Full Circle

So that's it I'm back home at my parents place and my "climbing year out" has come to an end. Observant readers will of course say it never ended up being a year, 8 months in fact. if id gone to the US I would have pushed on through I think till 2010 but certain events saw me back in Europe for the fall and a good job opportunity here in London has meant Ive needed to adapt the schedule somewhat.

So has the climber in me sold out to get back in the rat race? Probably a little but for me being successful in a financial markets career is all about running with it when its good and flying for the hills when its bad. It was pretty darn bad in March when I left NYC and now its seems to have turned, so I had to take any re-entry opportunity seriously.

Anyway enough of the job chatter this is not the place for that but I feel that is some justification for why I cut the climbing year short with more thoughts on that to follow. First up how did my last few days before my journey back to blighty finish up? Sending Appartenance was the highlight. A superb highball arete, powerful down low, then balancey and scary up high with a subtle roll out onto a hanging slab using a very rounded rib like feature. As you slowly tip your weight onto the slab you have to make a long reach to a good crimp that marks the end of the difficulties. Problem is to reach the crimp you have to roll loads of weight onto a very high left foot that is smeared precariously on a sloper just waiting to explode off and send you ground ward. it did quite a few times before success. Aside from that I climbed some great low 7's on the final day and managed another quality 7c - Symbiose Gauche at 95.2.

Regrets; I didn't manage to climb the other 2 problems that constitute the big 4 at Rempart. Big Boss I tried and tweaked my shoulder, Big Golden I ran out of time to get on. They are very high on next years tick list as is Beaux Quartier at Bouligny. Talking of ticks I did think about jotting down a graded list of what id climbed over the course of the year but I think that would bore most people and its all on 8a anyway. Stand outs are the 3 8a's since Feb (especially getting one in Font), the slew of top top quality 7c/+ classics i did in Font (and I'm still only about halfway through the list) and sampling Rocklands/Africa in general.

However with highlights there has to be lowlights for sure. Weather was often challenging. More specifically though when I started this year out I stated I wanted to climb the real classics whenever I ended up, but also I did admittedly want to try and push my grade, 8a+/8b was the target. In the 8 months I pulled on one 8b problem for 5 mins, that's it. Not a massive commitment to the cause that. In terms of 8a+, well to be fair I was close to this target. Jack's Broken Heart was a whisker away before it rained for 4 days straight and Swine Flu killed me off when Tea Time With Elmarie had been linked in two halves.

However despite the agonising last day failures Ive come to realise as the year has gone on that genetically I'm not gifted enough to climb this grade (8b). What I mean by this is that just because Ive climbed a lot this year does not mean my body has suddenly got loads stronger or technically superior. I thought by climbing loads my level would have kinda gone through a super cycle and shot up. Unfortunately it didn't, in fact I'm weaker now than when I was going regularly to the gym after work. That does not mean I cant climb 8b full stop but ill have to siege something for months/years even to do that and a trip where you are moving from venue to venue is not the best way to do this.

This in part is the other reason why Ive decided to step back from this full time climbing thing and back into a more balanced work/climb/booze/sleep type lifestyle. If your not super gifted then the best way to push on in a sport is to train I guess and I haven't done that properly really for years...not since I used to climb with Tyler/Geoff Landman on the board at Mile End, 2005 I think. I'm not going to start campussing tomorrow but 2010 i want to put some training plans into practice and go back to short focused trips to US/Europe. When I was in the US I climbed a few 8a's just by existing in one place and being able to pick the great conditions, by being used to the rock type and training a particular crux move of a project at the wall in the week. Basic stuff but it suited me better because my body takes a while to adapt to a very hard move or a very small handhold - that's what I mean by not being necessarily massively genetically gifted at climbing.

So since I'm back into short sharp trips and sieging things ill need to get a UK ticklist I can focus on for late 09 and 2010. Brad Pit is one and id like to get an 8a done on limestone - Tsunami fits the bill. Ive got to decide whether to keep this blog up..its no good just saying I did some campussing 3 times a week is it so a lot will depend on how often I get out and about once the job life becomes normality again. In the meantime ill try and get some piccies up on here. Ill climb a bit now but some proper rest/time out is key and then its Christmas boozing before the new year plan comes into effect.

4 days on....

Im in McDonalds, internet is crappy so this is going to be shortish. After my last post we finally got a weather window of sorts. Some sun, a bit warm but windy too - it was time to climb. Id written the roof mantel problem at Isatis off, (L'Insoutenable blah blah blah), as a permanent wettie, but when that wind really blows in Font and the leaves have dropped things can dry super-quick.

I knew this problem being dry could be very short-lived so got fired up and sent this one second go in this session. Not the hardest mantel in Font but a problem well worth seeking out, especially in a warm spell in the forest as its always in the shade.

Next up a cracking steep prow at Demoiselles called Home. 7b/+ i think, but here the wind was less prevalent and the thing was a bit damp so 7b+ felt right for sure. Compression moves on wet holds are always quite tough and I found this hard. Took me about an hour to get the hooks right and squeeze the correct slopers to get this one done. Great out of the way problem, in a new area that has been developed by locals. Definately worth the walk-in. Green though.

Finally the last settled day of weather yesterday saw me back up under the big four at Cuvier Rempart. Id had a session previously on Fourmis Rouge and felt ok on it but yesterday I felt confident it might go due to a new factor. When walking out of Demoiselle the other day ive come upon a massive branch, thin and light, that bent slightly to the right. Once id dried this stick out and taped a brush to the end of it I had a secret weapon - I could clean all the higher holds on Fourmis from the ground, due to the sticks length and the way it bent around the nose of the rock. Previously id almost killed myself trying to hang down from the top and brush the top slopers, these things are super marginal so need to be cleaned before an attempt, now I could brush happily in comfort from ground zero.

So after a good brush off with the stick my first go saw me beat my previous highpoint by being able to slap out left to a lumpy sloper right on the top of the prow. From here you have to dig really deep and hike your right foot super-high to a slopey smear before you finally start to get within reach of decent'ish holds and you can stand up and roll off the nose to glory. Despite reaching a new highpoint getting my foot up blindly, really high, onto the smear proved tough. Between goes I was doing all sorts of stretches and karate kicks to try and give me that neccessary suppleness to yard my leg up. Eventually this worked and after a sketchy rock over out right on that high right foot to a good edge I was done. Topping out to a round of applause from French guys sieging Big Boss was a nice touch.

So im pleased because the rain and my fitness had been such that last Tuesday I really thought climbing those three problems in next two weeks before I leave was going to be asking too much. Now today its raining again but at least ive cleared the immediate tick list ready to ship in a load more of course for the final week. In reality there is really two obvious things that stand out. 8a's or above I havent got the heart for the last minute siege to be honest. I still have two of the big four at Rempart to climb and with more rain due, these dry quick so are likely to feature. The other one is Appartenance at Buthier (pronounced boot't'ay im told). This shut me down back in May but today even with the rain, it was actually semi-dry and I managed most of the moves. The top is a problem as it stays wet and it scary to be honest plus the crimps are sharp and tear skin. However this feels doable now and that would be a great way to sign out of Font for this year. C'mon wind do your stuff...

Rain, Smog and Mist

Im not sure who reads this blog apart from some close friends etc, but for any climber that does have an occasional glance - DO NOT COME TO FONT IN NOVEMBER. If I help convey this message to a few uninformed guys or girls it will have been worth it. Seasoned campaigners in the forest, like Neil H, would have told me November is a dodgy month, but I didn't have that much choice to be honest with the US trip on ice, me not working right now and the Swiss granite also proving to be pretty damp/humid, here was the best bet as I didn't fancy going back to Albarracin.

We tend to look at Accuweather here to get a decent view on the forecast for the next few days, for over a week now Ive not seen a single sun symbol for any time of the day, not even a white cloud. Its been super wet, damp, with grey skies and a stillness that means morning and evening mist - a climbers worst nightmare basically and totally brutal to get much done at all.

Apart from many forced days off the rock (today is day two of another rest period as its lashing down currently), going to London for a job interview and watching X-Factor Ive tried to get out when I can. Since Symbiose on day 1 and the day out at Apremont ive managed to get away with climbing two very nice 7b+'s; Fluide Magnetique, the scary and rather classic blunt arete at Cuvier, and Le Cachou, a compression prow at Isatis. I also had a session on the stand start to the L'Insoutenable roof at Isatis, said to be one of Font's hardest mantels at 7c. Its not to be honest as I did the mantel itself pretty quick in the semi-wet but then worked out it actually starts from a jug under the roof. For me anyway this is the crux and I was planning on going back to get this done, but since that session it been soaking wet so Ive all but given up on this one for this trip.

So with two weeks remaining and the weather so bad, albeit it is meant to be better for a day or two from tomorrow, ive decided to focus a bit of effort on the remaining 3 problems that I have not done of the big four at Cuvier Rempart. These tend to dry quick, quicker than most rock in the forest and of course they are super classic must do's. I got up Tristesse in April so now Big Boss, Fourmis Rouge and Big Golden remain. All are high and scary but I had a go on Fourmis the other day and that seems close so ill see if I can get that and the Boss done. Not sure about Big Golden its a far bit more powerful than the others as you basically have to surmount a large bulge with poor hands but we'll see. At the end of the day weather conditions are such you cant really make any firm plans as it can all go wrong very quickly and you must adapt.

Transition

Headed out for the final morning at Magic Wood and manged to piece together the link on that Kalorienmonster thing. Its not the best climb ive ever done but it gave me something to aim for, to at least feel a small level of accomplishment, after a pretty naff week in the Wood.

A couple more shots below. The first Sofa Surfer in a dry state with me matching on the slopey rail which marks the end. of the crux really. That was to be my high point on this trip.

The second, Sofa Surfer dripping on the first few days and me trying to use tissues to dry it out (we have been here before with Jack's)...

So with snow clouds beginning to form we made haste from the Alps. Not sure when ill be back here now on the granite, perhaps spring next year, we will see. Font was the final destination but we broke up the journey with a stopover night in Basel. Strange place really. Some locals speak German, some French, the road signs are in German but most other things like shop names etc are in French, but most confusing of all theres a massive Irish bar there playing NFL games all day where everyone speaks English and you feel like your back in the US celebrating Halloween.

At one point a clear Basel local started chatting the barmaid up in German, when he got no obvious response he tried French and when that also failed to get her going he tried drunken English. Even the local guys are confused here it seems.

So now we are in Font. Ive never been here in November before I dont think but its meant to be a wet month for the forest and its certainly living up to that so far. I have managed two days of decent climbing; one day I sought out the classic 7c roof problem of Symbiose at 95.2. It really deserves the reputation I thought it was great. I also got up to Apremont and did a few 7's there including the classic mantel problem Hyperplomb. Aside from that ive floundered about on a 7b+ compression thing at Isatis that Neil H pointed me at that ill need to get back on and the 7c/+ prow of Madarine that feels pretty darn hard to be fair. I think compression strength is something that has flagged a little in me since being here in spring which isnt going to help with many of the problems here being of that style.

Right now im resting as my split from Magic Wood is still not really healed properly and I need to sort that out. Hoping to get out tomorrow, I still do not really have a defintive tick list but to be fair with the weather so volatile perhaps its best not to and to just go with the flow depending on conditions. I only have 3 weeks left now so not a huge amount of time full stop either when you think about it. I really need to try and put Appartenance away, thats it really, that would be great and anything more than that a bonus. More soon...