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Training!
21 December 2011, 12:38 pm

The last few months have been training, training, training. I come from a background of not really training at all, just climbing lots and the occasional pull up….so I have been surprised by how much I am enjoying it! I have done bits and bobs – 6 weeks here and there – in the past, but nothing as full on as this. Part of my decision to immerse myself in training was because I am now a student again. I am studying part time for an MSc in Integrative Counselling and Psychotherapy and it is a lot easier to do training sessions around uni work than it is to go out climbing for the day and the course also means I am at home in Sheffield, not gallivanting around Europe. The other part of the decision came from a desire to do better in the Bouldering World Cup circuit this year. I have done a few events in the last three years but I have always competed in them off the back of long outdoor trips – which isn’t necessarily bad – but isn’t the perfect preparation….. Thirdly, after the comps are pretty much over (after the Vail event) I am going to stay in Colorado for a couple of months to get my outside climbing fix for 2012. So, all in all, lots of reasons to get psyched and get better.

So the training. Essentially I have been a pupil of David Mason who has been helping me out with a training programme. It all began in September with 8 weeks of conditioning. This was a bit of a trial and error phase and I was a guinea pig for ideas. The guinea pig expired. I overdid it and began to fatigue. I have never experienced real fatigue before and it was an odd experience for me. I was tired all the time but the oddest thing was that I began to cry randomly for no reason (quite often during or after any kind of training). I had nothing to cry about so this began to ring alarm bells and I cut the training down. At this point I began to look more closely at my nutrition. The British Team trainings were just beginning and through the team I received a lot of help from Rebecca Dent (the team nutritionist) who has been brilliant. I also got in touch with Optimum Nutrition and Nick and Sara have been really supportive too, providing me with supplements so that I can recover better and get the most out of my training. The crying stopped! Now I have moved onto my strength phase which is more my kind of thing and I am really enjoying it. At the moment I am doing two fingerboard sessions a week (which are made up of assisted one arm pull ups, weighted pull up pyramids and pull downs), two weights sessions a week (exercises like bench press, bicep curls, squats, roll outs and flies), two or three climbing sessions a week and three runs a week to help my fitness. One thing I can really recommend for training is keeping a diary; it helps you stay organised and (more importantly) keeps you psyched as it shows your progress right there on the page in front of you (even if it’s minute).

I’m looking forward to a bit of a break over Christmas in London with a couple of WestWay sessions, New Year in Fontainebleau (!!) and then into a power phase in January……

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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Font
14 January 2012, 12:23 pm

After the joys of a decadent festive season in London I headed out with friends to Fontainebleau to celebrate the New Year and do some bouldering. As we drove there, it was raining; when we got there, it was raining; and for the first four days, it rained. Fontainebleau is an amazing climbing venue, one of the best in the world but the one thing that brings it down is the weather. During our trip of seven days we had two and a half days climbing, which is better than nothing and worth the wait. I was lucky enough to try Irreversible, a high ball 7C at Manoury. It is a great line, a bit scary and brilliant climbing. After taking two falls from the last hard move, I finished the climb with my heart in my mouth and my hands a bit shaky! On the last day of the trip I went back to try again on Big Golden at Cuvier Rempart. I had tried this climb one afternoon earlier in the trip and was astonished to find I could now do some moves on it that I had, on previous trips to Font, never managed. Filled with psyche I tried to piece it together and, after a last change in beta, I found myself topping out. Very happy, I really thought I may never do this problem.



Big Golden, Photo by Bart van Raaij



Big Golden, Photo Bart van Raaij

Back in the UK, the weather has suddenly turned nice. Blue skies and cold air inspired me to head out to a grit problem I had failed on a year or so ago – Suavito (7B). This problem is fairly high and committing at the top, requiring a big throw and a big span. I was psyched to try it again and this time (after one fall landing flat on my back!) I managed to climb it. Hopefully this weather will continue…..

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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Cold Temps and Bad Piercings
13 February 2012, 3:13 pm

The temperatures have dropped in the last few weeks here in the UK, giving us brilliant conditions. However, although I don’t want to be negative, these temperatures have been too cold for me. I am a lucky climber in that I have pretty durable, strong, non-sweaty, non-splitting skin on my fingertips, thus meaning that I don’t always need the coldest of cold days to feel good friction. Having said this, I have been out and about on the rocks and have climbed some cool problems like Flatworld (7b+) at Baslow. I have also been up to sample some problems in Northumberland, spending a couple of days at Bowden Doors. I was really impressed with the area and am keen to go back to climb some more.

I have also been struggling a bit lately to train/climb as much as I would like due to a recurrent shoulder/neck problem – nerve pain down my arm with numbness, tingling and weakness. I have been seeing a Chiropractor (Matt Pigden at Element Chiropratic Clinic in Belper) and I was doing very well with recovery before Christmas, only to have a bad relapse in the last few weeks. Initially, when I first saw Matt, he tested out how my piercings may be affecting my neural system and found that removing my earlobe piercings and tongue piercing had a dramatic effect, instantly improving my performance on specific proprioceptive muscle tests. He also tested my nose piercing but back then it seemed not to be an issue. My shoulder/neck pain had settled down dramatically until this recent relapse. The sudden change for the worse didn’t seem to make sense so Matt retested my remaining nose stud and we found that all of a sudden it too was having an impact. Matt explained that previously it may not have shown up as the tongue piercing was the main stress on my nervous system but when that settled and when I increased my training it seemed it was stressing my system. The day before seeing Matt and removing this piercing I had struggled to climb an easy circuit at the Climbing Works because of the pain but the next day I was on the 45 degree board, feeling strong and pain free! Very interesting. I will never be getting a piercing again. Obviously there will be skeptics to these ideas, all I can say is that it has been an eye opening experience for me and all I can report are the results!

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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Power Endurance Training Begins…
21 February 2012, 11:06 am

I have just come to the end of my power phase in training; a 6 week block that has seen me doing assisted one armers, weights, campussing and lots of power climbing. So now, with David’s help and planning, I am moving on to power endurance (PE). The idea behind all this training is to be strong for the World cup circuit this year and also for our trip to Colorado this summer- so a lot to be excited for and a lot to persuade me to do “just one more” in my training.

This is the first time I have ever trained in an organised way for so long. I have done the odd few weeks of this and that over the years but nothing to this degree. It will be interesting to see how it benefits, I think already I am a lot stronger for it. One of the great things I find when training is to keep a record in some kind of diary. Mine is called “Mina’s training book of self-loathing”! It helps to look back and see improvement and also to write down when you train, what you eat etc.

Yesterday, in preparation for PE, I went to see Tom Randall and have a go at his power endurance tests on his board. We looked at anerobic capacity and also low end aerobic capacity. This essentially looks at the power end and the endurance end of PE. We also did a one arm strength test to put the endurance in the context of my strength; thus enabling us to get an idea of my efficiency when climbing. Hopefully, after 8 weeks of training I will do these again and be better!

So this week is the beginning of my PE phase; today is the first proper training session. Wish me luck!



Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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Team training and some beautiful days…
7 March 2012, 11:14 am

I’ll start with team training. Our most recent one was at Boulder Uk and it was a really good day. I’m sure there is some rule whereby team trainings are always on good weather days which makes it seem more important that they feel worthwhile and helpful – this one certainly was. The GBR Bouldering team has improved so much in the past couple of years, our manager Nick Clement has been great and has expanded our team to include a Nutritionist (Rebecca Dent), a Sports Psychologist (Victoria Cassell), a Sports Scientist (Dominic White), a Chiropractor (Matt Pigden) and a Coach (David Mason). With all these people in place, how could we fail?!



This training session we did competition simulation sets in the morning and afternoon – helping us to practice and get used to the 5 on/ 5 off format and working our power endurance. We also each get to have a 1:1 with any of the above mentioned if we want. It is a very supportive set up, especially given that all the above help us for free as the team has limited funding. All in all, a good day.

Since my last blog I have been training power endurance like there is no tomorrow, exhausting myself with 4×4 circuits on the wave at the Foundry. For those of you that don’t frequent this wall, I recommend it. It is a good place to get strong, very basic climbing on a variety of holds on steep ground.

Today, however, I took the morning to go out on the grit. It was a beautiful day and I went to try The Terrace (7C) at Burbage North. This problem is not much to look at….it is small and a bit pokey but it actually climbs really nicely and is right on the doorstep – perfect if you only have a couple of hours. I’m happy to say it went well and I made it to the top after some fighting! Here are some pics and I will put up a video when we have worked out how to put it together (new camera….)



Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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CWIF 2012
15 March 2012, 1:01 pm

After lots of training, I was excited for this year’s Climbing Works International Festival. I guess I was hopeful that I would feel stronger than I had before and would be able to hold my own and do well. Did I achieve this? Yes I think I did, but I would be lying if I didn’t admit I was a bit disappointed too. Competitions are an odd environment, you only have that 5 minutes, only you’re own beta and there is no room for mistakes.

I hate the qualifying round, it is so nerve racking. I was in the team event as well as competing individually and this made a huge difference to my enjoyment of that first stage. It is much more fun going around as a group and can feel more like it’s just another climbing session at the wall. I can imagine that people may think this format is a lot less scary than the semi-final or final format but for me it is much worse. I think it’s because you only have three goes, in the IFSC format I feel more like I have had a good shot at the problem.

I went into the semi-finals quite nervous – I really wanted to make the finals but was well aware that there was a strong group of girls (Shauna, Alex, Melanie, Anne-Laure, Clementine and Leah) who were also vying for one of those 6 spaces. The semi’s went fairly well for me, I flashed two problems out of four and went into the finals in third place.

When the finals came round I was excited. My aims were not unrealistic – I wanted to maintain my third place. I know that Shauna and Alex are a step up from me and I was psyched to be placed just behind. The finals did’t exactly go to plan. First of all I had a nightmare on the slab, barely able to get off the floor. The second problem I flailed around on, unable to do a burly move. I was filled with relief when I topped out on the fourth, and finally the fifth just felt too hard. I ended up in fourth place, a bit frustrated but also happy to have done one of them. Hats of to all the girls who climbed in the finals, good efforts all round!

Frustratingly I went back to those problems two days later and found them not so challenging; even the last one I was able to do all the moves on. But that is the skill of competition climbing: doing it then and there in that 5 mins. Still, there are things to be learned from going back to the problems and working out what you didn’t work out on the day. The positive’s I have taken are that those problems were not way too hard for me and therefore the competition is not too far ahead of me….next time!

Women's Final Problem No. 2, Photo by Alex Messenger

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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Training article
24 March 2012, 10:39 am

Check out this training article on rockclimbinguk.com  http://rockclimbinguk.co.uk/mina-leslie-wujastyk-on-her-bouldering-training/

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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Weekend in the County and a spot of fitness testing!
6 April 2012, 12:18 pm

On Friday morning David and I packed up the van and drove to the County for the weekend. We decided to head to Hepburn to have a look around as neither of us had climbed there before and we had heard good things. When we got there it was pretty warm but we headed up the hill to have a nosey at some problems. One of the problems I had heard about was Preparation H, an 8A (/7C+)  line up a big sandstone bloc. It was brilliant to look at and I was psyched immediately! We warmed up on some cool problems, and then went and had a look at the Titanic boulder nearby. A fun 7A+ bloc with a pockety sit start into a lay back arete, this was a good start to the day. We then headed over to Preparation H to begin working it out. David decided to wait for it to cool down a  bit but I was overexcited (and generally have pretty good skin) so I got stuck in. The crux of the problem soon became clear – a difficult foot movement early on, strenuous but do-able. David pushed me through the start so I could have a go at the end part and having sussed it I had a rest before giving it a go. I was stunned on my first go after a rest to find myself through the crux and moving onto the slopers…and to the top! Very happy to do this boulder (albeit in a bit of a shaky fashion -my hands were sliding on the warm holds at the top!). Feeling in high spirits I then did Nothern Soul (7A+) next to it, a very cool high problem with a bit of a scary top, and Trivial Pursuit (7C), another brilliant problem. David wasn’t having much luck due to warm holds, bad skin and tape so he decided to stop and try again on a colder day- the next day he did all the mentioned problems!



Preparation H. Courtesy of http://www.jonathan-creative.com/

 



Preparation H. Courtesy of http://www.jonathan-creative.com/

 



David on Preparation H. Photo courtesy of Andy Jennings



David on Northern Soul. Photo courtesy of Andy Jennings

After what turned out to be a tiring Friday, we camped in the van and then I headed off early in the morning to Teeside University for Team Training. This training was fitness testing. To give it a context, we do a session here in October and then again in March before the season starts. The October testing helps us to highlight training goals and weaknesses and the March one shows us if we have improved or not!  To cut a long story short I had improved on the majority of the tests and by quite a substantial amount  This was really reassuring as I have busted a gut training this year! One of my personal enemies has been the bleep test – for those of you who have taken it I am sure you will agree it is an evil thing. It aims to measure your aerobic capacity through a running test that gradually speeds up until you drop out from fatigue or are unable to make the distance in time. A cruel business. In October I was appalling in this test as I hadn’t done any running or aerobic training for some time. I am happy to say that I did a lot better this time – running all winter (even in the snow!) has paid off . Thanks to Dom, Rebecca and the Teeside team for all their help and support.

After this day at Teeside University I went back to the County to meet up with David, Andy, Rob and Lee. While I had been at Teeside, David had been not only to Hepburn  but also to Back Bowden and had successfully climbed County Ethics – a problem I was keen to try. On Sunday morning we headed back to the problem so I could have a little go. This problem is high! I tired the start but I found myself at a move I could not commit to without having tried the top so I popped a harness on and went to have a look. I brushed the holds and did the top moves on a rope absolutely fine, including a big move that, when held, signals the end of the hard section. I tried it from the bottom but again I stuggled to commit to the big move a number of times, jumping off onto the pads. It is very frustrating when the main thing holding you back is mental not physical. I got frustrated and got on one more time with my head in a good place – I went for the move and held it but my foot popped off and I lost the hold as I readjusted my grip! Gutted. I took the fall and was fine but mentally I was drained. Another time, another trip!

 

Me on County Ethics. Photo courtesy of Mark Savage.  http://marksavagephotography.blogspot.co.uk/

Videos to come!

 

Now I am back in Sheffield, getting nervous and psyched for the first World Cup of 2012 in China. Alex and I fly next week, wish us luck!

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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It’s a long way home from China!
17 April 2012, 5:11 pm

This year I was given the opportunity to go to China for the first World Cup event of 2012. Originally I wasn’t planning to go – it is a long way, very expensive and, although I enjoy them, my strengths do not lie in competition climbing. However, Alex Puccio (who has been living in the UK for some time now) got some funding from her sponsor Fila to go to the competition and they agreed to pay for someone else to go with her. As many may know, Alex’s boyfirend Chris Web-Parsons hurt his shoulder at the CWIF in Sheffield and was not feeling up to it – so Alex kindly offered the place to me. What a great opportunity, there was no decision process! I was excited for the competition but also for the experience of going to a new place.

It was a long journey…two flights, 12 hours air time, 7 hour time difference. When the qualifiers came around I was pretty tired but I’m sure everyone else was too.  The competition didn’t go very well for me at all. In the qualifiers I did 2 out of 5 problems, touching the last hold of 2 of the ones I didn’t complete – very frustrating! I made it to the semi finals but I struggled even more there, only making one bonus hold! I ended up in 17th place, frustrated and a bit disappointed…..but c’est la vie, we can’t always have the things we want and this one was just not for me. I am going to put it behind me and try again this weekend in Slovenia!  A big well done to Shauna Coxsey who ended up in 4th place

On the upside, I got to see some of China which was great. Chongqing is a huge city, with a population of around 5 million. The traffic is crazy, there are sky high blocks of flats wherever you look and you get stared at A LOT if you’re blonde! The people were freindly, consistently helpful and they put on a great competition for us…perhaps we will be there again next year!

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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Video from the County
19 April 2012, 7:29 am

  from mina leslie-wujastyk on Vimeo.

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

[Fiend]

 

[Dolly]

Love the music on this as well.

[b3n99]

Both of these problems look top notch but especially 'County Ethics', what a line!!

Top of the tick list now.

[Probes]

Nice air time of county    4 

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Slovenia WC
25 April 2012, 11:26 am

Where do I start?! The last couple of weeks has been pretty heavy with a trip to China, a flying visit home, a funeral in Germany and a competition the next day in Slovenia. It felt like a bit of a handful but I was doing okay. I arrived at the competition feeling better than expected and I thought “yeah this could go well”.

Because there were so many competitors, we were split into two groups; I was in group A. Each group has different problems and to make semis you need to make top 10 in your group. Some of the problems are similar but it is really two different competitions, with people placed evenly in the groups depending on their ranking. I won’t go into the problems individually but I ended up topping out on one problem. I was disappointed with my performance but I have to remind myself that to make the top 10 in my group you only needed two tops. So although my placing puts me miles away from where I wanted, I was only one problem away.

This way of looking at it has taken me a few days. I have a habit of being very hard on myself, instantly thinking I am useless when in fact I am very capable. I have decided not to do the Vienna round of the WCs because my head needed a break. I lost my psyche and there is no point competing without it. Since being home I have come to realise that physically I am in good shape but I have neglected to work on the mental strength required in competition climbing. It turns out  positive thinking in the face of disappointment is pretty hard. And going out confident (truly confident) is even harder.

I have decided to do the Innsbruck round in a few weeks and in that time I am going back to training, climbing outside and also looking at how I can psychologically help myself. It should be interesting….

A big well done to Shauna Coxsey, an inspiration to us all (physically and mentally).

 

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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Innsbruck WC
21 May 2012, 1:35 pm

Where do I start? After a bit of a shoddy performance in Slovenia, I decided not to do the Vienna WC, to give myself a break. I spent the month between Slovenia and Innsbruck doing lots of things; running, swimming, climbing, finishing off uni work, training in my cellar and looking at the mental side of climbing. I won’t go into too much detail but working on the mental aspect of competition climbing really helped me. I don’t really struggle with it outdoors, something is different there. But at competitions, my head really got in way. After doing some mental training and prep with two friends, I felt much better prepared for Innsbruck. My goal for the competition was to enjoy it, avoid negative self talk and to be happy with myself whatever my result. I managed it, I thoroughly enjoyed the competition and I even did ok too, ending up in 24th. Definitely some silly mistakes in there and I felt I was strong enough to do better, but that’s good – I can work with that!

It has given me what feels like a new lease of life in competition. It is much less intimidating knowing I have the tools to stop myself spiraling into a negative pattern of self loathing. I feel like I have just decided to be a bit kinder to myself – well worth doing . My Mum always used to say “be kind to yourself” and I think that, although I knew what she meant, I have only just (at a ripe 25 years…) started to do it. Well, better late than never I suppose!

In terms of our team, it was a great event! 3 Brits in the final and Shauna on the podium again! Well done everyone

I’m back at home now, packing for a summer in Colorado! Starting the trip with the BWC in Vail, we will then stay in Boulder for some long awaited rock climbing! Can’t wait for both the comp and the rock.

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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Disappearing into thin air
28 May 2012, 4:46 pm

We left for Colorado on the 24th May from London and arrived that evening in Boulder, tired (our body clocks were 7hrs forward) but glad to be off  planes! We spent our first day sorting out the van we bought out here, a 1992 GMC van, a beautifully brutish thing. It was surprisingly easy to do actually, you need insurance, a smog test and then new plates – all do-able in half a day. We were too tired to head out so we rested up and headed to Rocky Mountain National Park the next day.

Our Van!

We headed up to an area called Emerald Lake which sits at about 10,000ft. The walk in was beautiful, about 40 mins fairly uphill and we took it steady to get used to the altitude. The area seemed pretty small but with some good climbs. We warmed up on a nice V5 called The Kind before going to try Wispers of Wisdom, a really cool looking V10. I won’t go into moves but this is a great problem, it looks good and the climbing is fun and powerful. Neither of us managed to do it but I am psyched to go back and finish it. After trying that for a while, we went over to the Large Boulder and tried a V9 called Tommy’s Arete. This was a nice surprise, fun climbing followed by a slightly nerve racking top out! We both managed to do it, with some serious huffing and puffing (the altitude really gets you when you put more than 3 moves together!).

  Dream Lake, on the walk up to Emerald Lake (RMNP)

Tommy’s Arete

The next day we went with Jackie and Chris (who we are staying with) to an area called Wild Basin. This has a relatively flat walk in but we did some boulder searching on the hill so a fair bit of walking! When we settled at the main area it looked pretty disappointing to begin with but ended up being pretty fun. I don’t think it’s the best rock around but it made for a good day out. David and Chris tried a hard looking V12 called Mini Compressor while I spent some time working a steep V10  called Macho Man which is long, with some big moves. Really fun to try, I would like to go back to that one too! At the end of the day we both did a nice V9 called The Hamburglarer which was pretty fun. I would post a picture but we forgot to put the battery in the camera…….

 

So rest day today and then I think we will head to Mount Evans tomorrow……

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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Vail WC and a day at Lincoln
6 June 2012, 4:47 am

Having arrived and spent a few days in Colorado, I was really psyched to climb on rock so it was a bit strange to put that on hold and head to Vail for the World Cup. Don’t get me wrong, I was psyched for the competition but it was an odd transfer from being really excited for rock to getting ready to try hard on plastic. We set off from Boulder with a van full of people and it looked to be a good weekend; everyone was feeling good, the weather was nice and the views on the drive spectacular.

I was excited for the qualifiing round, in a good mood and ready to do my best. I really enjoyed this round, I felt I climbed well although I could have climbed better…I have a tendency to mess up on the last moves of problems. I am still not sure if this is often because the last moves are really hard or if I psyche myself out when I get there. Perhaps a combination. The third problem was the highlight of the whole weekend for me. It was a backwards double dyno out of a roof with a burly, basic finish up a steep wall. I looked at the problem, pulled into the start position for the jump and thought “hmmm this might be beyond me but I’ll have a throw” . I caught the jump first go and pushed throught to the top, suprising myself by flashing the problem. I can’t describe the adrenalin and psyche that I had at that moment, that must be what it feels like to be one of the top people that just pulls it out of the bag all the time!

Problem 3 (qualifiers), Photo by David Mason

 

Problem 1 (qualifiers), Photo Will Hummel



Problem 4 (semi finals), Photo by Will Hummel

I qualified for the semi finals in 16th place. Very happy. I had acheived my goal by making the semis but I was still eager to do well the next day. I won’t go into tons of detail but I didn’t climb very well  in the semis. I made lots of silly mistakes, misread the problems and generally just didn’t sort myself out. I am not sure what went wrong really, I don’t think the problems were far beyond me…I just seemed to be missing some kind of something!

Well done again to Shauna who keeps doing brilliantly!

 



Shauna on the Podium, Photo by David Mason

We spent the next day chilling before heading back to Boulder. On the monday we went up to Lincoln Lake, a beautiful location. You park at about 13,000ft and walk down to climb just below 12,000ft. The air feels really thin up there and you really notice it on the walk back up to the car! The climbing there was better than I expected and I am psyched to go back to finish off a cool problem that I nearly did.  As I didn’t actually get up anything that day all I have to offer for the end of this blog is some footage of some pretty cool (I’m sure you’ll agree…) dance moves that I was taught by Chris Webb-Parsons. To give it a context, you must know that I have “Kiss” by Prince playing though headphones while I’m doing it (if you play the song while watching it it works a lot better)….see if you can spot the following moves:

1. Supermarket shopping

2. Hanging up washing.

3. Feeding the chickens.

4. Mowing the lawn (first getting the mower going..)

5. Driving a bus.

Filmed by the infamous Shauna Coxsey

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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Colorado Climbing
19 June 2012, 6:13 pm

Since I last blogged we have been out in Colorado, climbing as much as possible! We have been staying in Boulder and I really like it as a town; good climbing scene, nice people, good coffee! And, of course, in one direction you have Rocky Mountain National Park and in the other, Mount Evans, Guanella Pass and Lincoln Lake. Not bad. The only negative thing I can find is the amount of driving, the park is the closest of those listed and takes an hour to get to at least. But that is nothing really and we get laughed at for thinking that is long, us English are just not used to long drives American style!

I’m not sure where to start…we have had lots of great days out. There are lots of boulders I am psyched to climb here but I guess I will talk about the ones I just managed and hopefully I will have the opportunity to do the ones I have not yet managed soon!

I will start with Guanella Pass. We arranged to go a week or so ago with Angie as she had tried a problem there and wanted to go back for it. The area is just past Mount Evans and is right by the road (a nice break from the long walks!). It isn’t a very big area but it has some good problems. Angie was trying Mind Matters, a V12 that goes up the centre of a big boulder. The problem centres around a hard move from a bad pinch and makes for great climbing. David, Shauna and I tried the moves on the problem and were all very keen to try it again. Angie sent it that day, very impressive to watch especially because it was a very hot day. We went back a week later (in the evening for the colder temps) and all three of us managed to climb it! Mine was very much a “one more go” moment when I was really tired so I was especailly surprised and happy to find myself on top of thr boulder.

Here is a little video:

from mina leslie-wujastyk on Vimeo.

One rest day and then we headed back to Lincoln Lake. I had two problems I wanted to do this day, both I had tried before and was keen to finish. The first, Phobos is an overhanging V10 with big moves – not usually my forte….but really fun climbing! On my first session I had been falling off the last hard section so I was positive and hoped that it would go down fairly quickly. It was not to be so. I had a real fight lined up! I dropped the end section multiple times, I even got past the hard climbing once and my foot popped on the easier mantle section. It was going to be a battle. I had a 30 minute rest and then had another go. Fell again. One more try and I was finally topping out! I was so exhausted by this point (bear in mind all this is going on at an elevation of 12,000 ish ft).

I watched other people for a while and rested, gearing up to try Unshackled, my second aim for the day. I was pretty tired by the time we got to the boulder and it was getting pretty dark. Unshackled is a V9/10 which follows a crackline through a steep roof.

Unshackled (V9/10) the first day I tried it, Lincoln Lake. Photo David Mason

I had tried it before and got very close but I was very tired now and didn’t have another Phobos-esque fight left in me. I didn’t warm up again, I just pulled on and had a go. I tried hard and somehow ended up on top. My fingers went numb at the end and I had horrible hot aches after but I was happy to have done it and not to have another epic. All that was left was the walk out….

Here is a little video from the day:

from mina leslie-wujastyk on Vimeo.

Here is another video from earlier in the trip too:

from mina leslie-wujastyk on Vimeo.

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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From hot and sweaty Colorado to rain soaked Sheffield
9 July 2012, 3:11 pm

A lot has changed since I last blogged. Colorado continued to heat up and it started to get unbearable (for us English who are used to the cold…). It was in and around 40 degrees most days in Boulder, a bit cooler in the park but still pretty warm. We started climbing a lot in Upper and Lower Chaos to get the cooler temperatures, heading out in the afternoon so that we could climb in the evenings and then at night by torchlight. We got some great climbing in and I really enjoyed the boulders at those areas; cool lines with really good moves.

However the heat eventually got too much for us and we decided to head home early, with a plan to return in September for a couple of weeks before heading to Joe’s Valley. Here is a video from our last period of time climbing in the Park:



Before heading back to the UK, we went and spent a couple of days in Independence Pass with climber Chris Schulte and Photographer Keith Ladzinski. Chris has done a lot of developing in this area and has put up some really good climbs including some amazing problems in what is known as the Ice Caves. The granite is flawlessly smooth creating some unique and inspiring features. Unfortunately it rained while we were there rendering it un-climbable. There was just enough time for Keith to get pictures for a Rock and Ice article before we moved on. Just up the hill there is Gollom’s Cave, a 15ft horizontal roof with two of Chris’s problems on it. I tried Choke Hold, a V10 with a brilliant pinch hold in the middle of the roof. I would highly recommend this problem; fun and involved climbing.  Here is a little video of me doing it:



Before leaving the US I did some training with Kris Peters at Movement Climbing Gym in Boulder. It was a great session, really hard and very constructive, thanks again Kris! I wish I had some photos actually, to show the immense effort we all put in that day!

Shortly afterwards, we headed back to rainy Sheffield. The rain felt like bliss after the heat, it was so nice to layer up and feel cosy again! Obviously now, (less than a week later), the rain is somewhat frustrating.

We arrived back in Sheffield on Tuesday night, just before the British Championships were due to be held on the Saturday. I hadn’t planned to be around to compete but as we were back I thought I would have a go. I was still feeling the jet lag a bit but not enough to put me off. The day started well with some fun qualifying problems, I felt strong and fairly confident (which is good for me in competitions). I qualified in 3rd place for the finals, with Shauna and I being the only ones to complete all the qualifying blocs. This was a good confidence boost for me and I was psyched to get to climb again. The finals were a mixture of things for me: enjoyment, exhilaration, frustration and acceptance. I felt frustrated on blocs 2 and 3 for my lack of thought and problem reading skills but that is all part of the game and those are areas I need to develop.

However, on the whole I felt strong and probably for the first time I felt like I wasn’t out of my depth in the field of strong women; I felt I belonged there with them and I could do my best alongside them. I was a bit disappointed with 4th place but that feeling of competence and strength is what I choose to take away from this weekend. Back to the drawing board for some more training ideas……



Me on the first finals problem.

Photo courtesy of Craig Antcliff/ Five Finger Thing



Me ecstatic and relieved after flashing problem 4 in the finals.

Photo courtesy of Paul Bennett

http://www.paulbennettphotography.co.uk/

Thanks to everyone for all your support and well done to Dave Barrans and Shauna Coxsey who climbed brilliantly to become our Champs!

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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Off to Magic Woods!
30 July 2012, 8:34 am

Just a quick blog….

I have just got back from a weekend in London. It is buzzing down there with talk of Olympics and the excitment really rubs off. I was lucky enough to watch the torch being carried down the Thames in an amazingly ornate boat. What a time to be an Olymipic athlete! It makes me wonder how climbing would change as a sport if it became part of this colossal event.

But enough of my wonderings. I am off to Magic Woods; a short last minute trip from today until Friday! I am going to do some filming for Lightshed Pictures (http://lightshedpictures.wordpress.com/) who are making a film about UK female climbers. It was really flattering to be asked to be a part of this and I am very grateul for the opportunity to return to such a beautiul place  So three days in the woods! I’m excited.

My gear all packed up!

I have been training hard recently with the things I am psyched for in the Peak being wet. It has been good for me, albeit frustrating. I feel the strongest that I think I ever have and I have thoroughly enjoyed the process. So a win: win situation really.

A busy month ahead also holds the Addidas Rockstars event in Stuttgart, a week in Font and the Munich World Cup….I’ll keep you posted!

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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A Whirlwind Trip to Magic Woods
6 August 2012, 9:42 am

What a week! Jen Randall (http://alloureggs.wordpress.com/tag/magic-wood) is making a film about female UK climbers and was planning to film Shauna in Magic Woods for 3 days. As many of you will know, Shauna has broken her leg and so Jen needed someone to fill her spot in the film.  She got in contact with me last Thursday and by Monday night I was in Milan Malpensa Airport to meet her.

We had three days in Magic to film as many cool boulders as possible. I had been to Magic before, about 4 years ago and so we were able to film some things I had done before as well as some new things. I was really psyched, I love Magic Woods.  It’s a beautiful place and I felt so happy to be able to spend some more time there. I wish I had had longer than 3 days, I could easily have stayed 3 weeks!

It was a tiring few days, but really fun. I had never met Jen before or her boyfriend Al but we hit it off really well from the start. It made for a relaxing, fun trip and I feel I have made some good friends from it

In terms of climbing I was happy to do some climbs I hadn’t done before: Piranja (7C), Rhythmo (7C) and Jack the Chipper (7C – Flash) and also to try some harder things. I tried Jack’s Broken Heart and Pura Vida, both great problems. I think both are doable for me but I needed a bit more time. Need to start planning a trip back….

Here are some stills from Jen’s filming:



 Jack the Chipper (7C), Film still courtesy of Jen Randall



Piranja (7C), film still courtesy of Jen Randall



Rhythmo (7C), film still courtesy of Jen Randall



Supernova (7C), film still courtesy of Jen Randall

Now I have a couple of days at home before heading to Stuttgart for the Rockmasters event!  I have also been invited to take part in a competition in Norway on the 8th Sept this year which is exciting!

http://www.facebook.com/events/275652435866676/

 

 

 

 

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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Addidas Rockstars Event and a few hot days in Fontainebleau
19 August 2012, 3:34 pm

I’m not sure where to start….Addidas Rockstars was a new thing for me, I didn’t do the event last year so I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. I arrived on the Thursday lunchtime and was picked up from the airport by an addidas representative and driven to the hotel. That was very nice in itself, it was the beginning of a weekend of being thoroughly looked after. We were taken out to a great restaurant in Stuttgart that evening and treated to a meal before being transported back to the hotel in a new addidas coach.

The next day we had a leisurely start before the qualifying round began. At this event it was possible to view the blocs, albeit from a distance, before you went into isolation. This was great for me as I think it removed some anxiety and we were able to share ideas about how to climb the blocs. I didn’t actually climb all of them in the way I thought I would but I think the reduction in nerves really helped. In most competitions, when you do not get to see the blocs beforehand, I think I experience a sort of “rabbit in headlights” feeling when I step out onto the mats and I do not always think straight. The qualifiers went well for me; I topped 3 of the 4 blocs and I was pleased with how I had climbed. I wasn’t aware of how others had done so when I saw that I was in third place I was shocked and, of course, very pleased.

Going into the semi finals I was prepared for that not to happen again. I have never finished higher than 10th before in an international event of this level so I was aware that, although I had proved to myself that I was capable, it may not happen every time! I was pleased already, anything else would be a bonus. I did, however, climb with a new found sense of confidence. Something clicked in my head and for the first time I felt sure of my ability competing in a field of strong competitors. I qualified in 4th for the finals. It was a bit overwhelming to be honest. I have trained a lot and worked hard in many ways to get better and when it pays off it is actually quite emotional!

The finals were great, having watched so many it was brilliant to be in one. This event had a different format for the finals, it was a knock out. So all the finalists tried the first two boulders, then the top 3 from that tried the 3rd boulder, then the top 3 from that raced on a super boulder. I was knocked out in the first round and ended up in 6th place. It was a bit frustrating because the problems were a bit too easy making it a flash competition (on the first two blocs). I topped both blocs but took 4 attempts (including one slip off the start of bloc one). Had I done 2 in 3 attempts I would have got to try the 3rd bloc. But being able to pull something out of the bag first go under all that pressure is one of the skills in competition climbing! I was very happy with my 6th place. Well done to Alex who won the event

Some photos of the competition to come soon. Also some here http://www.adidas-rockstars.com/en/gallery/photos/

From Stuttgart I flew to London to see my family for the evening before Dave and I drove to Fontainebleau. Were were there for 4 days to celebrate our friend’s 40th birthday and we had a great time. Despite the heat (up to 35 deg on one day!) we climbed as much as we could. I managed to do a few things that I hadn’t done before including l’Arrache Couer, El Poussah and Rataplat, all very cool problems. We also tried l’angle parfait which I want to finish sometime…

Attempting l’angle Parfait, Photo David Mason.

Benoir, resident cat at The House, Tousson. Photo David Mason

 

Highball problem at Elephant, Photo David Mason.

 

Photo David Mason

Nap time in the forest, Photo David Mason.

 

After a hot drive home I am glad to be back. A bit of climbing this week  before heading back to Germany for the IFSC World Cup in Munich….

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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Munich World Cup
28 August 2012, 1:01 pm

Arriving back into the UK after the Addidas Rockstars event I suffered a momentary lapse in memory at the passport control desk.

“And where have you travelled from today Madam?”

Pause.

“Umm…oh gosh…ummm…I’m sorry my mind has gone blank….”

Pause.

“…no wait, Stuttgart, yes Stuttgart.”

It was in a similar frame of mind that I sat at Manchester Airport again on Friday morning, a sense of déja vu creeping in. This time I was on my way to Munich for the last IFSC Boulder World Cup.

I was excited. The Addidas event had improved my confidence so much and I felt it was possible to do well again. I was aware that there were more competitors here and some strong women present that hadn’t been in Stuttgart but still; in my mind I as up there with a chance, a strong competitor in the field. It sounds silly but this kind of thinking is new to me and so marks a change.

The qualifiers came around and I was out 19^th. This means a fair bit of time in isolation but nothing to complain about. There were 51 women so to be out last meant over 3 hours in isolation. I was nervous but flashed the first boulder, which instantly settled my nerves a bit. In the transition zone it is impossible not to notice how quickly people come back from the wall and therefore get an idea of whether the problems are getting done or not. There was a mix.

I flashed the second boulder and my confidence grew. When I stepped onto the mat of the third boulder I didn’t know how to climb it. There seemed to be lots of options but it looked as if it were set to be a dyno. I pulled on and jumped, latching the first and second hold and stopping to my surprise. I finished the bloc, my third flash. This problem pleased me the most as jumping always used to be one of my real weak points. It is very satisfying when, through practice and training, a weak point can become a strong point.

The fourth bloc was a little more tricky and took me 4 goes (with one silly fall from the top!). The last bloc was the hardest I think but with a bit of luck and grimacing I found my way to the top first go. So I had done all 5 blocs. That had never happened before. I was really happy. I went into the semi finals in joint 5^th place. This is the highest I have ever placed in a IFSC World Cup round.

The GB Team as a whole did brilliantly. All 8 of us placed in the top 30, with 5 making the semi-finals. In good spirits on Sunday morning, Katy Whittaker, Ned Feehally, Stew Watson, Adam Watson and I went into isolation once more.



Problem 1, Semi Finals. Photo Diane Merrick.

 I felt good again. I was hoping I could keep my lucky streak going and I wanted to make my first World Cup final. It was possible and I still believe now that I am capable of it. It wasn’t to be on this occasion though, I fell too many times and I didn’t top enough. The combination of some mistakes and some shortcomings meant that I wasn’t even close. I’ll be honest and say I was disappointed with 15^th place. In the past that would have been a great result for me but I feel I am capable of more now. However, in a roundabout way that is pretty cool. Six months ago I would never have dreamt that I would be disappointed not to make finals, they weren’t even on my radar. That is what I choose to take from this: potential, confidence and psyche.

 



Problem 3, Semi Finals. Photo Diane Merrick.

 It was a great trip as a team, lots of fun. The finals were amazing to watch, really cool looking blocs and some impressive climbing as usual. Shauna also came along on her crutches and we got to watch her receive her trophy for overall 3^rd place for 2012. A great result and well deserved. It was hard for her, watching and not being able to compete but she was a brilliant support to the rest of us.



Me, Alex, Gill, Katy and Shauna watching the finals.

I regret to say I will not be competing at the World Championships in Paris this year. I am disappointed not to be going, especially because I seem to have found my mojo (for want of a better phrase…). I have started to really enjoy the competitions more and so naturally I want to keep going. I will be at my sister’s wedding that weekend, which I wouldn’t miss for the world and from there I will be willing on my team mates. I am sad that my season is over at this point but I look forward to competing again next year.

One more competition left though, I still have The Battle in Norway on the 8^th September….

 

 

 

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk

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Mecca
6 September 2012, 9:05 pm

It took me a while to muster up the courage to try Mecca; a classic, short, power endurance route at Raven Tor. If I’m honest, I had felt a bit intimidated by it. The combination of the grade, it’s reputation, the British climbing scene and my “then” self doubt meant that I put it off for some time. Before this route I had only climbed up to 8a+ sport routes and I felt maybe jumping onto an 8b+ was not the thing to do. However, I soon realised that “not the thing to do” type phrases are no way to govern oneself in life or climbing. I had always wanted to try Mecca because it was classic and the climbing looked amazing, what was I doing letting a number put me off?

Eventually I took the bull by the horns and had a go in May this year. My first session went really well and I managed to do all the moves, but only just. I had another session where it started to seem more realistic but then the UK summer began and the rain came. I was also competing in the IFSC World Cups during this period so time was limited. Then David and I left for Colorado.

We returned to the UK in July and I was psyched to re-open my Mecca account. Only it was wet and continued to be so for a few weeks. About two weeks ago, when I had nearly given up for this year, I heard rumour it was dry and that someone had climbed it. At this point I wasn’t sure whether it was worth starting again on it. David and I are heading back to America on the 19^th September and I had multiple competitions and a family wedding to contend with before that.

I decided to have at least one session, to re-assess how long it might take and to re-familiarise myself with the moves. The session went well. My climbing has improved a lot in the last six weeks or so and this really showed on Mecca. It felt like a different route and I found myself having a redpoint go that day.

The repointing sessions began and I slowly moved my failing point higher up the route from the bottom of the groove to the knee bar. Yes, I fell out of the knee bar! My penultimate session saw me shake myself out of this infamous resting position. The knee bar, although a good rest for the arms (one at a time, I don’t know how people manage to take both arms off!), required a lot of tension on my part to stay on and I slowly slipped out of it from pure fatigue. A frustrating place to fail.

While on this subject I feel I should clarify for those who are interested: I did use the knee bar and I did use a knee pad, as has been done in other recent ascents. This was always my plan but in addition I am maid of honour at my sister’s wedding in a week’s time and my dress sits just above the knee, a small gender specific consideration….

So, having fallen off quite high on Monday this week, I returned on Wednesday morning to try again. My first go saw me slip on the crux section. Second go, I felt good, I found myself back in the knee bar but this time not nearly so tired; I wasn’t shaking and I felt fairly composed. A deep breath, a word to myself and I embarked on the top section. I tried bloody hard. And then it was done.

Nick Brown aka Outcrop had come along to film too so he got the whole thing (my little piggy-sounding-trying-hard yelps at the top included…).

Big thank you to David for all the belaying and Pirie for the final belay

I’m now in Norway for an invitational competition called The Battle where the competitors set problems and then compete on them….wish me luck! Live feed on Saturday night at www.nrk.no/sport



 

 

Source: Mina Leslie-Wujastyk