious and considerate climber in competitions and in general, but this new style of climbing seemed to work well for me outdoors. The power-screaming seemed to remind me how much I wanted the route, and prevent any insecurity or reluctance from taking hold of me.

Now more confident in my abilities, “Carte Blanche” and the next two 8a’s came quick and fast – I did the same on “Bourinator” and “Colonettes”, and climbed with sheer aggression and determination. “Colonettes” was probably the hardest route for me, moreso because I had had a nightmare on it on my first attempt! After failing on the boulder problem at the start, which has a very big move to a poor sidepull, I was slightly demotivated for trying the rest of the route - graded at 7c+ if you can’t free the start. I hadn’t climbed much on tufas before and found them quite intimidating, I didn’t like the massive runouts and found knee-barring a very alien concept, and after getting completely boxed on the tufas the top section was still quite tricky on sharp holds! This first attempt involved lots of negativity and “I can’t”s, but after doing “Carte Blanche” I was determined to get it done. I struggled to do the first section, but eventually summoned up the power to get through it and completed the route! In the space of one week I had ticked 3 8a’s in a row, a feat I never thought I could acheive when I was struggling to get to grips with 7a’s and run-outs!

It was time to work on something slightly harder – I had an attempt at “Dolce Vita” 8a+ and “Radote Jolie Pepere” 8b. Both routes felt tickable, but with the time I had left I wanted to focus on “Dolce Vita”. On my second attempt I reworked the crux, and by the third I came off halfway through the crux, but found a new foothold! It was getting late and my skin was sore. I was tired but wanted to do this route on my next go. I went for a run to warm up and got on, not feeling as comfortable as before but my determination won through – my sequence worked and I roared through the crux. Once again, mind had won over matter! Watching the footage of me climbing this route taken by Robbie really inspired me, I had never seen myself climb like that before from a distance, and looking on as a spectator gave me a different perspective on my climbing. I had surprised myself and my foot was now in the door for climbing a harder grade!

In all I realised what I am capable of if I put my mind to it – as someone once said to me, I reckon I climb about 3 grades harder in competition than I do in training - purely because of my determination to succeed and the way my mind has adapted to competitive environments. I have had to learn to be competitive with myself and the routes I try outdoors, and to believe in my abilities. I feel fitter and stronger than before I went out, and can’t wait to get back on a trip with friends and meet more new people  I would like to thank everyone on the trip who gave support in some way – whether it was a quiet “Allez Nat!” or a full-on “PUSH IT OUT!” We had a great team spirit at the crag! Thanks also go to Robbie for his patience and support when I was finding my feet on the rock, and for looking after me over the last few days when I was vomiting and generally not being very pleasant to be around

Now that my fingers seem to have healed up, I am psyched to get into training for next year and all the trips I have coming up – Yorkshire, Kalymnos and Spain! My aims for the next year are to consolidate 8a/+ and climb some 8b’s, bring it on!

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Rain, rock and Raindogs!
21 August 2011, 8:11 pm

Hey everyone,

Sorry for the lack of blogging since Ceuse, so much has been happening and I’ve not had the time to put it down on paper (or on a computer screen :p) We are currently in the pub which has become our “local” over the last while!

We have been in Yorkshire for a week and a half now and have already undertaken our first successful coaching group as part of our 3 “Yorkshire sport climbing weekends”. We have also managed to get a bit of climbing for ourselves in on the side in between coaching sessions and the psyche is now high for our projects at Malham Cove.

Robbie and I arrived in Yorkshire to be greeted by the worst rain I have ever experienced! Torrential downpours were not ideal for setting up and living in a tent for 3 weeks, but we were determined not to let the weather get in the way of our work and climbing. Positive thought and “sundances” were brought  on in order to dissuade the rain from destroying moral and dampening our hopes of having a good time. Luckily, we somehow escaped the worst of the weather and managed to find some dry rock…

Our first group consisted of Ben from London and Pete from Edinburgh. Both guys went from strength to strength over the 4 days – overcoming fear and doubt and generally being enthusiastic and good fun to work with. Ben managed to lead his first 6c+ and toprope his first 7a outdoors, and Pete successfully lead his first 6b+ outside! Our crags of choice were Robin Proctor’s Scar and Trow gill for the first three days, and Malham Cove on the fourth. Tired but enlightened by their experience, Ben and Pete learned a lot from focussing on redpoint tactics and movement skills on the rock  - I am sure both will continue to push their grades with their newfound confidence.

In the few days we had before our first coaching group, I had been working on building up some mileage on the classic 7a’s and 7b’s at Malham. I did some classics such as “Consenting Adults” 7a and “Rose Coronary” 7a, and onsighted a 7b called “Something Stupid”. My sights were set on “Raindogs” 8a, a route which has been on my ticklist since I was very young indeed! I had tried the route two years ago but only made it up to the second clip, finding the moves very powerful and hard, perhaps due to climbing in the baking sun! This time I went for a retro-flash attempt and made it halfway before falling. I worked the moves to the top and felt confident that I had a good sequence, the hard part would be linking these together! My first red point (second attempt) went pretty well, I made it to the second-last clip, powering out at an undercut move which takes you onto the final crimpy section below the chains. I was psyched and thought it could go potentially on my third try, I had new beta which would make that move easier and didn’t feel very pumped up until that point.

 My next go I got to the last hold before the chains, finding it awkward and strenuous to move my feet up after having climbed the rest of the route and feeling slightly jaded! I reworked the sequence ready for the next day’s attempt. I knew I had a perfect sequence (or did I?) and went for it the next morning. I had the last hold and eyed up the chains, pulling as hard as I could…two fingers wrapped around the screwgate…before slipping out promptly. I was very frustrated as I had felt composed up until that move, I think I hesitated a little too much rather than just going for it! The next two attempts were a similar story, perhaps getting even closer to grabbing the screwgate! I also found a hold which made the last move feel slightly less dynamic, so I was happy to have picked up on that after falling off in frustration and refusing to go back on the wall! I decided to leave it for a day and when I next got on the route, I knew I had no excuse not to be able to do it- I had a perfected sequence and the only thing that could potentially hold me back  was doubt, or a polish-induced foot-slip! I felt reasonably relaxed as I began to climb the first section, and chilled out at the first and only rest. I continued, climbing quickly in order to preserve energy and keep up a rhythm. Nearing the chains I felt much more in control and even the holds seemed more welcoming than normal. I used the tiny intermediate and balanced myself to go for the chain…and latched it! I had climbed my first 8a in Britain and my 6th so far this year. 

After my success on Raindogs, I decided to work the moves on Predator 8b. I really enjoyed the first section, thinking it was about 7b/+ and tried the crux section a few times, finding the holds fairly positive but the feet very perplexing! Eventually my skin was wearing thin so I decided to come down and try again another time. I had a second attempt and made it up to the crux without falling, trying the moves numerous times to work out the best sequence. I think the route will take a good few attempts and more working but I am psyched to return to it in the next few sessions! I am currently working on “Overnite Sensation” 8a+, a short and powerful route with a cruxy boulder start. I really like the climbing despite the first sharp holds which are very painful to hold and throw for! Tomorrow I really want to try and get it ticked, it will take lots of determination and aggression but I think I am getting into the zone of Malham’s tricky style – powerful techy moves with bad footholds and lots of core strength! 

Robbie has also had a very successful first few sessions, ticking “Overnite sensation” 8a+, “Predator” 8b and “Austrian Oak” 8b, each within four tries! He has now set his sights on “Unjustified” 8b+/c and looks set to keep on crushing. He has put together a great video of me on “Raindogs” and is currently sat beside me making one of him on “Overnite”…watch this space!

Today we said goodbye to our friend, photographer and chauffeur (:p) Will Carroll, who has been a fantastic help with setting up ropes and taking amazing photos as always! We already miss him and have stockpiled on food until we can catch a lift off someone else into Settle…

With four more days of climbing until our next coaching session, keep reading for more updates from the Cove!

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Overnite Sensation!
24 August 2011, 11:44 am

Yesterday was a very long and tiring day. We got up reasonably early and sat outside the tent wondering what to do – if it was going to be too hot and sunny to climb, we didn’t want to bother going to the crag and would rest instead. It was fairly overcast and cooler than the day before, so we decided to head up to the Cove a bit later on with our objectives in mind – to crush our projects! We lazed around reading and drawing and watching the wasps devour a massive blob of honey which we had put on a spoon to distract them from trying to get at our breakfast. I also drew out a route map of “Overnite Sensation” on the back of some cardboard from the cereal box! (I was very bored!)

Upon arriving at the crag, our friends informed us that conditions were rubbish – greasy holds and muggy heat! I’ve never liked letting conditions obstruct my desire to climb a route – I sometimes think that worrying too much about whether holds are damp or greasy prevents you from really going for things. We warmed up on a 7a+ and top-roped it again to get a bit more of a pump on. As the sun broke through the clouds in the early afternoon, we took it easy and relaxed on the Catwalk for an hour or two.

At the top of the Cove...don't look down! Will Carroll My project “Overnite Sensation” 8a+ was the first to come into the shade out of our routes, so I looked at my little drawing on the cereal box cardboard – complete with footholds, clips and little memory-jogging notes such as “camp crimp!” (only Robbie and Will would understand  ) – and compared my sketch to the route. I had remembered it perfectly and had what I thought was a perfect sequence. I tied in and stepped up to the tricky boulder problem at the start. I placed my feet on the tiny polished crozzles and hoped that they would stick, I reached the last hold of the boulder crux just after the first clip and jumped up to a good sloper and gaston edge. I clipped and breathed and continued. I tried to rest in a position which Robbie had used when he climbed the route, but it wasn’t as comfortable as I found it to be when working the route. I pushed on and fell after my foot slipped going for a good side-pull crimp halfway up – it was the same as my last highpoint. I was frustrated to get to the same place again but equally pretty happy that I had made it through the boulder again at the start. I re-worked the big move and found a much easier way of throwing for it without using a polished foothold! After falling I did the route to the top in one push so was satisfied to have completed it in two halves – next go I would have the ultimate sequence and really wanted to get it done!

Robbie was still waiting for the shade to come in on “Unjustified”, so I decided to have another go. I pulled on and found that I was too slow in moving my feet around, getting a bit confused with the footholds. I was annoyed that I had managed to get through this section twice before fairly easily and now it felt hard again, I got a bit frustrated and tried again, but was tiring from hanging onto the tiny sharp crozzles. My skin was wearing thin and my energy was waning. I decided to leave it until after Robbie had tried his route and relax for a bit with some bran flakes and oatcakes!

Working "Predator" 8b. Will Carroll “Unjustified” was now in the shade and Robbie was psyched to get on it – he had been waiting all day for this moment! He cruised up the start – a tricky 7b – and smoothly climbed through the crux before his foot slipped going for the next hold. A brilliant effort, but he was not satisfied with the sequence and re-worked a bit of it and did some cleaning of the holds on the way down.

The air was much cooler now and the herds of tourists staring up at the Cove were diminishing. I knew I just had to relax and not get too pent up about doing the route, I needed to enjoy it. Adam Jeewooth and his Uncle Carl (and dog Treacle) had been following my attempts on the route with enthusiasm, and as I tied in Carl said “This go Nat?” “Yeah I hope so!” I replied. I took a deep breath and began to climb. I felt very calm and the boulder problem went much easier than before. I shook out by the second clip and tried to keep up my breathing – the holds get bigger as you go higher on this route, but at the same time the distance between them starts to increase! I got to my previous highpoint and used the new foot position, which sent me flying directly to the crimp. I was relieved, surprised and nervous all at the same time. Now I had to do the rest! One big move to a flat, open pinch and then into two undercut sidepulls for a quick rest.The next move from an undercut and gaston to a good tufa was one of the biggest moves on the route for me – feet high, I lunged for it and caught it. Then into a poor block undercut (at this point I actually spotted a small insect on the hold, and rather than squash it by grabbing onto the hold, I opted instead to politely poke it out of the way!) and into the top of the tufa as an undercut. I clipped and shook out straight-armed, breathed deep and smiled – the chain was in sight! A powerful cross-through to a sidepull and then a shouldery press off a gaston into the “Camp Crimp”! I turned my left hand from a gaston into an undercut and threw from a sidepull to a bad pinch just below the chains. I snatched for an intermediate sidepull with my left to balance myself and move my right foot up and flagged really deep…catching the final crimp before rocking over and clipping the chain!

I was so shocked that I had managed to complete it – even though I had climbed the route in two halves before, I thought it would take a lot to keep going through the final hard moves without falling. I was completely out of breath at the top and struggled to take the clips out! Robbie, Adam, Carl and some other climbers at the crag were all cheering as I topped out – I was grateful for their support, I think it definitely helped to bring out the aggression I needed to keep fighting!

Getting psyched! Will Carroll After my ascent Robbie was unsure as to whether he should have another go on “Unjustified”. He decided he might as well seeing as the next day would be a rest day. He had another good attempt but felt tired and instead worked on finding some sneaky rests! Judging from today I reckon he is certainly not far at all from ticking this route, and it will be an awesome achievement to climb such a route at Malham.

I am not sure what to do next. I think I will have a day of mileage tomorrow, onsighting some easier routes and maybe getting on “Zoolook” 8a or “Predator” 8b. At the moment we are in the pub (again!) waiting for a meeting with someone about something exciting…

 

Natalie

 

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Not long to go…so much to do!
1 September 2011, 3:44 pm

Hey guys! We are nearing the end of our 4 week stint in Yorkshire Pudding land. We are still going strong on porridge, oatcakes, houmous, and flapjacks (we will turn into oats soon enough if we don’t stop eating foods consisting of them!) and our nighttime dinners of pasta, veg and chorizo sausage! The weather is steady and not as unpredictable as the first three weeks, but we are definitely feeling a bit jaded after working so hard in our coaching sessions and redpointing our routes at the Cove. Reading Harry Potter at the top of Malham Cove (where some scenes of the last film were shot) in the evening has become a habit of ours and is a good way to relieve redpoint stress!

I have been getting frustratingly close to doing “Zoolook” 8a  - each time I go up I learn something new about the sequence, and tomorrow I hope to get it done if I manage to keep my head together! Last attempt went really well, I got through the crux and felt calm as I reached up for a good sidepull. I then had a total mind-blank with my foot sequence and dithered too much, going for a tricky undercut pocket with my left-hand and falling due to not catching it properly. Robbie is also planning an attack on this route as well as “The Groove” 8a+. Conditions have been a bit muggy over the last few days and today we are taking a well-earned rest.

Raindogs...the windmill move We have now finished our Yorkshire Sport Climbing weekends, which went really well. Our last group included Nina, Stewart and Andrew – Ratho regulars who all had varied experience on rock before coming to Yorkshire. Stewart (Andrew’s Dad) was a keen trad climber in his youth and was looking for some hints and tips on getting back into the sport climbing game on rock. Andrew (18) had primarily been trad climbing before coming on the trip, and hadn’t pushed his sport grades as much. Nina was looking for help with transferring her indoor skills onto the rock, after having only started climbing in January this year.

Our first day was spent at Robin Proctor’s Scar, not too far from Malham. We started on some easier topropes to get everyone’s head in the game and focus purely on movement without worrying too much about clipping/falling etc. I filmed the first climbs for comparison with their later attempts on other routes, and it was very interesting to watch how quickly Stewart and Andrew adapted to the rock, moving much smoother and quicker than when they first started warming up. Nina was having difficulty with trusting her feet and having the confidence to commit to moves, however she did fantastic for her first time on real rock and we reassured her that almost everyone has difficulty when climbing outdoors for the first time, where there are no coloured blobs to follow and many possibilities for movement! Stewart flashed a 6b+ on lead and Andrew redpointed it shortly after his first go. Work started on the project of the trip – a techy 6c+. Both tried the moves on toprope to scope out the sequences, aided by some tickmarks on the holds courtesy of Robbie!

On the second day the weather let us down at Robin Proctor’s so we only had a half day there before getting rained off! We headed to Malham and the guys had a play on “Rose Coronary” 7a and Nina also had a go on toprope before settling for “Begozi and the Ledge Lizards” 6a+. Nina loved Malham and her confidence was starting to grow – her performance on these routes was much more in control than at Robin Proctor’s, things were looking up for the next two days!

We decided to start off at Giggleswick Scar for a morning warm-up and to test out some of the 5′s and 6′s the crag had to offer. Nina flashed a 5+ on toprope, making very easy work of it, and the guys both flashed some 6a’s and looked on form for getting back to work on the 6c+ at Robin Proctor’s in the afternoon. It was a wild and windy day, absolutely freezing and not the best conditions for sending, but the boys did a great job – both falling near the top and giving the climb their all. Nina top-roped a 6a+ with ease and was really starting to enjoy the climbing for what it was without the fear of falling or being high up. Everyone was psyched for the next day, when the project would be going down!

We finally struck lucky with the weather and the sun came out to cheer on our rock warriors at Robin Proctor’s. Andrew gave the 6c+ a great first attempt, falling off just below the chains. His Dad Stewart had a lot to live up to after that attempt, he was nervous but psyched! He cruised up the route and battled through the tricky top moves, he threw for a crimp, stepped up and was at the top! Mission complete for Stewart! Meanwhile, Nina gave the classic 6a+ of the crag “Wheel of Fire” a great attempt, getting through the crux and slipping just after halfway. Andrew was raring to go on the 6c+ again after a good rest and went through the sequence again with Robbie. He was looking smooth and composed himself before going for it at the top…an easier sequence helped him reach the top and clip the chains – another 6c+ for the team!

Not satisfied with the 6c+ ticks, Andrew decided that he wanted to try “Rose Coronary” 7a again at Malham, giving it a final burn before leaving for Scotland. Stewart decided that he was too fatigued after the 6c+ to try “Rose Coronary” after giving it a good attempt on a previous day, but Andrew was keen to get it ticked. He fell off at the chains just before it was time to leave, but he decided he wanted to give it a final go – and he did it! 6c+ and 7a in a day – a personal record for Andrew who had lead-climbed 6c before coming on the trip. In all, a very successful 4 days of climbing, all 3 climbers learned something new and accrued some useful experiences to take home with them and reflect on when next on a rock-trip.

Off for some chorizo and pasta…stay tuned for more updates from the Cove!

At the top of Malham Cove  

 

 

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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All good things come in 3?s
3 September 2011, 8:53 pm

The last few days have been very productive and exciting for me, as we come to the end of our trip to Yorkshire. Yesterday I ticked my project “Zoolook” 8a (just after Robbie – team ascent!) – a route which had taken a fair bit of patience to learn the sequence and cope with polished footholds! The route finally went down on our 3rd attempt of the day – something just seemed “right” and both of us focussed on doing the move rather than worrying about our feet slipping!

Straight after ticking “Zoolook”, Robbie put the clips in “GBH” 8a+ and worked out the moves. Today I had a go working out the moves then went for a redpoint burn – getting up to the crux and coming off on a powerful undercut move (of which there are many!) Robbie ticked the route 3rd go – an awesome effort! I am hoping to feel refreshed tomorrow (our last day of climbing ahhh!) and get it done. It really would be the icing on the cake if I manage to do it, hopefully the fact that we will have limited time before getting the train home will be an incentive to fight for it!

Chilling at the top of Malham...nearly hometime! Will Carroll Tonight more good news arrived as I received an invite to join the GB Bouldering Team  via email – an offer I am very excited about! After my 4th place in the BBC’s I am psyched to improve on this and to experience the international bouldering comps. Through following my bouldering-orientated training program, I am really starting to see the benefits of having extra strength both on the boulder wall and on routes – indoors and out.

Another exciting development is my offer of sponsorship from Blurr – the American climbing clothing brand just starting to branch out into the UK. I have chosen my first 15 items for next season (I was tearing my hair out trying to decide on clothes and colours!  ) and can’t wait for the gear to arrive.

Today I helped out a little with Robbie and Ross’s MCofS coaching session at Malham with young Angus Davidson and William Bosi – both Ratho climbers and GB junior team members. They had an awesome time, both sending “Something Stupid” 7b 2nd go and William redpointing “Space Race” 7b+ 2nd go! Tomorrow we are returning early to the crag to get back on projects and get some sends in before heading home….FINALLY!  :P

We have had a great trip so far, let’s see what tomorrow brings…

Goodbye Malham! Will Carroll

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Becoming a Yummick!
17 September 2011, 8:34 pm

This (rather hectic!) last week has been Fresher’s Week at Edinburgh University, and it’s crazy to think that a year has passed since it was my turn to move to Edinburgh and enter a whole new stage in life! It’s been a great year for me in Edinburgh, both climbing and academic/university- wise, and judging by the last week or so I think 2nd year will be just as exciting if not more so – with new friends, a new flat, new subjects and an amazing atmosphere of serious psyche for training and getting strong (and that’s just within the University!)

I returned to Edinburgh last Saturday after spending a week or so in Glasgow recovering from 5 weeks of damp camping in Yorkshire – along with yet more clothes/objects/food and anything else that I thought would come in handy. I had about 5 days of rest in Glasgow to fully recover before coming back to Edinburgh and launching into my training programme. My next big event is the BLCCs at Ratho on the 15th and 16th October – I may even enter the speed competition!  I’ll have to hurry up a bit though…

I trained on Sunday at Ratho with the usual suspects – James, Will and anyone that happened to be bouldering too! I also gave young Jodie some belays on her latest lead projects and she seemed to be cruising up them all! After a bit of Beastmakering I returned to my flat and was asked if I wanted to come round to the University’s Mountaineering Club flat – Graham Brown House (GBH), just 5 minutes walk from where I stay. In the last year I didn’t join the club as I had so much on with my junior comps and training, that I thought I wouldn’t be able to make meets or have much time to socialise with everyone. However, I got to know quite a few of the club members throughout the year whilst climbing at Ratho and the Uni wall at The Pleasance. The meets sounded fun, the parties looked awesome and the people seemed friendly, so this year I have decided to “join the club”, as it were!

I went along to GBH and met quite a few new faces, and was inspired by the legendary GBH “woody” which can be seen in the window from the street. It may be a small wall but it’s enough to play about on and do silly things like dynos and one-move wonders – enough to keep a bunch of enthusiastic climbers amused anyway! I committed a crime by trying to guppy a tiny round crimp to get to the next hold- don’t think I stuck it though! The living room is adorned with hundreds of guidebooks, alpine journals and mementos from past trips in the mountains. I learned of all the traditions in the flat and heard stories of the famous “GBH Parties”. At the end of October I may come along and experience one for myself! Surprisingly, I managed to spend almost 7 hours at the flat and left in the early hours of the morning :O

Monday was a quiet day sorting out any admin I still needed to do for Uni and the flat, and Tuesday I had a physio assessment and screening as part of the Edinburgh University Individual Performance Programme. Somehow my ridiculously over-tight hamstrings and knotted back have improved since last year, which is good news! I found out that my left shoulder is “winging” slightly, so that’s one area I will receive help with through physio support  at FASIC. Afterwards I had a good session at the University climbing wall at the Pleasance. I had fun climbing with Ryan and Big Tom trying some very funky problems with dynos, mantles and massive rock-overs. One problem kept us amused for over an hour as we tried to dyno for a slopey hold over the lip of the roof traverse – we then realised (thanks to Mehmet) that we could simply get our left foot a bit higher and prevent having to do the awkward (and scary!) lunge and generally stop looking like fools landing SPLAT! on the mats like a sack of spuds! Eventually me and Ryan managed the problem despite numerous failed attempts (caught on video, but I can’t upload them to my computer for some reason). In the evening I helped to set up the Mountaineering Club’s stall at the Fresher’s Fair ready for the following two days. After suspending a tent from a balcony and dangling a stuffed alpinist off the wall we went round the Uni accommodation putting up posters for the club – which was more fun than it sounds! Surrounded by lots of mental Freshers, we encountered some funny scenes near the student halls

The EUMC stall Early on Wednesday I arrived at the sports hall to make sure that someone was there if the stall had to be moved (our dangling tent was worryingly near to the fire exit!) We managed to attract lots of interest by dressing up and looking a bit silly but equally cool enough to entice people into the club. Harry wore his winter kit, Ryan wore a harness and chalkbag, and I wore my GB team vest and SUS/BUCS medals (they made me do it!!!  ) We had over 100 names by the end of the day so it went pretty well. I left later on to climb at Alien Rock 2 with Kirsten, who was looking in good shape for the Scottish Bouldering Championships next weekend in Aberdeen.

Thursday was a very full-on day – I had my induction for the Performance Sport Programme at the gym from 9am-2:30 pm, then a meeting with my Director of Studies, then a bouldering and beastmaker session at Ratho, and then a Fresher’s preview slideshow for the mountaineering club at 10pm. I received some new Kukri kit for the Programme and had a lunch with some senior people from the University. Then it was on the bus to Ratho to train and give Jonny Field a few belays before he leaves for Sheffield (good luck Jonny!) Back in town it was time to head off to the Pleasance Theatre for the slideshow, I arrived a bit early and met up with others in the bar before watching the slideshow with photos and videos from the last years in the club. I was surprised to see Ioan Doyle – Welsh trad star – and his girlfriend who had come along to the slideshow as Eleanor is an Edinburgh Fresher and keen to join the club   Everyone seemed to enjoy it, and returned to the bar for a bit before deciding to head out to a club. We may be able to move well on the wall and rock, but I’m not so sure the same applies to the dancefloor!  We had a good time and afterwards had a dyno and lock-off session at GBH until 4am!

The next morning I had lunch with mum in town and then headed to Ratho for yet more bouldering, Beastmaking and campus board power-endurance. I found out that my left arm is considerably stronger than my right at the one-arm stuff now….and that I am getting surprisingly close to being able to do a 1-armer with 6kg assistance (my goal for February) I started off taking about 25 kilos off my weight when I first started this training before Yorkshire….and last night I tried using only 5 kilos thinking it would be impossible but managed to do about 75% on my left and almost 50% on my right. Not sure why this was as I am actually right-handed! This shows how quickly my strength gains are coming, and what is more exciting is that the plan has been made to make the GBH woody into a campus board with a Beastmaker on top! Watch this space….

Tomorrow I am going to Ratho for more strength training – before starting my courses on Monday! Here’s to a great year of training – Edinburgh University are going to be a force to be reckoned with in the BUCS this year, watch out!

P.s. Also, so psyched for Robbie and Alex Barrows – who have both completed the 8b+ tufa “Tom et je ris” in Verdon – good effort!!

 

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Westminster and the Olympic Dream…
7 November 2011, 12:01 am

Hello! I have not written a blog in a very long time due to becoming absorbed in a whirlwind of university work, climbing and life in general. However, on Wednesday I attended a very significant event which caused me to reflect on the current position of competitive climbing, the future of British competitive climbing, and where I hope climbing in general can take me later in life. So I decided to switch my focus from writing about the function of the Latin quotations in one of Montaigne’s Essais and discussing Chomsky’s theories of language acquisition to talk about my recent trip to Westminster -  a bit about the event and the possibility of climbing becoming an Olympic sport in the 2020 Games!

Competition climbing has been shortlisted – alongside 7 other sports – as a potential event for inclusion in the 2020 Games. The purpose of the reception for the GB Team and BMC affiliates at the beautifully ornate Palace of Westminister was to promote our sport as one which encourages active participation at all ages and abilities, and one which has a wide variety of benefits outside of the competitive arena and aside from the superficial ”glory” of winning a competition. Amongst the many influential people we had the honour of meeting were John Mann MP and David Rutley MP (Co-Chairs of the Mountaineering APPG (All-Party Parliamentary Group)) and the Minister for Sport and the Olympics Hugh Robertson MP. I had met John Mann MP at a similar reception at Number 10 Downing Street in 2008, although I doubt that he recognised me! Also attending the Reception was guest of honour Dame Kelly Holmes, who we were all very excited about meeting. Anyone -particularly those involved in a competitive sport and especially those from the United Kingdom – would find it difficult not to be inspired by watching her performance at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Winning not just one, but TWO Gold medals in one Olympic Games is an outstanding acheivement in itself, yet what is even more striking is the journey undertaken in order to acheive this – the years of gruelling training, defeat and injuries which provide obstacles at the most inconvenient moments.

Attending the Reception were members of the Junior Team – Ed Hamer, Luke Tilley, Kitty Wallace, Buster Martin, Tara Hayes, Molly-Thompson Smith and Manager Ian Dunn. Representing the Bouldering Team were Shauna Coxsey, Dave Barrans, Jon Partridge, Diane Merrick, Helen Shilleto, Nick Clement and Tom Sugden, and I took on the role of representing the Senior Difficulty Team. Alongside the Teams were BMC officials and top officials from Sport England including Jennie Price (SE CEO) and Tim Lamb (SRA CEO).

Audrey Seguy, Rob Adie, Dame Kelly Holmes and me! First of all a select number of us were given a tour of the Palace of Westminster, which was incredibly ornate and adorned with numerous historical relics, paintings and statues which appeared on every turn of the labyrinthine corridors and archways. Kings, Queens, Prime Ministers, Presidents and Popes – the history inside this gigantic building was mind-blowing! After making it through security to Portcullis House and being issued with an identity tag which consisted of a black and white photo (which rather amusingly resembled a CCTV image of a shoplifter) we began the tour. The long and very cold corridor which lead from the Portcullis House (a building opposite Big Ben on the other side of the road) and under the road into the Palace of Westminster resembled something you would expect to see in Hogwarts – stone and marble statues, paintings, beautifully sculpted arches and ceilings welcomed us through to a passageway which led out to underneath the world’s most famous bell-tower – Big Ben. Admiring the scale of the tower and clock-face and learning of its history, we took photos whilst simultaneously scoping out the decorative exterior of the building – “Tufas!” exclaimed Kitty. Upon entering Westminster Hall, we were told of the recent visitors who had given speeches there this year – the Pope Benedict XVI and US President Barack Obama. Then we were lead through the crypt and into the Chapel of St Mary Undercroft, which was restored after fire damage and was once used by Oliver Cromwell to house his horses!

We ventured into the Central Lobby which lies between the House of Commons and the House of Lords, and noticed the four intricate mosaics above the 4 doorways which featured the 4 Saints of the United Kingdom’s constituent nations - George, Andrew, David and Patrick.  The House of Commons was situated beside another lobby called the Members’ Lobby (which you may recognise from TV news broadcasts) The room featured bronze statues of former British Prime Ministers Winston Churchill and David Lloyd George, and the archway leading to the Commons was left unrepaired after the bombing in 1941 to serve as a reminder of the evils of war. We saw a brief glimpse of a session occuring inside the Commons, and saw the Speaker and many MPs debating. Across on the other side of the Central Lobby was the Peers’ Lobby, which lies in front of the House of Lords. If the Members’ Lobby was ornate, this one was ten times more beautiful than that. Security was tight and despite our MP’s very persuasive attempt to get us in closer, we were not allowed to get very near to the chamber doors.

Attempt at artistic photograph of Big Ben! The Tour was over and we were taken through yet more winding passageways bursting with history and into a small function room. Assembled as a group, the climbing teams stood together as the speeches were read out. A welcome address from the MPs and Sports Minister and then an excellent speech by Audrey Seguy who addressed the room about the benefits that climbing as a sport can bring to people of all ages, abilities and from all walks of life. Audrey mentioned the health benefits that climbing brings to children and adults, the community aspect of climbing, and the respect that climbers develop for the natural environment. The past lack of recognition of climbing as a sport in the UK was highlighted as a problem that is very quickly diminishing – with the growth of indoor climbing facilities and the corresponding increase in participation. As participation in the sport has widened, the media coverage and public awareness of indoor climbing has gradually risen, but very little funding for sports development has been arranged in comparison with Olympic sports such as athletics and gymnastics. Audrey highlighted these issues and countered them with an extensive list of the acheivements of the GB teams – a very impressive array of results which can only be improved upon if the Teams receive the funding and support which they deserve!

Money isn’t everything, but it certainly helps in the arena of competitive sport - with costs of travel, training, coaching, competition entry and physio to take into account! By increasing the money available to competitive climbing in the UK, the opportunities available to aspiring athletes would increase, and who knows where these opportunities may take them. In short, it’s a self-fulfilling prophecy – more funding equals more participation, which means more chance of success, and with success comes promotion of acheivement and resultantly more recognition and more funding.



Back to Westminster, Dame Kelly was taking her time to speak to each Team member and find out more about our climbing backgrounds and acheivements. She is a keen climber herself, and told of her trips to Fontainebleau, Stanage and of her fascination with the sport. She came across as very friendly and quietly confident, and spoke very modestly of her acheivements in Athens when questioned as to whether or not she expected to win. “After the first race I was so shocked, and after the second it was simply unbelievable!” I vividly remember watching her races and screaming at the TV in 2004, aged 13. Even though I didn’t know much about athletics, or indeed much about her past, it didn’t matter – her expression both before and after was enough to show everyone how much it meant to her, and it inspired me to work hard for what I wanted to acheive. We didn’t have an Olympics, but as young competition climbers we had our own battles. Three years later in 2007, when I won my first European Youth Cup in Kranj, Slovenia, I felt the same feeling of shock and disbelief when I realised what had happened, and the elation when I knew that a dream had come true. It was obvious to me that Kelly’s joy did not derive from having beaten people, but from the personal journey which had taken her to the top of the podium. What made her success even more poignant was her struggle with years of injury and disappointment, and her fight to keep running competitively with the fear of injury constantly on her mind: “You have all those dreams and then something goes wrong, and I just thought everything’s going too good, and it’s just going to go away from me again.”

I know from personal experience (and I know many other people who are currently injured and in the same situation) exactly what Dame Kelly means by this and can relate to her word for word. The power which injury holds over a person’s self-confidence and self-esteem is incredible – the emotional pain often outweighs the physical, and having the strength of mind to pull oneself back from an abyss of injury is very difficult to acheive. Kelly was 34 when she won her two Gold medals, and is a prime example of someone with outstanding strength of character and determination to get back in the game after defeat and injury, and someone who - after years of being denied success - is not afraid of slowly taking her time to work her way back to winning form. This brings to mind a quote from Michel de Montaigne, a French Renaissance writer whose work “On the Verses of Virgil” I am currently writing an essay on. Despite writing about love, the following line could easily be applied to a sport or anything that requires a “journey” of some sort: ” Plus il y a de marches et degres, plus il y a de hauteur et d’honneur au dernier siege” which roughly translates as “The more the steps the greater the height, and the more the rungs the greater the honour, of that ultimate siege.” As competition climbing works its way closer towards the Olympics, many of the world’s upcoming young climbers will be aspiring to fulfil their ambitions to succeed in what is truly the most “ultimate siege” in any sportsperson’s dreams.

Yet what would the Olympics mean to the current GB Team? We talked quite a lot throughout the event about the possibility of competing in the 2020 Olympics. For the older ones amongst us, it seemed very surreal to be thinking about something which has always seemed so far-removed from our own little bubble of competition climbing – thinking of the usual sighs of disappointment when people ask if climbing is an Olympic sport and seem surprised when they are told “No, not yet!” Many of the Team admitted feeing slightly cynical about the Games in the past, wondering how the format would work out and how the rest of the non-climbing world (and indeed the anti-comp crew within the climbing society) would perceive our sport. Now, though, we felt as though competition climbing had built up so much force and influence (the IFSC now consists of 66 member federations and 10 associate members from 5 continents around the world) that we have no reason to feel inadequate as competition climbers, and that we need to work together positively to ensure that things go our way. If you don’t ask, you don’t get!

Dame Kelly's autograph Dame Kelly also told us about the difficulty faced by many athletes as they reach the transition from school to university. She highlighted the fact that maintaining participation at this stage is tough when many are faced with changes in circumstance and the challenge of balancing education, work, sport and life alongside the physiological changes which frequently result in injury. Personally, I felt quite proud when she praised me for keeping up my climbing alongside university studies and for having to deal with 2 years of injuries which she called “great strength of character.” I had never thought of it that way before, and I will admit that hearing it from Dame Kelly was very inspirational.

Wherever life will take us in 2020, we all agreed that if climbing made it as an Olympic event, it would make us proud to represent our country if we are still competing in 8 or 9 years time, and that even if we are simply enjoying climbing as a hobby whilst looking after kids/homes/pets and whatnot, we could feel proud that the sport we love has finally been recognised as one which fulfils the criteria to become part of the world’s most prestigious sporting event. Proud that the younger kids we see down at the wall or at the crag today and the ones we encourage will have something amazing to aspire towards acheiving. Even if competition climbing doesn’t make it in 2020, we can rest assured that one day it most likely will, and deep down we know that it is more than worthy of the Olympics. It might take a few more steps and a few more rungs, but as the sport keeps growing and the kids keep having fun, maybe in a good few years down the line the GB Climbing Team will be bringing the greatest honour of an Olympic Gold medal to a climbing wall near you.

At Heathrow, Mum and I visited the shop dedicated to “London 2012“. On a stand were commemorative gold medallions for each of the Olympic sports. I read the sports aloud and sighed. Mum said “Maybe one day, there will be one for climbing.” Watch this space…

 

 

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Been there, done that…got the T-shirt!
21 January 2012, 10:51 pm

Hello everyone! It’s been a long time since I last blogged, mainly due to exams and Christmas getting in the way! I haven’t been climbing too much over the last few months as my finger injury is still giving me problems, but I’ve been finding the time to relax and do other things like eating, sleeping and route setting!

After a busy Christmas and new year split between Glasgow, Edinburgh and Melrose, it was back to Glasgow to spend time with my family and climb a bit at TCA. I managed to get through to the new wall a fair few times during first semester and really enjoyed having a fantastic new facility to explore, so I was keen to spend some more time there whilst in my home city.

I had been offered the chance to do some route setting at TCA – which I was both excited and nervous about seeing as I had never really done it before! I had never used a drill or climbed up ladders much either, and given my clumsy disposition I was very anxious about being safe and sound and was eager to avoid falling off from a great height! However, I was helped through the route setting and safety procedures by Alan Cassidy, and gradually got more into the swing of things and was able to concentrate on the flow of the problems rather than worrying about not being safe!

Been there, done that and got the routesetter's t-shirt! Lots of people say it’s easy to set good routes and problems if you have been climbing for a while, as you will have acquired a large repertoire of varied movements and climbing styles, yet the hardest part for me was trying to make the problems accessible to people of all shapes, sizes and abilities.In a commercial climbing wall, the quality of the problems is extremely important, and I wanted to make sure that they would not only be “climbable” but also enjoyable and thought-provoking I.e. a bit funky!

My first session of setting involved stripping old problems and setting new oranges around v3/v4. I felt as though I was speeding up a bit with each problem I set, but equally I was trying hard not to compromise on the quality! I ended up with 3 decent problems which were forerun by Rob Sutton and Alan Cassidy – all in all a successful day of learning!

The next time I came in everything seemed to flow a lot easier and I got more into the rhythm of setting everything up and working out a sequence that flowed. I tried my best to think about keeping moves relatively small for shorter climbers, although at times I think I may have accidentally neglected to think about the taller people! I suppose it could be seen as payback for when I was a tiny little kid and I struggled with big reaches – I know how hard it is when you are limited in reach and you are faced with ridiculously large moves! At the MCofS GB Team training session on Friday 6th January it was great to see all the kids testing out my problems and hearing what they had to say – the girls enjoyed my crimpy yellow, the boys loved the slopey one and there were mixed views on the heinous mantle up the corner! I was satisfied with the range of different styles across these problems and I now feel more confident in my new skills

Training-wise I have been climbing circuits on big, finger-friendly holds and doing some core training and pull up workouts. I am really  looking forward to an end of semester trip to Spain depending on how our exam timetable turns out. I am also keen to climb well in the upcoming TCA and Ratho boulder competitions and the BUCS championships and CWIF in Sheffield, depending of course on the state of my injury at these points.

Off to do some work now then Ratho tomorrow!

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Two weekends in Sheffield – CWIF and BUCS 2012!
19 March 2012, 5:55 pm

I really should be writing my psychology essay just now rather than a blog, but I’ve had two very eventful weekends which I think merit a write up whilst it is all still fresh in my mind! I have just returned from competing in the Climbing Works International Festival in Sheffield and the BUCS university championships, both events that I have been looking forward to since last year. So when asked by the crew at TCA Glasgow whether I would like to be part of their team at CWIF alongside Alan Cassidy, Gary Vincent and Alex Gorham I was more than willing to take on the challenge, and the chance to represent Edinburgh University in the sport we love would be a great honour for the whole team at BUCS.

Everything in the few weeks beforehand had been looking up – my finger was feeling fairly well-healed and mentally I was preparing to train hard again for my upcoming trip to Spain and for whatever I might get up to in the summer months. As though I had jinxed myself through my newfound optimism, I had a new hurdle to overcome – an achilles paratendinopathy. Stubbornly, I had persisted with the ever-intensifying pain I was experiencing in my right heel when wearing my latest pair of climbing shoes. I shrugged it off as being mere discomfort that most people experience when first wearing a new style of shoe, rested for a few days and then carried on. Yet as the pain refused to subside and even simply walking one step in my shoes became unbearable I knew something a bit more serious was going on, and so I decided to get help from a physio! I was worried that my Achilles tendon was the problem, and certainly didn’t want to risk a full or partial rupture!

Luckily, my problem was limited to the sheath of the tendon only, which was really inflamed and swollen from being aggravated by a very narrow, tight heel fit from the shoe. My right foot endured several episodes of acupuncture, ultrasound, massage and kinaesio taping to try and put it right. Whilst the immediate effect was a reduction in pain, as soon as I put climbing shoes on it would flare up again, and even everyday shoes were starting to aggravate the sheath. I was prescribed ibuprofen in the expectation that it would reduce the inflammation and help the healing process, and in the meantime Scarpa sent me a pair of Forces (a less aggressive shoe – one that doesn’t bite heels!) in a bigger size, so I tried to get used to climbing with odd shoes without putting too much pressure on my foot. It wasn’t perfect and my foot was still sore, but it was the best I could do for now.

It was the night before the big day at CWIF, and after a few organisational mishaps and inconsistencies Team TCA Glasgow had finally met up at EICA Ratho and were ready to leave for Sheffield! It was 8pm on a Friday night, and we were more than aware that in under 12 hours we would be getting up for the morning session of the competition – and we still had a 6 hour journey to Sheffield to make! Jen did a great job of getting us there despite how late we had left and the length of the journey. As per usual, I was relegated to the middle seat in the back as the littlest!

We arrived at Stu and Jules Littlefair’s house at 2:30am and tried not to wake anyone up or be attacked by “the sleeping cat at the top of the stairs”, of which we had been forewarned. Fortunes were reversed from being the middle man in the car to ending up on the sofa bed and leaving Gaz and Alan to sleep on the floor in the dining room! :p it was 3am by now and we were due to leave the house at 8am…sweet dreams!

 

Team TCA! Photo: Dan Bradley The irritatingly chirpy alarm woke me up and reminded me of how little sleep we had had, time to get up and get energised for a busy day! We bundled into the car and set off for the Works, a short drive away and an opportunity for Alan to try and remember his way around his former home-town! The car park was almost full to the brim and the wall was a hive of nervous energy and excitement. I immediately recognised lots of faces, and it was this aspect of the weekend I had been most looking forward to, the chance to meet up with friends that I hadn’t seen for a while since growing out of the junior team and through not having partaken in any events down south recently.

After a brisk warm up it was time to face the weird and wonderful creations that the setters had concocted for us. A few of the easier problems were tricky but I managed to do most of the lower end ones. My heel was sore but I was trying to grin and bear it for the most part, but this meant that on a lot of the technical problems on the slabs and vertical walls I had to weight my right foot more than I wanted to, and occasionally I would just drop off to avoid the pain. I did fairly well on the few steeper problems but in all the technical problems had let me down. Gaz, Alan and Alex had been climbing very consistently over the course of the day but like many others had dropped some problems due to silly mistakes and slips. In this kind of strict time-limited competition which has well over 150 competitors climbing at one time it isn’t difficult to lose concentration and rush things. The team had dropped some points due to not getting round all of the problems, but in general we had had fun and learned a fair bit about our own climbing. Highlights for me were using a sneaky finger jam on a tough steeper problem and power screaming to grab the last jug on a tricky crimpy problem!

Whilst the rest of the team went out to Stanage I stayed back and caught up with a lot of friends that I hadn’t seen in a while and watched some of the later group climbing. Afterwards we went out to an amazing Turkish restaurant where Chicken Shish seemed to be the dish of the evening! The Sunday was spent (most of us in agony from the exertion of the day before!) at Stanage again for a few hours before heading back to the Works to watch the finals. Many attempts were had at Brad Pitt by the boys but unfortunately to no avail, and I decided to rest my heel and take photos and video of the day.

Back at the Works, the crowd was filling up the buidling. Lots of familiar faces in the finals and massive support from the crowd. I managed to find a speck beside Ailsa and Kitty right up at the front, so much so that we were squished against the barriers! The finals were quite a spectacle – so many strong climbers and mostly British! I was really inspired by the performances of the finalists and thought the problems looked amazing. We are very lucky to have such a world-renowned event of high quality and multinational participation here in the Uk, and I can’t wait to get involved again next year (and hopefully without injuries!)

All in all a hectic but fun weekend! Thanks must go to TCA Glasgow and Bristol for funding this and giving me the chance to participate!

BUCS

This weekend was BUCS weekend and it was time for me to once again return to the Works. This time I was travelling down (on a very hot and uncomfortable bus) with some very good friends from my University, many of them in the EUMC. Myself, Clara, Valerie, Clement, Ryan, Chris, Sam, and Eddie (along with Ted and Chris who were volunteering as judges for the event) made up Team Edinburgh. Last year we came 2nd to Sheffield as a team and this year we were keen to try and go one better! However, there were mixed feelings towards the competition on the way down – my heel was still giving me grief and I had been ill from taking medication specially prescribed for it all week, Chris had a finger injury, Ryan had had flu all week and Eddie hadn’t been bouldering in a while! :p With these negatives in mind we had to work very hard indeed to try and stay positive for the competition – after all, we were there to have fun and spend some time on the grit on Sunday but our main goal was to bring back some medals for the University!

 

Team Edinburgh University @ BUCS 2012 Photo: Chris Prescott  My heel had still been hurting through the week since CWIF and the medicine had made me feel ill. The night before leaving an idea popped into my head, one that involved cutting the heel of my shoes. I had already split it a fraction and carved some of the rubber into a looser shape but it was still causing me pain. I got some scissors and cut right down the heel, not far from the bottom, and tried them on. The lack of contact with the shoe meant that my Achilles was relatively pressure-free which meant no pain! It was still slightly sore but much more bearable than before. I was so happy that already I started to feel better about BUCS.

Hungry and tired we arrived at our hotel and set off to find some food. Chino’s fast food shop on London Road provided us with all the calories and meat feasts we needed in order to perform like proper athletes the next day. Pizzas, kebabs and curries – food of champions! Back at the hotel we relaxed in front of the tv and discussed tactics for the event, before staying up later than we should have watching the Mask of Zorro….

The next morning was basically a repeat of the CWIF weekend before – a case of deja vu! Up early and travelling to the wall for 8am, we had one small problem in that we were not entirely sure of the way to walk to the Works. 45 minutes later and we had made it with just under 15 minutes to go before registration was due to close. Fortunately we had an hour to relax before climbing began. We scoped out our problems and split into pairs to go round together. I was working with Clara, and we started off on some easier problems before testing ourselves on the competition wall. We had two and a half hours to complete 25 problems, but I knew from last year just how tight for time we were and the rushing around at CWIF had me well trained for this year’s event! Eventually time started catching up with us and with half an hour left I still had about 8 problems to try, luckily most of them easier ones which by now had no queues. A mad dash, some stressing out and and a few more points later we were finished! I ended up flashing every problem on my first attempt apart from one which I got second go, and the other two I didn’t complete but earned 2 bonuses. More than anything I was happy with how I had climbed in comparison with the weekend before – splitting the heel of the shoe had made such an unbelievable difference that I wished I had done it earlier and before CWIF! I had a good score but it would be a nervous few hours of waiting until the second group had finished climbing to see whether I had done enough. The Reston the team had performed fantastically – top scorer being Eddie and Ryan just one point below my score, particularly impressive considering he was very ill in the morning and almost didn’t compete! Sam, Chris, clement, Clara and Valerie had also climbed to their best and had a great day of tenacious climbing. Everyone was very supportive and worked well as a team, which is exactly how we had wanted it to be.

 

Me and Clara just hanging around…Photo:Chris Prescott  A few of us stayed at the wall or went back to the hotel for a bit whilst others went to Burbage. I had to stay at the wall in case of a tie as I had scored the highest from the first round in the women’s event, and later on the organiser and route setter of the event Mark Pretty (Zippy) gathered the scores from the girls he thought had been looking strong. “I think you have won Nat!” I was very happy to hear this and couldn’t believe that I’d managed to win after the setbacks of the last few weeks. I was very lucky that I found a temporary solution to the heel problem as otherwise there I definitely wouldn’t have won – there were some very strong women in my category, including ex-junior GB Team members, a GB Bouldering Team member and generally lots of very impressive climbers.

Problem 25 - hard!! Photo: Chris Prescott The next focus was the team ranking – how had Edinburgh fared overall? We added our top 3 scores together and thought we might have a good chance of getting onto the podium as a team again. After standing on the podium (made of bouldering mats!) I received my trophy and gold medal. Then the team results were read out along with the scores. “3rd place, Sheffield!…..” we knew then that we were either 1st or 2nd…”2nd place…Edinburgh!” we had matched our team placing from last year and also defeated our main rivals from the year before! Congratulations to Leeds who took 1st place, 4 points ahead of us. Me, Ryan and Valerie stood on the podium with silver medals and collected some t-shirts for the rest of the team.

Ryan topping out dramatically Absolutely exhausted we headed back to the hotel and had a very lazy dinner of fish and chips – we needed to reward ourselves for our efforts after all!

The next day we set off to Stanage (my second home over the last two weeks!) to climb for a few hours before being picked up in the minibus in town to go home. My body was still aching from the day before (and possibly still from CWIF?) so I wasn’t feeling too psyched to try and push myself too hard, but it was nice to be climbing on rock again after a long while and be outside in the sun ( the day had brightened up considerably since the morning, luckily!) everyone pottered about and at the end of the day it was nice to catch up with the Reston the mountaineering club who had come down on a separate trip to the Peak. They had to endure two nights of camping in the rain when we were in a lovely hotel :p

Eventually it was time to head back into town and through a series of events involving uncooperative taxi-drivers, helpful tea and cake stall owners at plantation car-park and a spot of luck we somehow managed to get back into town for 6pm ready to head home. McDonald’s provided us with yet more fast food to round the weekend off and at 11:30pm we arrived in Edinburgh completely exhausted. Well done guys, here’s to next year!

2 and a half weeks til SPAIN!!!!!

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Kebabs and McDonalds.....obviously the food of super-thin champions. You see that, Jasper?? Maybe I should be eating them instead of not....

Also, 6 hours from Edinburgh to Sheffield??

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The road trip begins!
6 April 2012, 11:14 pm

I’m currently on my way to Spain via Fontainebleau with Paul and Scott Gowens and Iain the guitar! We have arrived at the Eurostar terminal and are waiting on a very delayed train over to France. I am also knackered after a few very hectic and hyperactive weeks and after an awesome send-off night out which left me having only 3 hours sleep before the start of the drive! Can’t complain though, too much good stuff to look forward to

Luckily it has been fantastic weather for the drive down so far, hopefully this will continue as we cross the channel! Tomorrow we will be spending the day in Font and we are looking to go to sectors such as Bas Cuvier, Elephant and Cul de Chien. 

I am really excited about returning to Siurana a year after my first holiday there – I can’t believe time has gone so fast! I don’t have any specific aims in mind, I just want to relax and have fun after what has been a very busy year at university filled with essays, exams and injuries! 

The last few weeks I have been trying to get my fitness up on routes but also learning to enjoy climbing again – it feels great to be able to go to the wall and climb whatever I want without feeling any niggles or pain! My heel is – healing – and my fingers feel more sturdy than normal, so I have been having fun climbing with the Ratho crew (you all know who you are!) making funny videos and even getting out to Back Bowden. 

I also went mountain biking in Glentress for a day which was a good distraction from   

Training and essay writing! Iain promised not to break me and I returned unbroken save for a few bumps and scrapes! I found it to be pretty exciting and scary at times, but really fun and a good supplement to my climbing. I was very tired by the end of the day but am keen to go back again sometime when I return from Spain!

The trip to Bowden was during a rare day of good weather before the snow/hail/wind and rain arrived! Me, Iain S, Ian P, Jason and Neil travelled down and the team had a good day of bouldering, eating and banter. I managed to flash two font 7as which I had never achieved before in a day (only done one 7A in my life before this!) Everyone was doing well and the only thing holding us back at the end of the day was a lack of skin and light!

Here’s to a good trip – about to board the Eurostar!

Edit: in the hotel in font now! I am extremely tired after the first half of the journey but all three of us are excited for our “rest” day from driving of climbing tomorrow!

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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“Pren Nota” 8a – Update from Siurana :)
30 April 2012, 3:20 pm

Hola from Siurana!

With just one climbing day left we are trying to decide on the best plan of action for tomorrow. In the last two days me, Robbie and Ross have all completed our projects which means a relatively relaxed last day with no pressure! Last night we were woken up by the biggest thunder and lighting storm I have ever experienced – no matter how good our skin might have been today it was definitely destined to be a rest day! Just now we are sat in the cafe waiting to order a Spanish omelette bocadillo (a Spanish omelette in a baguette, basically!) and chilling out before our final day in the valley!

It has been a great trip for all of us. The campsite has quietened down considerably and our little patch is being increasingly invaded by alien tents  We certainly made an impression on the campsite – Calum’s special extra thick hot chocolates still live on in the cafe and one member of staff is still a bit grumpy after a certain water fight involving two of our crew accidentally splashed her. Personally I appear to have found a friend in the campsite’s caretaker who turns the thermostat up each night for me before I go in the shower…shhh don’t tell anyone! There has been a fantastic atmosphere in the camp and at the crag and a very international one at that. Although things got a bit competitive with the table tennis game on the iPad and the football games in the camp, no cat-fights started, even when we were sabotaging each others’ tents by putting things on top of them! We have met up with friends old and new and will for sure meet up/bump into most people again at a crag in the middle of nowhere at some point in the future!

The last two days have been very productive for the remaining 3 Scots. Robbie completed his 8b+, Ross ticked his 8b and I finally succeeded on my project from last year Pren Nota 8a. My route takes on a very aesthetic line on small but positive holds through a beautiful blue and orange striped scoop of wall that starts off vertical and gets gradually steeper. In the beginning of the trip I felt fairly fit, I had managed to tick Marijuana 8a on my third attempt and had done some good onsights in the 7′s, so I felt ready to take on Pren Nota once again.

The first section of "Pren Nota" 8a There are some specific features of this route which made it challenging for me – there are two sections that require a high step mantle which I always find quite difficult (long legs and no triceps make it awkward :p ) and the positions which the mantles are in are quite exposed. Last year I never made it past the first one as I was too scared of falling off awkwardly with my feet so near my ears and being high above a bolt! This year after doing more bouldering and being exposed to weird and wonderful volume problems at Ratho I found the move much less daunting and found a method which suited me. After climbing a lot more on rock last year I was also more confident with being above the bolt and could focus purely on the climbing. However, when working the moves higher up on an early attempt I came off and swung into a bulge, hitting the side of my knee hard into the rock and narrowly missing the kneecap! Although it was very painful I wasn’t too bothered by it at the time and was proud to show off the massive egg shaped bruise, but on my next attempts I definitely had something at the back of my mind telling me I could get hurt if I fell!

Heading into the steep bulge! Unfortunately I fell victim once again to a stomach bug not dissimilar to the one I had in Ceuse and felt too ill to climb. Long days spent at the campsite playing the Logos Quiz followed and after 5 or 6 days I was ready to climb again. I suspected I would feel weak with not having climbed in a while and still felt a bit ropey (excuse the pun!) I think my frustration at being ill must have translated into aggression on the rock, as on my first attempt back I made it through to the final clip before the chain – a heartbreaker section on small crimps with bad feet which spits off so many people on the onsight or red point. I was disappointed as I was so near yet so far from the chains. I was still getting pumped and felt as though my power endurance just wasn’t up to scratch. I reworked the top section and got a good sequence in my head ready for next time. Just as I was ready to go for another attempt I watched as some climbers were stripping their quickdraws out of the route – ahhh! I would have to wait until someone else put them in again or go up myself the next day. At least putting the quickdraws in would enable me to work the top section again and get a good warm up before the siege.

About to take on the 2nd mantle! It was a cold and windy morning when I tried to put the quickdraws back into the route and climbing the moves felt quite alien. I seemed to find moves hard that I hadn’t found difficult before and additionally some of the clips were very hard to put in. I tried not to get psyched out and told myself that it was a good opportunity to re-familiarise with the moves. After a good hour or so of rest the sun had come out and the wind had died down a little – perfect! I listened to some music and got ready to climb after crossing the scary ledge for what would hopefully be the last time! I felt quite relaxed as I started up and found that I was recovering quick and not grunting or huffing and puffing as much as I was previously. I was totally relaxed and not bothered at all about coming off. I focused on the moves and soon found myself past both mantles and before the final section trying to gain some composure in anticipation of the fight. I had climbed much quicker than usual and left the rest sooner than normal. The awkward clip was made and soon I was into the crimps, I felt strong but still shook out between the moves just to be sure. I grasped the final ledge and clipped and couldn’t believe I had done it. I had fallen high up so many times and let the fear and pressure get to me, but finally I had overcome my demons from last year when I could barely get past halfway because of fear. Stripping the quickdraws was a bit of an epic as I was exhausted both mentally and physically, I don’t think it had sunk in at that point!

Eyeing up the top crux... Robbie has made a great video and took lots of awesome photos, some of which you can see here. It was very tiring making the video and having to re-climb the route but it was well worth it  yesterday I watched as Robbie ticked his 8b+ and Ross his 8b – which has inspired me to try and complete a third 8a of the trip called “Memorias de una Sepia”. I tried it yesterday and worked out all the moves and am hoping to get it done tomorrow. We will also be getting some more video footage and pictures – watch this space!

Looking slightly demonic nearing the chains... We still need to find some way of getting to the airport on Wednesday. We have made a sign which is up on the front door of the cafe/bar asking if we can hitch a lift with anyone to Barcelona. The funniest thing is that Robbie started writing BARCALONA before I stopped him and told him it was spelled wrong, but the camp owners stuck it to the glass and on the other side of the door you can still see BARCAL. No wonder no one wants to give us a lift!

Just hanging around! Hasta luego!

 

 

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Malham, Goredale…and Midges!
24 July 2012, 9:12 am

Last weekend we made yet another trip down to that old haunt of ours – The Yorkshire Dales! It gave us a strange sensation of “déjà-vu” as me, Robbie and Will Carroll drove down on the . Almost one year ago we had climbed and camped together surrounded by the stunningly beautiful landscape of the Dales. Our aim for this year’s trip? To spend 3 days focussing our efforts on completing some new and exciting routes whilst avoiding rain and midges. Unfortunately, it is near impossible to avoid midges at this time of year in the UK, yet on every other front I’d say we were fairly successful in achieving our goals.

Ready to go! We set up camp upon arriving at Gordale Campsite and settled down for the night, dreaming of a dry Malham Cove. Unfortunately our dreams were shattered as the rain continually pelted down onto our tents throughout the night. We arrived at the Cove to find the majority of the normally glimmering white and grey rock covered in slimy black streaks. However, luckily there was one section of the crag that appeared to be bone dry – the Upper Tier or “upstairs” as it ‘s known locally (and ever more increasingly by those who frequent the crag and get to know the local lingo!) We warmed up “downstairs” before setting off for the Upper Tier. A bit wet… I had only ever climbed at this sector once before about 5 years ago and recalled the precarious path along which you have to meander in order to safely reach the tier. Despite the slippery wet grass we all made it in one piece and chose our routes. Me and Robbie had our sights set on Herbie 7c+, a typically technical Malham test piece. Robbie had a good onsight attempt and I geared up for a flash go. It looked very bouldery in the mid section and I wasn’t sure how I would feel on the route. I hadn’t climbed outdoors much since Spain and certainly hadn’t been on form when it came to flashing and onsighting. However, at the wall recently my attempts on new routes – despite being few and far between in number – had been quite successful. I recently onsighted my first indoor 8a which gave me high hopes for this trip. My only other concern was my left arm, which has been suffering from a minor tendon tear over the last month or so. I started up the route and surprisingly managed to pull off some hard moves before falling at the crux. I worked out the rest of the route carefully despite my usual impatience to do so and rested before attempting it again. Robbie had completed it second go and claimed it felt a lot easier once the moves were figured out. I hoped this would be the case for me too! I psyched myself up and went through the crux in my head. It involved a powerful move from a poor open tufa-like splodge up to a wide blocky jug (for want of a better description…see Robbie’s blog!) I calmly cruised up the bottom section, finding it easier than before and gaining confidence with each upward progression. I pushed on into the crux and squeezed the tufa and set my feet ready for the big reach to the block. I tickled my hand closer and closer before I latched it enough to swing my feet free and continue towards the top tufa section. One of the last moves involved a long span out to a poor slopey tufa and it took a lot of composure to be summed up before finally committing and carrying on to clip the chains. I was very pleased to tick this route 2nd go, I have heard to much hype about it and it felt great to tick a classic quickly. Meanwhile Will was making steady progress on his new obsession – Obsession 7b+! I had tried this route once or twice 5 years ago and knew exactly how tricky it was. Will managed to pull off one of the craziest moves I have ever seen whilst working this route, a sort of controlled barn door cross- through which both amused and inspired everyone watching.  Me and Robbie were now looking to try L’obsession 7c+ upon recommendation from a climber at the crag. I watched Robbie on the onsight and prepared for the flash attempt. No matter how much Robbie tried to convince me that I could flash it, I still wouldn’t believe what he was saying and settled with my normal happy go lucky approach when attempting to flash or onsight a climb. With the moves in my head I started up and found a rhythm of hand and foot movements that just appeared to flow. Lots of high feet and low locks on tiny holds, my strongest kind of move. I was soon past the crux and thought “oh” as I reached a good hold and shook out. Robbie mapped the next sequence out for me, but as I am terrible at multitasking by means of listening and following beta whilst en-route, I only absorbed some of the information and so battled on short-sightedly up the white wall. I could see all the holds but was unsure of the sequence to follow. Pumped and insecure, I stubbornly tried to work it out my own way but eventually tired out and dropped off. I had reached just below the second last clip and was throughly exhausted but quite proud of my efforts! I worked the top bit briefly then came down. I decided to leave it until the following day for my second go, as my skin was wearing  thin and my arms were eternally pumped! I watched Robbie climb it second go and he assured me that once again it was “easy if you now the answer” I.e. if you know all the moves well enough! Pulling through the crux of L’Obsession Photo: Will Carroll The next day was a big day for me, as I was being filmed by professional filmmaker Jen Randall for her upcoming movie about female climbers pushing themselves to their limit whilst having fun and living the dream in the process! It was a beautifully sunny day, which was warmly welcomed by everyone despite making the rock appear as bright and blank as a sheet of paper as the sun’s rays were reflected off the cove. It was difficult to see the holds and my perception of where the holds actually were was distorted slightly in the blinding sun. I began my second attempt on L’obsession after a brief warm up whilst Jen and Dom were setting up the cameras. Will was also busy getting into his usual dangling-on-a-rope position ready to take some photos. I had intended to go up the route again to film it in sections if I ticked it second go, and there was no pressure to catch it on film, so I thought I would focus purely on getting the route done first. I got through the crux fairly smoothly and rested before the sustained top section. I visualised the top sequence, although my memory of the very top was slightly cloudy. I battled on regardless, I felt more in control than I did on the flash up until the few moves before I had fallen last time. I completely blanked and messed up the sequence but kept fighting until I was too pumped and confused to go on. I fell off, annoyed that I hadn’t worked the top out properly beforehand. The final touches to the cameras and rigging had been made and after a short rest I decided to go for it again in full view of the cameras. I must admit it did add a bit of pressure to the ascent, yet I have become accustomed to on-the-spot pressure over the years through competition climbing. I knew what to do now and there would be little room for excuses on my third go. I felt strong on the crux and had the sequence dialled. I looked at the next section and knew what to do – I had to climb quickly and efficiently if I had any hope of getting through the tricky bit. I left the rest position rather prematurely in my over-exuberance to carry on and felt slightly pumped in the first few moves. Somehow it all came together and eventually I found myself pulling onto the top jugs right beside Jen and her camera. I had completely forgotten about the cameras being there right up until that point, I had been so focussed purely on my climbing! It is a great feeling when something you envisage in your mind comes to fruition, and both these routes at Malham are examples of occasions when I managed to focus on the climbing and get into the “zone” without any external influences distracting me. To top it all off, Robbie ticked an 8a second go and Will completed his project Obsession 7b+. In all a great day for the crew! Thanks must go to Jen, her Dad, Dom and Will for taking the time to film and photograph me, and to Robbie for his support and encouragement. Jen in position! Photo: Will Carroll After a homely pub dinner with James, Catherine, Chris, Cathy and Nicola, the trio headed back to Gordale campsite to rest up before climbing in Gordale Scar itself the next day. I first visited this crag last year but never climbed on it – an amazingly gusty ravine complete with waterfalls, bulging rockfaces and of course, tourists! Me and Robbie had our sights set on Supercool 8a+, a route for which I had heard a lot of praise. Robbie went up and scoped it out, putting the clips in and giving a good onsight burn up until the tricky mid section. It was freezing cold and windy yet it was my turn to step up to the wall. The sheer face loomed over me as I set off, I composed myself under the first bulge. I pushed on, half listening to Robbie and half focussing on what would happen if I fell off. I have a peculiar dislike for certain formations and textures if rock, if it is bulgy and sharp, I am much less likely to go for things as I am always wary of swinging into bulges, especially after a fairly scary fall in Spain this year (I was fine, just a badly bruised knee!) To add to the fear of the bulges, the exposure of the rockface is rather daunting with high winds sweeping around, which in my case uplifted my chalk bag and tipped chalk everywhere, causing a tornado of chalk to fly into my face! Just what I needed to add to my disorientation, much to the amusement of Robbie! My flash attempt was decent until I refused to commit to some hard moves just over the bulge. I came down, composed myself and then had another go. This time round, probably due to having hung about up there before and through getting used to the experience of being high up in a windy valley, I focused on the climbing as though I were in a competition. Much like on my successful climbs at Malham, I managed to focus purely on the moves and reached over 3/4 of the way up, coming off on the last hard move of the route. I struggled to find a sequence to get past this large span and eventually gave up. Robbie’s beta was not much use to me and a lack of footholds made things a bit more tricky for me! I would love to get back on this route at some point and hopefully work out a suitable sequence that works for me. It was inspiring watching Robbie climb the route third go, a route which he too has been planning to complete for a long time now. Cranking hard on Supercool. Photo: Catherine Speakman My final endeavour of the trip was a 7b+ called Revival – a truly epic line which traverses across flakes and spikes before eventually meandering up a technical headwall. Will had given a sterling performance as per usual in trying to complete it, falling at the crux but looking smooth and calm all the way up. It was now up to me to get the quickdraws out and then we could leave! The first section was slightly daunting in that there were many loose blocks and a lot of tourists not too far below. I climbed cautiously and traversed across the lip of the roof until I came to the crux. I did a bizarre cross over move on poor footholds and stuck the crucial press move before coming to an easier section on good holds. I thought it was all over! Then came the last moves up to the chain. I saw an obvious undercut and then not much above it leading to a big juggy break. I hung around and kept calm. I took the undercut, tried to stand up, then came back down. I needed to shake out a bit more and then reposition. I went for it. In a stroke of luck I just so happened to grab blindly for a good side pull which was previously invisible to me. I pulled up, stood up and clipped the chains. What a relief! My first completed route at Gordale, and a quality one at that! Finally we could head back along the path to the car to leave for Edinburgh. It had been a busy few days and we were exhausted. A stop off at Westmorland farm shops services, however, was enticing enough for us to delay arrival at home that little bit longer. After a delicious dinner we set off again and arrived home, complete with midge bites and good memories. Here’s to next year!

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Looping the Loup!
8 August 2012, 9:56 am

I am currently lying on our air bed enjoying the last few hours of the evening sun before we cook dinner. This has been our first week of travelling and climbing in France. Time has passed so quickly that it’s hard to believe we have been out for that long. It certainly doesn’t feel like we have done that much, but driving and general moving around has eaten up a lot of our climbing time. However, we have still been having fun living the dream in Alex’s big orange van – swimming in rivers, visiting 

pretty villages and pulling hard on French limestone. 

We began the long and arduous (perhaps too strong a word!) journey from Edinburgh to France by first taking the train to Sheffield. We were then picked up by Alex Barrows and began the drive south, stopping off in the van not far from the eurotunnel in anticipation of an early start to catch the 6:30am train across to Calais. We stopped off at La Balme, which was way too hot to do any climbing, so after a day spent there we continued on to Gorges du Loup.

On our first day I managed to tick an 8a second go, Super Mekanik. I had tried this route once or twice 4 years ago when I came to Loup with some foreign friends (the Baby Bichos!) It was too bouldery and powerful for me back then, but this time I felt so much stronger and was pleased to get it done. My next project was Sika 8a, another route I had tried on my previous trip. On my retro flash attempt I managed to get up to about 3/4 of the way, messing up my sequence and getting too pumped! After a rest day I tried again and managed to fluff the second last move about 5 times before finally ticking the route on Monday. I worked the next section of Sika 2 8b, a route I would like to get back on before the end of the trip. 

My sights had been set on my next route since first trying it 4 years ago – Deverse  Satanique 8a+, a true classic of the crag and a route which gives the Deverse sector it’s name.  I had one attempt to try and retro flash it, falling just after the crux and getting very tired and pumped. I worked the moves and the next day I managed to tick it 3rd try! I was really happy to get it done after years of wanting to go back and sort out my unfinished business!

At the end of the day yesterday I worked an 8b called SataniX, which starts up the same line as the 8a+ and then flows straight up a tricky tufa section onto a crimpy vertical section. I really enjoyed climbing the moves, despite feeling knackered and in need of a rest day! Tomorrow I will try and red point it – I think it may take some time but to tick my first 8b in Loup would be amazing! Robbie helped me work out the top section as he is trying Hot Chilli X 8c, which also follows the top vertical line. 

We are all having a great time despite finding the climbing tough, although I think the boys are finding the freezing cold river more of a challenge than the climbing – I seem to be much better suited to enduring cold water temperatures. Maybe I should take up swimming? :p 

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog

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Pushing the grade – my first 8b!
23 August 2012, 1:46 pm

It’s just over a year ago since I climbed my first 8a outdoors. Having focussed primarily on indoor training for the majority of my climbing career up until that point, it felt like a big achievement for me. When you first break into a grade it inspires confidence in your ability to climb more routes of the same level, and since completing my first 8a in Siurana last April, I have now climbed 12 in total. Whilst climbing in Ceuse last year I broke the 8a+ barrier, which both took me by surprise yet also made me wonder whether I was capable of climbing just a little bit harder…

Due to studying at university and through having to endure persistent niggling injuries, my training had to take the back seat for the last year or so. I had had rare and precious intervals of being fit to train, and I really had to make the most of these without pushing too far. Sometimes the motivation wasn’t there and if I’m honest, I was mostly floating around the wall trying to have fun and not get frustrated at my lack of focus for training. I had no specific goals and no dates to achieve them by, which is a peculiar notion if you happen to be a competition climber who is used to having their motivation and aims dictated by a calendar of events on exact dates throughout the year. It is possible in a competition to know beforehand the hour, let alone the date, in which you will need to perform. However, on rock it is a completely different story. You may have a trip planned with a start and end date, yet there are many more variables which can interfere with your performance. Weather, conditions, other people’s plans and gut instincts come into play, and picking the right routes and the right moments becomes more difficult. The choice is yours – whether to take it easy or push it to the limit.

Personally, I find it a lot harder to get into the “zone” when outdoor climbing. It is fairly easy in a competition to get psyched up and ready to go – the impetus to succeed is right there in the heat of the moment. You only have one chance and the computer has decided for you when it’s time to step up to the wall. In order to win, you have to focus NOW! At the crag I can sometimes take on a happy go lucky, slightly blasé approach to climbing. I could try really hard and go for it, or I could quite easily just sit about and wait for the “right” moment to get on a project. There is no time constraint in this game other than that which you decide to place on yourself. As a result I think I have had a tendency to rest on my laurels and think “I will climb grade x when I’m ready. I’m not 100% fit just now. There’s no rush. Maybe next year…or 5?”

Having just returned from Gorges du Loup, I would say my approach to red pointing changed dramatically. I went out feeling fairly well-rounded physically – not too strong but not weak either, not too fit but fitter than I’ve been in a while. Additionally, I think the fact that I had visited Gorges du Loup previously 4 years ago filled me with confidence – I knew what to expect and I knew I was a lot stronger and fitter comparatively than I was at 16. I went out with the intention of climbing 8b. I had gained enough mileage in the lower 8′s that to shy away from trying an 8b would just be silly. I gradually worked my way through the grades in the first week and a half, climbing two 8a’s and an 8a+, the bottom of which was also the start of an 8b I had set my sights on – Deverse SatanX.

The first section of the route provided flowing movements on good blocky/tufa holds, a short 7b in difficulty. The mid section was the trickiest for me to work out – moving across from a shouldery pink tufa onto some undercuts and side pulls on a crozzly tufa system, before coming to an awkward rest on The Mushroom hold. Luckily a sneaky knee bar provided a more comfortable stay on The Mushroom, and interestingly – although Robbie and I both used a knee bar in this rest position – I favoured right knee and Robbie the left, along with a toe hook on a lower tufa. From here to the top involved some more technical climbing on crimps, but also featured some powerful shoulder presses on tufas, which almost always exhausted me by the time I was nearing the crimps.

Part of Robbie's route map (far superior to mine!) of Deverse SatanX 8b The night before we were due to try the route again, Robbie and I drew our own route maps and rehearsed the sequence in the field of our camp. We must have looked like martial arts enthusiasts – eyes closed, limbs moving in all directions yet our movements were always executed with poise and control (if only they worked that well on the rock every time!) The route still felt difficult and there was a day or two when I seriously started doubting myself. I simply wouldn’t be able to link all of these moves together, there is too much to think about!  I kept at it and gradually with each try I was inching closer and closer. So near yet so far. In three consecutive attempts I fell off one hold higher each time, working out a better foot sequence after falling. With every attempt I felt I would need to give so much more in order to overcome the difficulty of the route. However, one day everything fell into place and I somehow found myself at the chains, clipping the rope in and sighing in relief. Maybe I had waited for the perfect moment, or maybe I just believed that little bit more in myself. It was one of those glorious moments when something which felt so hard along the journey to completion eventually felt within my capabilities, yet still required my absolute and undivided attention. It hadn’t quite hit me yet, but I’d just completed my first 8b. After a good few years of setbacks with injuries and a feeling of stagnation I had finally moved forward and pushed my climbing to a level I had always wanted to achieve. Onwards and upwards!

Source: Natalie Berry's Blog