[shark]

Weight 11.4-6

M Eve. Shed. Hot - did ok considering conditions but got sore tips. Did some assisted 1 armers and a few hangs after tea
T.
W.AM. Tor. Morning. PaulB kindly came out. Tipped down. Dogged up IAOOBE. Moves felt harder than on Sunday. One redpoint attempt - felt tired -pumped out on BM traverse. Sacked it off. Rest days required
T.
F.
S.  PM Foundry with family. Sweltering. Didnt intend to climb but there were new problems on the Wave so had a dabble.
S. AM. Tor. Early start. OK temp but no wind and greasy. 1 x dogging go and then got IAOOBE 1st redpoint    though nearly came off traverse of BM. Glued holds on project. Went home. Eve. Shed for an hour.

Had a great run of it in the last 4 weeks ticking 2x7c+ and 2x8a but have a feeling that the wheels are going to come off the train soon.

[tommytwotone]

Mine'll be real easy this week - proper shit.

M - Woke up with worse cold than previous day, also left ear quite muffled. Worked from home.
T - Still feeling shit. Worked from home.
W - Doc in morning re: ear, told to put olive oil in and book for syringing next week.
T - Back at work, still feeling crap. Booked syringing for Tues.
F - Bought ear drops, which succeeded in making me go totally deaf in left ear.
S - Totally deaf in left ear.
S - Hearing finally cleared up around 5pm.

Have done a sum total of sod all this week between the ear thing, which also completely fucked up my balance, and the cold which I'm still not sure I've shaken off.

Hoping for a more productive time of it this week.

[nai]

Goals have had to be re-revised:

stg (season) Cry Of Despair.
mtg (winter) several blocs up to 7c with Brad Pit the main aim
ltg - RP 8a, OS 7a+, E4 next summer

M - ill
T - ill
W - improving
T - better but Mrs birthday - out for breakfast, shopping, dinner, etc 
F - finished off campus board but didn't get chance to use it
S - relieved bookmakers of their money at York races 
S - ate lard and drank a hairy dog

First total blank I think but there are no more social engagements, celebrations or family events coming up so I can concentrate on the important stuff in life.

[Barratt]

Nothing in the last week, holiday in Greece. Back on it today/next week.

[AJM]

S. AM. Tor. Early start. OK temp but no wind and greasy. 1 x dogging go and then got IAOOBE 1st redpoint    though nearly came off traverse of BM. Glued holds on project. Went home. Eve. Shed for an hour.

Had a great run of it in the last 4 weeks ticking 2x7c+ and 2x8a but have a feeling that the wheels are going to come off the train soon.

Nice one

[Luthor]

STG  - Get some sport route mileage in the low/mid sevens.
MTG  - F7c Sport route in 2011. Add to the fairly small list of font 7b bouldering ticks.
LTG  - font 7c & F8a

Mon     - 
Tue     - CD Cornice. Worked Cordless again and had a quick go at Cry of Despair. 
Wed     -
Thurs   - Circuit board intervals at the Works at lunchtime. 
Fri     - 
Sat     - CD Cornice. Did new 7a and worked Cry of Despair again.
Sun     -   

[Muenchener]

STG:  Alpine (sport) rock route >= 10 pitches, >= 6a
     Overhanging pumpy 6b onsight
MTG: Mittlere Weisse Wand, Konstein.
   Alpine build-up programme for LTG routes:
   Sport multipitch harder than LTG routes: >= 6b, >= 10 pitches
   Long easy alpine trad routes to get used to long days, routefinding, complicated descents, efficient ropework etc.
   Hard-ish Alpine trad but not as long/hard as LTG routes - e.g. Messner on Sella Towers, Grosse Micheluzzi, Oberreintal routes
LTG: Big alpine rock routes e.g. Totenkirchl west face (Dülfer), Marmolada south face (anything: Fish probably unlikely), Salbit south and/or west ridge
   Place in top half of the field in a local boulder comp
   Nostalgic trip back home - Welsh trad E2

M: Theraband, pressups.
T: 
W: Wall, Thalkirchen. Weak routes session: got too pumped too soon and remained so all evening. But beasting myself into a deep perma-pump perhaps a sound strategy if I know I won't be training anyway for the the next several days?
T:
F:
S,S: Family camping weekend in Tirol. Idyllic, plus walking uphill with a *big* rucksack full of family camping gear must have some alpine training value.
 

[chris05]

Goals (2011):

10 x 6C (4 done)
5 x 7A (1 done)
Any 7A+ or ideally a 7B

Injury rehab/prevention:
Stick with elbow/shoulder theraband work
Work on knee and up running mileage again

M: 4m run
T: 3xDB complex, BM (pull-ups & max hangs), core & theraband
W: 4m run
T: 40l swim
F: rest
S: bouldering at the churnet
S: 3xDB complex, 4m run & theraband

Poor week of training but good to get out on Sat, shame I didn't get up anything new! Feel like I am stagnating a bit at the moment, but will hopefully improve after this weeks is over at work (maybe). Managed 3 runs this week without the knee playing up too much.

[nai]

Had a great run of it in the last 4 weeks ticking 2x7c+ and 2x8a but have a feeling that the wheels are going to come off the train soon.

Great run, hope it continues, no reason it shouldn't.  Would you attribute these successes to your training plan?

[TobyD]

Had a great run of it in the last 4 weeks ticking 2x7c+ and 2x8a but have a feeling that the wheels are going to come off the train soon.

Nice one simon. What have you done?

[Big Dave]

Mon - Hobson Moor
Tue - weights at gym
Wed -
Thu - weights at gym
Fri -
Sat - Rubicon
Sun - Weights at gym

[shark]

Nice one

Thanks

Nice one simon. What have you done?

Toys for the Boys at Nettle. The rest at the Tor: Crucifixion, Full Monty (Indecent extension) and In and Out of Body Experience (Body Machine extension). I noticed you've been clipping a few chains too.

Great run, hope it continues, no reason it shouldn't.  Would you attribute these successes to your training plan?

Funny one this. The training plan finished in April and in theory I should have peaked after it with a big drop in performance after that. Although I was climbing well I didnt really notice a peak but didn't experience a drop off either. After doing Baboo I was disappointed with the couple of goes I had on the Oak and Rumble anmd so settled on trying Toys for the Boys and Crucifixion.

I find it hard to be objective especially as I have a bad memory but this year benchmark routes like TinOf and Sardine seem a notch easier as does some of the stuff on my home board. I think have gained an incremental improvement in most areas - ie finger stregth, recovery between sessions, PE and stamina rather than a standout improvement in one. I'm sure the training programme has given me a great base to build on.

Working and attempting Crucifixion has set me up well to do other similarly long stamina/recovery routes at the Tor especially as some sections are shared. Losing 4lbs helped too.  Fortunately, thanks to Zippy, there are a couple more 8a's there to go at - Anger Management and Brazen Strumpet. It is unrealistic to expect a run of form to last indefinitely but by pacing myself hopefully spin it out for a bit longer whilst training towards getting specifically strong for the Oak in September.

[Duncan Disorderly]

Effort Simon

Goals: As always

M: Sore Neck
T: Sore Neck
W: Neck felt loads better - 
T: AeroCap @ The Works - Neck felt fine.
F: Chill.
S: Harpur Hill - Fell off trying to onsight Cairn... Put the clips in and redpointed it. What a great route! Enjoyed it so much I toproped the majority of it another couple of times after the RP. Dogging session on the 7b to the left, fingerlocking crack wierdness, did all the moves but couldn't link them - felt hard! Retired to the pub. 
S: Messing about at Rhienstor - Got spooked trying the 6C thing there so played about on the 7A traverse a few times, pretty good finger and PE workout really... Fingers feel tender today.   

Glad the neck seems to have sorted itself out... Actually pretty much managed all that was required of me this week which I'm pretty surprised about. Nice to do Cairn.

This week: Climb, Train, Eat......

:D

[webbo]

Mon.Take missus to see eye specalist in Leeds,so nothing.
Tue.Rockcity hot and sweaty.Just repeating stuff.
Wed.Take missus to physio, so nothing again.
Thu.Rockcity hotter.New problems did about 20 up to v5.
Fri. Nothing.
Sat.Fit new lock to back door.Spend time stting in shed watching it rain as a result of locking myself out.leeds wall same problems as last time just repeated stuff,Not going too bad.
Sun.Raining again so Rockcity 2 x16 and 3 x 3 41 in total.Bike 1 hour including 8 x 5min on 1 min off.

[andybfreeman]

Goals as before. If I'm going to achieve my goals  before i leave for Aus in early October IO really need to get out on routes more to give me a half decent chance of getting cider soak in September ( i fear I've left it too long and it's going to be super hot until then!)

M - Nowt - truly lazy after a quiet weekend (training wise at least!)

Tu - TCA session - too hot for my planned circuits session. Did the new yellow problems that'd been set - a couple of spicy probs but otherwise flashed the lot. Finished some more problems on the mothership and made progress on some of the harder ones.

W - TCA session - warmed up with a few laps of the new black 6b+ circuit and then the red 6c. Tried the thin 7a+ purple but didn't link. Got distracted by more new yellow problems and then climbed those. Wore my dragons for the first time in an attempt to get them broken in, was going well until one of my left toes started bleeding!

Th - BM session at home. Pull ups in sets of 3 x 10 reps on good edges. Repeaters on small edges and 35s. Leg raises on good edges. Offset pull ups

Fr - TCA after work. Mixed session of finishing the yellow circuit and working some more mothership problems. Couple of mid 7 problems very close to going so that'll be the focus for the next few sessions of problems. My dragons made another 2 toes bleed! 

Sa - Catch up session at work followed by a quick afternoon session at TCA. Taped my middle three toes on both feet (left had bled previously) which made a massive improvement to how my dragons felt. After a few proper session they're finally feeling like they're approaching broken in and performance wise they're great!   

Su - Nowt

Weight - average of 67.8 for the past week so I've lost a whole 100g this week. Not exactly earth shattering weight loss but I have been eating sensibly rather than dieting hard so the loss feels sustainable.

[fried]

A nice week, shoulder the best it's been for a long while. So trying to do a bit more steeper stuff and do a fair few new problem that I haven't been able to attempt for a while. My technique is still crap but there are flashes of understanding.

Monday - shoulder stuff
Tuesday - Indoor session 2h
Wednesday - shoulder stuff
Thursda/ Friday - Nowt
Saturday - Indoor session, A 6A I'd done had been upgraded to 6A+ (a first for me) so I repeat it just to be sure but probably it just proved the inaccuracy of indoor grading.
Sunday - family shit

Weight 76.0kg somehow put on half a kilo this week, or maybe my new, inaccurate scales.

Lots of things to look forward to at the moment. First next week early birthday celebration (40  ). So, me and the brother in law are going on a drink/ drug fuelled climbing session in Font somewhere while the wimmin cook the food.

[Three Nine]

Andy - it might perhaps be prudent to switch route goals to something more achievable given time constraints and work pressure? At Ansteys, Boy George and The Mightier are both crackers that might suit your strengths more and be very do-able? You can get good nick at the Cove at all times of year, just depends what the weather's doing I guess. Closer to home, Valley of the Blind is an absolute gem at Cheddar (big holds and a good line - not your usual cheddar route) which I think you would crush. Just some musings!

[Three Nine]

To clarify - while I think you're an awesome climber with power to spare and a great attitude etc. Your general route/redpointing experience is fairly limited. Of course you're well capable of CS, but given your redpointing track record and the way work is busting your balls atm, if I were to be brutally honest i'd bet against you doing it before going away. Of course it would be totally sweet if you proved me wrong, but it might be less frustrating, more rewarding and beneficial in the long run to change your pre-Sept objectives, unless you foresee being able to put in a lot of time on the route?

[TobyD]

Toys for the Boys at Nettle. The rest at the Tor: Crucifixion, Full Monty (Indecent extension) and In and Out of Body Experience (Body Machine extension). I noticed you've been clipping a few chains too.

Nice, are the long thigns at the tor pretty good then? Crucifixtion certainly looks a good line! Aye, been dragging my hide up a couple of things recently, i had a deluded 48 hours of wondering whether i could tick the triple crown in a week but as i (only just) failed on number two a few times last week that's not happening, in a year would still be utterly great though. Oak in Sept eh? Eyes on the prize! ;-)

[TobyD]

You can get good nick at the Cove at all times of year, just depends what the weather's doing I guess.

totally agreed. january or august, i've had good and bad in both...  its so unpredictable! ...and surprisingly conditions dependent for somewhere that steep as well.

[shark]

Nice, are the long thigns at the tor pretty good then? Crucifixtion certainly looks a good line!

Yes - as good as all but the very best of the Yorkshire plods. Its surprising how exposed it gets. Good rope management and getting the desperate PushUp start wired is key. Graded list probably like this:

*     PushUp 7b+ From stump up then trend up right to the break. 3 bolts.
*** Indecent Exposure 7c Stump to new belay
*** Half Decent 7c PushUp into Indecent. Crimpy. 
*** Body Machine 7c+ (Direct) PushUp into Body Machine
*** The Full Monty 7c+ Indecent extended to top with airy roof climbing
*** Proud Whore 7c+ Prow to the crux of pitch2 then carry on directish 
*** Full Prow 8a PushUp into Prow in a single pitch finishing at Crucifixion belay.
*** An In and Out of Body Experience 8a From Body Machine belay up the wall and thru the roof to finish as for Full Monty
*** Crucifixion 8a Prow pitch 2 to the small roof. Pull direct over and head up the wall

For Crucfixion, Prow and Proud Whore I tie into both ends of the rope and at the Revelations belay clip direct to the belay with an 8 foot sling and untie the first rope one-handed (bowline best) whilst the belayer puts you on the trailing rope. However, with Steve Crowes new bolts it looks like this probably isnt necessary anymore if you skip the first bolt past the Revelations belay. 

Not done but also look good:

** Anger Management 8a Body Machine to rockover crux then move right to belay on Pitch1 of Prow then pull over direct (Rage)to finish at Body Machine belay
** Brazen Strumpet 8a quests diagonally right from Revelations belay
** Body Builder 8a+ As for Body Machine to the break then cruxy moves to the right to rejoin to Body Machine belay

 

[cheque]

STG: E1 on big cliffs this summer- specifically In Pembroke end of July. 6C.
MTG:  E2, 7a and 7A before end of 2011.
LTG: Onsighting long E4s before my planned 2013 USA trip.

M- Rest.
T- Swiss ball core.
W- Horsepoo Quarry. Got a couple of routes in despite it raining the entire time we were there.
T- Swiss ball core.
F- Wide-arm pushups.
S- Went for a walk and did some bouldering in my work clothes.
S- Stoney. Good session but fell off near the top of Minus 10 (the route) giving my mate the chance to swan up it effectively on a top-rope. Doesn't bode well for my performance in Pembroke... 

Worked 6 days this week as well as training of some sort every day.

[tunaficiency]

monday : tried doylos 30 sec hangs every minute could only manage 20 secs on the large jugs on the beastmaker for 10 mins. Theraband stuff
tuesday : Theraband stuff
wednesday : 2 hours trying robert duvall great p.e. problem crux crimp must be 1 mill
2 hours in the evening doing long circuits at pantamwyn 27 moves with 10 min rest
hard v6 manage it on 2nd go
thursday : 15 mile mountain bike loop normal circuit felt tired 1: 41. theraband stuff
ice fingers
friday : theraband stuff. ice fingers
saturday : trad at rhiwarth do new route , why cant i eat all the biscuits hvs 5b. second kate up bionic women
sunday: traversing on the walls of my folks place , family walk near mallwyd
spot a crag do a cool v2 overhanging nose. theraband stuff

[pyrosis]

goals

achieve weight of 80Kg@~6%BF
complete a 1/2 marathon
V9 by the end of the year

weight 89Kg@11%BF
M- worked
T- ran three miles, very steep and hilly, at ~3000M elevation, worked
W- jogged a mile then 1 mile time trial, time 6:22 - not bad for a soon to be ex-smoker
T- ran two miles flat, time 20:00
F- ran five miles, moderately hilly, at >3000M elevation
S- evening session at buttermilk, cruised some classics up to v3
S- bouldered @ the knobs in Tuolumne Meadows, first time there, managed to send the Kauk Problem, old school v5, and a handful of others

diet very clean this week

[heelhookofglory]

M: Beastmaker session: 3 sets of 4FO (big) encores as warm-up. F2, M2, Bk2 x 3 sets of max hangs.
T: Cold
W: Cold
T: Churnet session (still a bit laid up so not 100%). Felt very close on Undercut using Matt's right foot beta (thanks Matt). Also bloody close on Alt 3 again! Aggh!
F: Rest
S: Churnet session. Flashed two of my hardest problems yet, felt strong and motivated today. Still not 100% but feeling loads better.
S: Beastmaker session: 3 sets of 4FO (big) encores as warm-up. F2, M2, Bk2 x 2 sets of max hangs.

[205Chris]

Been away all week with work so it's a late post:

STG: Powerplant

Short version of events: I've still not climbed Powerplant

Long version:

Without wanting to turn this into a ramble I didn't get a lot done of climbing / training done. Hoped to get on Powerplant one evening in the week but various belaying options canceled on me. Finally got to the cornice on Friday / Saturday but climbed rubbish and couldn't even get through the crux.

Much as I hate to say this I think it's time for a break from Powerplant for several reasons:

i. Since returning from Spain in May I've only climbed a handful of routes as the rest of the time has been spent on Powerplant.

ii. I've really struggled to find belayers for various reasons. It's also frustrating to take a rest day or two to feel fresh then have a belay cancel at the last minute.

iii. After speaking to a friend last week I think siege tactics are good up to a point. If there's a definite crux on the route that you're continually failing on but the one go you make it through the crux the route should be in the bag then I reckon it's worth grinding it out. I can lap Powerplant in over lapping halves but climbing the thing in one go seems to be at my power endurance limit.

iv. Psychologically it's a big route for me and I'm not sure that reporting on power club every week that I've still not climbed it is great for me mentally. I used to keep most of my goals private and I thought making them public would inspire / motivate etc. but not sure this is the case as it might just be adding to the pressure.

Still, it's been a learning experience and despite feeling a bit down that it's not in the bag yet I'm reminded of this

Time for a change of scene for a few weeks then back to Powerplant. This is what I need:




Ramble over.

[shark]

Hi Chris

Sorry to hear about your belayer problems - I would be seething if that happened to me. For a project at your limit you need to be getting on it at least twice a week. The last time I saw you on it you were really close. It would be a shame to chuck the towel in. Better if you can take afternoons off for weekday sessions as you are less rushed than if turning up after work. If you are still psyched for it and need a regular and reliable partner I am happy to transfer my allegiance to the Cornice as I have been going to the tor a lot of late and could do with a change of scenery. Maybe take a week out to train then get back in the saddle. That is what worked for me on K3.

[nai]

I was wondering why you hadn't posted this week, big call to make when you've been so close.

You say you're at the top end of your PE limit, being a few months into your training the gains you are making there are now probably quite small in the short term?  Having been focused on PE/general endurance Your top-end power is probably a little down on your winter levels so that could be an area that you could improve very quickly, spend a week or two bouldering/power focused, as well as a recharge it may give you that bit more umph you need to get through.

[205Chris]

Hi Chris

Sorry to hear about your belayer problems - I would be seething if that happened to me. For a project at your limit you need to be getting on it at least twice a week. The last time I saw you on it you were really close. It would be a shame to chuck the towel in. Better if you can take afternoons off for weekday sessions as you are less rushed than if turning up after work. If you are still psyched for it and need a regular and reliable partner I am happy to transfer my allegiance to the Cornice as I have been going to the tor a lot of late and could do with a change of scenery. Maybe take a week out to train then get back in the saddle. That is what worked for me on K3.

I was wondering why you hadn't posted this week, big call to make when you've been so close.

You say you're at the top end of your PE limit, being a few months into your training the gains you are making there are now probably quite small in the short term?  Having been focused on PE/general endurance Your top-end power is probably a little down on your winter levels so that could be an area that you could improve very quickly, spend a week or two bouldering/power focused, as well as a recharge it may give you that bit more umph you need to get through.

Cheers guys. Don't get me wrong, I'm not giving up and I'm still psyched for the route I think I just need a break for a week or two. The next couple of weekends I'm fairly busy with limited opportunities to get out so I'm going to use this opportunity to train then get back to the cornice with a vengeance.

Simon - I appreciate the offer, I'll be in touch in a couple of weeks when my weekends free up again.