On this matter of excuses - mods feel free to split, log, etc - a friend of mine told me these two that he heard, that are pretty awesome.
In Spain, one climber struggling to tick his project despite his long stay, many tries, etc, commented a climber's quick ascent by saying "It's easier for the weekend warriors, because during the week they train. I only climb."
A friend of mine, strong climber and real dic*head, went to visit a newly opened wall, and pretended he'd never climbed. The owner started showing him the problems, when he said "I'll try this one" and proceeded to flash one of the hardest ones, in his flip flops.
The owner, not impressed at all, said "Of course it's easier to climb in flip flops."
