...

Recently things have been going backwards.

I've gone off blog posts it seems, probably for a variety of reasons. Mostly I've just been lazy, but also I've got climber's around me you know all the time. last year and over the summer in murano street and Inverness, if I wanted to express a climbing feeling... but here I have climbing buds in my flat, which takes something away from sitting down and hitting keys... What's the point? Well just now I'm all alone for a wee while in the flat so I can let my mind wonder for a bit.

Yesterday was maybe a recoil of a lot of things that have been building up for a while. I bought a new pair of climbing shoes. This has been on the cards for a long time since all my shoes have holes in them. Expensive things. I switched to 5.10s from scarpas so thats pretty cool. The sales assistant in tiso told me if I bought them I'd be up climbing V6 by the end of the week. Thats what sold them.


Also, we went out... This is strickly against everything... bad for the health, bad for the soul, bad for my reputation as an old man. Yup, the climber's flat did some socail stuff for once. We had a go at being students. If you resist something so much for so long, it can sneak up on you and attack when your guard is down. Next thing we knew we were on vodkas, wearing shirts and... dancing.

Climbing. Well since I bought a month pass ive been trying to head to the wall a lot. Not soo good for my uni course, seeing as its class test time. I dont really like the wall but I did manage to campus 1-3-5-7-9 for the first time yesterday... I like Dumbarton but have been feeling antipsyche (the force which makes you fall off) and havn't climbed anything much. So I've spent a lot of time going back and doing classics, highball slabs (though BNI is still too 'out there'), one handed stuff and traversing the sea boulder in my trainers.

So my feeling at the moment is if you stick at something through gritted teeth which isn't quite in your nature then your nature will backlash and you'll some get "negetive" consquences.

Mike

King Lines

It's saturday night and it's raining. This is a bummer for two reasons. one - its night time and two - its raining. I'M SO PSYCHED!!!!!! I want to go climbing. I want to go to Ceuse and Majorca and Buttermilks and.. I want to hang by my finger tips and say send it and do really cool power screams. This is because... I've just watched King Lines, three times.

It better be dry tomorrow.

Blog War

You may have read Ben's blog where he makes reference to a 'funny hole' in my chest. Said hole is perfectly normal and makes me look like I've got big pecks. Ben is jealous and his comments are not well received thus a blog war has started. Ben is an attention seeking, uncouth know it all, who can't climb for shit unless he's wear his 'sending trousers' which have a hole in the arse. This hole is far more embarrassing and funny then the afore mention hole in my chest which really isn't much of a hole anyway - more of a concave area. Why GBen makes a big deal of it, I don't know, though, frankly, I'm going to suggest he has some deep emotional problems which he can only vent by taking it out on those with a slight tiny difference cos he's so perfect. NOT.

So if you were looking for a nice story about my amazing psyche full day at dumby (where I repeated consolidated and sent my first dumby V9) well... I'm in a bad mood so no nice story. Blame ben for this please.

Oh yeh the spelling on ben's blog is even worse than mine.

Glasgow

Well, after an epic search, the climber's flat has now been established. The Climbers are:

Me - legoman haircut/lanky youth
Ben Litster - fresh from 5 months in europe, Chris Sharma.
Murdo Jamieson - All rounder, likes winter climbing (yeuch) and very tall.

Honorary member - Danny Laing - adventurist and keen

This is excellent and seems the psyche levels will be tip top through out the year.

On the crest of the psyche wave was a send of Dum Dum Boys 7c+ by Ben and I. This is a line just left of sufference and is of similar difficulty. It's also bad ass - some of the holds are no so good crimps and beta from Alan Cassidy was excellent. Ben sent it with out much trouble, despite climbing the top out onsight. I'd done the bottom section clean but with the 4th bolt preclipped so was very nervous not to fall off here. Luckily I managed to do so, but it was not smooth at all. I missed the crux move twice before eventually grasping the ok sloper. Soon after this I was lying on the ledge whilst being jeered by the unhelpful Alan and Niall for poor style...

Good to do it in a day, as it took me so long to do sufference. Tarrier next!!!

Susurrus Photos

Cath took some pic's when Ben and I were working the big roof. They were on my bro's camera who left for Uni. Luckily, he is a legend and was able to send me the best ones. Unluckily, dodgey light levels (poor photographer) mean there not top quality but ok nonetheless:

Across the roof...
This shows the beta for the start quite nicely for anyone nonlocal keen to repeat...
Cutting loose!
Ben
Quite a good pic of ben here!

Was bored today so started a flickr thing: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeleepics/

The Susurrus

My dad phones, he just got my text, its 5pm but he's up for giving me a lift to Brin Boulders at about 6. I give Nic Duboust a call, not seen him in a while, keen to climb with an actual climber, the project might go...

We arrive a Brin, the promising breeze dies as we enter the woods, the midge arrive, my dad retreats. We pad out the Big Roof boulder with pads belonging to a variety of different climbers, 6 pads in total, each one definately needed. I put my shoes on whilst desperatly slapping midgies. My skin regrown, I pull on the first moves and climb through the intial boulder problem to get to the roof and get to the lip. I'm not really warmed up so not really suprised that I dont make it. I let my breathing recover and try again. And again. Again.

Midgies are eating my face by now, Nick has put his shoes on. I've just fallen off slapping the top sloper and decide if it doesn't go this time I'm getting out of this motherfuckingshithole. Breathing back to normal, I crawl back into the lying start, get the heel toe in and lie back, chalk up, and go. The first hard move, a throw to a slopey slide sloper is stuck. Foot up and now the crux rock over kinda move to a small crimp. I overcook it a wee bit and twist outward but regain purchase and move to the incut flake. My fingers are too fat to really make the most of this so I quickly move to the next good incut and then onto the good hold on the lip. This is where my feet come off, No more foothold till your rocking over the top. I campus in to match the hold, out with my left to a side pull, adjust right slightly and campus! The top sloper is stuck, but only just. Still, I can't believe it!! I bump my hand up and, with a wee power grunt, I'm in. I campus to cross over and match, then again to correct the cross over, and again to gain the jugs. Rock over using grass. Excellent!!!! Wooo!! Yeessss! Woooo!!

However, I feel like I stole Ben's project. We were both working it to together, both falling off at the crux campus. It would of been a close thing to see would do it first and it would've been cool to have a climb off with him for the FA. He also was kind enough to give me lifts and beta and use of pads, so, Ben - Thanks! (ben is in England). Note to Ben: I think it took me 4/5 attempts today so try and beat that! It also sucks cos now I have to grade it - think V9 is probably fair, though I've never done one. (reasoning is that I think its V8 to get to the roof). Chose to call it The Susurrus, which is a pretty cool word reflecting the idea that the project had been whispering/murmuring in my mind for like a week! Crazy.

I'm so psyched...

Pic's will hopefully follow...

Peak review

Long time coming, I cant really be arsed writing this but I'm pretty bored.

Good things about the peak:

- Gritstone
- Soloing
- The Banter
- Pub Meals
- Bouldering four V8's
- Shit load of other bouldering
- E4 onsight
- Archangel!!
- The Rasp
- Soloing the Asp
- A few health falls for increased confidence
- Meeting some good bumblies at Stanage and local's at Higgar
- Strange Dave
- Attempting Deliverance (One to go back for)
- Outside
- Frisby
- My Birthday
- Bridge
- Frijj
- The [Crap] Road to [Boredom] 100 e points [the worst game you'll ever play!] (a board game I made up)(title rubbished by Danny Laing)

Bad things about the Peak:

- The Rain
- Waiting 2.5 days for some skin only to start bleeding again after one boulder problem.
- No skin, ever.
- Walking, everywhere, twice, everyday.
- Losing Wallet (found by a nice woman)
- Lack of 'abundant climbing' feeling (due to weather and no skin)
- Count's Buttress
- Bumblies
- Pasta

Some Pics:

The Rasp, E2

Millstone

Stanage

Simon

Owen

The depressing weather in the first week led to some awesome poetry. Here's a taste:

Rain

Rain, rain, your such a pain,

I rather wish I'd gone to Spain.

Or anywhere just not here,

Because it seems to just rain all year.

I like to climb in the sun,

But it only rains, its not much fun.

My feet are wet, my clothes are damp,

And the people won't let us stay and camp

Rain... Rain... Rain...

The Biscuits here are really nice,

But the past gets boring, so does the rice.

Our tent is full of bugs and stuff,

Camping here is really rough.

The beer is flat, our mouths are dry,

Sometimes I want to cry

Cry... Cry... :'(

By Danny Laing

*

I'm a Bumbly

I'm a Bumbly! I'm a Bumbly!

From the Popular End!

I can't do high step up,

For my knees, they don't bend!

I have a red helmut!

and hexes galore!

But when I try a server,

I can't get off the floor!

I dream one day,

To climb a V Diff onsight!

Last time I tried,

I had to back off in fright!

I'm a Bumbly! I'm a Bumbly!

I can't climb for shit

Try as I might,

I look like a tit.

By Mike and Danny

Back in Inverness my skin has yet to fully recover. My hands always smell sweetly due to the Norwegian Formula hand cream. This hasn't stopped me and my best bud Ben attempting the Brin roof Project. It's a beast. Last move is a brittish 6c campus! nasty.

Anyway I'm for a jam sesh with my wee bro. Steel string guitars are good for the skin aye??