[tomtom]

Evening from deepest darkest Norfolk....

M: Blackwell, Griffs. Ted and Josh (hello!) were there. Fluffed the last move on Griffs >> Bovine - then powered out on subsequent goes. Very annoyed. Was a bit greasy/humid and RH spooged off something on my first RP when I was feeling strong and floaty. Grr..

W: Blackwell, Griffs. Long warm up - did the last move (that I failed on before) several times to get it wired - tore a huge flapper on my LH. Bled lots, taped it up, got on and got it done

(Vid as per the YYFY thread)


Very pleased.... no chance for anything else this week - childminding all day thurs then long long drive to Norfolk on Friday,

[Fiend]

Posting here so he sees it:

Tommytwotone you have PM.

Also so I'm not too far off-topic:

M - rest (felt queasy)
T - auto-belay laps at Ratho, 6a x 4, 6b+ x 4, 7a x 1.5, 6c x 3, 6c+ x 2.5, 6b+ x 4, boring sweaty pumpy but useful.
W - short 1.8 mile / 18 min run, did fine.
T - working Vibes RH 7c at Dunkeld, close in a session, will go, quite exciting and burly (felt queasy).
F - rest (felt queasy)
S - trad at Johnsheugh,  Warmup F6c *, Spanked Roof Monkey E4 6a **, Who Dares Wings It E4 5c ***, great fun (felt queasy)
S - rest (felt queasy)

Generally felt digestively mildly rotten, psychologically okay, and climbing-wise good. #whatfuckingever

[Sasquatch]

No outside climbing for me this week - first week of school for daughter and  she changed school, plus wedding anniversary.

M- bike 30min
T- Moonboard - hard session up to 7C+
W- Hike  - 4 hours 9 miles, 2000ft elevation
T- Bike 45mins
F- Moonboard  - Long hard session, 11 7C's(not softies )
S- Hike - 4 hrs, 3600ft elevation, 7 miles
S- Rest

[nai]

M nothing

T - back to Carn Brea to finish Pool Wall or whatever it's called. Only the family faffed around so I only had an hour at best and I nearly did it but then a mist came out of nowhere and fucked up the friction and then it got dark and that was that.

w nothing

Th - back to Godvery. Won a battle with the tide, this is actually a nice feature that climbs well.



F nothing

S drove home. YYFY

S - 3x10mins LI AeroCap

[duncan]

Well done Tom.

Fiend, good to hear you're still ticking-over (at E4) despite the various ailments.

STG - Manage aches. Get on an E4 in the next month or so.   
MTG - A proper 7b+ this year.
LTG - A classic Pembroke E5; 5.13 at 60

M - Brief fingerboard session. Fingers felt good, shoulders weak.
T - Shoulder stretches
W - Promenade with Si. Various 6b-6c. The Prom. feels like it has the best moderate sport climbing at Swanage, keen to get on the Spacewalk prow routes when I’m a little fitter even though they are my anti-style.
T - Shoulder stretches
F - Woke shitting and vomiting from food poisoning. Delayed departure to recover a little resulting in catching the worst Bristol and South Wales traffic and a 7 hour drive.
S - Mowingword and Stackpole with bridbeast. Blue sky, turquoise sea, perfect temps., and low tide early afternoon: Pembroke at its very considerable best. Still felt washed-out from the food poisoning so dialed back ambitions slightly. Led an E1 and E2 (Dolphin Pod - a minor classic) and followed an E2 and E4 (Crack Division - a good starter at the grade for sport climbers). Drove back to London, only 4.5 hours this time.
S - Battered.

First day of trad. in four months and what a day. Felt good on ~6c+ territory despite very little climbing until this week: fingerboard “pick-ups” seem to have had a beneficial effect. Shoulder still weak and inflexible but improving.

Plan: shoulder stretches, shoulder strengthening, fingerboard, more easyTrad.

[Nibile]

Power Club

Mon - rest. Walked a lot.
Tue - rest. Walked a lot.
Wed - rest. Walked a lot.
Thu - rest. Walked a lot.
Fri - rest. Walked a lot.
Sat - rest. Traveled back. Sigh.
Sun - rest. Walked a lot.

Spent the week chez Nik at Work, drooling over motorcycles and eating like a starving t-rex. I probably messed up the yearly national stats for bacon and eggs consumption. Luckily hour and hours of walking around saved me from becoming a ball of lard.
Incredible vacation overall, a dream come true.
Sp happy to have met the guys after many years, and to finally meet Nik and his family after last year failed meeting.
Felt like at home.
Cheers guys.

[Andy W]

M nothing

T - back to Carn Brea to finish Pool Wall or whatever it's called. Only the family faffed around so I only had an hour at best and I nearly did it but then a mist came out of nowhere and fucked up the friction and then it got dark and that was that.

w nothing

Th - back to Godvery. Won a battle with the tide, this is actually a nice feature that climbs well.



F nothing

S drove home. YYFY

S - 3x10mins LI AeroCap

Nice to see a bit of West Cornwall! It's called 'Pond Wall' by the way, did you not enjoy the bouldering then 

[Sasquatch]

Th - back to Godvery. Won a battle with the tide, this is actually a nice feature that climbs well.

The oceanside stuff looks amazing. 

[SA Chris]

M- nothing, recovery from S night
T- Nothing - first day back to school for kids
W - 7 k easy run in evening immediately followed by wall session, nothing spectacular, but felt OK. Stopped trying one heelhook problem when calf protested, and (half) maranoia set in.
T - Nothing
F - 6.5k tempo session
S - Nothing, lots of walking in town
S - Aberdeen half marathon. Good cold conditions, torrential rain forecast luckily didn't materialise, just the occasional drizzle. Ran as best a run as I could hope for 1:40:16. Managed stretch goal for the race, and beat previous PB by nearly 8 minutes.  Brutal hills and intervals paid off dividends, even managed under 4 min / km pace for last km.

[Andy W]

Th - back to Godvery. Won a battle with the tide, this is actually a nice feature that climbs well.

The oceanside stuff looks amazing.

Godrevy was my stomping ground for years, it can be good, but is very conditions dependent and on a gloomy  damp day it can be difficult to see it's potential, but on a dry sunny day with an onshore breeze, it's a delightful spot to boulder. The coast of west Cornwall has many amazing spots.

[nai]

Yes, went down three times, first day the only thing dry was the lip on The Sweep and most of the hand holds on Virginia; second time Low Flat Holds (/Deep Cave?) was also dry to the first break, the break damp and above soaking; third time Sweep mostly dry but everything else in the Cave damp.  The problems I did were good (Virginia from last week: ) but pretty frustrating getting connies and juggling tides when you have other people wanting to do other things.
Didn't really enjoy Carn Brea, Went for a look at everything in Boulder Britain and was only inspired by the aretes and Pond Wall.  Can see the aretes boulder would be ok with confidence and a spot and strangely enjoyed Pond Wall the few minutes that the friction was working, nearly did it but it started chewing my tips up once the mist rolled in.

[cheque]

Haven’t posted in here for ages. Got a bit of a comeback ahead of me so thought I’d give it a try again.

For those who don’t know, I somehow survived a ~25m groundfall at Easter without paralysis . List of the headline injuries here.

It’s hard to write about the effects of the accident without sounding dramatic but suffice to say that not moving at all for three weeks, two highly invasive surgeries and a punctured lung are a perfect recipe for losing any strength & fitness you had- the first time they lifted me out of bed an hour sitting in a chair was enough to exhaust me for the rest of the day and by the time I’d been given crutches a week later, I’d be pale and dizzy after going about 50 metres on them.

Rocking a clamshell back brace for a month is also a disaster for your core and back muscles and I wasn’t allowed to lift or carry anything until the end of June- the problem with multiple traumas is that you have to wait for so much stuff to heal before you can do any kind of rehab. In all I lost about 5-6kg of muscle (10% of my body weight at the time of the fall) which I swiftly replaced with fat.

So it’s been a bit of a challenge to get back to normal and will possibly be an even bigger one to become a climber again!

I’ve been walking unaided for 3 weeks now (stairs and slopes are still tough but getting easier) and I’m driving and working full time again but I have dodgy nerve business in my left leg, one leg is shorter than the other, ROM is reduced in my left thumb and my back gets tired and sore after I do anything. Everything I do is, to a certain extent, rehab at the moment and life is still quite tiring!

My physio (a climber who’s rehabbed other climbers with pelvic damage, including one as bad as mine) tells me that I can expect to be able to lead sport and (safe) trad again in time but that I’ve basically used 8 of my 9 lives in terms of landing on the ground so bouldering is pretty much out for me now . I’m hoping this will benefit my route performance by focussing me more.

Anyway,

STG (end of next September)- leading routes, carrying normal amounts of gear to the crag.

MTG (end of Nov 2020)- back to where I was- low 7th grade sport routes.

LTG (before I’m too old) 8a sport.

I won’t bother listing the basic physio exercises I do at home every day.

M- Gym, 30 minutes on bike- this is my standard leg-strengthening routine . I make it gradually harder each time I go so it feels just as demanding even though I’m getting stronger.

Tu- Rest.

W- Physio AM, tells me that neurological problems are improving quicker than I thought, says I can start top-roping if Othropaedic consultant says I can.
Fracture clinic PM- bones have healed consultant signs me off, says I can climb . Awesome day.

Th- Rest.

F- Planned gym, too tired after work though.

Sa- Gym. Bike plus balancing stuff. Two rounds of crazy golf in Cleethorpes.

Su- Foundry autobelays. Very apprehensive beforehand. Turns out I’m not as scared as I thought (scary letting go but I don’t scream or start crying or anything) and I don’t have any pain while climbing. Lack of flexibility in my leg is a hindrance as is generally being weak as a kitten but it’s fun. Do two 4s (one many times as I drop off from progressively higher) then a 5 third go in the Furnace which is a bit of a trouser-filler high up. Attempt a 5+ but it feels as hard as the 7a in there did back in early March. Delighted with the experience- much better than I’d expected. 

[Wood FT]

  Very happy for you, if you need help with any of your goals please let me know.

[TobyD]

A fine effort Cheque. After I hurt myself I shat myself - figuratively - doing 4s and 5 s on a tight top rope first time or two. Keep going at it sounds like you're doing well.

[shark]

Awesome progress cheque 

10.13-11.0 154.2 average up 0.4lbs on last week 

M.

T. AM Dropped boys off at Griffs went to Cornice with Nick. Bit warm and humid. Bit worried I was going down with something (neck glands up) WM x2 to warm up. 3 goes up Roof Warrior. Did the move at the base of the roof that eluded me on first session a few times. Unlikely sequence involving bicycling an undercut - thanks Naomi. Beta coming together. Currently use 7 kneebars. When I picked boys up they announced they had both despatched Bovine after a couple of goes. Pricks

W. AM Staden with Toby W. Toby wanted to do some trad practice and I wanted an easy day. Muggy. Followed Toby on some classics and led Liquid Courage without much courage.

T.

F. Morning. Cornice. Cold! WMx1 warmup then 3 goes on Roof Warrior. Meant to climb with Nick C but ended up with Mick Bate ( who wobbled his way up the Anatomy Act) then Joe. Linked from base of roof to fourth clip each time and refined beta. Feels like it should go down in next couple of sessions - famous last words. Eve Drive to Devon to see folks.

S.

S.

Sonia back this week signalling the end of a chilled three weeks of being able to sleep, climb and eat how much and when I want. Forecast doesn't look primo for Malham so will stay local until temps start to get into the low teens.

Back from Devon this evening after over-indulging so dreading tomorrow's weigh in. Out to Cornice with Guy and excited to start trying to redpoint Roof Warrior. If that goes down this week I will jump onto Nemesis as Zippy reckons it will be good Oak training. Also Keith tells me that Paul has been struggling to get through the bottom moves whilst trying Bricktop which should get the competitive glands up...     

[SA Chris]

Su- Foundry autobelays. Very apprehensive beforehand. Turns out I’m not as scared as I thought (scary letting go but I don’t

Done well mate, I have an intrinsic distrust of autobelays, and I've not even decked recently.

[Coops_13]

M: 10 mins of antag work
T: Run to and from Arch to help rehab hamstring - 1.3km each way 2mins run, 1mins walk, total 8mins each way. Arch. After warm up did CWP finerboard workout - difficult to quantify session but gonna do these once a week till the new wall opens and I can get back on max hangs. Fingers felt knackered after so must have been pretty good intensity. Did some problems on roof and finished with a few circuits - hot work
W:
T: Run to and from Arch to help rehab hamstring - Ran 3.5mins on 1 off 2 on the way there. Campussing after warm-up, 1-4-7 big rungs, couldn't get close to 1-5-8 - feeling weak. Good session on the board trying new (set) problems that I hadn't tried before. Ended by doing a White (V5-7) second go and falling off the top of a Green (V6-8), both hadn't tried before
F: Drive to Devon
S: DWS in Berry head. Flashed 6a+, 6c, 6c+, 7a. Fell off Rainbow Bridge into the soup at the end of the day...
S: Raining so went bowling then for a session in the pub.

[spidermonkey09]

Great stuff Cheque. Psyched on your behalf.

M - rest.

T - Malham after work. Yet more greasy conditions but a reasonable session on Predator working things out while Supercool was wet. Looking forward to the day I have good conditions on it as suspect it will help quite a lot!

W - rest.

T - Depot. Hard session; circuits, 30 board, FOC, more board, more circuit sections to try and build some power endurance.

F- forearms completely wasted. Drove to Wales after work.

S - did Noahs Warning on the Cromlech before the heavens opened as I was about to try Left Wall Direct. Very frustrating as wasn't forecast. Went to Bus Stop Quarry and tried Beltane 7b+ (fell off the last sequence) before doing Masambula; good fun. Solo run up Solstice in the evening. Nice.

S - pissed it down all day. Petes Eats followed by driving to the Orme to see if weather was better there. It was, but the marine drive was closed so walked in to LPT along the beach. Surprisingly dry, so tied in and set off; heavens opened. Lowered off and cursed for a while before doing a 6b+ when it eventually stopped. Also tried Lifes A Beach 7b - absolutely desperate.

M - my birthday! Back to Bus Stop in the morning to have a look at the E6. Abbed down it and was pleasantly surprised by both gear and holds when it started raining. Sacked it in in disgust and went to Parisellas for a few hours while the tide was in. Did a few things to open my account there. Down at LPT finished off LAB (definitely 7b+) and then tried Bad Bad Boy. Really good route but absolutely desperate final sequence which I only did once off the rope. One to come back for as its very good.

Good weekend in Wales even if the weather was very frustrating! Forecast much more stable for the next week so hopeful Supercool will dry out and I can finish it off. Back there on Thursday after work, then over the weekend.