Eridge Green

It has been a while since I last blogged, largely due to the amount of work, climbing and decorating I have needed to do, but I thought it was time for a quick update! I have been largely climbing at Eridge Green this summer, as it a crag where I still have a fair amount left to do (both established lines and potential projects!)

After what might have been the wettest June I can remember on the sandstone, in July we finally got some climbable conditions. I headed to Eridge with nothing in particular in mind to climb. I ended up underneath the classic highball Hypersonic (7B+) and noticed some potential holds just to the right of this line. Admittedly they stopped before the top of the crag, but there was definitely some climbing (or bouldering at least) to be done before that. I set about trying the moves and worked out that it was basically a two move problem – pull on a left hand pinch and right hand side pull, make a big move up to a right hand pinch and then pull through to a small but positive crimp ledge level with the pocket on Hypersonic. Simple… or not. These two moves proved to be quite intricate, but when it came together it made a nice, albeit little, problem at 7A+. I feel it finishes in a logical place (the ledge is a clear feature in line with the pocket), but I would like to take this problem higher, if I can find some holds! I named it Patience due to the month of rain we had before this.

After this came a surprise. Deep in the woods of Eridge, while looking at a completely different climb, I stumbled across a rounded arête with a ‘gritstone style’ ramp feature. At first glance I wasn’t sure if it would be possible to climb – but after some inspection I found some small crimps and a shallow pocket on the bottom of the ramp. It was on! After a few contorted sessions where I tried a huge number of ways to climb this line I finally found some nice beta involving a high right heel which I could sit on to get through the crux of the climb. The allowed me to put up my favourite new route of the year so far. I named it Joshua, in honour of my friends newly born son, and graded it around 7B. Since then I have shown a couple of people this problem, and after a second ascent (using completely different beta) the grade and quality of this line was confirmed.

My final addition was a small problem near Joshua. This is a slightly contrived line in that it eliminates the arête and holds to the right of the arête (I am not normally a fan of eliminates, but it seemed to make sense on this problem). This boils down to two quite technical moves separated by a nice no hands rest. Considering the dark canopy of trees it is under it felt right to dub this one Lord of the Light at 6B+.

Hopefully we can have a dry autumn and with some colder temps send some harder problems!

Prana Zander Pant Review

Reviewing a pair of climbing trousers is an unusual experience for me. I know what I’m doing when I’m evaluating a new pair of climbing shoes, and more importantly I know exactly how, if they are good, they can help my climbing progress. However, climbing trousers don’t work the same way. Until someone invents ‘low gravity’ trousers or a pair that have jet packs instead of pockets, what you wear is not going to generate the same type of hype a new cutting edge pair of climbing shoes does.

However, having said that we all wear trousers (I hope!) and as a result need them. I also think I am not alone in having preferred trousers for climbing. Comfortable with enough flexibility to get your foot up high – I don’t want to just pull on any old pairs of tracksuit bottoms if I am trying to send something close to my limit.

I have worn Prana trousers for years. Having grown up watching Chris Sharma’s ground breaking ascents in his latest film, they were always going to be a popular brand for me. However it is more than that, they tick all the mobility boxes (it helps that they cater for Yoga as well as climbing), have an excellent ethical approach to business, as well as their designs having a certain chic that draws the eye.

I am happy to say that the Zander pant surpassed all my expectations (well apart from the anti-gravity/jet pack thing!) It is one of the most lightweight and comfortable pairs of trousers I have worn climbing. They are made of stretch organic cotton that is both soft and (unsurprisingly) stretchy. I also like the bright and bold colours that they are being produced in – great for eye catching photos! I have worn them a couple of times now, including a session at the weekend where I decided to put them through their paces by climbing a variety of problem styles on my local southern sandstone and they just felt great to climb in.

So will the Prana Zander pant give you an extra grade in your climbing? No, I’m afraid it won’t. However, it will provide you with an attractive and comfortable fit which means you can keep your mind on what really matters – the climbing!

Bank Holiday Weekend

I love a long weekend when I get to squeeze more climbing and less work in. I love it even more when the weather plays ball and I actually get to climb outside – a rarity in this country. Finally if I actually feel good on rock and send some new problems I don’t think it gets better than this. All three elusive pieces came together this weekend.

On Friday I drove down to Tunbridge Wells with my wife to spend the night and next day visiting some of our friends who live in the area. I awoke bright and early on the Saturday morning and saw an opportunity for a little bouldering session while everyone else had a lie in. Now my friends live just next to Toad Rock and are surrounded by little sandstone boulders. The most obvious one is a very striking prow that you can see from their house. The aesthetically pleasing arête is a font 6A problem called ‘Ankle Locker’ (some clues about the beta) that Ben Read put up a few years ago. Is there anything better than climbing a quality line in the morning sunshine? I couldn’t believe I hadn’t been on this bloc before – it could rival ‘Red Snapper’ for best 6A on the sandstone!

In the gully of the same bloc is hidden ‘Car Crash Arête’, another Ben Read addition but a little harder at font 7B. At first inspection this looks unclimbable as after some initial good holds there is very little else until much nearer the top. However I managed to work out that it is possible to throw to a poor sloping hold on a lip to the right – hold this and you are more or less done. After some considerable work I eventually sent it – I think only the third ascent of this line after Ben and Peter. Again thoroughly recommended, especially as this area has had a lot of gardening done to it recently, making both problems much easier to reach!

On the Sunday I headed back to Mount Edgcumbe Rocks where I have been commencing battle with a stubborn project. Unfortunately it was too hot to do any of the moves on this, so my attention turned to a couple of other lines I have been eyeing up as potential problems.

One of the most obvious features to a boulderer visiting this crag is the small, but steep roof in-between Smiling Buttress and Dusty Buttress. At first I thought that there were not enough holds and that the rock was too soft for it to be of interest to the climber, but after some careful cleaning of the holds I found a potential line. It is essentially a training board style problem – pull on with a crouching start on two opposing side-pulls (obvious because they are the only holds in the roof!) and make a big move to a good hold. This is then followed by a droppable sandstone style mantle-shelf/grovel. Focusing on catching the hold and engaging my core I eventually dispatched it. I have named it ‘Fruit of the Spirit’ as one of the biblical fruits of the spirit is self-control, a quality that is needed on this problem. I think it weighs in at around font 7B?

The other line I had often looked at was the vertical side wall to the right of ‘Faith’. The climbing looked relatively straight forward, although the landing slopes away and I wouldn’t want to fall from the top moves. I gave the holds a brush and sussed a sequence on rope before going for the send. With some tentative feet placement at the top I sent the problem. I feel the name ‘Meekness not Weakness’ is appropriate and I settled on a grade of font 6C, which takes into account the airy finish. Now the weather is improving let’s hope there are plenty more weekends like these ahead.

Judamondo

There are some boulder problems that you can’t leave alone – that you soon or later you have to come back to. I first looked at the blank green wall of Judamondo before it had had an ascent, when it was still one of the last obvious projects left on the sandstone. There seem to be just enough holds perfectly spaced up to that tempting looking pocket – high enough to make it interesting above pads, but not too high to make it dangerous. I could see that it could be climbed, but I was not sure if I could climb it.

Then in 2010 Ben Read finally claimed this gem after 25 sessions on it (originally on a rope and then as a boulder problem), making it possibly his hardest contribution to climbing in the South East. I gingerly gave it a go now that I knew this was possible, but there was always an excuse – it was at the end of the day, the holds were sandy or the feet weren’t clean. I didn’t invest fully. But every time I walked past that wall at Eridge I knew I had to come back at some point. My sandstone CV would not be complete without it.

In autumn last year I decided it was time. I threw a rope down the line and actually put some time into the line. Unsurprisingly the moves were both as good as I hoped and a lot easier when they are not covered in dust! Also using a rope to work out moves is a time saving technique that I wish I found earlier in life.

It began to come together. The moves all went in one session and session two I was on the penultimate hold, session three I had my hand in the tempting, but on closer inspection slopey, final pocket. But alas, no cigar as winter set in and the rain started pouring. I waited for spring and drier conditions.

In the last weekend of February it was finally dry enough for me to get back on it. The moves came together individually on a rope again, but once again I walked away empty handed. On the 12^th March this year, my fifth session and 6 years to the day of Ben’s first ascent, I headed back with my mate Steve Darling who was also keen to get on it. However, the movement felt a bit weird – I don’t know if it was a bit warm, or perhaps some condensation on the rock or if I was feeling weak that day (probably most likely), but it was not clicking for me. The top crux move in particular was feeling very very unlikely on a rope. Steve on the other hand had not only managed all the moves, but was making real progress on linking them together. Amazingly could it go in a day for him?

I suggested just going for it above pads. Why not? Steve kindly let me go first and it went perfectly. My feet needed no re-adjustment and my hands hit the precise right hand pinch effortlessly. The last move felt routine when it has felt almost unclimbable minutes before. I had done it – the second ascent of what I think is probably one of the best 7s on the sandstone, a modern classic. I couldn’t believe I had been walking past it all these years instead of getting on it. Steve clearly agreed as he came back the next day and then two days later where he walked away with the third ascent (below)

https://vimeo.com/159098169

For me my mind is now turning to what to do next – but I can’t recommend this problem highly enough for anyone looking to get out on the sandstone. You will come back to it time and time again (unless you do it in a day?) Roll on more dry weather and the next project….

Shaman 2 review

This month the new Shaman from Evolv arrived in the UK. I have been somewhat excited about this. The original Shaman was a great shoe that I wore pretty much exclusively in 2013 – one of my best years climbing on the Sandstone. In them I ticked some fairly technical test pieces including the third known ascent of Sansara 7A, The continuing Adventures of Porg 7B+ and perhaps the best of the trio Porgs Progress 7B (video below).

However, I am apprehensive when climbing shoe companies relaunch shoes. ‘Don’t fix something if it isn’t broken’, not to mention potentially ruining memories of a shoe that served me well in a personal purple patch of climbing. I am happy to report that this is not the case with the Shaman mark 2!

Just like the old Shaman’s the new shoe maintains the Love bump and Knuckle Box. For those of you who haven’t tried a shoe with these features I think they need a bit of explanation. The profile of the shoe, as you can see, is aggressively down toed and when you put your foot into the shoe it forces it into this shape. This ensures that your foot is in a powerful position where you can literally pull in with your toes – in the past this has been achieved by simply wearing climbing shoes tighter and tighter. Needless to say it is a lot more comfortable to have a shoe in a down turn mould rather than trying to mould the shape of your foot through an overly tight fit! My initial thoughts when I first tried a shoe with a Knuckle box was that this would be a shoe that would perform well on overhanging walls, as it is so downturned, but would it perform on vertical or under hanging angles? This has been considered in the construction of the shoe though and when you stand on footholds on less overhanging ground the Knuckle box bends as you extend your toes. The result being that it not only performs well on steep ground, but is a genuine all round shoe that is just as technical on vertical walls and slabs. I gave them a test run on a variety of angles at my local wall:

Evolv have also added more rubber on the toe which allows for more hooking and scumming. This is a welcome addition as I think both toe hooking and scumming are underrated techniques, particularly outside where they have helped me get through difficult moves where strength alone is not enough. Speaking of rubber Evolv have continued to use their TRAX rubber – which I find as sticky, if not more so, than any other on the market.

Finally Evolv have designed the new Shaman so that it when the straps are undone the shoe has a wide opening in which to put your foot in. This is much welcomed as you no longer have the age old battle of trying to get your foot into a well-fitting shoe through a small opening. The blue and orange colour design is also nice looking and ensures the Shaman 2 looks as good as it performs.

So overall I would recommend the Shaman 2. It is still early days (I have only had a couple of sessions in them), but it seems as if Evolv have taken what was a very good shoe to begin with and made it even better. All I need now is a weather window big enough to get outside in them. Roll on spring….

7C+

It has been a little while since I last blogged – thanks largely to the massive amounts of work I have had to do in the last couple of months. But with the beginning of the summer holidays I have slightly less to do and an opportunity to not only climb but also write about it. The title of this blog is ‘7C+’ as the main news I have to report is sending two font 7C+ projects on the sandstone. First in June I sent ‘The Read Line’ while in July I sent ‘Mojo Traverse Extension’.

‘The Read Line’ is a traverse at Eridge Green that I got frustratingly close to last year. It involves some big powerful moves into a reasonable edge, which is then very difficult to match before a very technical and droppable end. Last year I fell off on that droppable end! I was keen to get back on and finish this off this year when I noticed that the crack line at the beginning (where you not only have to match, but match on hand jams – ouch!) has broken a bit. With some re-tweaked beta and high feet I managed to solve this issue. I likewise found a nice foot scum on the hard matching move which makes this a lot easier to do. The lesson is to climb smarter, not stronger (although if I was stronger maybe I wouldn’t need to climb in a smarter way?) In terms of grade, this was originally given 7C by Ben Read, but I think it was upgraded to 7C+ following repeats from Polish Pete and Barnaby. Since the crack has broken and got worse I certainly think it warrants the 7C+ grade.

‘Mojo Traverse Extension’ at High Rocks is one of those problems for locals who have basically done everything else that they can do – perfect for me! In May Polish Pete showed me his new problem ‘Grunge Rover’ (font 7C) and a link up that he had repeated - ‘Mojo Traverse Extension’ (font 7C+). Grunge Rover climbs the classic font 7B ‘Mojo’ to the break before moving right through a big move off the sloper of ‘Mojo Variation’ to finish at the tree. It is a great set of moves that I managed to send in June after tweaking my beta on the big move off the sloper to pull more with my right heel. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xt0yQrFL0j4 ‘Mojo Traverse Extension’ has the same finish, but starts on ‘Mojo Traverse’ (font 7B). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I70hNXKJx68 There are no really hard moves on this link up, but it is long (at least from a bouldering perspective!). When I eventually sent the extension/link up it was due to climbing through the first 7B section quick enough so I didn’t feel too tired for the crux ending of ‘Grunge Rover’. In terms of grade, I think this one is easier than ‘The Read Line’, but just about squeezes in at 7C+ - it certainly took me longer to tick off that I thought it would!

My final ascent in these last couple of months was chronologically the first one back in early June (and also not 7C+!). This was at Mount Edgcumbe Rocks and was a fairly long traverse into ‘Mustard Seed’ (5+), which I settled on a grade of 6C. This is one of those great climbs that is very hard to do unless you properly climb it – you can’t just be strong. With nice flowing moves and intricate footwork I was very happy with how it turned out! I named it ‘Curb Rash’ after my late Grandfather (this was his nickname in WWII for being a shorty), which seemed appropriate considering the small stature of the climb.

Unfortunately our summer seems to be turning a little damp at the moment – let’s hope we can squeeze a bit more in before the winter months!

Bum Dragon

At High Rocks in the hidden alcove (in what is sometimes called the secret garden) there is an obvious low level traverse called ‘Bum Dragon’. The name gives a lot away – it is very easy to drag your bum on the floor (get it!) and therefore fail the route. First put up by Pete Ziegenfuss in 2002/2003 at font 7C+ the line starts on the far right on the obvious ledge and traverses left underneath the roof (below the traverse line of ‘Crosstown Traffic’ font 7C) on a variety of small crimps and smeary feet before finishing round the corner on the slab. It is an obvious line, and while you are never off the floor more than a few inches for the majority of the climbing, the quality of the moves are excellent.

I had played on the moves in previous years but had become increasingly frustrated at the painfully small crimps and more significantly the non-existent feet in an unavoidably bunched position. It was in March last year that I properly started trying the moves. After a few sessions I had worked out some pretty good beta – instead of keeping my feet low I put my left foot high up on a handhold and flagged my right leg under. This gave me something to pull on as I shuffled along the poor crimps. Unfortunately the more I progressed, the closer I moved to my left foot, which decreased the amount I could pull off it. These 4-5 hand movements form the incredibly frustrating crux section where each individual move is ok, but trying to link them all together feels much harder. If you catch one of these holds slightly wrong then the next move becomes fairly unlikely. After nine sessions on the problem last year, and having made some reasonably good links, I became distracted by other problems and left it.

In January as the rain poured down I reflected on what I would like to climb this year on the sandstone. ‘Bum Dragon’ stood out as unfinished business. Last year I wasn’t serious enough about trying to link the hard moves together – my fingers weren’t strong enough at the time and nor was my core. I set about training on the fingerboard and rings in April and May before getting back on the problem. This year I felt much closer after only a couple of sessions, as I had already worked all the moves out, and having got close a few times I finally sent ‘Bum Dragon’ last Wednesday (27^th May) the first go of my 6^th session this year (15^th session overall).

This brings me to the question of what grade it is. Pete originally gave it font 7C+, but as far as I am aware my ascent twelve years later is only the second ascent, despite attention from a variety of strong climbers who have ticked problems in the eighth grade. I have climbed five problems that are graded as font 8A – ‘Never Ending Story’ (Magic Woods, 4 proper sessions), ‘The Thing’ (Cressbrook, 2 proper sessions), ‘Fuerte a Muerte’ (Albarracin, 4/5 sessions), ‘Black Hoe’ (Anston, 2/3 sessions) and ‘Quarantine’ (Anston, 1 ½ sessions). I ticked all of these off far quicker than I did ‘Bum Dragon’ (15 sessions over 15 months) and it is also certainly the hardest thing I have climbed on the sandstone so far. The style also seems to suit me, featuring weird flexibility and precise beta which I have had to refine. Therefore the question is whether I should suggest that ‘Bum Dragon’ be upgraded to font 8A?

This has put me in a bit of a dilemma. To me it felt like it was 8A based upon other problems I have climbed at that grade, but I would believe it if someone also repeated the problem and declared it hard 7C+. Furthermore if I declared it 8A that would count as the first 8A on sandstone dating back to 2002/3 and significantly re-write the record books. Like most climbers I feel uncomfortable suggesting an upgrade, therefore I am going to dodge the issue slightly and suggest that it is font 7C+/8A. The next ascensionist can determine whether I was being too generous by suggesting it could weigh in at 8A, or agree with me and bump it up to a full 8A. Grading is always very personal in climbing and is a very imprecise science unless the problem has had multiple ascents, and as it has just been repeated by me I don’t think I can bump it up a full grade based upon my experience alone. What ‘Bum Dragon’ needs is a few more repeats to finalise its grade and that is what I would like to see as the moves are excellent and the process of climbing it, despite being frustrating at times, was very rewarding! Hopefully it will take less than twelve years this time! In the meantime I have other on the sandstone to turn my attention to now….