To the boulders! - and no one can stop me!!!

It's with relief that I am now involved in the sport of bouldering, whereby the only decisions that matter are my own. No one else can tell me to, or make me, do anything, likewise, no one can stop me from achieving my goals. It's up to me, and when I've put in the hours of hard work, the focus, the determination and kept my resolve, no one can say - 'no, you're not allowed'.

I don't have to register my name, or acquire the approval of some old, and no doubt fat, bitter, bureaucratic fool who's lost sight of the importance of sportsmanship. When my friends have supported each other's hard work, there'll never be any disappointment for us not being allowed to go to the block and send the latest project.

There's no one that can take from the sense of personal achievement in bouldering.

In that way, climbing is truly a great sport.

With that in mind, It was with disappointment that I read of the plight of the British Rhythmic Gymnastics Squad a week ago.

International Gymnast Magazine: British Decline Olympic Spot for Rhythmic Group.

I've let this story settle in my mind, to allow the initial frustration of it ease... but a week later, I'm still miffed about it.

Cut a long story short, they missed the Olympic qualification mark on day one of competition by 2 tenths of a point. Day two, they smashed it by 2 whole marks. So any normal person would take an average of the two marks and see that this team had easily qualified through.

The team of girls were afforded a spot at the Games by the IOC, but the BOA turned it down, claiming the girls hadn't achieved a good enough result on day one.

I've no idea why this news has been annoying me so much over the last week or so, but it has.

The British Rhythmic Gymnastics team are self-funded, have no doubt trained relentlessly, since they were kids to achieve the standard they have and even after being GIVEN the Olympic berth, they've been told no.

Some fat arsed committee in some stupid boardroom somewhere has decided to destroy the goals and of this team, forgetting the very idea of sportsmanship and completely dismissing the Oath and the Creed of the Olympic Games. Not only that, they destroyed and undermined the the goals and hard work of the coaches, disappointed and laid to waste the support (both financial and motivational) of the athlete's families and so on...

I think that's wrong.

When I read about this, it made me appreciate how much I love bouldering and how little the opinions and rules of committees with their clip boards matter.

For me, it was when I completely let go of the importance of competition, that I realised what my motivation was.

It's different for everyone I suppose.

But I've a feeling of safety in the fact that the only thing that can stop me topping out my latest project...

Is me.

Glendagain

Headed to Glendalough today with Eoin Rafter... Eoin had suggested the idea of heading to Glenmacnass today, but the conditions weren't mint, I had no wellies, and it was midday... Glenmac would have been a boggy disaster today and we wouldn't have been at the boulders until about 2pm or so - Glenmac is for mint conditions and early arrivals!!

When we got to the boulders of Glendalough, we headed over to the Big Jim Boulder to warm up and saw that Dec, Kev and Shane were working Rhythm and Stealth on the Big Jane Boulder. After saying hello we set off back to attempt all the easy stuff on Big Jim. I had little or no trouble with everything I tried, though Duffy's Slap (6b+) left me a little stumped on my first attempt.

I pulled on and sent it easily after that, and while Eoin was coming to grips with the awkward start position, I decided I'd give it another go, slipped off and hit my foot off an uncovered rock on the ground, crunching my ankle... When will I learn... Send the problem, then leave it the hell alone!!

I had seen the guys set off up towards The Fin (7a+) and was psyched to get going on that problem. I definitely thought I had it in me to at least work out the stand start today. We made our way up, just in time to see Dec send the sit start!

He had told us that in the past he'd sent it a number of times, but only once with style... Today we got to see his second stylish send of the line - cool! After his success on The Fin, it was time for Dec to head home and he walked out of the Valley, the lone block crusher!

Coach and Horse

Shane and I worked the stand start to The Fin for a while and finally, even with the lads attempting to banter me off the block, I managed to send it! :D

Only have the hard move to do now!!

Afterwards, I went over and joined Eoin as he worked the Arete Right of the Fin (6b+) and surprised myself by making relatively short work of it. Shane and Kev headed off soon after...

Eoin at AROTF (6b+)

It's a tricky start to AROTF (6b+) and after working it for a while, Eoin joined me on a problem ('Problem 6' SS 6b) I had asked Kev (coach) about earlier. It's just the other side of the corner of AROTF and though Kev had told me the sequence, I had soon forgotten where to put my feet, and couldn't stick the opening move. I did it from the second move in and it's all easy from there - but the sit start kept spitting us off and we soon called it a day.

Glendalough was so eerily still today and that meant that a lot of the holds were a bit greasy, especially on Big Jim. As Eoin and I walked out we stopped to take some shots of the lake, which was so utterly still and vivid in it's mirror image of the Forrest above, that it wasn't so clear to see where the Valley ended and the waters refection of it began.

Gorgeous!

The Windy Gap

Dear Nature,

There is no doubt that walking through your pristine countryside is awesome indeed, however your little grass covered foot traps and mud splats, sized and gouged to twist the ankles of and suck the runners off the undiscerning walking boulderer are a major cause for concern.

Is it not entertainment enough, that your boulders are perched high up so that we boulderers must march, trending vertically to the point of exhaustion in order reach your rocky gems , without the need for further entertainment as you no doubt watch on in convulsions laughing as we fall into the little traps that are strewn along the way?!

I wouldn't change a thing about you, Nature... But it's important that you know, we'll be on the look out next time - there'll be fewer muddied arses, stumbles, slides, and falls...

We'll adapt, and your jokes will become old...

Next time Nature... NEXT TIME!

Yours Sincerely,

Trish Fox.

We went to the Windy Gap today and it was awesome. Claire drove up and having heard that my iPod had been furnished with music from Ricky and Paul's collections - a request was made for my once vetoed iPod to be hooked up to Claire's sound system once the radio stations went out of range.

We arrived and marched up the hill -

My method is always - walk fast and get it over with, but I've been so spoiled with the walk in to Glendalough - paved and marked as it is. I've become a brat and the walk left me huffing and puffing as I reach the first boulders.

We met up with Dave, John, Ray, Tom and Steve.

It was so unbelievably windy there and after warming up on a low ball arete 'Hob Nob The Marine' (6a) and then around the corner to a sheltered little cave (Cuchculainn's Cave) that led out to a balancy face climb. The left exit goes at 5+ while the right exit 'Mifd' goes at 6c... which seems a little soft for the grade.

We all worked the stand start and John was on the sitter which is down in the Guide as a project but none of us were sure if it had been done as yet...

Neutral Face

It was done today as John launched backwards for the sharp jug and held it, before moving through the far tougher right hand exit to the problem.

Impressive.

I sent the stand start to the Mifd with Steve (the tallest spotter in Ireland) keeping a close eye on me as I endured a flash-pump that willed my hand to open - I looked down as everyone gasped in disbelief and the message was pretty much... 'don't you dare!' - I wanted to drop off, but thought better of losing face in front of the guys!!!! ;)

I slapped desperately at the arete with my non-functioning hands and found a jug flake that I managed to scramble my upper body over before kicking and skrittling my feet up towards the top out - finally using a pretty unsightly knee in order to finish.

Not pretty.

Tom followed.

We all moved up to another arete - 'Sting Like a Bee' (6c) up the hill a bit... Again, spoiled by Glendo, my legs felt the burn on arrival!

Claire worked out a lovely little sequence and looked completely effortless as she worked her way up the arete towards the glory of flashing the problem, before jumping off to everyone's surprise!!

Claire dancing up 'Sting Like a Bee' (6c)

Dave

Thieving her beta, I started to climb the problem and had a quiet brush of the pads to begin with, but carried on to flash it, holding my hands up at the top of it to admit my short-comings. Tom said I shouldn't have mentioned it cause he heard and saw nothing!, John said he was waiting for me to step off the problem having seen and heard the dab!!

Tom sent it just after me ;)

As we left the boulder, Ray had a slip and muddied his trousers as we all laughed... and then made sure he was ok!

Next on the list was 'The Reckoner' (7b) and John 3:16 (8a).

In a radical move, John threw on Claire's ear muffs for his send of 'The Reckoner' later claiming he felt 10 times more powerful as a result...

Noted.

John wearing Claire's magical earmuffs during his send of the Reckoner (7b)

The rest of us had a laugh flailing about the start move for ages before psyche waned and we watched on as John tried 'John 3:16'. He made an impressive attempt at the problem, completing all the moves -

John 3:16 (8a) and John

We moved over to 'Angelina Jolie' (6b?... ah now c'mon!)... Impressively, John flashed it, or retro-flashed it or whatever - but the rest of us were left stumped!!

Steve

Me trying the start of 'Angelina Jolie' (6b?????????)

It's super burly and powerful and way far beyond it's given grade... However, aside from the grade - it's a beautiful climb - and I'm psyched to get back to it - The line involves pretty powerful positions between throws to very corse slopey holds, which tore my hands to shreds when I missed them!!

When none of us could pull on anymore we decided to call it a day and started back towards the cars - The ground was pretty boggy though and as John plodded down the way his foot squelched into a muddy hole which sucked the runner off his foot as he stepped out of it. We found him a nice stream and he washed off his shoe and walked out with a soggy foot, in a soggy sock, in a soggy shoe.

Looking like homeless folk, we stopped for soup and coffee and were led 'around the back way' by the waitress so no one would see us walk in... covered in chalk and scratches and with beanies on our heads and so on... lovely soup though!!

The Windy Gap is a beautiful spot for bouldering and we were spoiled rotten with the weather today.

Perfect.

Cheers Dave!

Even more incentive to get driving!!!

Unclimbed Boulders

Is it good to talk?

I'm going to find out...

Bouldering Talk

9th Feb 2012

Teacher's Club, Parnell Sq. W

Just Right!

James on Blind Stick (6c)

Feel a bit like Goldilocks these days... The weather in Wicklow has to be cold to boulder... but not too cold, breezy but not too windy...

Today was just right, and it was great.

Definitely cold and breezy but nothing like a couple of weeks ago when I nearly keeled over from what I'm sure was a dose of hypothermia!! ;)

As Shane and I drove towards the carpark we picked up Juan and Duggy who were ambling along about 20 minutes walk away from the start of the walk in!!

We jammed them in the back seat and stuffed their boulder pads in on top of them.

Warming up in The Ruins area, we easily sent the aretes and quickly moved on to Big Jane across the river.

Juan topping out in the Ruins

Shane was psyched to try 'The Groove'. I had flashed the stand start a couple of weeks ago and should have listened to the good advice James once gave me...

If you flash a problem, never go back to it!

I couldn't do the first move.

After a few attempts, I remembered James' advice and went to try Andy's Arete (7a+)

Shane gradually pieced together the stand start to The Groove (6c?) and send it. It's definitely a striking line, and though I'd love to eventually try the sit start (7c), the moves look desperate.

We were joined on the Big Jane boulder by Duggy, Juan, Tim, Ricky, Shane, James and Joe. Chris dropped over for a while but soon set off to try some other problems leaving the rest of us projecting the Arete, but as the wind picked up it got very cold and it made us not want to be there anymore!

We headed back over the river and things were far calmer indeed. James, Joe, Shane and I headed up to Chuppa Chop. I'd never been on it before (except once when I started bouldering and Sean wanted to see if I could step onto the first move... I could but was too afraid to go any further)

With all the pads and the guys spotting, the line seemed far from intimidating today and I loved it. Joe came agonisingly close to sending it... As in, he was at the top, reaching for the last hold and his foot slipped. It should have been his.

Shane O Donovan sent it and gave out about how off balance and weird the moves were as he made them!! Very funny.

He then moved on to the arete beside it (6b+) and made the moves look so cool we all had to have a go!

James on the climb beside Chuppa Chop - noted in the guide as Problem 2 (6b+)

Shane had worked out the sequence and so it was a little easier for the rest of us and I nearly flashed it... was a bit gutted not to have hit the slap to the big hold on the arete, but made the hard moves next go before dabbing the spotter and then the block beside me as I topped out.

Not to worry...

Shane on Blind Stick (6c)

We all rocked over to Blind Stick (6c) and Ricky sent it first, I have the thing wired and though I nearly got it today on my first go, it was about 5 or 6 attempts later that I hit the top of the block, as my feet exploded off the wall and I quickly matched hands and swung about the place. James pointed out foot holds as I tried to reestablish calm and I mantled the thing out.

Tom followed and admitted after to feeling a bit competitive about wanting to send the thing after seeing me do it!!

The lads left me and Tom at the top of the block for a while, slagging us that they were off to lunch and would be back later... One needs a pad to get down from it, and when the guys finally put a mat on the ground for us, I was quite nervous jumping off... but again, the lads (gentleman as they are!) spotted me as I fell from the boulder onto the mat below!

Shane O Donovan topping out on Black Art (6c)

We moved on to Black Art (6c) and James and Joe headed off home. It was really exposed up there and the wind made it feel very cold. Shane and Ricky both had big pad dab sends of the line before Shane Mitchell got on it and made it look easy. His powerful style of climbing, well suited to the line.

Getting down from Black Art is a work out in itself and Shane O Donovan was quick to figure out that if he launched his pad down to the path he wouldn't have to carry it as he scrambled down through the scree. I ambled down the way as I always do, but slow and steady is always good in those sort of ankle turning situations.

We ended up down by the path again and I wanted a quick go on Superstars of BMX (7a+). I knew I probably didn't have enough in the tank for it, but that wasn't the point. I just wanted a few attempts to remind my muscles what they were to do.

Progress was made though and I stood up on the opening foot to hand move as my body scrunched into the contorted position it needs to hit before unfurling itself while always remaining tensed to stand up. The progress was made on my final go and my sides were in bits afterwards.

That's what it's going to take though!

Amazing day's bouldering in perfect conditions. Shane and I agreed on the drive home that it would be cool to head somewhere different next time though!