[Dexter]

basically i have set myself the grade of 8a sport and bouldering by the time i finish uni (in a year and a half). I can currently climb around 7b in each and have been mostly training strength at the minute figuring I need to get the strength first then I can work some endurance closer to the time. Just thought I'd ask whether people would advise training more endurancey stuff or strengthy stuff at the minute or a mix of the two?

[JT]

Work on your technique! Strength isn't the be-all and end-all!

Hope you had a good Christmas dude.

[erm, sam]

Get a better degree and do the training while you are tying to find a job afterwards....

[lagerstarfish]

If you can boulder 7b then climbing sport 8a shouldn't be a problem - just get good at redpointing; don't get pumped working the moves, get good at remembering them.

I haven't managed to boulder 7c (ever) even when sport 8a wasn't much of a problem, so have no idea what is involved.

Font 7b to Font 8a in 18 months... I suggest being under 20 years old and being very lucky in the injury lottery, otherwise ask those people on UKB what they think... oh... right.. in that case - just man the fuck up.

If you're bouldering 7b and only sport climbing 7b, then I think you're either not doing much sport or have inefficient technique. Sort it out.

[shark]

 

The main thing I would pick out from your question is that Font8A is really fucking hard and sport 8a is piss by comparison.

Forget training endurance your going to have to get super strong super quick without getting injured to climb Font8A in 18 months.

Supposing you do it - and it is possible - but you probably won't - then you can whizz up one of the bouldery sport 8a's at the tor.

[Dexter]

that was my thinking. sport 8a I should be able to get with a bit of endurancy training. I know 8A in 18 months is hard thats why I want it.... no point trying for 7B+ in 18 months. So far pretty lucky on the injury front in that I climbed almost everyday at my limit for 2 months with no injury. Also to be fair if I had time to get outdoors more im fairly sure I could do some 7C's just need the mileage outdoors.
All in all cheers guys i'll stick with the strength training for 8A rather than endurance and get endurance later.

[Dexter]

and yea I dont really do any sport at all really

[lagerstarfish]

thinking about it, redpointing 8a sport could be good training for getting technique better without getting injured

win win 

[Dexter]

yea think I might do some sporty stuff on rest days

[nik at work]

All this climbing 8a is piss compared to 8A is all well and good, and perhaps even true but...

Don't think that if you manage to do an 8A or two you can then waltz to the Tor and tick a bouldery 8a in five minutes, you probably won't (I certainly didn't). The impression I have is that to boulder 8A you need to be fairly strong and pretty good, to climb 8a you need to spend a lot of time trying to climb 8a. You can increase the speed at which you do 8a by doing specific training stuff (vague references to stamina and endurance...) but that won't help you develop the dirty 8A burl, in fact it will probably hinder. So in summary I would say get strong and go for the bouldering big style to get the 8A (that's the major hurdle so get over it first) then get on short 8a's and find one that suits and crush it. Don't underestimate how long this may take.

A final tip would be don't start of trying 8a sport then get sucked into 8a+, then 8b, then etc etc without actually finishing anything off, it makes you look like a twat (I should know...)

[Johnny Brown]

What Nik said. Climbed 8A well before 8a. Many times it was suggested I should 'just do one of the easy ones at the tor'. Fail. The main problem for me was that they are not what I consider good climbing. I'm not about to spend a load of sessions on something I think is crap. Ten minutes on Chimes/ those short ones at the right end I'm happy not to know the names of were enough to be a complete turn off. Took me a good five years to find an 8a in the Peak that I wanted to do. When I did, it wasn't that hard - three sessions. So Dexter, I'd say don't underestimate the importance of inspiring routes to try - if you don't currently do much sport you may find its for good reason. And Nik, get yourself on The Ogre.

[abarro81]

Where's the "I don't agree" smiley?
Baby chimes or OOMT are both 7B+ ish as a boulder grade - I don't get how you can boulder 8A and not crush at least one of these into oblivion, especially if you boulder on limestone at all regularly. Unless of course the 8A is a slab or techy arete. In which case you're a hero.
But then I'm a route climber...

[Jim]

especially if you boulder on limestone at all regularly.

there in lies the problem for Johnny

[nik at work]

Duly noted JB.

And good luck Dexter.

[Andy F]

Took me a good five years to find an 8a in the Peak that I wanted to do.

Would have taken 5 seconds to find one in Yorkshire 

[Johnny Brown]

Maybe. I doubt I'd find one good enough to justify the drive up though.

[Dexter]

cheers for all the advice guys currently working on the 8A strength (although I am just recovering from injury) i geuss if all else fails ill find a longish 8A (something in the cave) and a shortish 8a.

[webbo]

Maybe. I doubt I'd find one good enough to justify the drive up though.

and to think folk used to slag sloper off for labouring a point.