[Doylo]

He said on Instagram that he's trying not to fly so I imagine he'd be pretty keen to visit Wales if he could be pointed at new lines. Crazy to think things like Das Pumpenhausen and Pools of Bethesda are 2-3 grades below his limit!

There’s a few but it seems the glaciers gave the Lakes all the super hard shit. Icy bastards.

I bet Pete's got a few hard projects/lines tucked away...

8as not 8b+/cs. He’s allergic to training so doubt he’d ever hit those heights.

[carlisle slapper]

There's send footage of all the nails stuff, some is phone and some is more pro.

Wales defo has plenty of hard stuff to do, it's just never had someone psyched on finding all the tiny crimp gaps, the type of grot aidan can pull on is like that steep wall right of lily savage? (the 7B right of madame allure) anyway it'll be there you'll just have written it off. The Lakes has more i agree as its never had the scene wales has so is more under developed, there are whole valleys like ennerdale and buttermere with only a handful of recorded problems. Definitely not forced link up time yet. The lakes is still missing world class stuff IMO as i've not yet seen the best of its rock combine with a line. But there's a decent chance its out there. Stuff like copperline isnt far off the likely style we'd find though.

Scotland is well on Aidans radar and i'll fob the full list onto who's going on that trip. I'd already mentioned that ardgour barrel, not 100% the top goes on that though and sadly the arete is chossy at the top, that said its been 8 years since i went and its got to be worth an ab on a rope to check.

Main face of this etc are on the radar too.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/beastmaker/40608456912/in/dateposted/

He did Kott sit a week ago,i think he's just working through the admin of renaming + massively upgrading an 8A O'Connor did to dodge a puddle that Gaskins had no issue with and confirmed the grade on. 
At the minute, in the lakes, its more an issue of if the rock can keep up. i think my dusty list of backlogged maybes will only last a few more months with Aidans current form as i stopped exploring in the lakes years ago before kids came along. He's pretty much only driven to projects 20mins from his house as it stands. So there's a good chance that by this time next year it'll have good amount of session choice for the travelling southern wad.

i've even started saying goodbye to a few sandstone projects in an effort to detox his ridiculous skyhook fingers

Its exciting to not be the only person rattling round on these things in the north. Only took a global pandemic...

[gme]

Is he keen to get on some of your stuff up here Dan or just after new stuff?

You must be keen to see some of it repeated.

[carlisle slapper]

Yeah he's keen. He was on some of my harder stuff in the lakes this week. We've been upto the county a few times over the years. He almost did master of stone at hepburn soon after i put it up in 2017 and did the punisher at shaftoe that trip which is still the only repeat AFAIK. But in current form he's climbing much better than then. Likely will be up in the winter and knows about a few crimpy projys too that i've not got stuck into much yet (like the heckley line). He's still really good at compression etc for someone so good on crimps its rare. We have slightly different styles and body size so there will likely be a few learning curves on the odd line but with a lot of them being 7-10years old there's not much they'll offer that he doesnt have in his skill set now IMO. i'm learning how to crimp like an amateur version of aidan at the moment using different techniques/approaches we've chatted about over the years and that he's guinea pigged/made his own.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/beastmaker/50352502607/in/dateposted/ New prow with two finishes from last weekend. 7C+/8A depending on the left or right exit.

[rjtrials]

i'm learning how to crimp like an amateur version of aidan at the moment using different techniques/approaches we've chatted about over the years and that he's guinea pigged/made his own.

Can you elaborate on this?  I much prefer the open hand grip but am trying to widen my repertoire.

[Bradders]

Good info Dan, thanks.

He did Kott sit a week ago

What's this?

New prow thing looks great, is location undisclosed atm?

[Doylo]

There's send footage of all the nails stuff, some is phone and some is more pro.

Wales defo has plenty of hard stuff to do, it's just never had someone psyched on finding all the tiny crimp gaps, the type of grot aidan can pull on is like that steep wall right of lily savage? (the 7B right of madame allure) anyway it'll be there you'll just have written it off.s m...

I had a little play on that years ago. Seem to remember people dismissing it as shit (can’t remember who people were).

[Doylo]

There's send footage of all the nails stuff, some is phone and some is more pro.

Wales defo has plenty of hard stuff to do, it's just never had someone psyched on finding all the tiny crimp gaps, the type of grot aidan can pull on is like that steep wall right of lily savage? (the 7B right of madame allure) anyway it'll be there you'll just have written it off.s m...

I had a little play on that years ago. Seem to remember people dismissing it as shit (can’t remember who people were).

Might be different line to what you’re thinking of. Not been there for yonks .

[teestub]

Good info Dan, thanks.

He did Kott sit a week ago

What's this?

Karma of the Trees sit start at Kentmere, saw Aidan trying it a few years ago now (wearing some rather fetching North Face trackies) and it looked fucking nails. Think he lives close to there so that was a proper local project for him and I guess from when I saw him he must have been trying it for 3 years at least?

[Bradders]

Good info Dan, thanks.

He did Kott sit a week ago

What's this?

Karma of the Trees sit start at Kentmere, saw Aidan trying it a few years ago now (wearing some rather fetching North Face trackies) and it looked fucking nails. Think he lives close to there so that was a proper local project for him and I guess from when I saw him he must have been trying it for 3 years at least?

Ohhhhh wow that's brilliant, yeah remember that being spoken of in hushed tones as probably going to be very hard (ignoring blatant lies).

Makes me think of the other recent thread about comp beasts getting out; guess the lack of distractions from going abroad and comps have helped get at least a few of these over the line.

[Teaboy]

I had a little play on that years ago. Seem to remember people dismissing it as shit

  That old chestnut will only keep people off your projects for so long, looks like you're going to have to pull your finger out and get it done now the cat's out the bag!

[Doylo]

I had a little play on that years ago. Seem to remember people dismissing it as shit

  That old chestnut will only keep people off your projects for so long, looks like you're going to have to pull your finger out and get it done now the cat's out the bag!

It can’t be the same line if I pulled on and Dans talking about hard stuff 

[shark]

I have unilaterally changed the topic title to Aidanwad in recognition of his outstanding wadness and set it as a sticky topic.

[dunnyg]

#lifegoals

[JJP]

I realise I should prob know this but what is the origin of wad?  Google hasnt helped. 

[cheque]

I realise I should prob know this but what is the origin of wad?  Google hasnt helped.

It’s from a Paul Pritchard essay where he uses it to describe sponsored climbers who have (probably figurative) wads of money from their endorsement deals in contrast to the other not-quite-as-good dole-funded climbers on the strata of the Llanberis scene below them. It might be in Deep Play.

I once used the term to describe an American climber and his mate. He didn’t realise I meant it as a compliment and looked like he was ready to hit me until I explained what I meant. I didn’t know the origin then so I couldn’t explain it very well. 

[JJP]

Thanks for the explanation cheque, been wondering for a while! Glad you managed to talk your way out of that 

[SA Chris]

I though it was to do with PP's former partner Crispin Waddy aka King Wad

[andy popp]

I may be wrong, but I don't think either of those explanations are right; indeed they are mutually contradictory as Crispin certainly never had wads of cash from his non-existent sponsorship deals. Paul may have used it in Deep Play but I think it had older origins. I should know as I was there etc. but, you know, brain cells and all that.

[SA Chris]

Don't think either of us were implying it was both.

[moose]

Is the term of the right vintage to be a reference, ironic or otherwise, to Harry Enfield's "Loadsamoney"*?  One of his catchphrases was "look at my wad".

*Young people and aliens, Loadsamoney was a sketchshow character that briefly captured the Thatcher zeigeist - a newly monied, aggresive, working class person (a middle class nightmare of money with no taste).

[remus]

I once used the term to describe an American climber and his mate. He didn’t realise I meant it as a compliment and looked like he was ready to hit me until I explained what I meant. I didn’t know the origin then so I couldn’t explain it very well.

In US parlance wad = jizz which is probably why he didn't take it as the compliment you meant it to be.

[andy popp]

Don't think either of us were implying it was both.

No, not at all. But at least one of them has to be wrong.

[Bradders]

Crikey this looks good. Sounds like the full line up the face from a sit. The UK's Bugeleisen?

https://www.instagram.com/p/CFeR6T1jHth/?igshid=r5j56dbkhj0p

[Anti]

Wish he'd stop teasing with these nicely shot photos. Presumably someone who knows how to edit videos nicely is also there and we'll be expecting a glorious video at some point?