Ceuse 2012 part 1

After leaving Buoux we only had two climbing days at St Leger as it was too hot and humid. Despite the dismal conditions Will managed to send his 8a project while i got frustrated and stripped my draws off the 8b i thought i was close to but in reality probably wasn't. We then raced to Ceuse for the cooler temps and better quality rock.
Upon arrival we were told that "Ondra's kicking about". A little bit excited to see the climber that has taken the "worlds best climber" crown off Sharma we wondered when/if we would see him. I had high hopes for my climbing the first day and decided i would try and crush an 8b to get me started here. After i warmed up i noticed someone had beaten me to my project. "I hope they dont take ages" i thought. I then watched as Ondra walked up the 8b as his warm up without even trying! I have since fallen all over it and have decided to leave it later in the trip when i am alot fitter.
Since that climb i have been dropping grades wondering were all my fitness on small crimps is and wether i had just tried all the soft routes on previous trips here so that now i was only left with the sandbagged ones? Theres something about Ceuse though which calms the soul. Any other area and my backward progress and lack of success would cause some serious frustration but the setting and quality of climbing here is so good you cant help but end each day happy. Also is there any other sport where you get to mingle with the worlds best without buying a ticket?
Yesterday a large crowd gathered under the Biographie sector to watch Ondra try to flash Realization 9a+. That means to climb an aussie grade 36 first shot but with information on the route. It was only 10 years ago this was the first 9a+ in the world climbed by Sharma after alot of attempts, an unbelievable achievement at the time. To climb this first shot would be a huge leap forward in the understanding of what is possible. It was amazing to watch and no he didnt do it. He fell on the boulder problem up high in the realization extension. He did however flash the Biographie 8c+ part which is an achievement in itself.


Tense times at the Biographie sector.

Ondra crushing within the famous blue streak of Biographie.

St Leger and Buoux

Will and I have spent the last few weeks first at St Leger and then Buoux trying to climb as much as possible. We may have left it a little late in the year as temps have been in the high twenties. Although too hot for prime conditions we have had some success with Will, who is still getting his fitness after just arriving, sending an 8a at St Leger and following it up with another at Buoux. I have started to feel some fitness coming my way finally although my 8b project at St Leger elluded me. I didnt go without success though as i did an 8a in the first few days  and then had one of my best days ever sending an 8a in the morning at St Leger before driving to Buoux and sending another second go in the evening! In the following few days i managed to work and send my hardest route of this trip so far which just happened to be the first 8a+(30) in the world called Chouca. Unfortunately since there isnt much of a crew at these crags we havent had a third person to get any photos or footage. I took a photo of Chouca and have used my best artistic skills to draw a representation of what it was like when i ticked it the other day;

The trip so far hasnt been without its negatives though. While i was sampling the delights of Buoux someone broke into the car and stole my laptop, kindle, and phone. Hopefully i can grab any climbing shots from the past few years off partners. Other than those its just expensive and annoying. We are currently in Apt waiting for a window to be replaced on the car before we will head back to St Leger for some unfinished business. We plan to get to the mecca of Ceuse in about a week for those cooler temps up high and thats where the real projecting will begin!

Siurana Summary

My time in Siurana has come to an end and i am now in the north of France after attending a tour of the WW1 Western Front. It is definitely a major contrast moving from a climbing environment in the south, full of carefree young travelers, to the north around where the front was located. The muddy fields here are full of the dead of similar age people who were born into the wrong generation. It seems a ridiculous waste of life and unbelievable people would consider fighting like that.
In the last few weeks at Siurana I didn't end up focusing on the projects I had picked out as I kept getting distracted by the wealth of classics at every crag. Margalef is also nearby and was a popular destination for our crew due to the different style of climbing it offered. The steep pocket pulling conglomerate terrain felt a lot more like gym climbing and due to the pebbles everywhere you where able to put your feet almost anywhere. This style of climbing suited me much more than the reachy vertical crimp climbing at Siurana.

Aeroplastica 7c+/28 at Margalef. Photos Calum Forsyth.

Lost in a sea of pockets on Aeroplastica.

Peanut Gallery.

I felt a good improvement in my onsighting which comes from trying a quantity of routes. I managed a 7c+ onsight which may have been soft but its hard to tell as the crux suits shorties and anyone with a bit of height struggle. All up for the trip I lost count of the routes up to 8b+(32) I tried. The tally for routes I actually did came to 22. 3x7a+, 5x7b, 5x7b+, 2x7c, 5x7c+, 2x8a.
Soon i will be at St Leger where i am going to force myself to not get distracted and actually focus on projecting. This can be frustrating but I feel it is also the best way for me to improve from where i am currently at. Some young Aussie talent in the form of Will Bartlett from Tasmania will also be joining me so there should be no shortage of hard routes being crushed. Till then...

Siurana

After 6 weeks of walking up hills with a pack and sitting around in an apartment eating way too much while waiting for good weather I have now made it to Siurana in Spain. The climbing here is sharp and crimpy with the majority of routes being vertical to slightly overhanging. Siurana itself is an old town perched on a plateau above some amazing limestone cliffs.

Siurana Town.

View from Siurana of the cliffs we are climbing on.

Siurana laneway.

There is a strong crew of climbers from around the world here and everyday people are throwing themselves at routes up to grade 9a+ (36). It is always surprising the people you run into multiple times when climbing at random cliffs around the world. So far I have met people here that I have previously climbed with at Ceuse, Kalymnos, The Getu Valley, and Arapiles.

Relaxing after a days climbing :)

My first two weeks have been about trying to regain some sort of sport climbing fitness as alpine climbing has a way of altering your body's natural movement and lowering your centre of gravity. I have been trying to climb a higher volume of easier routes to try and speed the process while having the occasional shot on something harder to make sure my power doesn't diminish. It is a bit frustrating falling off routes only two months ago I would have done easily but I am making sure I keep a positive mindset and have already noticed improvement. I am hoping I can lose some of the weight I put on in Patagonia (especially in my legs) as fast as I put it on.

L'Escamarla 7c+ (28). Mega classic and hardest route I've done so far here, which i sent second go. Belayed by Mayan, photo by American Chris.

I will be around Siurana for the month of April and have picked a couple of projects that should be good training whether I get them or not. One is an endurance based 8b+ (32) that i feel no where near even though the moves aren't that hard and another is a power based 8b (31). Both are amazing routes!