Since my last blog we have changed our tune once again. To pick up where I left off, I was trying to finish off Gentleman’s Project,  a great line with a very shouldery crux followed by a deadpoint to a good hold. After writing my last blog I had a very frustrating day where I climbed through the crux first go and then fell at the lip when I got my hand position wrong, and not realising why, couldn’t do the final move! So annoying! I then fell time after time on the crux until I was too tired to keep going. Disappointed to make it so close, but also encouraged that I could climb it, I took a rest day. Invigorated by a shower (and some bakery delights from the Food Ranch), two days later I returned and, despite some nerves, did it first go. I was so happy, this was my favourite climb in Joe’s Valley and we left for Bishop that night. Video to come!

Reaching up into the shoulder move on Gentlemen’s Project (V11), Photo David Mason.

Driving to Bishop was an experience in itself; Nevada is HUGE. Hundreds of miles of nothing but landscape; paradise for an agraphobic. We arrived in Bishop and went to look at the Buttermilks area. We had heard very mixed reports of Bishop; it seems to be the ‘marmite’ of climbing areas. Some friends have loved it for the awe inspiring lines while others have disliked it for the lower rock quality. I have to say we veered into the second group. There is no denying the impressive sight of the Buttermilks; the tall, majestic granite boulders against the beautiful setting of the Sierra Nevadas. However, the rock quality leaves a lot to be desired and the climbing, although good looking, didn’t inspire us physically.This may have been influenced by the temperature, it was incredibly hot. I suspect that the holds and climbing feels a great deal more conducive to enjoyment in colder temps. Perhaps we have been spoiled by Fontainbleau, Switzerland and trips to amazing places like Rocklands, but Bishop fell short of our expectations. I still wanted to check out the line that I have swooned over for years and at 7:30am I went to try the Mandala. A complete non-starter. Discussing the problem in Boulder with Alex Johnson, she had said to me: “If you can make the first big move you will do the problem”. This now made perfect sense, the first move is massive. The problem was originally done a different way, a shorter but apparently harder move, before a crucial hold broke. This break lowered the grade but, as far as I can tell, increased the span required. I could just reach between the holds but the power required to make the move is something I doubt I will ever possess. So, within 15 minutes, a lifelong ambition had been crossed off my mental list; I will admit I was pretty disappointed. With David not psyched for the rock in Bishop and both of us excited for what Yosemite Valley had to offer, we dicided to cut our losses and make the 3 hour trip across Tioga Pass.

So now we are in Yosemite. We have been running around looking at boulders and we are both inspired and psyched by the beautiful granite lines that Yosemite Valley contains. A rest day and a shower today, I can’t wait to get started! A great LT11 film here shows some of the classics and I think it showcases the bouldering scene well:

Park Life – Yosemite Bouldering from Louder Than Eleven on Vimeo.

We have been in Joe’s Valley for just over 2 weeks now and the weather is starting to get cold…good conditions are on their way. However, some bad luck has forced our combined hand to change plans. Many of you who know David will know that he suffers from bad climbing-related thin skin on his fingertips and consequently split skin a great deal. This episode, however, tops anything in the past and he didn’t even do it climbing! When abseiling to brush up a line his finger got caught between the rope and the rock and he somehow ripped off the pad of his finger tip. Eek. Pretty gory. Really annoying for him, especially as he was falling off the last move of Black Lung, one of his life-time climbing ambitions.

So, with David realistically unable to climb for at least a week and then with tape for probably the next two, we have had to reconsider our options. Our original plan was to go to Yosemite (via Ibex) and then perhaps Bishop in December if we had time before heading home. The Bishop leg was for my benefit mostly, David was happy to go but more keen for Yosemite. I will admit that my desire to go to Bishop is partly because of one climb: The Mandala. I remember watching Dosage 1 as a teenager and seeing Chris Sharma climb this inspiring line in 2001. Ever since, I wanted to go to Bishop but it was only when Lisa Rands climbed the line that I thought (somewhere in the back of my mind) “hmmm…maybe one day I could do that”. So with David temporarily indisposed, it seemed a good idea to follow this dream now. Bishop sounds like a nice place to be if you’re not climbing and then when he is able to start again we can head to Yosemite. Mandala or no Mandala it will be great to visit this famous venue and a change of scene is what we need at the moment.

Before we go I have a bit of unfinished business here. I have done lots of classics, a handful of V10s and a V11 (Ghost of War) and am very happy with my climbing. To date my most satisfying ascent is Beyond Life (V10); a wide, powerful climb which I found very hard! My favourite climbs have been Lumbar Jack (the V8 next to Beyond Life), Feels Like Grit (V8) and the climb that I am hoping to finish before we leave: Gentlemen’s Project (V11). Fingers crossed. One that I will be sad not to finish is Jitterbug Perfume (V10), a beautiful wall but definitely a test of pain tolerance. I have done all the moves but haven’t quite pieced it together. Maybe I’ll have one more go…maybe I won’t….

On a different note we have been sampling American chocolate. It started when we saw some fabulously named products and felt compelled to see what they offered. Now it has become a rest day event to select and try the best- named chocolate bars on offer at the local grocery store. We have tried an “Oh Henry” bar, a “Baby Ruth” bar, a “100 grand” bar and the well known “Butterfinger” bar. They are all a combination of peanuts, chocolate and caramel it seems but despite the lack of originality it is a very enjoyable process!

Joe’s Valley has not disappointed. It was a long (by English standards) drive from Boulder, Colorado to Utah; a drive that showed us great scenery but also huge expanses of nothing, something we don’t experience in Europe. Joe’s Valley is about 2.5 hours from Salt Lake City and the nearest town is Orangeville. It is a small town but it has enough to keep us going – a place to shower, a place to check emails, a food shop and a laundrette. What more could one need? The people are also really friendly and welcoming, they seem to be positive about the influx of climbers in their area. The climbing is out of town in the Valley leading to Joe’s Resevoir. It is desert; dry, hot and seemingly limitless.

We have been living in our much loved GMC van and really enjoying it. We have systems for everything and life is simple and fun. We get up, we climb all day, we sleep. Oh, and we watch Downton Abbey in the evenings. Totally addicted.

Joe’s lends itself to exactly what I described needing in my previous blog: short walk ins, lots of great climbs in the V6 -10 range and a low pressure feel. I feel like I have found a flow again, climbing lots of days on, trying many different problems in a day, topping out!

I have done some climbs I am really happy with- some easy, some hard. There are also still plenty of things to try and work at. David is climbing really well, doing lots of climbs first go and quickly diminishing his extensive tick list.

So, a short blog for now but I will write again soon

 Joe’s Valley Main Street, Photo David Mason

So, we have been in Colorado for two and a half weeks and it had been a mixed bag. We have had good weather, bad weather, sending days, failing days, frustration, elation and of course friends and fun.

I have been thinking a lot these past weeks and I have come to the conclusion that climbing is a very odd, complex sport. It baffles me sometimes. As climbers we want to have our cake and eat it; we want to train hard with no substantial rest period in our calender, we want to go on climbing trips and climb our best every day. We put our bodies through the mill and just expect them to perform day after day. In what other sport would an athlete attempt a PB every session? We do it, not only outside but in training too.

In theory, the last month has been one of my best; I have climbed my hardest ever sport route (Mecca) and have bouldered my hardest ever problem (Tetris). However, as we prepare to leave Colorado to head to Joe’s Valley I am left with a slightly sour taste, a feeling of slight emptiness and unfulfilment. “Really?!” I hear you say. I know, it sounds awfully ungrateful and pessimistic but that is not the whole picture. It is not often that I put all my eggs in one basket but that is what I did to achieve those two aformentioned goals and, don’t get me wrong, it was totally worth it. What I am getting at is that sometimes it takes a certain mindset to climb your hardest, one that I am still adjusting to. It means sacrifice; not always climbing other things on your mental ticklist, not topping out very often. I love those trips, those days, when I climb multiple problems. They don’t have to be at my limit but I still get that feeling of acheiving something, of overcoming a challenge. I guess it comes down to positive reinforcement; something I have realised that I need quite a bit of! Being told doesn’t do it, telling myself doesn’t either – I need rock solid (excuse the pun) evidence in the form of a summit! Those two ascents, of course, gave me poisitive reinforcement but it is the frequency of achievment that is lacking. I know that two substantial ascents in a month is good frequency but taken in the context of climbing most days it feels scarce. I guess it depends also on personality. My climbing confidence will probably always have a slight frailty to it, just because that is how I am wired. Good days and bad days like everyone, always seemingly regardless of how yesterday went.

Realising these things has been quite liberating, it has given me a more rational perspective from which to consider and manage myself. I am extremely lucky to be doing what I am doing and I am eternally grateful for my daily experiences but there are always times of frustration, just as there is always a place for analysis of those emotions. As it stands, although I am immensely pleased with my recent acheivements, I am aware that I need a period of time now in which I can lower my grade; lower the general effort level required on individual climbs and increase the frequency of positive reinforcement. In simpler terms, I am ready to do some mileage.

This is where Joe’s Valley comes in! Short walk ins, short drives and tons of amazing looking problems in the V7-V10 range. I’m ready for some brim-filled climbing days and some topping out!

In terms of inspiration, David has been climbing fantastically. He is on some kind of sending spree and it is a real joy to be a part of. Nothing beats seeing a cheshire cat grin on the face of someone you care about as they top out. Those moments have been highlights and I hope to see more of them.

Here is the video of my success on Tetris:

And one of David’s successes:

And some pictures:

Autumn aspens, Photo David Mason

Warming up on the portable fingerboard, Photo David Mason

My hands after climbing Tetris, Photo David Mason

Sunset at Lower Chaos, Photo David Mason

Golden Aspens, Photo David Mason

The Fuzz (aka Royal), Photo David Mason

Marys Lake, Estes Park, Photo David Mason

We arrived in the US on Wednesday, landing in Philidelphia before catching a connecting flight on to Denver. Our welcome in Philly had something to be desired…we were grilled at US customs. They politely took us to one side and searched our bags before interviewing us in seperate rooms. We are here for 90 days and I think there was suspicion over whether we were trying to illegally work  in the US. Having reassured them that all we wanted to do was climb around on rocks and that it is possible to survive on very little money if you just lower your standards, our passports were returned to us and we were free to go. Phew! I know it sounds silly but  I can’t help but feel like I’m guilty when being interrogated, I’m just relieved I handled the pressure and didn’t admit to anything I haven’t done!

So we are here, a great reception from Kevin, Jackie and Chris made us feel right at home . Our first day was a bit of a blur of tiredness but we still ventured out in the evening to Boulder Canyon for a potter about. We climbed a historical John Gill problem called Standard Bulge before spending some time on the dyno, Cage Free. I haven’t really tried many dynos outside but I thoroughly enjoyed this one and wasn’t that far off! David managed to do it, a nice positive start to his climbing on this trip. Kevin got ridiculously close, next time for sure!

And so now it is day two. I am up really early due to jet lag but feeling much more human today. An interview with Rock and Ice for their Spotlight page this morning, and then we’ll head out to Wild Basin. Can’t wait!

Just before leaving the UK, I did a photoshoot with Alex Messenger. He wanted to try out some new lights and I was happy to oblige. Here is Yogurt Hypnotist at Rowtor as you have never seen it before!

Yogurt Hypnotist, Rowtor, Photo Alex Messenger.

What a weekend! My trip to Norway has been great. Most of the competitors arrived on Thursday, coming from as far as South Africa and as close as Trondheim. It was a good mix of people; on the girls side there was Alex Puccio, Hannah Midtbo, Maria Davies Sandbu…. and me and for the men; Daniel Woods, Dave Graham, Carlo Traversi, Magnus Midtbo and Nalle Hukkataival. We all headed to Lillehammer where the competition was to be held.

On Friday morning we were given numerous holds, plenty of assistance and four hours to set a boulder problem. This was the bit I was nervous about. I haven’t got a lot of setting experience and it is quite hard to get the balance right in this kind of situation. You want your problem to be hard of course, but not too hard. I wanted to be sure I could climb it, but I also wanted it to challenge the other competitors. In addition, I was very keen for it to be interesting for the crowd; an exciting problem to watch, combining different styles. The key, of course, is to play to one’s strengths. I looked around for the smallest holds I could find. I played around for hours with my problem but when I finished I was actually pretty pleased with what I had created. And I knew I could climb it.

We had some lunch and chilled out for a bit before returning to the boulders to test each other’s problems. We started with Hannah’s; a steep problem, fairly long, with big moves between good holds. Maria’s problem was next; again very steep and long, good crimps and ending on a high heel hook move that felt a bit insecure. Then Alex’s problem…..unbelievable! Her problem was her style in its purest form; steep, big moves between bad, slopey pinches, very basic and very hard.

Having tried them all I knew I was capable of climbing three (mine, Hannah’s and Maria’s). However, they were all hard so anything could happen. That evening we were taken to dinner where we tried a Norwegian special: Moose stew. It was delicious!

The next day we all felt pretty sore from the setting and the climbing session. We headed to the local wall for two Boulder Jam sessions. These were informal competitions for people who had travelled from all over to watch The Battle. We spent the day talking to people, helping with beta and generally being a part of the event.

That evening we put our aches and pains aside and got ready to climb in the competition. Hannah’s problem was first. This was the one I was most worried about; it had been the hardest for me (apart from Alex’s) in the testing session. My first go was the best but a combination of tiredness and slippy holds (we had had some rain earlier in the day) meant I didn’t make the crux move. Each go after that I got worse, my tiredness was starting to show already. Only Alex managed to top the problem, flashing it with ease. Maria’s problem was next and we all managed to climb it. Then we moved on to Alex’s…. Hannah, Maria and I all had a good go but we couldn’t do the moves. Alex flashed it, wowing the crowd with her incredible power. Finally it was time for my problem.

The start of Hannah’s problem, Photo Lars Verket.

Further along on Hannah’s problem, Photo Lars Verket.

At the top of Maria’s problem, Photo Lars Verket.

I was last to climb so I could watch everyone climb first. Hannah did well but wasn’t able to manage some of the crimpy moves, Maria was the same. Alex flashed right up to the end before falling. I had put very poor footholds at the end of the climb which required very careful foot placements and tension. She tried again and managed it second go. Now it was down to me and I was nervous! I pulled on to begin the climb with a jump. When I got to the crimps I went onto automatic and just pushed through the moves to the top. I was really happy, I had done my problem and it had put me in 2nd place .

A big well done to Alex for coming in first, she was clearly the strongest and she deserved it.

We then settled in to watch the men. Their problems were really mixed in style, and very exciting to watch. They all climbed brilliantly, with some amazing shows of strength and skill. It was Daniel that stuck out as the most impressive, topping all five blocs to win. This kind of competition was really fun and a nice change from the usual format. It allowed for more creativity on the climber’s part and means harder blocs.

Some partying and celebrating (it was also Nalle’s birthday) meant we had slightly sore heads the next day. What better to do with a hangover than downhill mountain biking! Thanks to Rune and his colleagues we were able to have a two hour session hurtling down the hillside. This was one of the scariest things I have done but it was brilliant. A key part for me was relinquishing control and just committing to the rocky, steep terrain. A few falls, but no major injuries were sustained and we all had a great day.

Now I am home again, preparing to go to London for my sister’s wedding. Best of luck to all those going to Paris this weekend for the World Championships, I will be there in spirit!

A big thank you to Rune and Kristian for all their help and support this weekend, we all had a great time and you were brilliant!

It took me a while to muster up the courage to try Mecca; a classic, short, power endurance route at Raven Tor. If I’m honest, I had felt a bit intimidated by it. The combination of the grade, it’s reputation, the British climbing scene and my “then” self doubt meant that I put it off for some time. Before this route I had only climbed up to 8a+ sport routes and I felt maybe jumping onto an 8b+ was not the thing to do. However, I soon realised that “not the thing to do” type phrases are no way to govern oneself in life or climbing. I had always wanted to try Mecca because it was classic and the climbing looked amazing, what was I doing letting a number put me off?

Eventually I took the bull by the horns and had a go in May this year. My first session went really well and I managed to do all the moves, but only just. I had another session where it started to seem more realistic but then the UK summer began and the rain came. I was also competing in the IFSC World Cups during this period so time was limited. Then David and I left for Colorado.

We returned to the UK in July and I was psyched to re-open my Mecca account. Only it was wet and continued to be so for a few weeks. About two weeks ago, when I had nearly given up for this year, I heard rumour it was dry and that someone had climbed it. At this point I wasn’t sure whether it was worth starting again on it. David and I are heading back to America on the 19^th September and I had multiple competitions and a family wedding to contend with before that.

I decided to have at least one session, to re-assess how long it might take and to re-familiarise myself with the moves. The session went well. My climbing has improved a lot in the last six weeks or so and this really showed on Mecca. It felt like a different route and I found myself having a redpoint go that day.

The repointing sessions began and I slowly moved my failing point higher up the route from the bottom of the groove to the knee bar. Yes, I fell out of the knee bar! My penultimate session saw me shake myself out of this infamous resting position. The knee bar, although a good rest for the arms (one at a time, I don’t know how people manage to take both arms off!), required a lot of tension on my part to stay on and I slowly slipped out of it from pure fatigue. A frustrating place to fail.

While on this subject I feel I should clarify for those who are interested: I did use the knee bar and I did use a knee pad, as has been done in other recent ascents. This was always my plan but in addition I am maid of honour at my sister’s wedding in a week’s time and my dress sits just above the knee, a small gender specific consideration….

So, having fallen off quite high on Monday this week, I returned on Wednesday morning to try again. My first go saw me slip on the crux section. Second go, I felt good, I found myself back in the knee bar but this time not nearly so tired; I wasn’t shaking and I felt fairly composed. A deep breath, a word to myself and I embarked on the top section. I tried bloody hard. And then it was done.

Nick Brown aka Outcrop had come along to film too so he got the whole thing (my little piggy-sounding-trying-hard yelps at the top included…).

Big thank you to David for all the belaying and Pirie for the final belay

I’m now in Norway for an invitational competition called The Battle where the competitors set problems and then compete on them….wish me luck! Live feed on Saturday night at www.nrk.no/sport

 Mecca, Raven Tor, 8b+. Photo Nick Brown.

Arriving back into the UK after the Addidas Rockstars event I suffered a momentary lapse in memory at the passport control desk.

“And where have you travelled from today Madam?”

Pause.

“Umm…oh gosh…ummm…I’m sorry my mind has gone blank….”

Pause.

“…no wait, Stuttgart, yes Stuttgart.”

It was in a similar frame of mind that I sat at Manchester Airport again on Friday morning, a sense of déja vu creeping in. This time I was on my way to Munich for the last IFSC Boulder World Cup.

I was excited. The Addidas event had improved my confidence so much and I felt it was possible to do well again. I was aware that there were more competitors here and some strong women present that hadn’t been in Stuttgart but still; in my mind I was up there with a chance, a strong competitor in the field. It sounds silly but this kind of thinking is new to me and so marks a change.

The qualifiers came around and I was out 19^th. This means a fair bit of time in isolation but nothing to complain about. There were 51 women so to be out last meant over 3 hours in isolation. I was nervous but flashed the first boulder, which instantly settled my nerves a bit. In the transition zone it is impossible not to notice how quickly people come back from the wall and therefore get an idea of whether the problems are getting done or not. There was a mix.

I flashed the second boulder and my confidence grew. When I stepped onto the mat in front of the third boulder I didn’t know how to climb it. There seemed to be lots of options but it looked as if it were set to be a dyno. I pulled on and jumped, latching the first and second hold and stopping to my surprise. I finished the bloc, my third flash. This problem pleased me the most as jumping always used to be one of my real weak points. It is very satisfying when, through practice and training, a weak point can become a strong point.

The fourth bloc was a little more tricky and took me 4 goes (with one silly fall from the top!). The last bloc was the hardest I think but with a bit of luck and grimacing I found my way to the top first go. So I had done all 5 blocs. That had never happened before. I was really happy. I went into the semi finals in joint 5^th place. This is the highest I have ever placed in a IFSC World Cup round.

The GB Team as a whole did brilliantly. All 8 of us placed in the top 30, with 5 making the semi-finals. In good spirits on Sunday morning, Katy Whittaker, Ned Feehally, Stew Watson, Adam Watson and I went into isolation once more.

Problem 1, Semi Finals. Photo Diane Merrick.

 I felt good again. I was hoping I could keep my lucky streak going and I wanted to make my first World Cup final. It was possible and I still believe now that I am capable of it. It wasn’t to be on this occasion though, I fell too many times and I didn’t top enough. The combination of some mistakes and some shortcomings meant that I wasn’t even close. I’ll be honest and say I was disappointed with 15^th place. In the past that would have been a great result for me but I feel I am capable of more now. However, in a roundabout way that is pretty cool. Six months ago I would never have dreamt that I would be disappointed not to make finals, they weren’t even on my radar. That is what I choose to take from this: potential, confidence and psyche.

Problem 3, Semi Finals. Photo Diane Merrick.

 It was a great trip as a team, lots of fun. The finals were amazing to watch, really cool looking blocs and some impressive climbing as usual. Shauna also came along on her crutches and we got to watch her receive her trophy for overall 3^rd place for 2012. A great result and well deserved. It was hard for her, watching and not being able to compete but she was a brilliant support to the rest of us.

Me, Alex, Gill, Katy and Shauna watching the finals.

I regret to say I will not be competing at the World Championships in Paris this year. I am disappointed not to be going, especially because I seem to have found my mojo (for want of a better phrase…). I have started to really enjoy the competitions more and so naturally I want to keep going. I will be at my sister’s wedding that weekend, which I wouldn’t miss for the world and from there I will be willing on my team mates. I am sad that my season is over at this point but I look forward to competing again next year.

One more competition left though, I still have The Battle in Norway on the 8^th September….

I’m not sure where to start….Addidas Rockstars was a new thing for me, I didn’t do the event last year so I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. I arrived on the Thursday lunchtime and was picked up from the airport by an addidas representative and driven to the hotel. That was very nice in itself, it was the beginning of a weekend of being thoroughly looked after. We were taken out to a great restaurant in Stuttgart that evening and treated to a meal before being transported back to the hotel in a new addidas coach.

The next day we had a leisurely start before the qualifying round began. At this event it was possible to view the blocs, albeit from a distance, before you went into isolation. This was great for me as I think it removed some anxiety and we were able to share ideas about how to climb the blocs. I didn’t actually climb all of them in the way I thought I would but I think the reduction in nerves really helped. In most competitions, when you do not get to see the blocs beforehand, I think I experience a sort of “rabbit in headlights” feeling when I step out onto the mats and I do not always think straight. The qualifiers went well for me; I topped 3 of the 4 blocs and I was pleased with how I had climbed. I wasn’t aware of how others had done so when I saw that I was in third place I was shocked and, of course, very pleased.

Going into the semi finals I was prepared for that not to happen again. I have never finished higher than 10th before in an international event of this level so I was aware that, although I had proved to myself that I was capable, it may not happen every time! I was pleased already, anything else would be a bonus. I did, however, climb with a new found sense of confidence. Something clicked in my head and for the first time I felt sure of my ability competing in a field of strong competitors. I qualified in 4th for the finals. It was a bit overwhelming to be honest. I have trained a lot and worked hard in many ways to get better and when it pays off it is actually quite emotional!

The finals were great, having watched so many it was brilliant to be in one. This event had a different format for the finals, it was a knock out. So all the finalists tried the first two boulders, then the top 3 from that tried the 3rd boulder, then the top 3 from that raced on a super boulder. I was knocked out in the first round and ended up in 6th place. It was a bit frustrating because the problems were a bit too easy making it a flash competition (on the first two blocs). I topped both blocs but took 4 attempts (including one slip off the start of bloc one). Had I done 2 in 3 attempts I would have got to try the 3rd bloc. But being able to pull something out of the bag first go under all that pressure is one of the skills in competition climbing! I was very happy with my 6th place. Well done to Alex who won the event

Here are some photos:

Addidas Rockstars Final, Photo Udo Neumann

Sharing ideas in the Addidas Rockstars Final, Photo Udo Neumann

Also some here http://www.adidas-rockstars.com/en/gallery/photos/

From Stuttgart I flew to London to see my family for the evening before Dave and I drove to Fontainebleau. Were were there for 4 days to celebrate our friend’s 40th birthday and we had a great time. Despite the heat (up to 35 deg on one day!) we climbed as much as we could. I managed to do a few things that I hadn’t done before including l’Arrache Couer, El Poussah and Rataplat, all very cool problems. We also tried l’angle parfait which I want to finish sometime…

Attempting l’angle Parfait, Photo David Mason.

Benoir, resident cat at The House, Tousson. Photo David Mason

Highball problem at Elephant, Photo David Mason.

Photo David Mason

Nap time in the forest, Photo David Mason.

After a hot drive home I am glad to be back. A bit of climbing this week  before heading back to Germany for the IFSC World Cup in Munich….

What a week! Jen Randall (http://alloureggs.wordpress.com/tag/magic-wood) is making a film about female UK climbers and was planning to film Shauna in Magic Woods for 3 days. As many of you will know, Shauna has broken her leg and so Jen needed someone to fill her spot in the film.  She got in contact with me last Thursday and by Monday night I was in Milan Malpensa Airport to meet her.

We had three days in Magic to film as many cool boulders as possible. I had been to Magic before, about 4 years ago and so we were able to film some things I had done before as well as some new things. I was really psyched, I love Magic Woods.  It’s a beautiful place and I felt so happy to be able to spend some more time there. I wish I had had longer than 3 days, I could easily have stayed 3 weeks!

It was a tiring few days, but really fun. I had never met Jen before or her boyfriend Al but we hit it off really well from the start. It made for a relaxing, fun trip and I feel I have made some good friends from it .  Thanks to Optimum Nutrition I had some recovery shake to help me through too!

In terms of climbing I was happy to do some climbs I hadn’t done before: Piranja (7C), Rhythmo (7C) and Jack the Chipper (7C – Flash) and also to try some harder things. I tried Jack’s Broken Heart and Pura Vida, both great problems. I think both are doable for me but I needed a bit more time. Need to start planning a trip back….

Here are some stills from Jen’s filming:

 Jack the Chipper (7C), Film still courtesy of Jen Randall

Piranja (7C), film still courtesy of Jen Randall

Rhythmo (7C), film still courtesy of Jen Randall

Supernova (7C), film still courtesy of Jen Randall

This trip was also my first proper usage of my new Snap Pad (courtesy of betaclimbingdesigns). I was really impressed actually, the foam was very firm and I found myself always wanting that pad over the worst bit of landing, or the bit I was most likely to land on. A big thumbs up.

Now I have a couple of days at home before heading to Stuttgart for the Rockmasters event!  I have also been invited to take part in a competition in Norway on the 8th Sept this year which is exciting!

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