Probably best to make sure that it doesn't have a second meaning though...
Friday, October 29, 2010
Think of a name, any name...
Probably best to make sure that it doesn't have a second meaning though...
Monday, October 25, 2010
Back in the game
After two rather intense sessions of physio featuring chiropractic treatment, deep tissue massage and acupuncture the shoulder and ab problems have, thankfully, subsided for now. Same problem as before apparently - left shoulder muscles seizing up so now I have a regime of press-ups on non-climbing days to try and stop it happening for a third time. Oh joy but at least it doesn't cost money to do the regime.
In between the two sessions of physio I had a good day at Curbar with the Dear Boy, Skippy and his mate Pete or as he is known from now on 1k Excuses. Usual stuff really – did the slab problems below Gorilla Warfare and then onto the three main lines on the Prow. Considering the fact that I had only done the centre line a couple of weeks before, it was a bit worrying when it shut me down and while it did get done eventually, I would be hard-pressed to say I did it in style.
From there it was down to Trackside – Three Pocket problem went first time which I was pleased about because it's one of those problems I can either do or fail repeatedly on for reasons that are beyond me to explain. Perhaps it was a sign that the mantle problem had cleaned up considerably and was no longer the slimy grease-fest it had been a couple of weeks before and would therefore go first time. If so then it was a very accurate sign indeed.
Next up was the old favourite – Strawberries. Pulled on and rocked up into the high left hand which I knew as soon as I hit it wasn't quite right but decided that it would go regardless. Pulled hard and everything was looking quite good till about halfway through the move when the sidepull and my left hand violently decided to go their own separate ways with the outcome being a lot of skin loss and copious amounts of blood everywhere! I might well have sworn a bit at this point but I can't remember – probably fair to assume that I did though...
Once I had stopped bleeding profusely I then nailed Strawberries not once but twice, partly to prove a point but also because it felt bloody hard, though taking into account the pull is with the shoulder I had been having treatment on it shouldn't have been such a surprise really. It certainly wasn't the usual push over at Font 4+ that day I can tell thee.
Lastly I made progress on Crack 'n' Pockets to the point where I could get stood up in the break but finding the point of balance to go for the pockets wasn't really happening, possibly due to earlier blood loss but more likely because of finishing work at 7AM that morning. The right heel round the corner seems to work so I will assume it is right for now but I have a nagging feeling that when I do get it right I am going to come up a couple of inches short of the pockets or just end up horribly stretched out if I can reach them. Still it's a problem that seems to suit me so I will be back for another go soon.
In between the two sessions of physio I had a good day at Curbar with the Dear Boy, Skippy and his mate Pete or as he is known from now on 1k Excuses. Usual stuff really – did the slab problems below Gorilla Warfare and then onto the three main lines on the Prow. Considering the fact that I had only done the centre line a couple of weeks before, it was a bit worrying when it shut me down and while it did get done eventually, I would be hard-pressed to say I did it in style.
From there it was down to Trackside – Three Pocket problem went first time which I was pleased about because it's one of those problems I can either do or fail repeatedly on for reasons that are beyond me to explain. Perhaps it was a sign that the mantle problem had cleaned up considerably and was no longer the slimy grease-fest it had been a couple of weeks before and would therefore go first time. If so then it was a very accurate sign indeed.
Next up was the old favourite – Strawberries. Pulled on and rocked up into the high left hand which I knew as soon as I hit it wasn't quite right but decided that it would go regardless. Pulled hard and everything was looking quite good till about halfway through the move when the sidepull and my left hand violently decided to go their own separate ways with the outcome being a lot of skin loss and copious amounts of blood everywhere! I might well have sworn a bit at this point but I can't remember – probably fair to assume that I did though...
Once I had stopped bleeding profusely I then nailed Strawberries not once but twice, partly to prove a point but also because it felt bloody hard, though taking into account the pull is with the shoulder I had been having treatment on it shouldn't have been such a surprise really. It certainly wasn't the usual push over at Font 4+ that day I can tell thee.
Lastly I made progress on Crack 'n' Pockets to the point where I could get stood up in the break but finding the point of balance to go for the pockets wasn't really happening, possibly due to earlier blood loss but more likely because of finishing work at 7AM that morning. The right heel round the corner seems to work so I will assume it is right for now but I have a nagging feeling that when I do get it right I am going to come up a couple of inches short of the pockets or just end up horribly stretched out if I can reach them. Still it's a problem that seems to suit me so I will be back for another go soon.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
The call has gone out.
Monday found me at Cratcliffe and conditions should have been good in theory - it was cold and the temperature was low but the grit was just not playing ball. The reality of the situation was a bit of a horror show for friction, something I initially put it down to having an off day but it was later confirmed by FatBoySlimFast on UKB that it was the same everywhere. Given that I went there to try the arête on the Egg Boulder - friction based climbing at its best - this was not good news and after an encounter with someone who could well have been closely related to the Dawes judging by the randomness of the conversation we had, I sacked it off.
Fast forward two days and the situation changed completely - if pROJECT mAYHEM had such a thing as a grit light it would have been shining like a huge techno-playing lighthouse to warn people that the grit had been called. Even better I could get out there to see this momentous first day in and I was armed with a big tick list on a day that the friction was so good that it felt like I was cheating.
Days such as these need a plan and so, with Adam Beyer testing the speakers, it was off to Burbage to warm up and then onwards to Mother Cap for a session on Conan the Librarian. After a couple of duff starts on the Brick I sent most of the problems there first time and from there it was onto the Briquette to try Huggy - a problem that I have a history with that needs laying to rest. Gave it a quick brush, pulled on and promptly tweaking an ab injury that has been annoying me off and on for a while in the process.
Deciding to leave that well alone instead of aggravating things further I went to try the Armoured Car Traverse and after a couple of attempts managed to get back to my previous best - the drop onto the sidepull for the left hand - and from there managed to get the crimp for the right. A new best was attained but my excitement was quickly tempered by the realisation that I may have two decent holds for the hands but my feet were planted and not going anywhere so I dropped off and thought about the sequence into the handholds some more. After contemplating about it for a while I managed to refine the sequence so that I wasn't so stretched going to the handholds and tried again without much success - I was rushing to get back to the new baseline but the end result was not getting there at all. The moves were also playing havoc with my other niggling injury in my left shoulder but with the conditions being so good I just kept stretching it out and hoping that things didn't get any worse. Another couple of attempts and I was feeling a lot smoother going into the sidepull so it was time for the big push - it was going to go. Armed with the syke of knowing that a long term project is close, I traversed across and dropped into the sidepull, concentrated on the crimp to a whole new level and once happy with it, started to rock across. My shoulder protested some more about this but I ignored it and instead, spurred on by the knowledge that this was now my last attempt off the day, I got the good hold for the right, matched my feet and planted the right foot across ready to go for the huge holds and glory. Well that was the plan - my shoulder had other ideas about things though and its protests were no longer going to be ignored and so, with another quick twinge from my ab for good measure, I was back on the mat. The final whistle had been blown on the day - there was no extra time to be played in this match - it was simply over, finished, gone, done, out...
I just sat there with my head in my hands and railed against the injustice of it all - I had pretty much done the hard moves, it was almost a path from where I came off, conditions were perfect and my useless lump of a body had given up under the effort. Even now, 24 hours later, I'm still not sure whether I am more pissed off about the fact that I dropped the relatively easy finishing moves, that I now have not one but two injuries which need attention or that I let good conditions and syke get the better of my common sense. Gutted!
Fast forward two days and the situation changed completely - if pROJECT mAYHEM had such a thing as a grit light it would have been shining like a huge techno-playing lighthouse to warn people that the grit had been called. Even better I could get out there to see this momentous first day in and I was armed with a big tick list on a day that the friction was so good that it felt like I was cheating.
Days such as these need a plan and so, with Adam Beyer testing the speakers, it was off to Burbage to warm up and then onwards to Mother Cap for a session on Conan the Librarian. After a couple of duff starts on the Brick I sent most of the problems there first time and from there it was onto the Briquette to try Huggy - a problem that I have a history with that needs laying to rest. Gave it a quick brush, pulled on and promptly tweaking an ab injury that has been annoying me off and on for a while in the process.
Deciding to leave that well alone instead of aggravating things further I went to try the Armoured Car Traverse and after a couple of attempts managed to get back to my previous best - the drop onto the sidepull for the left hand - and from there managed to get the crimp for the right. A new best was attained but my excitement was quickly tempered by the realisation that I may have two decent holds for the hands but my feet were planted and not going anywhere so I dropped off and thought about the sequence into the handholds some more. After contemplating about it for a while I managed to refine the sequence so that I wasn't so stretched going to the handholds and tried again without much success - I was rushing to get back to the new baseline but the end result was not getting there at all. The moves were also playing havoc with my other niggling injury in my left shoulder but with the conditions being so good I just kept stretching it out and hoping that things didn't get any worse. Another couple of attempts and I was feeling a lot smoother going into the sidepull so it was time for the big push - it was going to go. Armed with the syke of knowing that a long term project is close, I traversed across and dropped into the sidepull, concentrated on the crimp to a whole new level and once happy with it, started to rock across. My shoulder protested some more about this but I ignored it and instead, spurred on by the knowledge that this was now my last attempt off the day, I got the good hold for the right, matched my feet and planted the right foot across ready to go for the huge holds and glory. Well that was the plan - my shoulder had other ideas about things though and its protests were no longer going to be ignored and so, with another quick twinge from my ab for good measure, I was back on the mat. The final whistle had been blown on the day - there was no extra time to be played in this match - it was simply over, finished, gone, done, out...
I just sat there with my head in my hands and railed against the injustice of it all - I had pretty much done the hard moves, it was almost a path from where I came off, conditions were perfect and my useless lump of a body had given up under the effort. Even now, 24 hours later, I'm still not sure whether I am more pissed off about the fact that I dropped the relatively easy finishing moves, that I now have not one but two injuries which need attention or that I let good conditions and syke get the better of my common sense. Gutted!
Only mad dogs and Englishmen...
...go climbing at Birchens of a Sunday - it was bloody rammed to say the least.
Decided to warm up on Porthole Arête for starters which was, according to the Rockfax guide, VS 4c. It was all going reasonably well taking into consideration the generally rounded nature of the holds till I got to the top where a very tenuous move from a decent jam and a really sketchy step up on an even more sketchy foothold provoked much thought. Protection was a thrown in nut that looked good from what I could see but in all honesty I had no way of being 100% sure of so I was having a bit of a crisis of faith with that but at least the cam placed underneath the slab was good. Eventually committed to what I was telling myself was only a 4c move but in reality felt a lot closer to a pretty serious and off balance 5a - reached up for the break which I had assumed was good - it wasn't - decided that I was still going for it and pulled through, smeared on the arête and with a final couple of moves it was over. Not the warm up I had assumed I was going to get to say the least and so I silently cursed Rockfax for some pretty crap grading skills. As it was when I got back to chez Butters I checked the new BMC guide expecting to see that it was high in the grade, dodgy moves and generally expecting heroic things to be said of those who dare to lead it. Therefore, it was with a little bit more than a modicum of disappointment that I found the route graded HS 4c - which in all honesty it probably is if you don't go off line. Still, route finding skills aside, I was pretty pleased with backing myself to be good enough to do the move (eventually) and committing to it.
From there we went to the other end of the crag to see if we could get away from the two Student Uni. groups that were there, something we managed to do but only at the expense of finding ourselves next to some sort of climbers crèche - in essence a hellish mix of climbers, parents and screaming\crying\miserable kids. Somehow shutting out this unholy din, Skippy was eyeing up on a couple of lines on Trafalgar Wall, both of which I told him, were pointless taking any gear for as all the higher placements were marginal at best having looked at them before when soloing. Ignoring this he went and found out for himself that they were as bad, if not worse, than I had told him they were while I belayed to the sound of Frank or Freddie bawling away incessantly. In an effort to shut out the noise I silently pondered whether it would be murder or manslaughter that I would be more likely to be charged with given what I thought was reasonable provocation and whether le grand ventre would be any use should it come to needing legal representation.
In the end it didn't come to such extreme lengths and so it was back to the other end of the crag again which was thankfully getting a bit quieter as the day progressed where I led Emma Royd - a route that is about as good as the pun it so painfully aspires to. The start is OK and the middle section isn't too bad either but it really loses it towards the top - low in the grade but on the plus side my gear selection skills had improved markedly - I was on the money with regard to nut sizes as many times as not so pleased about that anyway.
Finally Topsail - I drew the short straw and seconded it but even leading it I think the levels of disappointment wouldn't have changed much - it is a one trick pony route and while that move is really good it also has to be balanced against the horribly polished nature of the route that precedes it. Add in the state of the cam slot that I had heard so much about but which was even worse to look at in reality and the sense of disenchantment was complete. A pity really as I had heard a few good things about the route but at least I spied a couple of decent looking lines that I haven't done yet so there is scope for probably one more visit - just not at a weekend.
Decided to warm up on Porthole Arête for starters which was, according to the Rockfax guide, VS 4c. It was all going reasonably well taking into consideration the generally rounded nature of the holds till I got to the top where a very tenuous move from a decent jam and a really sketchy step up on an even more sketchy foothold provoked much thought. Protection was a thrown in nut that looked good from what I could see but in all honesty I had no way of being 100% sure of so I was having a bit of a crisis of faith with that but at least the cam placed underneath the slab was good. Eventually committed to what I was telling myself was only a 4c move but in reality felt a lot closer to a pretty serious and off balance 5a - reached up for the break which I had assumed was good - it wasn't - decided that I was still going for it and pulled through, smeared on the arête and with a final couple of moves it was over. Not the warm up I had assumed I was going to get to say the least and so I silently cursed Rockfax for some pretty crap grading skills. As it was when I got back to chez Butters I checked the new BMC guide expecting to see that it was high in the grade, dodgy moves and generally expecting heroic things to be said of those who dare to lead it. Therefore, it was with a little bit more than a modicum of disappointment that I found the route graded HS 4c - which in all honesty it probably is if you don't go off line. Still, route finding skills aside, I was pretty pleased with backing myself to be good enough to do the move (eventually) and committing to it.
From there we went to the other end of the crag to see if we could get away from the two Student Uni. groups that were there, something we managed to do but only at the expense of finding ourselves next to some sort of climbers crèche - in essence a hellish mix of climbers, parents and screaming\crying\miserable kids. Somehow shutting out this unholy din, Skippy was eyeing up on a couple of lines on Trafalgar Wall, both of which I told him, were pointless taking any gear for as all the higher placements were marginal at best having looked at them before when soloing. Ignoring this he went and found out for himself that they were as bad, if not worse, than I had told him they were while I belayed to the sound of Frank or Freddie bawling away incessantly. In an effort to shut out the noise I silently pondered whether it would be murder or manslaughter that I would be more likely to be charged with given what I thought was reasonable provocation and whether le grand ventre would be any use should it come to needing legal representation.
In the end it didn't come to such extreme lengths and so it was back to the other end of the crag again which was thankfully getting a bit quieter as the day progressed where I led Emma Royd - a route that is about as good as the pun it so painfully aspires to. The start is OK and the middle section isn't too bad either but it really loses it towards the top - low in the grade but on the plus side my gear selection skills had improved markedly - I was on the money with regard to nut sizes as many times as not so pleased about that anyway.
Finally Topsail - I drew the short straw and seconded it but even leading it I think the levels of disappointment wouldn't have changed much - it is a one trick pony route and while that move is really good it also has to be balanced against the horribly polished nature of the route that precedes it. Add in the state of the cam slot that I had heard so much about but which was even worse to look at in reality and the sense of disenchantment was complete. A pity really as I had heard a few good things about the route but at least I spied a couple of decent looking lines that I haven't done yet so there is scope for probably one more visit - just not at a weekend.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
The Enormous White Whale of Doom
According to extremely-inaccurate-weather.com the forecast for week ahead is going to feature the word sunny in profusion combined with cooler temperatures. Normally The Met Office would disagree with this and predict the polar opposite but in a rare show of solidarity it is agreeing so the plan for the next 5 days, starting tomorrow, is grit.
Sunday is the only day planned out so far - a day spent worshipping the tyranny of faff with Skippy at either Birchens or Stanage Plantation. It has to be said that neither are venues that I would choose for a weekend visit but I am actually a little bit excited by the possibility of Birchens as it offers the chance to tick a load of easy stuff soloing and I might finally get to do Topsail. Strange how the mind works sometimes isn't it...
The rest of the week will be bouldering so it is just a matter of choosing venues really though a couple of things spring to mind - Mother Cap is an obvious choice since Conan the Librarian is on the tick list of things to do and Curbar for the UGE and Crack 'n' Pockets. A trip down to Cratcliffe is also a strong possibility so that's three days gone already and then it is down how much inspiration and skin are available. I have a feeling that inspiration will outlast the skin by a country mile.
Thursday it is back to night shifts and on Friday the Dear Boy arrives in The Enormous White Whale of Doom to rig up a decent sound system in it. Quite how he has survived numerous journeys back and forth from Italy having to listen to music on stock Merc speakers is beyond me as I would have been forced to take some form of corrective surgery a long time ago. Regardless this is obviously something else to get syked about - a few days playing with amps and speakers, running cables and tweaking is never time wasted.
Sunday is the only day planned out so far - a day spent worshipping the tyranny of faff with Skippy at either Birchens or Stanage Plantation. It has to be said that neither are venues that I would choose for a weekend visit but I am actually a little bit excited by the possibility of Birchens as it offers the chance to tick a load of easy stuff soloing and I might finally get to do Topsail. Strange how the mind works sometimes isn't it...
The rest of the week will be bouldering so it is just a matter of choosing venues really though a couple of things spring to mind - Mother Cap is an obvious choice since Conan the Librarian is on the tick list of things to do and Curbar for the UGE and Crack 'n' Pockets. A trip down to Cratcliffe is also a strong possibility so that's three days gone already and then it is down how much inspiration and skin are available. I have a feeling that inspiration will outlast the skin by a country mile.
Thursday it is back to night shifts and on Friday the Dear Boy arrives in The Enormous White Whale of Doom to rig up a decent sound system in it. Quite how he has survived numerous journeys back and forth from Italy having to listen to music on stock Merc speakers is beyond me as I would have been forced to take some form of corrective surgery a long time ago. Regardless this is obviously something else to get syked about - a few days playing with amps and speakers, running cables and tweaking is never time wasted.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Levels of SYKE are at a new high - the old benchmarks for levels of SYKE have been discarded as irrelevant, tawdry things after hearing the news that Godspeed You! Black Emperor are touring again. At last I get a chance to see them again following what has been probably 8 years of them going off and going their own thing.
GY!BE are almost certainly my favourite band - certainly top two anyway - and while others come and go they are a constant and have been since I first stumbled across a review for "Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennae To Heaven" and promptly went out and bought it as it sounded pretty interesting. Picking stuff up on the strength of a review is always a lottery as there are so many variables and this was before the age of broadband and Napster was in it's infancy so the option of doing a bit of research wasn't really viable - it was simply try it and see what happens. Boy was it interesting - it was unlike anything else I had heard at the time which was mainly stuff like My Bloody Valentine, The Fall, Pixies and other stuff of that era. To be honest the first listen to that CD was a pretty seminal moment for me and it brings to mind a reply that Nibile made on UKB when he managed to hang the 45's on his beastraper :
That kind of sums up how I felt - something changed a little with that first listen and with each GY!BE album bought after that it changed a little more but I suppose it is always that first album I come back to most often just because of that moment.
Bring on the 7th of December so that I can see my beloved Godspeed again - it's been too long.
GY!BE are almost certainly my favourite band - certainly top two anyway - and while others come and go they are a constant and have been since I first stumbled across a review for "Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennae To Heaven" and promptly went out and bought it as it sounded pretty interesting. Picking stuff up on the strength of a review is always a lottery as there are so many variables and this was before the age of broadband and Napster was in it's infancy so the option of doing a bit of research wasn't really viable - it was simply try it and see what happens. Boy was it interesting - it was unlike anything else I had heard at the time which was mainly stuff like My Bloody Valentine, The Fall, Pixies and other stuff of that era. To be honest the first listen to that CD was a pretty seminal moment for me and it brings to mind a reply that Nibile made on UKB when he managed to hang the 45's on his beastraper :
"in every man's life there are historical moments of absolute value. the first time you je** off, the first time you get into a fight, the first time you make love"
That kind of sums up how I felt - something changed a little with that first listen and with each GY!BE album bought after that it changed a little more but I suppose it is always that first album I come back to most often just because of that moment.
Bring on the 7th of December so that I can see my beloved Godspeed again - it's been too long.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Shoulder Update
Not great - certainly not going to be attempting Conan the Librarian today that much is for sure. At least it doesn't feel too badly injured - just feels whack in the joint so I suspect that I over stretched something yesterday by pulling too hard on big holds. The good news (such as it is) is that I am back on day shifts tomorrow so it will provide four days of enforced rest.
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