Word Cloud: What's my blog about?

What a neat tool! Pierre got me onto this site, Wordle, after publishing his own image on his last post. I just stuck my blog into the application and this is what I got back.
For those who haven't seen a 'word cloud' before, the larger the word, the more regular it's used on the site.

A fair description? And I'll keep this post short after the last few very rambly ones :)

Hope everyone is having a great super-positive week!

does access to bolts help?

Back in 2008, I was involved in bolting two routes in Ireland. If you want more info, feel free to read the article here on Climbing.ie forums about it. I'm not going into more details, there's enough there about it (although all additional ideas welcome on other people's perspectives/thoughts, both positive and critical of what's happened).
Sadly, and as usual, nothing more has come of the incident and whoever caused the chopping has kept their head down. A pity, I genuinely wanted to hear the reasons for the logic - I'm yet to hear anything reasonable for what happened. Oh well, at the end of the day, I don't particularly care as there's way more important things in life to be distracted or bothered by! I will compliment all those that DID reply though, and those that I spoke to in person about it, it was a fascinating discussion and definitely gave me some new ideas on climbing. I thought about putting this on the forum, but hadn't written a post in a while..... :)

One of the most interesting was in relation to the query (from more than one person) about whether you really need access to bolts, i.e. sports climbing, to improve. I rolled it around as a thought quite a bit and was thinking of some points. Firstly, what to other people think? do you feel like you'd improve, or have more incentive even, to climb or want to improve if you had access to more sports routes? Answers in the comments below (or on the climbing.ie forum).

Personally, I've gotten to quite a respectable level without having any regular access to bolts. Yes, it's definitely possible but I will say that it's much harder. I can think of countless trips I've wasted having spent much of time getting re-adjusted to the intensity of the climbing. There's only so much simulation you can do without trying your hand at the real thing. Look at it from another sport's point of view - I can guarantee you that Usain Bolt didn't train for the 100 meter sprints on grass and over a distance that wasn't 100 meters! I'm sure he actually did do lots of training on different surfaces and distances but a large proportion of his training/preparation would've been on the Real Deal.

Having said that, much of climbing training is about just getting really strong and fitter. These parts you can definitely work on - you just need to put the time in to get to this level. There's no magic pill or exercise you can do, so long as it's relevant to climbing and you do a lot of it. But that will be the subject of another post or two (if I ever finish them :) and probably for IrishClimbingCoaching :) But more locations like this will help some people to keep progressing!

Personally, the biggest difficulty for me after going away and pushing myself on routes, then returning is that you easily lose motivation as the level of difficulty on trad routes is lower (on the trad grades I'm willing to try for safety reasons, etc.). Interestingly, I noticed when looking up the blog post on my first grade 8 back in Asia that I also mentioned a lack of bolts in Ireland :) I know I struggled to even contemplate climbing after coming back from my first year-long trip - I barely climbed at all for months when I came back, and it wasn't because I was burnt out, if anything, I was more psyched than ever! I trained really hard for about 4 months before going on that first long trip and while it all paid off, it's hard to justify to myself even to keep doing on a regular long-term basis if you're continuously aware that there's no routes to try out the capabilities nearby.

The longer you do anything, the more stimulus that's needed and I'd be willing to bet that I know more than one or two people in the climbing scene (not just Ireland) that have quit as they haven't had an outlet for their motivation.
In short, yes, you can keep pushing and pushing and training away - and I'm fully aware that my own laziness at times has held me back, not just a lack of bolts -  without any real access to bolted routes. But it's a hell of a lot easier if you do! Having moved to Sheffield recently, I've now realized I'm going to have access (<45 mins away) to routes and problems that can seriously test me and I know I'm going to learn a lot from having the local knowledge! psyche!!!!!!

Image Credits: Naomi playing on the boulders near Doolin in her new super-bright t-shirt from the Celtic t-shirt shop.
The new wall in Dingle, Co. Kerry. PlayAtHeight, an inspiring new wall for the south-west of Ireland

Review of Thoughts on 'bare-foot' running

O.k. so not an exact review of a specific model of footwear but having seen so many different reports and articles, especially in the main-stream papers and magazines regarding the new Vibram FiveFingers, I thought it was worth putting together my own experiences from using a pair of Nike's (the Free range) equivalent model for the past few years, here's my own thoughts.

Honestly, in my completely unscientific view of them, there may actually be something to this. I actually fell into the trap myself of buying some of the top-of-the-range models over the years thinking that the best-of padding would be of benefit my body with multiple miles of running. However....as studies are showing (there's one linked off the Wired Magazine one above), the cheaper versions are actually better. There seems to be a change of running style that comes with running and padded running shoes, something that we never had to deal with before the early 70's. It's mad, that means we've been running in padded shoes for 40-odd years, and about xxx,00000 years before that without isulation. Hell, the first 4-minute mile was run prior to this...

My own experience? I've been wearing pairs of Nike Frees (2nd pair now) since mid-2004 when the local Nike outlet store started stocking them for a the ridiculously silly price of €20 (they're currently only €20-30 for anyone interested in Ireland and get themselves to Kildare....). My own method, after mixing and matching, was that if I run four times a week, two of them will be in each type. As confirmed by my recent attendance at a foot specialist, I have very little fat content in general so padding in my feet is non-existent which leads to a lot of loading on my knees (and pain for years) so I don't think I'd ever go almost-barefoot-running regularly. But I still always remember from when I was a kid of going around bare-footed while living in Israel and finding the freedom that went with it. So a balance of twice a week seems to work for me. I definitely agree with some of the reviewers though, that there is a definite feeling of lightness/spped after you've run in them for a while - no idea why though, but having come back from a run this evening in them after being in my normal trainers last night, there is a definite difference (although make sure to read my last paragraph if you do decide to get these).

At the end of the day, there is no exact solution for everyone. But if you're looking for something a little different and think the idea of running more, eh, free sounds more appealing, it might be worth checking them out.

Note: To anyone who does consider getting a pair of the Nike's or the Vibrams, I cannot emphasise enough to start off slowly. Even now, when I start wearing the Free's again, I start off with short 1/2 mile runs and build up over a few weeks, and ideally on a dirt track instead of tarmac, to begin with. Seriously, it's a major shock to going with padding, to as good as none. And from the photos I've seen of the Vibrams, there's even less rubber on the soles of these! Also, yes, it is normal for your calves, etc. to feel tighter at the beginning!

Photo credit: My Nike Free's folded up in front of my 'normal' running shoes. Basically, the rubber sole is super thin, and cut across and length-ways to make it as light and flexible as possible...

Rated 4/5 on Sep 15 2009

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Review Tags: running, vibram, barefoot, nike free, fivefinger

Reflections after Ceuse

Future stars. Super-kids showing us all how it's done on every climb of every difficulty you can imagine :)

I read a fascinating article recently about the fact that in soccer, back in the late 1900's, that passing was frowned upon in the game! As the game evolved, it turned out that the original principle had been for loads of attackers and that much of the game revolved around solo-playing. But the sport evolved and is now the amazing, and hugely popular version that it is now.

Climbing is going through tons of these changes/adaptions right now. The sport is still relatively new so standards (think about it, trad is only 150-odd years old and sport is only 30-ish?) and methods of climbing/improvement are rapidly changing and adapting. It's been over 6 years since I was last in Ceuse, and wow, what a change. Back then, for me, 8a was mind-boggling, and while lots of people were climbing this level, it wasn't that regular, and 8b's and c's were serious. Interestingly, I met the original owner of the local climbing wall at Ceuse and he said that in the past three years, he's seen a massive jump in standards.
What do I mean by this? Mayan Smith-Gobat hints at this in her blog, 6 people climbing her project 8b in the space of 5 days (one of them a Swiss girl ONSIGHTING it!). Or Alex (left in the top photo), the 15-year-old Polish kid who ran around and was general inspiration for all (see photo of the large crowd watching Alex's attempted final redpoint of Les Collonettes, 7c+, on his last day below). And the fact that Carte Blanche, at the stout grade of 8a, had several people attempting it every day (to the point that it was actually hard to queue for it) and that the 8b/c? beside it was having regular ascents/attempts on most days. Now these grades have all been climbed for years, but the difference is that loads of people are climbing these grades now. It's amazing and inspiring and a whole new reason for me to keep pushing and challenging myself!
By the way, those kids above? They all climb 7c and above! Super inspiring!

In the middle of all that, and ironic that I'm writing this piece after a whole paragraph about grade improvements, that there were still loads of people climbing and trying at every grade in the spectrum. Pretty much every grade 6 in some areas got at least a few ascents every day. Truly inspiring. And the wonderful part is that there still isn't a huge emphasis on what grade you're climbing. Yes, you feel a bit intimidated at times by whatever everyone else is climbing, but everyone is super-motivated for each other and in many ways, discussions about grades only crop up if you bring them up yourself. The lesson is for everyone that no matter what grade you're climbing, just get out there and as long as you're looking motivated, people will get behind you :)



This whole crowd of people watched Alex having his final redpoint attempt at Ceuse. Unfortunately he didn't succeed, but he was close!


Sean Marnane working the moves on Berlin, before a successful ascent

From an Irish point of view, it's great to see people continuously working away and earning new and outstanding grades for themselves. Naomi was rocking on 6c's and ticked her first 7a. Sean Marnane showed that he's the legend with a quick ascent of one of the 7c's (Berlin?) on Berlin Sector (when's the next one going to happen?!?!? :). And Ryan, one of the new Northerners to my knowledge, was romping with some awesome sends of some 7b's onsight. Not to mention Eddie Barbour kicking ass (from reports I've heard) in Siurana earlier on in the year. I can only hope we all get chances to pass the knowledge we're all gaining onto the newer climbers coming through! and with the rise of a new National Climbing Competition back home in Ireland, hopefully people have reasons to be getting out and pushing themselves on rock and plastic.

People make a location, and a nice ending to Ceuse

The gang in Ceuse - you rock!

Has it really been two months since I last updated? oops!

Anyway, I'll put a brief update on Ceuse. Basically, yes, Ceuse is still one of the best crags in the world. The location, the walk-in, the people, the sheer atmosphere, make it truly special. It had been six years since I was last there and already I'm missing the place.
For anyone wondering, yes, it's still pretty busy (but no worse than I remember it, probably due to the 45 minute-ish walk-in, but there's not much more polish (although it is noticeable on some of the classics - can't see it getting any worse though) than I remember either. Hopefully that's a good sign for the future. Realistically we're all going to have to deal with polished rock because it's not going away!

The people are still what make it though, and on that note, we had some truly special people. Chris, Chico, Robin, Chris, Mel, Dan, Sean, Ryan, Dave, Isaac, you're all legends and will look forward to seeing you somewhere in the world again! Spending each evening hanging out in the MobileHome with a bunch of friends discussing the ways of the world (short answer to many of the problems? Countries/people need to work together!) and getting motivated over a mutual passion doesn't get much better.

So, the climbing. It's just sooooo good. I genuinely love the fact that it doesn't let you hide any weaknesses here. If you suck at slabs, overhangs, run-outs, there's something here to remind you that you need to work on it more :) Awesome and nothing like a challenge.
Since it was such a long time since I'd been here, I was also able to return with some old goals that I'd aspired to. There were primarily always two: an onsight of one of the classics, and a redpoint of first ever 8a that I played on.

Firstly, the onsight. Blocage Violent, 7b+. This is one of those inspiring, proud lines that had always inspired, especially after watching Dave Graham doing it as his warm-up many years ago. I'd always thought 'someday I'll do that onsight.' So, to up the ante, I did it as a warmup myself :) All I can say is that it lives up to the quality. Fun, friendly, moves up a steep bulge, without nothing that felt too hard. Everyone should do it.
And then the redpoint. Back in 2002, with my good buddy Dave A, I played on the initial moves of Cartle Blanche (8a). It's was a bit of an intimidating line (for me anyway) - steep start with hard, big moves, and at the time, I'd never really tried anything above 7b+. I didn't even go to the chains, I just didn't mentally believe I could do it - although looking back now, I would've been capable of it (put it down to a lack of mileage on routes of this difficulty back home). Still though, it's one of the classics of Demi Lune sector at Ceuse and one of the most popular 8a's at Ceuse (8a.nu alone shows 229 ascents of it!). So, in between playing around on other routes, re-acquainting myself with other memorable lines, I worked the moves and got an idea for it. Not too bad, and the holds felt way bigger than before. Even the crux, which I'd never really worked felt straight-forward. That feeling of progression is always good, realizing that you're much stronger than before.

In the end, it ended up being a bit of a rushed ascent. Big queues on it (average of 5-6 people on it most days), and getting distracted to try other lines meant that in the end it was a bit last-minute. It shouldn't have been this way, but a badly cut finger ruined all playing on the 2nd last day (I lowered to save getting blood on the route).
And in the end, like my acquaintance Mayan Smith-Gobat from NZ (and one of the strongest climbers in that region) with her successful ascent of her first 8c on her last day there (and before her 30th birthday at that), it ended up being the last go of the trip. The first go that morning ended up with me falling off the 2nd last hold after realizing that I had no idea of the sequence and having to make it up as I went along. I was super chuffed though, as psychologically for me, I now feel like this level is onsightable in the future..... But at that time, it was a mistake and could have cost me. In the end, my finger blew up completely (dipping in chalk the whole way to the chains so that I wouldn't mark the route) and my wrist just about survived (injured for the past few months and seriously inhibiting my climbing - I've barely climbed since) for a nice send at the end of my last evening in Ceuse. Things don't get much better.


Pulling the first bulge of Carte Blance (8a), Ceuse, France


High on the final prow of Carte Blance (8a), Ceuse, France