Far Out Son of Lung...

Climbing Plateau?

So last week I was frustrated by my inability to climb a pair of blue routes at Stoneworks. At this point in time, I do not find small holds that are caked with chalk and preclude a long reach or tedious footwork very much fun. Getting my fingers to stick on something that does not yiled much grip does not do much for my confidence, and while I'm sure I'll eventually enjoy this sort of labor...

So Sunday morning Rock Gal and I went to Summit for a day of climbing. I was feeling extremely tired that morning and we ended up napping on the couch for awhile before she motivated me to drag my butt off the futon. I'm really glad we went. We ran into Scott and Steve at the gym and Rock Gal jumped on a nice lead for her warm-up. I stretched and started a traverse that I felt good about and was comfortable moving on, certainly more so than my previous climb at Stoneworks.

I stuck to the big stuff at first, then found myself sticking the small bits as well. It was a nice feeling and I was working the forces of physics in my favor, something I have a lot of trouble with at the other gym. I was able to really lean into the hold and keep my fingers weighted, as well as my feet, so that my grip was being aided by my weight instead of suffering from it.

My first climb of the day was an off-width crack in the corner of the gym. It starts as a squeeze chimney before narrowing more and more requiring some interesting moves, chicken wings, jams and other things. I got about 1/3 of the way up and needed to use an external hold to reposition myself, then another 1/3 before I was more or less stuck. The biggest problem was just squeezing in there tight enough that I could move up without totally losing traction every 6 inches.

Following that sweatfest I belayed Rock Gal up a nice 5.10+ that we learned later was "incomplete", but she made it anyway. It had some extra holds and some odd bits but she's very good at problem solving and made her way up the route fluidly.

My next ascent was a 5.10, my toughest grade so far. I don't know that it was a sustained 5.10, what with some juggy type holds, but it was a challenge and had two opportunities for me to heel hook. One was required within the route, the other was completely unnecessary and, therefore, entirely too much fun. I have a thing for getting my heel on stuff and seeing what happens. I don't know why, but I just really enjoy throwing a leg up and hauling myself onto some other impossibly odd position with my leg. Call it an unnatural obsession.

Rock Gal's next route was a 5.11, I think, with plenty of crimpy, high tension moves that make me wonder if she's got duct tape on her shoes and fingers... Another nice climb on her part, as always, and I was motivated to get on another fun 5.10 that included a nice overhang.

This time I got stuck. I went into a sequence a little wrong and had my hands crossed up, but rather than simply back tracking to reset my hands, I stalled. In so doing I wasted a ton of energy, wrecked my momentum and needed to rest. I hung there for a minute looking at what I'd done and what I'd intended to do, drained the pump from my forearms and continued up the route. I started a little lower than where I had fallen from and made sure to have some slack in the rope so I wouldn't hang my body weight on it.

By twisting my hips into the roof I was able to decrease the workload on my arms and relieve some of the strain on my fingers. WIth my feet doing the work I powered up to the next juggy, grippy hold and then on up the route from there. It was a good feeling, and despite being completely pumped I made it clear to the top without another fall.

The rest of the day went very well and Rock Gal completed several more great routes both on top rope and on lead. I rested and attempted the 5.10 roof again, but had worn myself out on another route and was getting close to being done. I did manage one more 5.9, and in the end am really pleased with my climbing.

What I'm finding is that while Stoneworks is a neat place to climb and an interesting place to hangout, it does not do much for me in regard to learning to be a better climber. There are plenty of great routes there but as it stands I am climbing better at Summit. It can problably be chalked up to comfort level on the small stuff, since I can actually sense some amount of grip under my finger pads.

posted by GreSam @ 11:21