[duncan]

Thoroughly enjoyed reading your post Duncan 
Thanks for sharing

Thank you! No Dolomites this week, although Swanage rivals it in the choss stakes.

M - Swanage Guillemot Ledge with csl.  My first time trad. climbing at Swanage since 2014. I climbed there a fair bit in the 2010s but several near misses took the shine off the place. Driving down we had high hopes of trying one of the big west face routes. It was a bit grey when we arrived but the forecast was decent and we warmed up on Ledgend Direct (HVS). This has all the usual Swanage features of untrustworthy rock, stuck gear, and a crux greasier than an Archway kebab. By the time I had finished the cloud was turning to mizzle and by the time Conor had finished it was raining horizontally. This got heavier and heavier so we beat a retreat to the car. The rain radar looked dire and completely at odds with what had been forecast in the morning so we headed back to London. You can’t win ‘em all.

T - Fingerboard lifts to 41Kg, left hand only. Hip flexibility. Proms: Orchestre de Paris and Klaus Mäkelä, French and Russian hits, with The Editor. Great stuff.

W - Shoulder/wrist conditioning: handstands, reverse curls, side planks. Proms: BBCSO; Boulanger, Fauré Requiem and Ravel Daphnis and Chloe. Fauré is a bit too Catholic for my taste, the more profane Ravel was fabulous.

T - Fingerboard lifts to 44Kg, left hand only. Shoulder/wrist conditioning. Hip flexibility. Proms: Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Simon Rattle - Bruckner 4th Symphony. One for the ages.

F - Walked 10km. Proms: Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Simon Rattle - Mahler 6th Symphony. I wasn’t in the best of moods at the outset and wondered how wise it was to stand through 85 minutes of late romantic nihilism. It was a pretty intense experience. 

S - Hip flexibility. Shoulder/wrist conditioning. Walked 10km.

S - Short swim in the murk of the Hampstead ponds. Fingerboard lifts to 41Kg, left hand and some lighter ones with the right as pre/rehab. only.


Another ‘Pat’ tick at Swanage and I’m kind of interested in going back (4 more routes to do) although my tolerance of Swanageness seems to have deteriorated even further in the past decade.

Had let the hip flexibility work lapse over the last few weeks and is it very noticeable. Back on the horse (good for hip abduction). Right elbow continues to niggle which means I've not really been able to try too hard.

Had to cancel the Lundy trip. I guess I'm not going to get to an island this year. Gutting.

Best bit of the week was the proms. Four concerts of amazing music for £32.

Onwards... perhaps down to Weston later in the week when the dust settles.

[Wellsy]

Monday - rest day

Tuesday - Edge Lifts. Indoor Session that felt really good. Solid progress on some stuff

Wednesday - Board

Thursday - Pulling Session, Push Session

Friday - rest

Saturday - Started session, felt terrible, decided to rest instead

Sunday - Weightlifting. Did 3x hang cleans at 80kgs, a PB. Squats. Edge Lifts. Big indoor session, felt good. Decided to defer campus and core to Monday as next week deload week so will just be climbing and doing Edge Lifts

[Fiend]

Next week STG: Keep trying harder on trad if suitable - No.
The usual STG: Stay focused and don't make silly mistakes - No. Do something challenging and inspiring on a rope (fuck above a pad) - No. Keep in regular contact with suitable friends and partners - bletch. Falling practise if I do routes indoors or out - n/a, and too timid. Look after injuries - did rehab but shoulders pretty achey - a lot of tension in neck I think, (gym x 1) - x 2, elbow rehab x 2 - x 2, shoulder rehab x 2 - x 2, stretching x 3 - x 3.


M - Gym. 2 hours conditioning, misc weakweights(tm), rehab. 54 mins stretching.

T - Active rest. Photoshoot @ Egerton. Some trotting around and a fair bit of sapling trimming. Successful shoot effectively completing Egerton action photos, but also a bit saddening watching light young things breeze (or battle) up the sort of routes I was capable of a few years ago.

W - Demoralisation training. Short trad session with positive and relaxed vibes. E1. Fell off E2. Appalled. No buffer of recent good trad climbing to cope with that. Worst trad session for ages. Quite shocking not being able to trust myself to basic routes.

T - Demoralisation training. 1:10 hour walk (40 mins gently uphill, gruelling, legs felt like lead - complete contrast to every other time where a decent gym session then a rest has made them feel good on walking). Short boulder session. Not inspired by harder problems so tried lapping some easy problems. 3 x 5+ (6A), 3 x 6A (6B - had to work over several goes), 3 x 6A+ (6B+ - had to work over several goes), 3 x 6B (part of a 6B+ that I skipped an arbtrary traversing finish on). Worst bouldering session this year. Quite shocking not being able to seek solace in bouldering.

F - A bit of walking. A bit of dipping. Dropped phone in river.

S - Short gym session. Misc conditioning, rehab. Stretching session. Seemed to tweak knee doing too much Happy Baby post. Melt-Banana gig in the evening.

S - Indoor bouldering @ AW Stoke. 20 x V2-4 (19 flash, 1 x 2nd go), 20 x V3-5 (17 flash, 2 x 2nd go, 1 x 3rd go), 10 x V4-6 (8 flash, 2 x 2nd go, plus attempted 6 more that didn't go in 6 goes). Hot, humid, chalk-caked holds, too many kids and parents, hate the wee scrotes - would much rather have dogs running around being a pain as you could at least shout at them and/or give them cuddles. Fun little mileage session despite this. Shoulders tired after. Knee felt a bit sore but no effect on climbing nor jumping off. Stretching session after (did not do Happy Baby).


A suitably shit start to Shittember. Everything going to plan, as long as the plan is "Climb like shit, and then feel like shit".


Next week STG: Slightly less shit.
The usual STG: Stay focused and don't make silly mistakes. Do something challenging and inspiring on a rope (fuck above a pad). Keep in regular contact with suitable friends and partners. Falling practise if I do routes indoors or out. Look after injuries, (gym x 1), elbow rehab x 2, shoulder rehab x 2, stretching x 3.

[Duma]

Sorry about Lundy Duncan.
Chin up Fiend, next week will be better.


M - Normalish office hours. Eve UCR, moonboard, 90 min. 2 new 7A's, and all the moves and close on 2 7A+'s
T - 12 hr shift.
W - Bodmin, Trewortha Tor. Long drive for a day hit, and early in the season for granite, but wind was in the north and psyche was high. Not quite as full of beans as I'd like, maybe still feeling Sunday and Monday's sessions a little. Warmed up at the whale with some easies, then fell off the excellent pogo of La Baleine à Cornes 7B a lot. Felt close, but a bit colder would make a big difference and was losing skin so moved on. Quick solo of the classic VS Just Good Friends, and a couple of 6's on the warm up boulder (Screaming Eagle and Middle SS), then thrashed through the bracken to the Pavarotti boulder. Failed on This Is How We Do 7A+, obviously morpho the way Tom did the FA, and couldn't even start the dyno method. Dunno who thinks this is 7A but they're wrong. I'd have voted 7B if I'd managed it. Did flash the excellent (and terrifying) Larger Than Life 6B, pretty scary with the scrittle and lichen. Steptoe 7A on the same slab was a non starter (ok I could get established, but didn't manage a single move). Bit dispirited by now, but lunch and the great Mustang 6C revived me. I think I'm perhaps the perfect height to get the most out of this, perhaps the tall would find it easy, and shorties will certainly struggle. Good easy arete on the back of this block too, Too Rich 5. Did the LHS of the same arete too, Richer Than Rich 6B+, all in the start move and not as good.
Running on fumes a bit by now, ditched a pad and quested on, thinking really just to check the rest of the crag out for future visits, but stopped in my tracks by the awesome roof of True Blood 7A. This took the rest of my energy and skin, by the time I crawled over the top there was no question of any more climbing or even exploration. Brilliant brilliant climb, should get much more attention (albeit with more pads, a spotter, and long sleeves!) Top day.
T - felt ruined in the morning but perked up. Eve, TCA, 90 min. Surprisingly good session, only really limited by skin. 4 whites (3 flash, 1 I tried at the end of last Sunday), 4 blacks (3 flash, 1 attempted), 1 blue (few goes).
F - ill advised quick session before work, TCA 90 min, obviously knackered, but managed 2 new whites (1 flash , 1 2nd go) progress on a hard black, and flailed at a blue. 12 hr night shift.
S - 12 hr night shift.
S - 12 hr night shift.

71 kg.

[Fiend]

Thanks Duma. Epic trip report for Wed!

[Aussiegav]

Good reads there. Thanks for starting Duncan.

Monday -

Fingerboard session at home
18mm edges
6 hangs BW + 8kg
On a portable fingerboard
This was much harder one a board that moves

Tuesday
Feet on Campus 16,sets. 1 minute on & off.

Wednesday
Strength training at Virgin Gym

Thursday
Fingerboard session at home
18mm edges
3 hangs BW + 7.5kg
3 hangs total weight 91.1kg.
BW + 13.75kg
BW 77kg

12mm edges
total weight. 81.5kg.
Two hangs body weight plus 2.5kg
Four hangs body weight plus 5kg.  New PB.

Friday
Rest

Saturday
Rest day

Sunday
Feet on Campus
15 sets 1min off/1min off.

Evening strength training at the gym

[monkoffunk]

M - Played around a bit with finger lifts with crimp block. Do these things even have a standardised name?

T - Bit more playing around. Don’t have a frame work yet for how people train with them, but really does seem like it might be an effective way of sorting out the poor skin issue.
 
W - Few more lifts. Hammer curls.
 
T - Nothing.
 
F - More lifts.

S - 5k Run. First since snip just over two weeks ago. Pace was faster than morning of procedure which I think is due to the lower temperatures. Reassuring.

S - Two hours soft play with three year old. Not exactly exercise, but not exactly not either…

Mostly just playing around lifting with granite edge. Nothing over 20kg, and need to figure out a protocol, but it certainly feels like there is some potential to improve the skin.

[Nibile]

Power Club

Mon - bentover rows, high pulls, weights.
Tue - weights.
Wed - GM volume, high pulls.
Thu - boxing bag etc.
Fri - thruster.
Sat - AM as usual, back work; PM weights.
Sun - farmer's!!!
Temps finally below 30 degrees, but 90% humidity makes everything just as unbearable. Hardest Summer ever, overall.

[Dolly]

M Bodyweight in pasta
T best olive focaccia ever. Bit of a mare on trains from Siena to Bologna airport. We would have missed the flight if it hadn’t been delayed
W
T Shed power
F
S wrist stuff with kettlebells. A mixture of conditioning and strengthening
S Beastmaker and a good gardening session digging over a bed

[Fultonius]

Italian trains are just diabolical aren't they!

I booked Gorizia to Venice for Sunday past, which, apparently at the time it was already known there would be a strike, but when booking there was no hint that there was a banned national strike.

On top of thst, my first train from Tolmin to Nova Gorica was an hour delayed, so I got my gf to drive me and two random Germans to Gorizia, only to find all trains cancelled. Busses also no use, so I was lucky to catch a lift with two Ausies who'd also got caught out and arranged a taxi. €100 lighter I made it to the airport.

All for 2 days site work that turned to one day when today got windy and we couldn't get up the turbines.

What a faff...

Not really climbed all that much over the last 6 weeks, too hot and too much renovation work....

[Nibile]

from Siena to Bologna

Are you kidding? You came to Siena and didn't tell?
Booooo!

[Dolly]

I wasn’t sure if you lived nearer the coast or in Empoli for some reason
I’ll be back in a couple of weeks and at least once a month until end of January
My daughter is studying at the University for 5 months
Shall I message you when I’ve confirmed the dates ? Probably at the end of the month

[Nibile]

Hey great news!
Please, give a call whenever you are around!
Let's go!

[Nibile]

PM'd you.

[Fultonius]

Back on Italian trains. Trevisio to Udine so no Siena this time!

Apparently it's going to snow in Austria tomorrow. The joys! (we're driving through...maybe stop in the Frankenjura if the weather's nice.

[Duncan Disorderly]

Missed a few weeks... club.

Not sure what I've been doing: Font, snip recovery, not quite throwing laps on F7a+, lots of mid/high F6 volume, running....

M: AW w/ GF: Trying to gain some PE before Kalymnos so generally stringing 2 routes together. F6a+ - F7a+ - Almost lapped my current training 7a+! Fell off just after the last rest at the very top after pretty much doing all the hard climbing (just some stiff pulls on very small holds to go which were completely fine first go up but felt like the living end on the lap). Progress...
T: Rest
W: 25/Moonboard @ AW: 5 x 5+ - 6B Flashed and then fell off everything else (basically 5 x 6C - 7A). 2 x 4 routes F6a+ - F6c - Trashed.
T: 5K Fell run 10.3 /mi pace
F: Rest
S: Easy routes @ Robin Proctor's Scar w/ GF - Great little crag, lovely outlook and some nice routes up to F6a+ (got there later than expected, had wanted to do the 7a+ but there were some guys on it so just did a quick tick of the 2 and 3 star routes that Katie could TR).
S: AW w/ GF: Laps again - F6a+ - F6c+

Getting the mileage in - worryingly weak on the MB but looking back at last year I was probably hovering around the 6B flashing mark before going to Kalymnos and still managed to tick a few tricky things. Definitely feeling fitter, enjoying running as well.... Stanage struggle this Sunday, first race in years - looking forward to it.

[andy popp]

from Siena to Bologna

Are you kidding? You came to Siena and didn't tell?
Booooo!

C'mon people, it's in the UKB handbook. Go to Siena. Meet Lore for coffee (at the very least)

[Nibile]

from Siena to Bologna

Are you kidding? You came to Siena and didn't tell?
Booooo!

C'mon people, it's in the UKB handbook. Go to Siena. Meet Lore for coffee (at the very least)

Good memories Andy!