Kitzbuhel by Team GB, Photo Victoria Newlands

Another World Cup over, another mixed bag of emotions. It was my best competition to date but also probably one of the most frustrating.

Kitzbuhel is a beautiful setting; we had a great weekend with a cohesive team, fantastic climbing and some excellent results. In the qualifying rounds, both men and women were in two groups. The GB men sadly didn’t qualify for semi finals, despite putting in great performances. In the girls Leah, Shauna and I made semi finals. I was a bit shocked to go out and flash all the qualifying problems but it was a great feeling! I have to admit that I thought perhaps we were going to have a repeat of the Chongqing round, where eleven women qualified in joint 1st place with a score of 5/5, so I was excited and surprised to discover it was just Alex Puccio and me!

Rest time, Photo Andreas Aufschnaiter

The next day it was strange being in the last group of athletes to leave isolation. I’m not used to it and I kept thinking I should have been warming up sooner. It was odd to see climbers that I admired  leaving before me in a semi final competition, and scary to think I would have to follow their performances! I was feeling confident though and was really excited. I felt like I was good enough to make finals and maybe this was my window of opportunity.

The semi final slab! Photo Eddie Fowkes

I ended up in 12th after the semis but I don’t feel that that fairly represents how I climbed. I did the first two problems and got to the last move of the 3rd problem three times, touching the final hold….if I had held that hold, I would have made finals. Putting it like that shows me how close I was and although it makes me frustrated it also gives me the confidence (along with my qualifying round) to pick myself back up and try again. Next round is in Slovenia in just under two weeks…

Problem 3 in semi finals, Photo Andreas Aufschnaiter

I may not have had the results I am after yet this year but they are within sight. I think I am capable of making a final and that in itself is progress. Last year I was participating, this year I am competing.

Photo Andreas Aufschnaiter

Since I last blogged I have been all over the place! If going to China wasn’t adventurous enough, the GB team then set off to Millau, France to compete in the next round of the 2013 IFSC Boulder World Cup.

Millau was a mixed bag in terms of performance for me. I qualified in 7th and but then dropped to 12th after the semi finals. The problems were hard! You needed one flash to make the finals. However three of the problems got climbed (with one problem receiving no tops) so I felt a bit disappointed not to have got further. I didn’t mess up which was nice, I just wasn’t strong enough for those problems. I have come away with things to work on which is always good and hopefully next time will be better! Amazing result from Shauna Coxsey as usual and fantastic climbing from Leah Crane too. We had a really fun weekend making some shapes too:

Home for two days and then it was time to head to Stockholm for the 2013 Tierra Boulder Battle. This event was great, I think it was the best one I have done so far! An all girl competition: Alex Puccio, Melissa Le Neve, Anja Hodan, Therese Johansson, Matilda Soderland and me. We set boulders, tested them, played around with fancy dress, did photo shoots, took saunas, saw the sights of Stockholm, drank copious amounts of coffee, competed and then partied! It was such a good weekend! I really enjoyed the climbing and was pleased to come in 3rd place in the competition.

Some fancy dress and make up!

 CAC had a good presence this weekend too!

 Melissa’s problem (my favourite one!)

Now a bit of time at home to top up the training, climb outside and take a deep breath or two before heading to Kitzbuhel next week!

I had debated whether or not to go to the World Cup in China this year and I had decided against it. I went last year due to some unexpected funding and, although it was quite an adventure, I had mixed feelings about the trip. With 24 hours travel in each direction and an 8 hour time difference, it makes for an exhausting week. Plus it is an expensive one to go to, so, decision made: not going. I invited my sister and her husband up for the weekend instead!

Then the situation changed; some funding appeared last minute. Yes it was going to be tiring, but could I really look this gift horse in the mouth?

Chongqing is HUGE; with a population of 30 million it is one of the biggest cities in the world. I found myself on my way there to compete in the first round of the IFSC Boulder World Cup.

The competition was good and bad for me. I came 10th which, looking at my history, is a good result. However, I felt disappointed with my climbing. I didn’t climb as well as I felt I was capable of, which as many of you know from any sport, is very frustrating. I struggled a lot with the time difference, spending a lot of time exhausted but unable to sleep. So taking all of that into account, I did okay. On the positive, to come 10th and feel I didn’t fulfil my potential is great; perhaps next time I can get an even better result! Who knows.

Climbing aside, we had a really fun time. Here are some pictures!

 Dancing in Chongqing city centre

Pretty flowers in town centre

Diane on her birthday!

Hot Pot meal out

The CWIF weekend was exhausting! The day after I felt like I was in some kind of trance, propped up by coffee and fresh air.

It was a weekend of mixed emotions for me if I am honest. I feel like I have upped my game recently, both physically and mentally. This took months and months of hard work but it has certainly paid off. I came 4th last year in the CWIF and 4th this year but it was different this time. Last year I was vying for 3rd/4th/5th or 6th; this year I was in it to win it. That may not have happened but it was on the cards and that is a huge difference.

The qualifiers were fun and I surprised myself by coming top in the female scores. I then flashed all the semi-finals to maintain 1st place going into the finals- it was all going so well…. The finals came round and they just didn’t go to plan. Win some, lose some I guess but I had a lot of fun in the process!

Two weeks until some of the GB team and I fly to China for the first IFSC Boulder World Cup of the season….wish me luck!

 CWIF 2013, Semi-Finals. Photo Alex Messenger.

 CWIF 2013, Finals. Photo Alex Messenger.

I have to say, I thought doing Careless Torque was a bit of a pipe dream. I have bouldered 8A and 8A+ but gritstone always felt like a different ball game. Then there is the height of it: somewhere in the region of 7-8m. An intimidating prospect to say the least, but it still was always in the back of my mind.

It was first climbed by Ron Fawcett in 1987, the year I was born. Twenty-five years later and I was psyching myself up to have a go!

I decided to get stuck in and try it back in January and found that I was close to getting stood up on the arete – for those of you that do not know the climb, getting stood up is considered the hard part, the part that gets Careless Torque the grade it is assigned. The beginning section is burly and powerful whilst also being very technical and intuitive. This combination is probably what makes it feel so hard. However, I would add to the mix the word “knacky” (not sure that is actually a word…); once you have felt the correct position, it can become learnt. So, back in January, I got a glimpse of the feeling that it might work and the seed was sewn.

Then it rained. And rained. And rained some more. Last week there was a break in the abysmal weather  and I headed out with Will Atkinson and a young, budding film maker by the name of Nicholas Brown. It was about -2 degrees in the plantation car park, good conditions. I had warmed up at the Climbing Works and was ready to go. Three goes in, I found myself stood up on the arete of Careless Torque. I was surprised and, honestly, pretty scared! My first attempt at the top was slow and fumbling. I fell off but I knew what to do now and, having taken the fall that I was so frightened of, my nerves had settled. Psyche overtook fear and I rested up for another go. I shan’t bore you with all my attempts, I fell on the top section four times. It is certainly not over , the top is still hard and very committing. One time I fell with my hand touching the last hold, burnt by my own hesitation. That fall hurt a bit. Time was running out, we had to get going to get Nick to his hospital appointment, I had one more go. It’s funny how focus means you sometimes can’t remember things properly. The go I did it I was so “in the zone” that I can’t recall exactly what happened, except I didn’t fall off!

It meant a lot to me to climb this line. Not only was it a first female ascent but Careless is so many things; hard, scary, beautiful, historic, classic….I could go on.

My best achievement so far? Yes I think maybe it is.

Careless from a distance, Photo Pirie Forrest.

 Standing up precariously….Photo Pirie Forrest

Reaching for the top, Photo Pirie Forrest

Competitions. What a world of trying hard, excitement, confidence, slips, mistakes, triumph and disappointment. Those are the feelings I associate with competitions; some good ones and some bad ones. Being a consistently good bouldering competitor is quite a challenge, given the nature of the sport. It is so multifaceted in it’s execution, there are so many variables. One has to be good at a lot of things or hope that the competition plays to one’s strengths. That is the essence of a consistently good competitor: skilled all round, not having to hope that the blocs suit them.

I feel like I’m getting there. In previous years I have needed the blocs to suit me, my performance has varied massively depending on how burly or steep the problems were or whether there were lovely crimp ladders that felt like gifts. I have really upped my training levels recently and it is definitely paying off. It is so hard to know how much to do, treading the line between injury and success is a tricky business. I feel like right now, I am confident on that tight-rope of a walk; I train hard but I also look after myself. I may do ten climbing-based sessions a week with cardio and core added in around them but I also see an amazing chiropractor (Matt Pigden) regularly, get nutrition advice through the GB team from Rebecca Dent, and I always get a good night’s sleep. All work and no play, except work is basically play…

In the last couple of weeks I have done two big competitions: RocFest and the GB Team Trials. Both went really well – I came 2nd at the RocFest (Alex Puccio came 1st) and I came 1st in the GB Team Trials. These were both big achievements for me, I do not have a history of winning competitions or even coming second. More importantly I have shown some consistency and that makes me feel confident not only about my future performance but also about the training I am doing. I am no longer put off when there is a burly problem, I no longer shy away from a dyno. I look at problems and think  ”I can climb that” rather than “oh god…”. For those of you that know me or compete yourselves, you will realise that that is a huge psychological step in itself.

So, next stop the Biscuit Factory comp on the 23rd Feb, then CWIF on the 2nd/3rd March…then the World Cups start…..

Thanks to everyone for your support: Rock Over Climbing and ArchClimbing for putting on great events, Matt Pigden for keeping me in one piece, Rebecca Dent for her unwavering nutritional support and encouragement, Tom Sugden for his managerial skills, UpRaw for keeping my hunger at bay and mostly David for a) all the training help and b) putting up with me!

Here are some piccies:

 Team Trials, Photo Matt Ralph

  Team Trials, Photo Matt Ralph

  Team Trials, Photo Matt Ralph

 Team Trials, Photo Matt Ralph

Rocfest, Photo Ismail Aya

Rocfest, Photo Ismail Aya

Siurana boasts a beautiful landscape; a tiny village situated on a hill top, surrounded by magnificent cliffs of orange and grey. We were a group of five (Caff, Cal, Ryan, Ray and myself) squeezed into a little cabin on the main campsite, all psyched and ready to climb.

The climbing in Siurana is quite old school; lots of crimps and some fairly bold climbing. When I was younger I was more of a route climber and that was my chosen discipline in my teens. I only really began to focus more on bouldering in my twenties. Having said that I am now 25 and, having not done a lot of route climbing lately, I seem to have regressed to feeling out of sorts above my clip; nervously overgripping on moves that are fairly steady. In contrast, I was super impressed with Calum (Muskett) in particular. Calum is an experienced climber, albeit he is only 19. His ability to onsight was fantastic and his confident style was something I can but aspire to. I am out of practice and a complete wuss in comparison! A boulderer at heart, although I love sport climbing, I am definitely more into redpointing than onsighting. I feel a lot more relaxed when I am trying things nearer to my limit; perhaps the acceptance of the often inevitable fall is somehow liberating? Onisghting fills me with a fear of the unknown, getting further away from my last clip, unsure if I will be able to clip the next one that seems unreasonably far above. I suppose when redpointing, one knows what is to come so there is a more calculable fear factor. From this perspective, the experience was an interesting one in which I re-learnt to trust myself and reconnect with my head in a way that I don’t above pads. I suppose when it somes down to it, different disciplines have different skill sets. It was good to get out of my comfort zone.

I tried some harder routes on this trip, managing an ascent of the classic Anabolica (8a) – fantastic route – early on in the trip, as well as trying other classics such as Migranya (8b) and La Cara que no Miente (8a+). Migranya was really fun to try and pretty doable for me if I had a bit more time. It is a steep, burly route with big moves between good holds; not a favourite among the girls I am told, but I loved it. I surprised myself on my last day by flashing Memorias de una Sepia (8a), and then finishing off La Cara que no Miente (8a+) too. The first was a 32m (long for me!) route which I thoroughly enjoyed. It is low in the grade in my opinion but really good moves up beautiful line. The second route is the opposite; short, burly climbing on a tufa, the crux being a jump to a big hole. Great fun to climb! My last day also coincided with Ryan Pasquil’s ascent of Jungle Speed, his first 9a – very impressive start to his nine week trip!

 La Cara que no Miente, 8a+. Photo Calum Muskett.

Memorias de una Sepia, 8a. Photo Calum Muskett

My overall feeling about Siurana was positive; good climbing, great people and the odd bit of sunshine…I can’t exactly complain! The climbing was fun but a little sharp, I would probably plan to visit a new venue rather than return in a hurry but this is mainly because there are so many crags I have yet to visit. One of the best routes had to be Mandragora (7b+), a stunning 38m climb, glorious in the sunshine. I was very impressed by the other’s climbing on this trip and enjoyed improving my nerve above my clip – definitely more improving to be done there!

Oh and the coffee is fantastic

On an added note, I have recently reconnected with an old aquaintance from my teenage days at the WestWay climbing centre – a friend, Sol, who has started up his own range of healthy protein products called UpRaw. These little bundles of goodness are all pure and free of all those nasty extras that most of our foods contain nowadays to keep them on the shelf for longer. Sol mainly distributes in London because the production is a one man enterprise but keep an eye out for them as he gets more and more successful. It is great to support a small, up and coming business, especially one with such a strong and pure ethos, no compromises. Sol is psyched on sports nutrition and hopefully with enough support he will be able to expand into new ranges – he has already sent me a new dairy free, nut free prototype – watch this space. If you are in London, keep an eye out for UpRaw – if you live further away you can order direct from Sol on his website. Use MINARAW as a code and get 10% off. They definitely keep me climbing!

www.up-raw.com

Since my last blog we have returned from the USA, Christmas and New Years Eve have gone past in a flurry and now it is nearly half way through January! How time flies when you aren’t watching.

Since we arrived back the weather in Sheffield has been pretty rubbish; not conducive to a good day out climbing. Until this week, I have just focussed on training. When we first arrived back I was feeling pretty strong only to discover that climbing inside or any kind of training felt alien and extremely difficult. I felt so weak which was strange because outside on rock I felt strong. I think on long trips you do get weaker but you also learn to climb in a different style that befits rock better.  I am now beginning to think of them as different things altogether. So, going back to training and indoor climbing felt like retraining after three months off!

After the first week, I was feeling a lot stronger so perhaps the key is learning and remembering a different style and also recruiting old strength back. In training exercises I am not where I was before we left but I am not far off now. I enjoy training so, although I miss climbing outside everyday, it is also nice to try hard and see progress in a different way. I am training for the World Cups this year; psyched to try to improve on my performance in the past and to have a good time.

Now the weather is changing and I am having a rest day after three days in a row on the Peak District gritstone – lucky lady! – combined with training in the evenings too. I have travelled a lot for climbing, but I am always amazed by the beauty of the Peak and the quality climbing it has to offer. Coming home is never too hard, so long as the weather holds out….

So now I will keep up the training, get on the grit when I can and try to keep my psyche levels high. First though, I am off to Spain next week to do some route climbing in Siurana….

On another note, since returning to the UK, I have been inspired by the work of John Ellison on his CAC (Climbers Against Cancer) movement. Its a fantastic effort and a great cause, if you don’t already have a T-shirt get one ordered!

Sometimes things just come together at the right time and fall into place. I feel like that happened for me this weekend.

But I’ll retrace my steps a bit…we left Yosemite in the rain, disappointed not to climb there more. Psyche was a bit low.

I’ve been asked before in interviews:

“How do you deal with times of low motivation for climbing?”

and I have honestly answered:

“I don’t really experience those”.

Well now I have, and it was strange! A kind of disinterested feeling overcame me and I started to wonder what I was going to do about it and how long it would last. I was sad to leave the Valley and we were heading back to Joe’s so David could try some more on Black Lung (now that his finger has healed). Having already spent some time there I was happy to go for him but for my climbing I felt a bit like I’d done my time there for this trip. We stopped off for a few days in Ibex and, having been trying to understand this new feeling of  “meh”, I watched some Dosage 1 (the Ibex bit) to regain some enthusiasm. What can I say? I owe my renewed psyche and hunger for climbing completely to Lisa Rands! Something about her climbing in Ibex helped me find my motivation and so far it has stayed with me!

Ibex is awesome. There is not loads there but what is there is really high quality and fun. We had a great few days enjoying the open space, driving the van around the salt plains and climbing some classics. The first two days were spent climbing White Arete, Big Gulp, Blue Flowers, Ju, Meat and Potatoes and Bruce Lee – all brilliant. On the third day I was pretty tired (from my sudden, overwhelming, Lisa-induced motivation) but David was still looking strong and managed to climb Wing Chun V13 – a short basic James Litz problem.

We left Ibex and headed back to Joe’s Valley. Despite my worrying, there was plenty for me to be psyched for. Some in the guide that I had overlooked, some newer things that I didn’t know about before. Having done a lot of the easier classics that I was interested in, my list was predominantely hard stuff.

“Oh well”, I thought. “Think of it as training. Even if they are too difficult for me to finish I will have fun trying hard and can only get stronger“.

To my surprise, it all came together this weekend and I managed to send Jigsaw (V11) and Milkman Sit (V10/11) on Friday, Man of the Past (V11) on Sunday night and then Dark Matter (V12) on Monday.

Man of the Past (V11), Photo David Mason.

Video to come soon!

I’m going to have to reorganise my list of things to try! Thanks Lisa!

Yosemite Valley is awesome. Full stop. The tall granite boulders make for great lines; interesting climbing, impressive features and often a bit scary! There is also plenty of history surrounding the boulders here from Ron Kauk’s Midnight Lightning to Jerry Moffatt’s Dominator. Suffice to say there has been plenty to do and we arrived psyched with long wish lists and ready bodies. We have been here for just over two weeks and I am not sure where to start! The classics, I suppose. Camp 4 is full to the brim of them, from problems like Initial Friction (V1) and Cocaine Corner (V5) to Midnight Lightning (V8) and Thriller (V10), there is something truly fantastic for any climber. The three notorious V8′s at Camp 4 (Midnight, King Cobra and Bruce Lee) are all brilliant, all hard and all totally different styles from one another. One block holds Thriller and the Force – I was ecstatic to climb both test pieces. And then there is Dominator, right there slap bang in the middle of the camp ground yet still has had few ascents. On the other side of the Valley there are more treasures to be found; the LeConte area holds some gems such as Conan (a crimpy V9), Flatline (a highball, scary V8) and Panic Room (a burly and high V9) while Candyland boasts The Diamond (V8), Once Upon A Time (V3) and Shadow Warrior (V12). The latter is a hard compression problem that I was very psyched by. I put some time in and can do all the moves and some good links but we have decided to leave the valley for pastures new. Next time on that one! One of my favourite problems here was Cindy, a highball V10 that required compression, technique and a good head. This climb really made me think about the ability some climbers have to “switch off” their brains when they need to and just go through the motions. I experienced this on Flatline, the aformentioned highball V8. Flatline’s crux is low down but the top section has some hard moves on small holds and is at a height I would not wish to fall from. For some reason that day I was able to “switch off” and I flashed it. Cindy was different. For a start, I tried the top section a rope first so one may liken the process to headpointing rather than ground up highballing. This felt necessary and sensible for me on this particular boulder. When I tried to boulder it from the ground, I got to the high section twice and backed off, too scared to commit to the moves. The third time I “switched off” and did it – now what was different on that attempt? And how did it differ to Flatline? I have come to the conclusion that some people are naturally very good at controlling their fear and some are not, and some (like me) are in the middle. Sometimes I can do it and sometimes I can’t and I haven’t quite worked out the difference. One thing I have realised is that I have a certain capacity for it; if I try a highball in the morning I want to try something normal sized in the afternoon. My mental strength can’t deal with too much in a short space of time!

So, we are moving on. Partly due to wet weather and partly due to that itchiness that comes with staying in one place for a bit. Motivation dipped a bit and we decided it was time for a change. Ibex is next on the list, followed by a return to Joe’s Valley for David to unleash his newly healed skin on some unfinished business and then perhaps Moab on our way back to Boulder.

Worth a mention is San Fransisco; a beautiful and vibrant city that was home for three days while Yosemite was awash with rain. We escaped the tumultuous weather in the Valley and went to visit friends in the city. It was great, we ate good food, had laughs and saw the city – perhaps just what you need half way through a trip! Thanks again Si and Jackie for your hospitality and for showing us the best food in town

San Francisco

Midnight Lighting, Photo David Mason

Half Dome in the Snow, Photo David Mason