Ceuse - learning

Easily recognizable by the name painted on the rock at the bottom of the cliff, Angel Dust 7a+

Another relaxing/rest day complete to enjoy France, and generally emphasize the fact that this is still a holiday and I'm pretty privileged to be able to spend so much time doing a sport that I love so much. Of course, these trips wouldn't be much fun (even with the amazing climbing) if it wasn't for the people who you are there so it was great to hang out with the current Team Ireland for a day - ice cream and lounging on a beach can't get much better!

Still though, the cycle begins today and motivation is high amongst us all to get on some routes and have a go. I'm back on Bourinator, so hopefully will send it this afternoon - I'm just looking forward to the big swing off it when I have success! :)
Naomi is back on a route she tried last year, Angel Dust. It's perfectly vertical up a blank wall with little or no rest. And it's really challenging her, the fitness level on this route is above what she's experienced so far. But she's taking the right attitude and looking to learn what she's doing right, and wrong, and what the fitness required for this type of route is. And she's doing it by spending lots of time on the route. It's easy to try a route or a problem, find that it feels impossible or weird/strange/reachy/fingery/pumpy (or even just a problem that someone has shown you at the local climbing wall that is their own style) and just decide to forget about it and move onto something that you're better at. But in the long term, you're just digging a hole for yourself by not improving at the things that are your weaknesses.
I've done it myself, and it always comes back to bite me on another route that inspires me. Bourinator is one of those routes. I don't particularly like near-horizontal climbing (imagine climbing across the roof of the ceiling above you), but there's routes where it's just necessary to climb that sort of upside-down angle and I'm just having to man up and get better at it. The irony is that usually on this type of route, the holds are massive (gravity does enough to make moving across a roof hard without the holds being small!) so I've no reason to get better at it.

We'll see whether we both learn something in the coming days :) What's your least favourite angle/style?

Just another day at Berlin sector! People hanging on ropes, others trying amazing climbs!

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