donderdag 27 februari 2014

Oil crisis conquered!

Last sunday I climbed Ölkrise! It was a perfect spring day (in Februari...) with sun, cool air and a bit of a breeze. Together with Michelle and our dogs I drove to Avalonia in the morning, hoping to be ahead of the crowd that usually hits the area on Sundays like this. And we were, it was delightfully quiet. I warmed up by flashing 'Limbo für Anfänger' 6A and 'Limbo' 7A, two problems that I've looked upon a few times already, but never touched before because I wasn't sure about their definitions. This time I'd taken the effort to look them up. Both turned out to be good fun and very easy for their grades. In the meantime, Michelle and Cash enjoyed the sun that rids sector 'Galerie' from the cold almost all day long. Vienna and London were too occupied to mind any of us, chasing each other through the rustling leaves that cover the hillside.

I turned my attention to Ölkrise. I found two small improvements of my sequence the previous time and I repeated them in my minds eye. I knew I would only have a few good attempts and I shouldn't waste any of them on unnecessary mistakes. Ölkrise is a relatively long boulder with the hardest moves at the end, so once fatigue kicks in, the chance of success diminishes rapidly. The best attempts are the first. This time I made them count: I climbed it on my second go. Wether due to good conditions, the best company or the complete tranquility, everything felt right and I felt strong.

During two sessions I climbed the separate parts 'Kleine Ölkrise Teil I' and 'Kleine Ölkrise Teil II' and only then I realized that I could maybe climb the full line, something that seemed completely impossible last year. I started visiting Avalonia with the main goal of climbing Ölkrise, but it took another three days (including last sunday) to climb it. That's a lot of time for a single boulder, something I tend to avoid. But it was worth it! Although it doesn't reflect in the numbers, it certainly feels like the hardest boulder I climbed to date. I'm satisfied and happy I can turn to new projects again! Maybe something in Glees or Nideggen soon? Or maybe even some roped climbing if the weather stays good...

donderdag 20 februari 2014

Another one bites the dust...

Another failed attempt to climb Ölkrise last weekend. As I made attempts, this time accompanied by Erik, I found two small refinements of my sequence, making the hardest move (a heinous crossover into a fully stretched position that nearly makes your abs squize out your intestines) a notch easier. Although I feel that with these improvements I should be well capable of climbing the boulder (I can do the individual moves quite easily by now), I failed again to do so. Fatigue kicked in rapidly and when eventually - after about ten attempts too many - the skin of my index finger split, I was forced to give up again.

Despite being worn down already I somehow still managed to climb 'Zerrissene Welten' 7B+ in the Katla Cave, maybe because it is quite short, but probably because it simply isn't that hard. Just like 'Drachenrachen' and 'Black Smoke, White Wings' it's one of the first boulders of the cave, opened by the German topper Daniel Jung in 2008. A true heartbreaker was falling when my foot slipped while matching the final hold: I had to go through the painful fingerlock crux again... I captured some footage of the ascent and tried to make the best of the low light conditions of the dark Katla Cave at the end of an overcast day and experimented 'a bit' with film burns and grunge effects. Deliberate overkill, I hope you like it:

dinsdag 11 februari 2014

Drawn into the oil crisis

I went back to climb Ölkrise, but failed. It ended up being a nice family trip with Michelle and the dogs, enjoying being outdoors together, so I had a good time nevertheless. It was Londons first encounter with rocks and she soon discovered their dangerous nature the hard way: over enthusiastically she tripped and came limping back on three legs. Nothing seemed to be broken though and within minutes she was running around again, suspiciously sniffing rocks, sliding downhill through leafs and barking at me when I climbed out of her reach. Obviously she loved it here just as much as I do.

But let's not completely ignore the fact that my main goal was climbing Ölkrise... Failure is an integral part of progression, but sometimes it's simply hard to deal with. On the other hand: only after a big struggle the final achievement of success is truly rewarding. I spent parts of two previous sessions on Ölkrise, but until today it hasn't been my main goal. I could do the separate crux moves immediately now and started making good links into the crux. After a couple of attempts I fell on the last hard move, which is the eighth move of the boulder. But then things started going downhill: my links got shorter and shorter and my fingers were getting sore already. Ölkrise is so taxing on them that it is right at my limit, giving me only a handful of attempts at full power. When it started to drizzle and some holds got moist, I was forced to give up and we fled to the Katla Cave. 

Working the moves on Ölkrise
Soon the sun returned though and we enjoyed the sheltered but sunny cavity in the hillside and the views it offers over the lake. I puzzled a bit on 'Zerissene Welten' (another 7B+) and finally figured out how to get the crucial fingerlock and footjam combination right. It bloody hurts, but works! An ascent is close, but didn't come today either. Having drained my maximum power, I tried a few of the long linkups through the roof. I was too tired to finish any of them either, but let's say it was good training... Ölkrise is within my reach, which on its own is a step up compared to last year. But I know that until the actual ascent it'll haunt me now, predominantly casting a feeling of failure rather than progression... Crazy how these things work. Today though, I had a great day out, without a single tick. Never thought I'd be able to say that.

woensdag 5 februari 2014

More roof action

Another 7B+ in the Katla Cave (7C before the 'downgrade wave') went down! 'Blumen aus Südafrika' shares the start of Drachenrachen (which I found to be the hardest part when I climbed it last year) followed by a more direct finish. From a good - but painful - fistjam a huge span leads directly to the lip of the roof. Putting your feet next to the fist and making some sort of a foot jam (it comes much closer to hanging from your toes though), it's possible to release the fist jam and go for the good holds over the roof edge. The most surprising thing to me was how easily I could climb the first half, which was a big struggle last year. This time I discovered that I could skip the handjam alltogether, making a long reach to the next hold halfway the roof. Last year I couldn't pull this of, lacking the required body tension. Now it felt easy! After I discover this, it took only a few attempts to climb Blumen aus Südafrika. I made a video of the ascent, but the Katla cave was too crowded to film from multiple angles. Consequently the result is very basic, but I'd like to share it anyway. Also shown is the ascent of the 7A highball 'Die Welle', which I found too thin and scary to climb again and risk my ankles for a fancier video:


During these visits to Avalonia I also started investing time in 'Ölkrise'. It is graded 7B+ as well, but feels much harder to me than all the burly roof climbing of the Katla cave. Technically it's a traverse along a roof edge, but it rises gradually and climbs much more like a super steep arête. With only small, widely spaced holds it's a real test of my finger strength and my ability to maintain body tension on small holds. Last year I couldn't even do several of the moves individually. Now I discovered that I could do them all. The line can be cut in two logical halves (with an alternative exit for the first half). The Ruhrtal locals have named them 'Kleine Ölkrise Teil I' and 'Kleine Ölkrise Teil II' and graded them 7A+ and 7B respectively. I've managed to climb them both in two sessions and started making good links of the complete line. Logically, I can't wait to go back. Climbing Ölkrise will be a step forward and quite possibly my hardest ascent yet!