[Fiend]

Trad_happy 

[remus]

I managed to do Adrenochrome at Lulworth on Wednesday. I’ve dabbled on it for years but never made much of an impression, and whenever I’ve seen people on it before I’ve always thought of it as something that’s out of my league, or at least something that’d require a lot of work. To stand on top after a few days going ground up this year (plus the 8 sessions over the last 8 years) felt like a highlight of my climbing life.

The first hard move is a dyno which is not something I’m very good at, but a friend showed me some amazing toe-hook-catch beta which seems to work really well for my height. Still, it adds a bit of jeopardy to every attempt before you’ve even gotten into the hard stuff.

My high point from previous years was the next crux which is a long move to some good jugs. Usually you’d go left hand but I’ve never managed to get this to work for me. I rolled the dice a bit and used a very wobbly left hand undercut (you’re not too high at this point), opening up the opportunity to try the sustained upper section.

The top half is incredible. Big moves on some slopers, pockets and edges, all the while the ever increasing height tickling at the back of your mind as the pump builds. Then before you know it you’re at the lip! And you’re pumped! Fuck! I’ve seen people bin it here. Please don’t bin it here. But you’re on slopers, the clock isn’t ticking, it’s about to crash down to zero. But what’s that…a jug to the right…GO! A momentary reprieve, breath. One more move, please god give me one more move to get over the lip.

Usually I’m pretty quiet when topping out. Not this time.

[mrjonathanr]

That’s a nice tick!   

[Will Hunt]

Brilliant!

How does ground up projecting work on DWS? Do you need a million pairs of shoes or are you climbing in wet ones? Do you have a dryable chalk bag? How many goes a day? Is it noticeably harder to get psyched when you're climbing in redpointing temperatures?

[Fiend]

Nice one Remus that sounds like quite a journey!

[remus]

Brilliant!

How does ground up projecting work on DWS? Do you need a million pairs of shoes or are you climbing in wet ones? Do you have a dryable chalk bag? How many goes a day? Is it noticeably harder to get psyched when you're climbing in redpointing temperatures?

It's quite route and location dependent but basically you need a lot of shoes. I think I had about 10 or 12 pairs with me for the week? Probably only used 5 or 6 pairs in the end but good to have some spares as it's nice to go for a proper burn in a totally dry pair. If it's warm they can dry out pretty quick but mine were taking a couple of days. You can climb in wet shoes but it's a bit of a gamble as you can make the holds wet.

Chalk bag tech is usually the same, but last year a friend of mine started making these dws chalk bags that dry super quickly https://www.instagram.com/p/Cw2BtYUNT6c/ Now I just take one of these. A quick towel off after you've gone in and it's good to go in 15 mins.

Goes per day just depends on the route really. Adrenochrome is pretty pumpy, think I managed 3 goes the day before I did it? Same as sport redpointing really.

With the temps, DWS is definitely a warm weather sport in the UK. Probably a combo of the routes generally being steep on relatively good holds (so you don't need crisp conditions), trying stuff ground up means that realistically you're climbing below your limit and as soon as you go in the sea warming up quickly feels like a bigger priority.

[abarro81]

Nice one Remus!

[Paul B]

Nice one Remus! 

It's always impressive seeing people really going for it when DWS rather than climbing like a pencil.

At Diablo (probably >10yrs ago now) I was using Decathlon swim caps taped around a section of a plastic bottle as a quick drying chalk bag.

[SA Chris]

Excellent Remus, always looked like amazing climbing.

I use a standard plastic milk bottle with the top and side cut off, and a bit of string threaded through the handle. Works pretty well.

[Will Hunt]

I got to have one of those rare moments yesterday where you try something and you only just manage it by the skin of your teeth, everything left on the rock. Master Spy Direct. I hadn't quite expected to be under the kosh from so early on, but as soon as you arrive at the pegs you're in the ring. Had to hang around a bit in the first section fidgeting in some gear that wouldn't block the holds then ploughed up through slippy fingerlocks, always seeming to get the next one just as the last was letting go, then falling off just as I laid on for a flatty and caught it. Some more gear then I just about cranked through to the junction with Master Spy feeling dead in the water.
Thank God for the good hold and the jam here and thank God for sport climbing so I could actually get something back! Sure, they're decent holds, but it's still steep! After a couple of false starts at the blind section above my dry mouth desperately rasped down to Josh, "what did you do here?" At this point I'd given up hope of actually finishing the route but was determined to fight the good fight.
With the crucial beta in hand I gurned through the moves, again only just making it to the next hold as the trailing arm was about to give up. Thank God the top out is more positive than Wipe Out!

I lay on the heathery bank at the top wheezing to nobody in particular "I'm pumped. I'm pumped". And I remained pumped for hours after. Beautiful.

[Wellsy]

This year after losing psyche and gaining it and losing it and gaining it and losing it etc, I found myself neglecting climbing a lot. Especially anything techy that challenged my comfort zone. I basically stopped climbing on circuits and doing anything other than board sessions due to being able to lie to myself and say this is proper training, while really I've just got worse at movement and wondered why I'm struggling on anything but basic crimp pulling.

Well this week I had three indoor sessions where I did challenge myself. Slabs, vert, open handed stuff, insecure climbing. They weren't my best sessions in terms of ability, but they were hugely fun. I felt so excited for the next one each time. I did a huge amount and challenged myself. I felt properly secure in my knee for the first time in ages. And I'm just so psyched again to do this thing that I love. I feel more excited than I have in years to just... climb shit.

[mrjonathanr]

Nice one, Wellsy #keepthefaith 

[andy popp]

A niche one, I know, but I also know there are a couple of other people here who like a dip. I've swum in Øresund (strait between Denmark and Sweden) on a regular basis through a second winter. The YYFY isn't really for the getting through the winter but just for finding a physical, outdoors activity I love, that puts me in nature, and that I get a huge amount back from - it's become an important part of daily life. I'm not a swimmer (I'm a rubbish swimmer in fact), I just go swimming. Mostly with a bunch of other ageing Danes.

[Fiend]

  

[steveri]

Excellent, I like a swim but can’t cope with it too cold, so impressive going through winter. I’ve watched enough Wallander/Borgen to feel some sort of connection with that water.

The first couple of times of the year I seem to go back to beginner, with an odd feeling of ‘there’s nothing underneath me’!

[James Malloch]

Been back in Sheffield for a few weeks whilst our attic is getting converted. It is super nice being back - feel right at home here. Lots has changed, but there’s lots of nostalgia from my uni days.

Had a traverse and catch up with a friend at rubicon (is there anything similar on Yorkshire Limestone?!), wall session with a friend, some fun jogs around bolehill and topped off with a very nostalgic session at broomgrove wall for an hour this evening (so close…)

A proper lovely few weeks. Could see myself moving back here. Biggest disappointment was that Tamper doesn’t sell their Ginger Crunch anymore.

[SA Chris]

Had a traverse and catch up with a friend at rubicon (is there anything similar on Yorkshire Limestone?!),

Wetherby Crag

[James Malloch]

Had a traverse and catch up with a friend at rubicon (is there anything similar on Yorkshire Limestone?!),

Wetherby Crag

I do love it there And henry price and Craig-y-Longridge! Just all a little bit far from Skipton…

[SA Chris]

Sucks, living in such a horrible place surrounded by all those terrible crags!

[Falling Down]

A niche one, I know, but I also know there are a couple of other people here who like a dip. I've swum in Øresund (strait between Denmark and Sweden) on a regular basis through a second winter. The YYFY isn't really for the getting through the winter but just for finding a physical, outdoors activity I love, that puts me in nature, and that I get a huge amount back from - it's become an important part of daily life. I'm not a swimmer (I'm a rubbish swimmer in fact), I just go swimming. Mostly with a bunch of other ageing Danes.

I’ve just seen this post Andy. Two winters in a row is worth a YYFY and a big yes to swimming in nature. 

[sherlock]

In mid March a routine visit to my GP quickly led to a diagnosis of prostate cancer. Various MRIs and a bone scan later I'm told that the cancer cells they tested are grade 1. Low volume and slow moving. Not quite out of the woods yet but the news couldn't be much better.
I was envisaging years of my skeletal self haunting hospital corridors attended by a drip ....that won't be happening just yet... Summer trips to see favourite bands in Liverpool & Edinburgh still on and more importantly Tunnel booked for autumn trip to Czech Republic and German sandstone!
As a bonus the scans revealed that my MS has stalled and no further degeneration in brain.

Truly, life couldn't be much sweeter right now.

[shark]

Wow. What a relief

[SA Chris]

Great news!

[Falling Down]

Great news Sherlock.

[shark]

Still buzzing from putting a superb new trad route at High Tor yesterday: Daydream E6 6a

I’ve had a long relationship with High Tor and put up my first new route in 1985. Never would have dreamt then that I’d still be putting up routes there when I was 60. I’ve added a dozen since and was the main writer of the High Tor section of the BMC guide.

High Tor is fairly complicated crag and it takes a bit obsessive imagination to pick out new lines. The concept for this one only came to me for the very first time whilst I was daydreaming in my tent in the rain on Berneray. Of course it’s only when you start swinging around on a rope that you actually find out whether the line makes any kind of logical sense so it was great to find out that did.

I used to have a pretty good head for trad routes for about the first dozen years but subsequently it’s been a struggle to get something close to a trad head in my sporadic attempts to get back into it.

This route was a fight physically and mentally and so I was well out of my comfort zone. On the previous Saturday I was so gripped I only managed first couple of moves before bailing. On Thursday I pushed the boat out and got through the hardest ad scariest section but was too boxed to recover and finish the job. Yesterday was in doubt. The forecast was sketchy, I still felt tired despite three days rest, the holds felt a bit greasy. Everything was uncertain on the route until the belay.

The route is probably low in the grade and I’ll accept a downgrade from anyone (except Tom Briggs of course).

Lovely evening driving back across the Peak and then a nice meal out with Sonia and the boys.

Gear beta

NSFW  :

I used a downward placed black alien in the highest of two finger rails on Reproduction and an offset rock 3 which can be wiggled in deep in the right hand side of the same hold. Pic available. All other gear is obvious