Happy Christmas!

22 Dec 2008

The year is almost over!  In terms of my climbing it is anyway… I think!  I have a cold and I’m settling in to doing nothing for a good week at least.  Matt Heason asked me last week to be a judge and a presenter at the Sheffield Adventure Film Festival (SHAFF) – happening Feb 09 - and of course I excitedly said yes, which means I have a good stock of films to watch over the festive period.

The last few weeks have been an attempt to organise some courses and holidays for 2009.  Whilst my progress has been painfully slow, I can finally confirm one of the new additions will be a holiday to France in September at Chateauvert west of Marseille.  I wanted to do it in the spring, but there isn’t time now to get fully organised so autumn it is.

I will be running this course with my friend Corinne Théroux.  I met her 4 years ago at World Cup competition in Birmingham – she’s a great person, has a lot of coaching experience and was one of the most successful French competitors – I really can’t wait to work with her (she also holds the French teaching qualification, a legal necessity in France).  I’ve been to Chateauvert before, a great crag, with super routes, especially in the Fr5/early 6 range and next to the village Correns, the first organic village in France.  Corinne told me last night that Brad Pit has a chateau in Correns – a useless but potentially interesting fact to some!

Anyway I will put up lots more information about the holiday, crag and Corinne when I get a few more pages added to the site in January.

You may be interested to know that I've started a 'love to climb' group on facebook - join up!  I'm going to start up a mailing list on this site too in January - all this means I can be more in contact with everyone.

For me it’s a beautifully sedentary time that approaches followed by New Year in Northumberland by the sea!  All the best and see you in the New Year!!  Have a very relaxing time.

Northumberland coast

Blue sky and snow

08 Dec 2008

I can't complain as since being back from Australia there have been some quite remarkable days out in the Peak - incredible blue skies and perfect conditions.  I'm going to attempt to complain about Tuesday but I shouldn't.  The upside was that it was completely beautiful, but the downside was it was so snowy you couldn't really get to the top of any of the boulders.  Here's Vic at the Plantation.

Stanage in the snow

I've been trying my best to get out but of course I have had to do some work.  I went to Wellington College in Berkshire, one of the grandest independent schools in the country, to run a BMC Fundamentals in their climbing wall!  I also did some coaching at the Castle on Saturday in London.  This was followed by a quite amazing only just catching of the train.  Louisa has kindly given me her bike and was driving me to St Pancras to drop me off, but infuriating levels of traffic reduced us to a snail's pace.  At 21 minutes past 6 we arrived at Kings Cross.  We both dived out of the car, wheeled the bike at breakneck speed over to St Pancras, arriving at 23 minutes past.  My train left at 25 minutes past.  That got my heart racing more than any climb in a while...

Yesterday was back at Stanage where I hoped to come closer to latching the Storm, a huge rock over boulder problem.  Last week on my second only ever attempt I got within 2 inches of the top but had a split tip and had to catch the train to Berkshire so couldn't have another go.  So I thought I might be in with a chance yesterday.  Despite valient attempts I could only gain 1 inch!!  Here is a picture of Rupert Davies just making the stretch.  Like Rupert my right arm is almost straight, but I can't generate any more movement. I think this might become my winter project.  So its some thigh strengthening for me.  This climb used to be 7c, now its 7b+ but I think it might well be 7c for me being on the shorter side of things.  I relish the challenge of a move that seems almost impossible.  That fine line is ungradeable.

The Storm