Nico sends 8c trad crack

Check this out!

Dave Sends Echo Wall, E12?

Just check this out!

And a serious Well done to Dave From me... his blog is the best source of honnest grit and determination, following his trail of hard work and progress, on the web.

Way harder than E11 or any other route he's done?!?! Harder than 8c solo or 9a redpoint? on really crap gear? On a mountain crag? The route's already got legend status... I'm guessing there won't be a que of people wanting to repeat it anytime soon :)

British Fell Championships

A few weeks back Caroline decided to enter into the Fell championships despite not really managing to get into the groove of training at all this year really (Mainly due to a few lingering illness').
Heres some profiles and pictures of the event - 3 words - short and Sharp!

Caroline finished 9th Senior Lady despite a fall on the descent - got us back training on the fells with a vengance

Visual catchup

Still playing catchup with the last months activity... i'll just plough on redardless :)

I got sick - think it was my first case of the flu! Knocked me for 6! but every cloud has it's silver lining - i found the ultimate cure... look above. Yes, thats right.... lemsip max, plenty of honey, jameson and boiling water! Hmmmmmmm
We decorated the kitchen...

I went to a Welsh medium residential outdoor centre for two days where some of my year 7 pupils were staying for a week doing all sorts of activities - climbing, high-ropes, sailing, rafting hiking etc... On the day i arrived to help out i was asked to accompany a group walking up a hill. Half way in a kid trips up and breaks her ankle - turned out i was the most experienced of the instructors present and they had no plan in place for a situation like this. Luckily i threw my mountain leader First aid kit in my pack before heading off (Don't normally). Managed to strap it up as best as possible then arrange for a jeep to get as close as it could to our position. Despite the centre staff trying all manner of assisted hoping, group lifts etc... nothing worked due to the uneven terrain and the kid was in pain. So i ended up carrying her on my back the 3/4 mile to the jeep. Killed me!The Kid was heavier than me! Good deed for the day done and in the bag :)

Past it's sell by date - Eye Candy 003

Right - i know this is getting old so heres the last few pics from the week off - Jean Lou asked if he could take some shots of me going for my first E7 ... heres what came out Ignore the crap ropework... was more concerned with staying on!
Again, not lookin the most steady... Placing the definition of Mental protection - the smallest Black Diamond Cam - placed in a flared sandstone mini-crack. I tested this on abseil and it ripped straight out...pointless!
Ready for launch - all set up on the smears and tiny edges before the crux dyno for a rounded break - i hadn't got this move first go on a toprope ever before, so without any warmup i was all too aware i was gonna fly off at this point. Ripping the crap Cam and (hopefully) stopping above the ground providing the old Peg below me held
I caught it! Now pumped and with the prospect of making it the climbing keeps comming - the groove tapers, getting narrower and narrower, every move feels at least Brittish Tech 6a...

The climbing style changes into something more like face climbing before...
the groove totally tapers out and theres a sequence of Monos on poorish footholds before you reach the top break (Ha, ha! Break! On lead, right below the top and about 10 ft higher than this picture, with no more gear, a handhold ripped off while i was about to top out sending me into one of those wavey armed barndoors!! i just managed to hold on!)