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.
Monday, October 11, 2010
The tyranny of faff
Back on a piece of string today at Stanage Popular End with Skippy - unseasonably sunny weather for October it has to be said but not hot enough to be sweating off holds - all in all a quite enjoyable day at the crag if the truth be told.
The days tick list:
- Black Hawk Hell Crack - second.
- Manchester Buttress - lead.
- Gargoyle Buttress - second.
- Heather Wall - lead.
Admittedly nothing really hard there and I had done the first three routes before but it wasn't really a day for pushing hard - more a refresher course in the tyranny of faff. Must say that Manchester Buttress was greatly improved by continuing up to the top rather than throwing together a belay on the big ledge after the traverse back round to the right. Doesn't add any hard moves to the route in all honesty but just makes it feel that little bit less of a cop out which was how it felt when I first did it a few years back now.
Heather Wall was a new one for me though and I came very close to blowing the onsight on the opening moves - got established on decent handholds and the sloping foothold and then the foot blew. Thank god for decent hand holds as I just locked the left and held it before throwing in a cam and making a few moves, throwing in another cam which was pretty rubbish and finally a decent nut and then calmed down. From there it was all good really - nice moves from break to break and gear where you needed it and the added bonus of knowing that I can still onsight VS occasionally.
The good things about the day (apart from the onsight) were that I seem to be moving well on the rock at the minute and I am probably not quite as far off route fitness as I thought I was. Even after the moment on Heather Wall I still found it fairly straight forward from a fitness point of view and while it can be argued that the moves are only 4c tops and most of the breaks provide a decent rest if you work a bit it is still a lot bigger than I have been used to climbing recently.
On the flip side - my gear selection is way off after the best part of two years not working those skills on a regular basis and while it was improving marginally as the day progressed there is still a lot to do on that front. I also seem to have tweaked my left shoulder early on and the Heather Wall incident didn't improve matters which is not good as I was toying with the idea of a session on Conan the Librarian tomorrow.
Will just have to see how it is in the morning and go from there.
Heather Wall was a new one for me though and I came very close to blowing the onsight on the opening moves - got established on decent handholds and the sloping foothold and then the foot blew. Thank god for decent hand holds as I just locked the left and held it before throwing in a cam and making a few moves, throwing in another cam which was pretty rubbish and finally a decent nut and then calmed down. From there it was all good really - nice moves from break to break and gear where you needed it and the added bonus of knowing that I can still onsight VS occasionally.
The good things about the day (apart from the onsight) were that I seem to be moving well on the rock at the minute and I am probably not quite as far off route fitness as I thought I was. Even after the moment on Heather Wall I still found it fairly straight forward from a fitness point of view and while it can be argued that the moves are only 4c tops and most of the breaks provide a decent rest if you work a bit it is still a lot bigger than I have been used to climbing recently.
On the flip side - my gear selection is way off after the best part of two years not working those skills on a regular basis and while it was improving marginally as the day progressed there is still a lot to do on that front. I also seem to have tweaked my left shoulder early on and the Heather Wall incident didn't improve matters which is not good as I was toying with the idea of a session on Conan the Librarian tomorrow.
Will just have to see how it is in the morning and go from there.
Friday, October 8, 2010
Operation Butters Home Made Chilli Powder is go!
I have blogged about my life's culinary mission, to cook the perfect Chilli con Carne, before here and mentioned Operation Butters Home Made Chilli Powder here. With regard to OBHMCP ordering lots of different chillies from the Cool Chile Company was as far I had got - they were left sat in a box till motivation caught up with my ambition which it finally did today. The long wait is over - Operation Butters Home Made Chilli Powder became a reality at long last.
The onset of the mission coincided with the arrival of not one, not two, but three Stevie Wonder albums that I had got off the Bay of Fleas for next to nothing and so Innervisions was thrown on and off we went. Using this recipe as the basis, adapting it with a bit of input from this recipe for chilli powder I found ages ago and throwing in a bit of my own taste (or lack thereof) the oven was fired up and the chillies set to toast.
Above are a mix of Ancho's, New Mexico, de Arbol and Smoked Chipotle chillies with a stick of Cinnamon thrown in for good measure. Simple enough - put in an oven and toast till they are dry and slightly crispy as apparently good dried chillies should still have slight moisture in them. Every day is a school day it would seem.
While that was being done it was time to toast some Cumin seeds in the wok - it has to be said that the Wok in the picture is one awesome piece of kit. I bought it years ago from one of the Chinese shops on London Road for the princely sum of £8 if I remember correctly and it has been a faithful servant ever since, standing up to whatever random cooking abuse I subject it to on a regular basis without complaint.
Enough about the wok though - time for another Stevie Wonder CD, Hotter than July this time which is somewhat appropriate now that I think about it.
Once the cumin seeds, cinnamon and chillies had been toasted it was time to throw them all into the blender, add some Hot Smoked Paprika, Garlic Powder and Mexican Oregano and blitz till it was reduced to a powder with the final result looking like this.
It smells awesome so tomorrow I am off to buy some decent mince and cook up a Chilli con Carne with it - slightly worried that I have no idea what ratio to use it in so I am going to take a stab in the dark and go for 1 tbsp of Butter's Chilli Powder per pound of meat. Assuming that I survive the experience hopefully I will be one step closer to achieving my life's ambition...
The onset of the mission coincided with the arrival of not one, not two, but three Stevie Wonder albums that I had got off the Bay of Fleas for next to nothing and so Innervisions was thrown on and off we went. Using this recipe as the basis, adapting it with a bit of input from this recipe for chilli powder I found ages ago and throwing in a bit of my own taste (or lack thereof) the oven was fired up and the chillies set to toast.
Above are a mix of Ancho's, New Mexico, de Arbol and Smoked Chipotle chillies with a stick of Cinnamon thrown in for good measure. Simple enough - put in an oven and toast till they are dry and slightly crispy as apparently good dried chillies should still have slight moisture in them. Every day is a school day it would seem.While that was being done it was time to toast some Cumin seeds in the wok - it has to be said that the Wok in the picture is one awesome piece of kit. I bought it years ago from one of the Chinese shops on London Road for the princely sum of £8 if I remember correctly and it has been a faithful servant ever since, standing up to whatever random cooking abuse I subject it to on a regular basis without complaint.
Enough about the wok though - time for another Stevie Wonder CD, Hotter than July this time which is somewhat appropriate now that I think about it.Once the cumin seeds, cinnamon and chillies had been toasted it was time to throw them all into the blender, add some Hot Smoked Paprika, Garlic Powder and Mexican Oregano and blitz till it was reduced to a powder with the final result looking like this.
It smells awesome so tomorrow I am off to buy some decent mince and cook up a Chilli con Carne with it - slightly worried that I have no idea what ratio to use it in so I am going to take a stab in the dark and go for 1 tbsp of Butter's Chilli Powder per pound of meat. Assuming that I survive the experience hopefully I will be one step closer to achieving my life's ambition...Thursday, October 7, 2010
Font - Day 5 & 6
It rained on the Thursday night in what sounded like, to judge by the noise of the rain falling on the van, biblical proportions. I laid in pROJECT mAYHEM and was feeling rather grateful that I was not in a tent with just a thin piece of canvas over my head for protection but those thoughts of gratitude were rudely dispelled at 5.40AM when le grand ventre knocked on the door to run him to the station. It was hard not to think that pROJECT mAYHEM was giving with one hand and taking with the other at the time.
Thankfully one of us had had the presence of mind the night before to make sure le grand ventre had all his stuff together necessary to catch his ridiculously early flight from the airport. Probably just as well as it was still bucketing it down and the thought of le grand ventre wandering aimlessly about while he got his shizzle together at 5.40AM would have given a saint murderous thoughts so quite what it would have done to me is not worth thinking about. Anyway we got him loaded up and drove to the camp-site exit only to find that it was locked as was the entrance as well - bugger! Le grand ventre put a brave face on it and duly walked to the station - something I tried very hard to feel guilty about while I reversed the van back the 200 yards it had come and went back to sleep again. I failed.
Upon rising later in the day the weather was looking slightly better - grey and still the odd shower here and there but it wasn't as bad as it had been earlier so there was the possibility of getting something done. Plans were hatched amid much laughter at le grand ventre's bad luck and it was decided to go to the big Carrefour to buy cheese, wine and the like before heading out to find dry rock.
An hour or two later the van was full of wine, random French sausage and stinky cheese and so we set off to 95.2 to have a very enjoyable lunch in the sunshine and then it promptly rained. The next couple of hours were spent driving around the forest and being pursued by rain, where ever we went the rain followed, it was as if we had an enormous rain-cloud magnet attached to the van.
Eventually we gave it up and went to have a coffee in Milly-la-Foret and followed that up with a beer to make ourselves feel better when it rained yet again. While having our consolation beer we got a tip off from Neil at Maisonbleau that there was dry rock at yet another location so it was back into the van and off we went again. You don't really need me to tell you that as soon as we got there it rained do you? Well it did.
It was at that point where we gave up - back to the camp-site to disassemble le grand ventre's tent (not only an onerous task but a rather odourful one too it has to be said) and then wish Dear Boy a bon voyage as he set off back to the sunnier climes of Italy.
Saturday was "get off the beach day" and with coffee made and camp broken the last task remaining before setting off back to the UK was drop the Broken Beagle off at a crag near Milly-la-Foret. From there the long drag home started which was a lot less eventful than the trip down thankfully, the exception being getting off the A6 but compared to the drive down it was a walk in the park.
And so, twelve odd hours after abandoning Broken Beagle, I was back Sheffield just in time to sit down on the sofa with a much needed beer in hand to watch Arsenal getting beaten on Match of the Day. A perfect combination to reflect on an awesome trip over six hectic days with close to 1200 miles of driving and ask myself if I would do it all again? Damn right I would - Font rocks and I still haven't done 6a there yet!
When can we go?
Thankfully one of us had had the presence of mind the night before to make sure le grand ventre had all his stuff together necessary to catch his ridiculously early flight from the airport. Probably just as well as it was still bucketing it down and the thought of le grand ventre wandering aimlessly about while he got his shizzle together at 5.40AM would have given a saint murderous thoughts so quite what it would have done to me is not worth thinking about. Anyway we got him loaded up and drove to the camp-site exit only to find that it was locked as was the entrance as well - bugger! Le grand ventre put a brave face on it and duly walked to the station - something I tried very hard to feel guilty about while I reversed the van back the 200 yards it had come and went back to sleep again. I failed.
Upon rising later in the day the weather was looking slightly better - grey and still the odd shower here and there but it wasn't as bad as it had been earlier so there was the possibility of getting something done. Plans were hatched amid much laughter at le grand ventre's bad luck and it was decided to go to the big Carrefour to buy cheese, wine and the like before heading out to find dry rock.
An hour or two later the van was full of wine, random French sausage and stinky cheese and so we set off to 95.2 to have a very enjoyable lunch in the sunshine and then it promptly rained. The next couple of hours were spent driving around the forest and being pursued by rain, where ever we went the rain followed, it was as if we had an enormous rain-cloud magnet attached to the van.
Eventually we gave it up and went to have a coffee in Milly-la-Foret and followed that up with a beer to make ourselves feel better when it rained yet again. While having our consolation beer we got a tip off from Neil at Maisonbleau that there was dry rock at yet another location so it was back into the van and off we went again. You don't really need me to tell you that as soon as we got there it rained do you? Well it did.
It was at that point where we gave up - back to the camp-site to disassemble le grand ventre's tent (not only an onerous task but a rather odourful one too it has to be said) and then wish Dear Boy a bon voyage as he set off back to the sunnier climes of Italy.
Saturday was "get off the beach day" and with coffee made and camp broken the last task remaining before setting off back to the UK was drop the Broken Beagle off at a crag near Milly-la-Foret. From there the long drag home started which was a lot less eventful than the trip down thankfully, the exception being getting off the A6 but compared to the drive down it was a walk in the park.
And so, twelve odd hours after abandoning Broken Beagle, I was back Sheffield just in time to sit down on the sofa with a much needed beer in hand to watch Arsenal getting beaten on Match of the Day. A perfect combination to reflect on an awesome trip over six hectic days with close to 1200 miles of driving and ask myself if I would do it all again? Damn right I would - Font rocks and I still haven't done 6a there yet!
When can we go?
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Preparation be damned
Decided that the weather was far too good and we were far too battered following Saturdays exertions to justify spending money to go climbing indoors so we met up at Burbage for a bimble on the boulders there instead.
Had a really good session - didn't do anything new but it was good to be out on the rock and feeling that I was moving well. Helped that the conditions were pretty damned good - not optimum but close would be my assessment and it certainly helped in my best attempt so far on the The Armoured Car Traverse. Still going to require a bit more work through the crux but it feels the closest it has been yet.
Today was another good day out at Curbar - I was feeling ever more battered but decided that I would go and check out the stuff behind the Gorilla Warfare block that is listed in the new Froggatt guide. Slightly disappointing with what I found to be honest - the problem on the back wall was green so that might be better with some dry conditions and a good brush. The two problems on the other face looked less than enticing though - the arête problem has a block that sticks up at the base providing a landing that looks pretty nasty and the face problem to the right has a pit underneath it. I didn't try either problem so it might be a bit of a false impression but neither one really made me feel that confident given I was out on my own.
Back to the old favourites then - did the problems on the slab below Gorilla Warfare and then walked acoss to The Prow which I got utterly spanked on a few years back and haven't been near since. My loss is all I can say - the Left Hand Arête is pleasant and easy enough, the centre line proved tricky to start and I thought that it would be all over once I had negotiated that part but the crux seems to be moving off two decent crimps for the top. On paper it should be easy but it feels really balancy and tenuous and getting the top from there first time was a good feeling - so good in fact that I eliminated the decent hold for the left hand at the start and utilised a small crimp instead. Made no difference to the overall grade that I could tell but it felt that little bit more satisfying to do it that way. Last but not least was The Prow itself and it is a magnificent problem. Good handholds all the way but you have to work to get the feet right - should really have been a flash but I cocked up pulling on so it went second go with a slight wobble reaching for the top when I realised that the mat was placed in a less than optimum position.
From there it was down to Trackside to be confronted by some of the worst chalk abuse I have seen in a long time.
The picture was taken after 2-3 minutes of brushing chalk off with about four different brushes. You could see the break all the way from The Prow - that is how much chalk the bloody idiots had smeared in the break in an effort, one can only assume, to dry it out. Whoever was responsible really needs beating to death with their chalk bag and while it might take a very long time for them to die it will be worth it after I tried the problem and my left hand blew at the top of the mantle resulting in two very skinned knuckles. Still I suppose at least I got to bleed a lot and swear a lot more - not a total waste of a day.
Following that I repeated Strawberries first time - go me - and then played about a bit on what seems to be Crack 'n' Pockets in the new guide. Have played about on it before but today it felt feasible though no progress was made as the crimp for the left hand had been sitting in the sun for a while and so was not feeling great and my skin was feeling in even worse condition. Gave it up as a bad job but it has been added to the projects list for the winter anyway as something to try along with the Ultimate Gritstone Experience.
Had a really good session - didn't do anything new but it was good to be out on the rock and feeling that I was moving well. Helped that the conditions were pretty damned good - not optimum but close would be my assessment and it certainly helped in my best attempt so far on the The Armoured Car Traverse. Still going to require a bit more work through the crux but it feels the closest it has been yet.
Today was another good day out at Curbar - I was feeling ever more battered but decided that I would go and check out the stuff behind the Gorilla Warfare block that is listed in the new Froggatt guide. Slightly disappointing with what I found to be honest - the problem on the back wall was green so that might be better with some dry conditions and a good brush. The two problems on the other face looked less than enticing though - the arête problem has a block that sticks up at the base providing a landing that looks pretty nasty and the face problem to the right has a pit underneath it. I didn't try either problem so it might be a bit of a false impression but neither one really made me feel that confident given I was out on my own.
Back to the old favourites then - did the problems on the slab below Gorilla Warfare and then walked acoss to The Prow which I got utterly spanked on a few years back and haven't been near since. My loss is all I can say - the Left Hand Arête is pleasant and easy enough, the centre line proved tricky to start and I thought that it would be all over once I had negotiated that part but the crux seems to be moving off two decent crimps for the top. On paper it should be easy but it feels really balancy and tenuous and getting the top from there first time was a good feeling - so good in fact that I eliminated the decent hold for the left hand at the start and utilised a small crimp instead. Made no difference to the overall grade that I could tell but it felt that little bit more satisfying to do it that way. Last but not least was The Prow itself and it is a magnificent problem. Good handholds all the way but you have to work to get the feet right - should really have been a flash but I cocked up pulling on so it went second go with a slight wobble reaching for the top when I realised that the mat was placed in a less than optimum position.
From there it was down to Trackside to be confronted by some of the worst chalk abuse I have seen in a long time.
The picture was taken after 2-3 minutes of brushing chalk off with about four different brushes. You could see the break all the way from The Prow - that is how much chalk the bloody idiots had smeared in the break in an effort, one can only assume, to dry it out. Whoever was responsible really needs beating to death with their chalk bag and while it might take a very long time for them to die it will be worth it after I tried the problem and my left hand blew at the top of the mantle resulting in two very skinned knuckles. Still I suppose at least I got to bleed a lot and swear a lot more - not a total waste of a day.
Following that I repeated Strawberries first time - go me - and then played about a bit on what seems to be Crack 'n' Pockets in the new guide. Have played about on it before but today it felt feasible though no progress was made as the crimp for the left hand had been sitting in the sun for a while and so was not feeling great and my skin was feeling in even worse condition. Gave it up as a bad job but it has been added to the projects list for the winter anyway as something to try along with the Ultimate Gritstone Experience.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Font - Day 4
Day four dawned and some time later - quite probably a few hours after - I half climbed, half fell out of the van feeling (in the most charitable sense possible) as rough as a dog though, in all honesty, if your dog had been as sick as I was it would have been a trip to the vets. Not being of the canine persuasion though I decided the best course of action was to self medicate with strong coffee and a banana. Welcome to being 40 years and one day old - not quite as good as being 40 years and no days old from my once in a lifetime shot at it.
Quite a few hours after that, following many exhortations from Broken Beagle, we bundled into the van and went to Roche aux Sabots where it promptly rained resulting in a bit more R&R being taken.
Eventually it dried off enough that some of the blue circuit was climbable - I flailed up the first problem and having got there laid on the top until I was sure that wasn't going to do a passable impression of Vomiting Veronica. Just to make sure I also sat out the next few problems but eventually the nauseous feeling thing subsided and it was on with the blue circuit again. Another problem got sent before it was on to one which was rather memorable just for being a bit weird in a good way - the crux was a sort of press to a slap for the top which went down about third go. The problem after was just not happening though - there must be a way to do it with a bit of style but I just couldn't figure it out and there was no power in the tank to try and beast it into submission so I played the joker on that one and walked away.
The next problem was number 10 (I think) and it was my go first. To much amazement (most of all from myself) I flashed the thing - a technical slab with a smear to a good foothold for the right foot and on to decent holds on the scaly sort of rock that I was rapidly becoming to associate with Font. If I was to say that it was probably the best problem that I did in Font on the trip it wouldn't be far off - that good!
Did one or two more problems after that and then ran into Dense and the guys he was climbing with and, to everyone's amazement, Dense was actually climbing! True to form he was finding mono's where no one else could but he was actually climbing things!
I was rapidly going downhill again so I only managed about one or two more problems after that before retiring for the day but the blue circuit is definitely a circuit that will have to be done on my return as some of the later problems looked amazing. One in particular - a very technical looking and also rather scary slab with an arête that tapered outwards the higher you progressed is certainly on my list of must do things.
Quite a few hours after that, following many exhortations from Broken Beagle, we bundled into the van and went to Roche aux Sabots where it promptly rained resulting in a bit more R&R being taken.
Eventually it dried off enough that some of the blue circuit was climbable - I flailed up the first problem and having got there laid on the top until I was sure that wasn't going to do a passable impression of Vomiting Veronica. Just to make sure I also sat out the next few problems but eventually the nauseous feeling thing subsided and it was on with the blue circuit again. Another problem got sent before it was on to one which was rather memorable just for being a bit weird in a good way - the crux was a sort of press to a slap for the top which went down about third go. The problem after was just not happening though - there must be a way to do it with a bit of style but I just couldn't figure it out and there was no power in the tank to try and beast it into submission so I played the joker on that one and walked away.
The next problem was number 10 (I think) and it was my go first. To much amazement (most of all from myself) I flashed the thing - a technical slab with a smear to a good foothold for the right foot and on to decent holds on the scaly sort of rock that I was rapidly becoming to associate with Font. If I was to say that it was probably the best problem that I did in Font on the trip it wouldn't be far off - that good!
Did one or two more problems after that and then ran into Dense and the guys he was climbing with and, to everyone's amazement, Dense was actually climbing! True to form he was finding mono's where no one else could but he was actually climbing things!
I was rapidly going downhill again so I only managed about one or two more problems after that before retiring for the day but the blue circuit is definitely a circuit that will have to be done on my return as some of the later problems looked amazing. One in particular - a very technical looking and also rather scary slab with an arête that tapered outwards the higher you progressed is certainly on my list of must do things.
Interlude
I will get around to the final 3 days of Font updates in due course but following a quick redesign of the blog layout I will follow a slightly different course for a moment or two.
Sat in the pub on Friday night with the usual gang - in summary a varied bunch of mates, some who climb, some who don't, it transpired that John Oz was looking for someone to climb with the following day. I had tentatively planned to go to Baslow on my own to try the green circuit from the new Froggatt guide but nothing ventured is nothing gained so I dropped John a quick text. Plans were made and so we met up the following day at Burbage North for a day of trad and the like.
It has to be said that me and trad have been out of fashion for the best part of two years now - this was going to be my third trad session in that time but there has been a steadily building inclination to get back into the tyranny of faff that is trad for a while now. Part of this is down to reading the ramblings of Paul B who has discovered trad again in a big way, partly from reading Fiend's blog but more so the fact that I have unfinished business in that I know I have the potential to be a far better trad climber than I am on paper. I am, as someone once described me "An E1 leader with a VS leader's brain" - harsh but true...
Paul sums up what trad is all about very succinctly in his latest post:
"It may be easy, you mightn't have to be 'that' strong or fit but in reality it tests a whole different skill set, requires different knowledge and ultimately leads to some amazing experiences."
Boy does it test a different skill set - I have always had major issues with trusting gear and falling on it which I proved to myself by attempting to lead The Chant again. Last time I did it was probably over three years ago - OK I got the onsight but it was a slightly terrifying moment to say the least with the move off the sidepull feeling super tenuous and insecure. Saturday was the same but even knowing the cam I placed in the break was bomber there was no way that I was willing to test it - I reached up to the sidepull, got scared commiting to the move and downclimbed before being unceremoniously spat off when the pump got too much. The gear held obviously...
Three major points from this episode in failure - I have no stamina for routes which leads on directly to the fact that I can not hang on in there to try a move again and succeed or retreat to a rest to rethink the strategy and last but not least even if I had the stamina to hang on in there then I have severe issues with gear and falling. Points one and two are easy to rectify - get back on routes at an easier grade or on plastic and get fit for routes, hanging in there while figuring out the options and also getting the onsight mentality back. The third point is going to be a lot harder but it is, ultimately, the crucial part of the puzzle to solve - placing gear and trusting it and being prepared to lob onto it should that prove necessary!
With all of this in mind I have set myself the task of leading HVS consistently by the end of the grit season and the proof of this is going to be leading what I will refer to as the big six at Millstone - these being (from left to right):
Of the above I have seconded #2 (with LH exit) & #4 and onsighted #3 & #5 before so it's not a total leap into the unknown it will provide a good test of where I am at. While I am at it I will add a couple more routes to the list as needing to be done soon - the first being The Chant (it's only VS but it's a demon that must be slain) and the other being that old nemesis of mine - Avalanche Wall at Curbar.
Preparation starts tonight with a session with John at The Edge - even with some fantastic weather today I am sacrificing getting out for an evening on the plastic. I will also be doing the green circuit at Baslow but going at it with more of an onsight mentality where possible to get used to hanging in there and committing rather than dropping off for a rethink. Other than that it is going to be as much trad as possible to get the gear placing aspect back in tune again - the less time you spend hanging about placing the right piece of gear first time the more you have to give at the sharp end when required.
It has to be said that I am feeling more than a little daunted by this challenge that I have set myself but why make life easy for yourself?
Sat in the pub on Friday night with the usual gang - in summary a varied bunch of mates, some who climb, some who don't, it transpired that John Oz was looking for someone to climb with the following day. I had tentatively planned to go to Baslow on my own to try the green circuit from the new Froggatt guide but nothing ventured is nothing gained so I dropped John a quick text. Plans were made and so we met up the following day at Burbage North for a day of trad and the like.
It has to be said that me and trad have been out of fashion for the best part of two years now - this was going to be my third trad session in that time but there has been a steadily building inclination to get back into the tyranny of faff that is trad for a while now. Part of this is down to reading the ramblings of Paul B who has discovered trad again in a big way, partly from reading Fiend's blog but more so the fact that I have unfinished business in that I know I have the potential to be a far better trad climber than I am on paper. I am, as someone once described me "An E1 leader with a VS leader's brain" - harsh but true...
Paul sums up what trad is all about very succinctly in his latest post:
"It may be easy, you mightn't have to be 'that' strong or fit but in reality it tests a whole different skill set, requires different knowledge and ultimately leads to some amazing experiences."
Boy does it test a different skill set - I have always had major issues with trusting gear and falling on it which I proved to myself by attempting to lead The Chant again. Last time I did it was probably over three years ago - OK I got the onsight but it was a slightly terrifying moment to say the least with the move off the sidepull feeling super tenuous and insecure. Saturday was the same but even knowing the cam I placed in the break was bomber there was no way that I was willing to test it - I reached up to the sidepull, got scared commiting to the move and downclimbed before being unceremoniously spat off when the pump got too much. The gear held obviously...
Three major points from this episode in failure - I have no stamina for routes which leads on directly to the fact that I can not hang on in there to try a move again and succeed or retreat to a rest to rethink the strategy and last but not least even if I had the stamina to hang on in there then I have severe issues with gear and falling. Points one and two are easy to rectify - get back on routes at an easier grade or on plastic and get fit for routes, hanging in there while figuring out the options and also getting the onsight mentality back. The third point is going to be a lot harder but it is, ultimately, the crucial part of the puzzle to solve - placing gear and trusting it and being prepared to lob onto it should that prove necessary!
With all of this in mind I have set myself the task of leading HVS consistently by the end of the grit season and the proof of this is going to be leading what I will refer to as the big six at Millstone - these being (from left to right):
- Plexity - HVS 5a
- Dexterity - E1 5b*
- Lyons Corner House - HVS 5a
- Great North Road - HVS 5a
- Bond Street - HVS 5a
- Great Portland Street - HVS 5b
Of the above I have seconded #2 (with LH exit) & #4 and onsighted #3 & #5 before so it's not a total leap into the unknown it will provide a good test of where I am at. While I am at it I will add a couple more routes to the list as needing to be done soon - the first being The Chant (it's only VS but it's a demon that must be slain) and the other being that old nemesis of mine - Avalanche Wall at Curbar.
Preparation starts tonight with a session with John at The Edge - even with some fantastic weather today I am sacrificing getting out for an evening on the plastic. I will also be doing the green circuit at Baslow but going at it with more of an onsight mentality where possible to get used to hanging in there and committing rather than dropping off for a rethink. Other than that it is going to be as much trad as possible to get the gear placing aspect back in tune again - the less time you spend hanging about placing the right piece of gear first time the more you have to give at the sharp end when required.
It has to be said that I am feeling more than a little daunted by this challenge that I have set myself but why make life easy for yourself?
Friday, October 1, 2010
Font - Day 3
a.k.a. le grand ventre's day of sartorial elegance.
Le grand ventre decided that today was the day he would give the birthday boy (me) Broken Beagle and Dear Boy a lesson in sartorial elegance - today was to be veritable tour de force that would shock the fashion world to its very core - nothing less, nothing more. From the simple insouciance of the well-worn Ireland Rugby top to the stylistic brilliance of the Barbour, from the timeless nature of the burgundy cord's to that ultimate statement in fashion: the bright orange Rab, it is without doubt true that le grand ventre has an eye for an outfit. Today was to be no ordinary day though - today's outfit would show the French how simple style was done!
Standing perfectly shod in an immaculate pair of brown brogues with odd socks (pulled up of course) these flowed seamlessly via a pair of pasty white legs into a daring pair of blue gingham shorts. This was nothing compared to the crowning glory of this lesson in style and panache though - a svelte denim jacket (unbuttoned naturally) and no shirt. Without doubt a strong look and one that would make the world of fashion sit up, scribble countless notes on whatever was to hand and wonder just how they had never thought of this before. Unfortunately no one got a picture of the full outfit but we have obtained a picture of said outfit adapted for crag mode - note the fantastic accessory bag which is de riguer for the crag look this season.
Anyway enough about le grand ventre for now - we arrived at Bas Cuvier and tried blue 1 which felt damn near impossible as did blue 2. Then did a few of the orange problems and the world seemed a lot better. Wandered in and found Dense and a few other lads camped out under something steepish before going to look at the days objective La Marie Rose.
Having found the problem Broken Beagle sent it again first time and le grand ventre had a few attempts but was hampered by an injury to his hand but at least he gave me more than enough beta to have a decent attempt. After a couple of failed attempts I could pretty much get my foot out to the left every time but dropping into the gaston was proving almost impossible due to sweaty hands and as the day progressed it just got worse as the sun lit up more and more of the problem. Deciding that it wasn't going to happen concentration was turned instead to the blue slab to the left - once the initial start had been sorted the fun really with a couple of tenuous smears to better holds and the top. Feeling a lot better having got the problem done soon turned to dismay after I realised that getting off the problem was the mental crux of it all and after a few dismal attempts I just decided to down climb the problem I had just done which was no doubt a lot harder than the descent proper but was the only way that I was getting off the problem that day. Well at least I was not the only one to suffer as the Dear Boy showed great solidarity in also getting the fear about getting off it and there is no doubt that it provided amusement for the rest of the climbers at the crag...
Events however must shift back to le grand ventre just as surely as night follows day - having tried and failed to tape his troublesome thumb he had resorted instead to sporadically trying a problem before dropping off with a huge cry of "Ow" and shaking the injured hand vigorously. He would then proceed to telling everyone in the general vicinity that he was injured - it didn't matter what nationality they were or whether they had any great command of the English language, they would be told about le grand ventre's grave injury. The rest of the gang just wandered off and found another boulder to try...
Following a good day at Bas Cuvier (with the exception of the detritus of carnal carnage that litters the place) it was off to Font for a quick beer. Le grand ventre's outfit proved to be a huge hit with the locals and proved it's versatility transforming instantaneously from crag wear to afternoon beer wear by fastening a single button on the denim jacket - oh so chic! Some of the younger element gaped open-mouthed and fell on the floor in amazement and others just could not believe the style that was being displayed and stared at us with open disdain. How could this oaf show such style?
And so it was on to the evenings entertainment - dinner at a posh French restaurant. Thankfully le grand ventre had decided to dress down for the evening and was therefore slightly less offensive to the jealous eyes of the locals. Foie Gras pate (truly amazing food) followed by Swordfish in a delicate curry sauce washed down with a couple of decent bottles of wine and finished off with a stunning Armagnac from 1970. From there it was back to our regular watering hole - the Glasgow Bar - which is better than its name suggests and had the addded advantage of having Desperado on tap for the Broken Beagle. A few pints later and some random shot for me went down quickly and then the wobble back to the camp site followed by possibly more beer and an undignified crash into bed. Great food, great company and all in all a great way to see in ones 40th.
Standing perfectly shod in an immaculate pair of brown brogues with odd socks (pulled up of course) these flowed seamlessly via a pair of pasty white legs into a daring pair of blue gingham shorts. This was nothing compared to the crowning glory of this lesson in style and panache though - a svelte denim jacket (unbuttoned naturally) and no shirt. Without doubt a strong look and one that would make the world of fashion sit up, scribble countless notes on whatever was to hand and wonder just how they had never thought of this before. Unfortunately no one got a picture of the full outfit but we have obtained a picture of said outfit adapted for crag mode - note the fantastic accessory bag which is de riguer for the crag look this season.
Anyway enough about le grand ventre for now - we arrived at Bas Cuvier and tried blue 1 which felt damn near impossible as did blue 2. Then did a few of the orange problems and the world seemed a lot better. Wandered in and found Dense and a few other lads camped out under something steepish before going to look at the days objective La Marie Rose.
Having found the problem Broken Beagle sent it again first time and le grand ventre had a few attempts but was hampered by an injury to his hand but at least he gave me more than enough beta to have a decent attempt. After a couple of failed attempts I could pretty much get my foot out to the left every time but dropping into the gaston was proving almost impossible due to sweaty hands and as the day progressed it just got worse as the sun lit up more and more of the problem. Deciding that it wasn't going to happen concentration was turned instead to the blue slab to the left - once the initial start had been sorted the fun really with a couple of tenuous smears to better holds and the top. Feeling a lot better having got the problem done soon turned to dismay after I realised that getting off the problem was the mental crux of it all and after a few dismal attempts I just decided to down climb the problem I had just done which was no doubt a lot harder than the descent proper but was the only way that I was getting off the problem that day. Well at least I was not the only one to suffer as the Dear Boy showed great solidarity in also getting the fear about getting off it and there is no doubt that it provided amusement for the rest of the climbers at the crag...
Events however must shift back to le grand ventre just as surely as night follows day - having tried and failed to tape his troublesome thumb he had resorted instead to sporadically trying a problem before dropping off with a huge cry of "Ow" and shaking the injured hand vigorously. He would then proceed to telling everyone in the general vicinity that he was injured - it didn't matter what nationality they were or whether they had any great command of the English language, they would be told about le grand ventre's grave injury. The rest of the gang just wandered off and found another boulder to try...
Following a good day at Bas Cuvier (with the exception of the detritus of carnal carnage that litters the place) it was off to Font for a quick beer. Le grand ventre's outfit proved to be a huge hit with the locals and proved it's versatility transforming instantaneously from crag wear to afternoon beer wear by fastening a single button on the denim jacket - oh so chic! Some of the younger element gaped open-mouthed and fell on the floor in amazement and others just could not believe the style that was being displayed and stared at us with open disdain. How could this oaf show such style?
And so it was on to the evenings entertainment - dinner at a posh French restaurant. Thankfully le grand ventre had decided to dress down for the evening and was therefore slightly less offensive to the jealous eyes of the locals. Foie Gras pate (truly amazing food) followed by Swordfish in a delicate curry sauce washed down with a couple of decent bottles of wine and finished off with a stunning Armagnac from 1970. From there it was back to our regular watering hole - the Glasgow Bar - which is better than its name suggests and had the addded advantage of having Desperado on tap for the Broken Beagle. A few pints later and some random shot for me went down quickly and then the wobble back to the camp site followed by possibly more beer and an undignified crash into bed. Great food, great company and all in all a great way to see in ones 40th.
Font - Day 2
After a night spent sleeping in the van (in the campsite car park) it was time to get sorted, make camp, brew some coffee and then hit town for something to eat. Having done that and feeling just a tiny bit syked it was off to Isatis with le grand ventre for an introduction to the sandstone.
Getting there it was decided that various problems on the blue circuit was the order of the day and off we went - bloody brilliant all round - flashed some, got spanked by others and just got used to the climbing style really. Favoutite problem that I did there was one of the early blue slab problems done in two goes - the trick was getting the start sorted out and once you had got established then it was padding up the slab on random bulges with a fair degree of belief. Also flashed the big crack (24 or 26 maybe?) which was very welcome as it all got a bit tenuous towards the top with no spotter in sight. A few more quality problems got done and then a quick wander out towards the far end of the circuit to get inspired by more awesome looking problems (we had sacked it off by now due to the heat and le grand ventre running out of steam half way up a problem) that will have to be done next time I go out. In fact I suspect that the blue circuit in all its entirety will have to be done. Not hard problems but really nice problems.
From there it was back to the camp-site via the Carrefour for the essential supplies such as beer and the like and then it was a matter of waiting for Broken Beagle and Dear Boy to arrive before heading out again, this time to Rocher Canon.
Rocher Canon - different crag, different problems and a different feel to everything - the problems are that bit bigger than Isatis and while I got up one or two problems, overall I just got shut down on the sky blue circuit. Not really sure why it didn't flow - probably a bit of everything really, tiredness, not feeling that I was moving well and the fact that the problems were that little bit bigger and harder than those we were doing earlier all contributed but regardless it was still a good evening bouldering. The gang were in Font and tomorrow was the big day - I turned 40 and we were off to Bas Cuvier to try La Marie Rose - the first Font 6a in the forest and hopefully mine too.
Getting there it was decided that various problems on the blue circuit was the order of the day and off we went - bloody brilliant all round - flashed some, got spanked by others and just got used to the climbing style really. Favoutite problem that I did there was one of the early blue slab problems done in two goes - the trick was getting the start sorted out and once you had got established then it was padding up the slab on random bulges with a fair degree of belief. Also flashed the big crack (24 or 26 maybe?) which was very welcome as it all got a bit tenuous towards the top with no spotter in sight. A few more quality problems got done and then a quick wander out towards the far end of the circuit to get inspired by more awesome looking problems (we had sacked it off by now due to the heat and le grand ventre running out of steam half way up a problem) that will have to be done next time I go out. In fact I suspect that the blue circuit in all its entirety will have to be done. Not hard problems but really nice problems.
From there it was back to the camp-site via the Carrefour for the essential supplies such as beer and the like and then it was a matter of waiting for Broken Beagle and Dear Boy to arrive before heading out again, this time to Rocher Canon.
Rocher Canon - different crag, different problems and a different feel to everything - the problems are that bit bigger than Isatis and while I got up one or two problems, overall I just got shut down on the sky blue circuit. Not really sure why it didn't flow - probably a bit of everything really, tiredness, not feeling that I was moving well and the fact that the problems were that little bit bigger and harder than those we were doing earlier all contributed but regardless it was still a good evening bouldering. The gang were in Font and tomorrow was the big day - I turned 40 and we were off to Bas Cuvier to try La Marie Rose - the first Font 6a in the forest and hopefully mine too.
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