Reality Check
I had a bit of a reality check the last couple of weeks on my mission to climb V8 and 5.13. A few things happened. First was a fun weekend with Ammi at Horseshoe Canyon Ranch. Second a day out at Kilnsey in the UK with a strong Sheffield crew. Third a bouldering session at Craggy Island near London catching up with another old friend Duncan.
Horseshoe Canyon Ranch
First day I decided to warm up on The Greatest Show on Earth 5.8. Above the third bolt I looked down, the last bolt well below my feet and a flash pump setting in. I was gripped!! On a 5.8!! Lead climbing indoors the bolts are so closely spaced you can clip with the last one at your waist and it does not prepare you for the bolt spacing outdoors. Next up, Crimp Scampi, 5.10d. This should be a piece of cake I thought... Boom, gripped again I found myself shouting “Take”. Gutted.
Kilnsey
It’s 20 years since I last climbed here and what a crag. Such an incredible density of hard climbing. World class. This time, after the prior weekend at Horseshoe my head game was shaping up but the problem this time was anaerobic fitness, or the lack of. I got pumped out of my box! A deep intense pump that I probably haven’t felt in 20 yrs. that said I did manage to claw my way up Quiet Flight Direct 7a+ (5.12a) after falling off close to the top on the flash. Yay. Baby steps.
Craggy Island
I met up with Duncan for a catch up and super fun bouldering session. The only problem was that the problems were nails hard. Proper hard. Anything harder than Font 6A+ (V3?) felt impossible. OK so I think they were sandbagged but I also think Momentum grades might be a bit soft. The cynic in me thinks that soft touch ego sends keep people coming back. It made me realize that I need to try harder stuff at the gym.
Takeaways
You hear stories about people coming out of nowhere and sending ridiculously hard after secretly training in their cellar, Malcolm Smith style. At 18 yrs old, Malcolm appeared out of nowhere for the second ascent of one of the hardest routes in the world at the time. Hubble, 8c+. This approach might give you the physical foundation but it is missing at least 50% of what is needed to consistently climb hard routes outdoors. If I am ever to climb 5.13, I need to get outside as often as possible and work on my head game, the longer run outs, technique, movement and fitness.
Based on what I have read and heard in recent podcasts, my training strategy has been focused on the high-low approach. Max intensity hangboarding and lower intensity aerobic capacity. Note that's not all I do but it's the theme of my training plan. Whilst I still plan to focus on this I also need to add in some power endurance training where I get totally pumped. Basically, when training endurance indoors I need to mix volume days up with hard redpoint route days AND actually try hard. Steve McClure once said to me "If you don’t try hard routes, you will never climb hard routes". Simple and true. He should know.
Grades in the gym are a good tool to measure progress but having a preconceived idea of my personal level means that I might make less progress at a gym with soft grades than a gym with sandbagged grades. When I couldn’t send that V4 at Craggy Island, I gave it my all. How could a V4 defeat me? If a V7/8 feels a bit hard at Momentum I will move on to the next problem because it's OK to fail at that grade. I'm not that good...yet.
Oh and in the drive up to Kilnsey I mentioned how 20 years ago I had climbed "Let the Tribe Increase" 7c+ at Rubicon. Apparently it's now considered 8a which is cool but did I climb an 8a that day? Physically yes, but mentally? Maybe not.
Horseshoe Canyon Ranch
First day I decided to warm up on The Greatest Show on Earth 5.8. Above the third bolt I looked down, the last bolt well below my feet and a flash pump setting in. I was gripped!! On a 5.8!! Lead climbing indoors the bolts are so closely spaced you can clip with the last one at your waist and it does not prepare you for the bolt spacing outdoors. Next up, Crimp Scampi, 5.10d. This should be a piece of cake I thought... Boom, gripped again I found myself shouting “Take”. Gutted.
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| This little fella hitched a ride home from HCR |
It’s 20 years since I last climbed here and what a crag. Such an incredible density of hard climbing. World class. This time, after the prior weekend at Horseshoe my head game was shaping up but the problem this time was anaerobic fitness, or the lack of. I got pumped out of my box! A deep intense pump that I probably haven’t felt in 20 yrs. that said I did manage to claw my way up Quiet Flight Direct 7a+ (5.12a) after falling off close to the top on the flash. Yay. Baby steps.
 |
| Kilnsey, Yorkshire, UK |
Craggy Island
I met up with Duncan for a catch up and super fun bouldering session. The only problem was that the problems were nails hard. Proper hard. Anything harder than Font 6A+ (V3?) felt impossible. OK so I think they were sandbagged but I also think Momentum grades might be a bit soft. The cynic in me thinks that soft touch ego sends keep people coming back. It made me realize that I need to try harder stuff at the gym.
Takeaways
You hear stories about people coming out of nowhere and sending ridiculously hard after secretly training in their cellar, Malcolm Smith style. At 18 yrs old, Malcolm appeared out of nowhere for the second ascent of one of the hardest routes in the world at the time. Hubble, 8c+. This approach might give you the physical foundation but it is missing at least 50% of what is needed to consistently climb hard routes outdoors. If I am ever to climb 5.13, I need to get outside as often as possible and work on my head game, the longer run outs, technique, movement and fitness.
Based on what I have read and heard in recent podcasts, my training strategy has been focused on the high-low approach. Max intensity hangboarding and lower intensity aerobic capacity. Note that's not all I do but it's the theme of my training plan. Whilst I still plan to focus on this I also need to add in some power endurance training where I get totally pumped. Basically, when training endurance indoors I need to mix volume days up with hard redpoint route days AND actually try hard. Steve McClure once said to me "If you don’t try hard routes, you will never climb hard routes". Simple and true. He should know.
Grades in the gym are a good tool to measure progress but having a preconceived idea of my personal level means that I might make less progress at a gym with soft grades than a gym with sandbagged grades. When I couldn’t send that V4 at Craggy Island, I gave it my all. How could a V4 defeat me? If a V7/8 feels a bit hard at Momentum I will move on to the next problem because it's OK to fail at that grade. I'm not that good...yet.
Oh and in the drive up to Kilnsey I mentioned how 20 years ago I had climbed "Let the Tribe Increase" 7c+ at Rubicon. Apparently it's now considered 8a which is cool but did I climb an 8a that day? Physically yes, but mentally? Maybe not.
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