So.
Six months after coming to the realisation that I had to change my climbing mindset, I think it's going ok.
I'm doing things I'd always cocked a snook at, like weighted pull ups and regular targeted fingerboard sessions.
My fingers are feeling healthy, I restarted outdoor climbing in November, visiting Mindhorn with this Wad
I then didn't get out again until January when this wad invited me to slog up a mountain
In between these sporadic micro adventures, I've been chipping away at my weakness indoors, getting volume and trying to get some consistency in my bouldering. This far that's meant doing a lot of 6C/+ with some low 7's occasionally being gifted.
As previously stated, this year I turn fifty, and I'm keen to make myself into a more robust bouldering machine. Further to that I am aiming to climb harder than I have done before because of this.
To that end I have set myself the goal of climbing a 7B+ before my birthday in August. I have nominally selected Ultimate Warrior as a target as it ticks the following boxes:
✔️ Its a very good problem that looks pretty
✔️ It's been 7B+ for ages
✔️ I'm not shit at bouncing between crimps on a slightly overhanging wall.
✔️ The hard bits at the bottom
Yesterday's weather was a rare window in the rain and I decided to take my first visit. Due to the wonderful logistical set up I have in North Wales I was able to spend an hour warming up at the wall, then jump on the new bypass and be putting on my boots and hour later.
It was a very still day and the north facing wall hadn't shed all it's dampness. I was unsure as to whether I should pull on, but gave the holds a good feel, and was happy the handholds were dry enough to use without damaging them ( I know it's dolerite not grit, but being such a famous problem I was a bit paranoid).
There is a hollow foothold out right that I excluded from my attempts on the stand as it looked to damp and fragile. I think it would be really useful for my attempts at the full thing, but I can work that into my sequence in better connies.
A bit of beating and a brush on a walking pole and I was ready to try. In my slightly brash thinking in my head, I'd decided to give it full beans and go all out for the flash on the stand version.
I arrived at the lip and got a bit scared, grinding it out on my knees. However, another mini goal ticked.
The whole thing is another kettle of fish.
Another climber called Tom arrived, and it was really cool seeing him get the stand also. We spent some time playing with the full version, and I started pulling on with one hand on the stands rail and the heel in.
Once it was lunchtime I decamped to another hillside to open this year's account on a couple of other goals for the year. Some long term projects near Dutch Trance. I was pleased to climb both stand versions ( I couldn't last year), and also pleased that the moves I had done in the past on the full versions looked no harder than those on Ultimate Warrior. I don't think I'll be double sessioning these venues again for a while though.
This is the middle bit of Gabber Gabba
So all positive and good motivation to get back to conditioning.
Watch this space.
