So yesterday I shed a tear for North Wales, as I wrote up two reports for the front page of UKC, both about my best mates, both about Wales.
- Report 1: Caff makes a big bang!
- Report 2: Throbber links some very hard things together.
Oh how I miss it! Looking forward to September and a visit back ‘home’.
Anyway – back to the point – ‘Get Your Psyche On!’ And right now I have got mine on. Oh yes!
I know that James McChav is a totally amazing climber. I have witnessed this first hand on many occasions, and some of the things I have seen him do have proved to me that he is in a league or two above me.
Is he the strongest climber I have ever seen? No way. Is he the most technically talented climber I have ever seen? No. Is he the craziest, boldest climber I have ever seen? Nope. So what is he? He’s a war machine.
James has made the first repeat of The Big Bang (9a). How? By smashing it to pieces. By getting up at God knows what time to do 400 pull ups before a day out in the Welsh hills taking people mountain camping, and probably doing 200 sit ups and 200 push ups in his tent whilst everyone else is sleeping. By calling in at the Cromlech boulders time and again after work and doing laps and laps and laps until he was totally exhausted and his fingers were bleeding.
By saying no to that beer and that cake and that chocolate bar.
And by never, ever giving up until he had smashed it right in.
I have seen James do this on many, many trad routes. It’s the same thing, but over a different time period. This redpoint has taken him a while. Training, fighting, struggling. The same fight goes on when he’s on a trad onsight. He steps on to the rock and you just know he’s up for going the full 12 rounds, right to the bitter end.
After just 5 minutes on the phone with James I am more psyched than I have been for a good few months.
Better get on that finger board… and get back on that 8c I have been trying at Flaine. I am going to go and every time I am going to be ready for the full 12 rounds. Ding Ding!!
James – I shake your hand and I congratulate you again. And I hope the psyche that you have passed on means that before the year is out you will be shaking my hand too! Thanks!
Me on Delerium Tremens (8c) at Dalle d'Oiseau Rare, Flaine. I have had three short sessions on this route and feel it is definitely on for a redpoint, even though I pulled a hold off just after the crux! A bit harder now, doh!
