2024: Year in Review
Summer 2023: Back to Basics
Prior to 2024, I wouldn't have called myself a boulderer. Sure, I'd have bouldering "phases" every now and then, and I would always play on new sets in the gym, but my passion had thus far been rooted in sport climbing. I prided myself on my ability to stay relaxed on long routes, and what I lacked in strength and power, I made up for in route-reading, endurance, and flexibility.
There was a slight problem though: more and more frequently I began to encounter sport climbs with boulder cruxes that I simply couldn't do, despite feeling fresh and trying individual moves in isolation. For well over a year, my max redpoint grade remained unchanged. Continually getting shut down on these cruxes was a constant source of frustration, but planted an important seed in my mind.
In the early summer months of 2023, all of my primary sport climbing partners had either moved out of state or were taking a break from sport climbing to focus on bouldering. Well, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em! I ditched the harness, got a training plan, hired a coach, and really started to ramp up on bouldering in those summer months. I even took a couple of trips outdoors on the rare cooler days, and by the end of summer I was starting to feel decently fit on boulders!
Fall 2023: Trying Hard in the Grayson Highlands
Then in September 2023, I took a pivotal weekend trip to Grayson Highlands State Park that made me reconsider what I wanted out of climbing. I remember my buddy was trying a boulder called Tech-Tonic, V5. I played around on the moves, but didn't feel confident enough to give it any serious burns simply because I thought the grade was "way out of my range".
At the time I I had a mental block and didn't believe that I could possibly send any climb at the V5 grade. So naturally, I decided to try to find the hardest V4 I could and spend the day on it. Shortly after leaving Tech-Tonic we went to Contact Station, and I quickly identified such a route: Full Contact, V4.
At the time, Full Contact felt like the hardest climb I could imagine doing in a single session. The moves felt fairly nuanced and out of my comfort zone, and it was powerful enough that I felt that I was only barely strong enough to make it work. After a taxing hour-and-a-half session, I stood on top feeling extremely proud and accomplished. And that incredible feeling of trying the hardest I'd ever tried sparked a fire in me.
Winter 2023 - Spring 2024: Flying Solo at Dixon
A couple of months later, I was reflecting on my trip to the Grayson Highlands, and I started thinking about what my goals for 2024 might be. Firstly, it dawned on me that in all my years of "rock climbing", there had only been a handful of times I'd ever tested myself on... well, rock. The second realization I had was that there was a whole world full of "hard" (at least for me) boulders waiting for me. So what was I waiting for?
So I started looking for opportunities to go climb outside. But it was starting to get really cold outside, and everyone who had been so psyched to boulder in the fall was ready to spend the rest of winter training for the early spring season. Well, I wasn't just gonna wait around for the next three months! I ordered some pads as a Christmas gift to myself and hit the local crags.
The first area I took to sieging was Dixon. In an effort to toughen my skin and build mileage on rock, I spent sessions circling the crag, climbing every easy (and often quite chossy) piece of rock I could find. It was only a couple sessions later that I found my first real outdoor "project": Venom, V5. Every move felt really hard, and I was fairly confident that it would constitute the next level of bouldering for me.
Without a ladder, it was impossible for me to climb into anything past the first move, so every attempt was a ground attempt. I kept getting to a high left sidepull, but since I was already so fatigued, I never had enough time in that position to figure out how to match my right hand just above my left. I must have fallen at that spot about forty times.
After over a dozen sessions, before one particular go, I spotted a sizable crystal on the arete I'd never noticed before, and decided I'd try to stab my left foot out to smear on it. After hitting the high left sidepull, I karate-kicked to the crystal and... just missed it. But I was still on! I squeegeed my foot into place (y'all know what I'm talking about, right?) right on top of the crystal, got my weight on my left foot, matched my right hand over my left, then hucked for the glory jug.
Sending Venom was a huge psychological breakthrough for me. I had proven to myself that I could do "hard" (at least by my standard) moves. I no longer doubted my ability to try climbs of higher grades. The rest of the spring went quite well, culminating in back-to-back sends of Razorburn, V6 and Atlas, V7 (each my first of the grade). I was feeling good, and I was feeling stoked.
Summer 2024: Highballs and Slopers
During the summer, I decided to dedicate some time to strengthening my mind. I was still getting scared on easy top-outs, even just a few feet off the deck. I guess I figured that if I was going to get scared, there had better be a legitimate reason!
I started with some easy scrambling, climbing up the "downclimbs" on many of the boulders I'd done earlier in the year. Eventually, I moved into the V0 highballs, V1, and so on. Often I found myself in places where I couldn't commit to making any more moves, so I down-climbed, took controlled falls onto pads, anything to remind my body and mind that what I was doing was safe, and that I was still within appropriate limits.
Occasionally I found myself in a "probably best not to fall" situation where down-climbing didn't feel possible and letting go didn't feel like a smart option. (Nothing life-threatening, to be sure, but definitely in "badly rolled ankle" territory.) Maybe I didn't position the pads well for the top out sequence. Maybe I underestimated the height of the boulder, or how hard the top out sequence looked. Thankfully, the experience I've been slowly accumulating was starting to pay off. After a quick exploration of possible options, and a realistic assessment of my abilities, I was able to accept the current moment, acknowledge the fear, and quickly but cautiously continue on.
As summer progressed, conditions worsened, and highballing began to feel much sketchier, even over easy terrain. Adopting a slightly masochistic attitude, I decided that it would be a great time to start working on one of my biggest weaknesses: slopers. Earlier in the year, I'd been to Maibauer for a CCC event and gotten acquainted with the "sandstone-like granite". Most everything there felt really hard, even in cold temps. My sloper game was so weak.
I figured that projecting in bad conditions would only make the climbs feel easier in the fall and winter. Since conditions weren't on my side, I spent loads of time working out optimal body positions on slopey problems and looking for teeny tiny crystals in the rock where I could find a bit more purchase. Many small details (like which finger was on which crystal, wrist flexion, elbow flexion, and shoulder engagement) all factored in to some pretty brutal (but very rewarding) summer sends.
Knowing pain on Visor Low, V8.
The summer culminated in one slightly cooler weather forecast. I got up at 4am to drive out to Maibauer to session Visor Low, V8. In all my previous sessions, I still had never done either of the two crux moves, but I was feeling optimistic. I started working the crux moves in the dark, and by sunup I had finally done the first crux move a couple of times. The second crux move, I realized, wasn't a physical challenge, but a mental one. And a new mental challenge at that: the ability to tolerate pain.
The only beta I could foresee working at the time was to cut loose to a good right hand crimp. But it was sharp, and I was going to be going for a hell of a sideways ride if I caught that thing. But I knew what I needed to do, Iso took a few deep breaths and prepared myself mentally for what was to come by repeating a short mantra: "It's only pain." It made me laugh to say such a thing to myself, all alone at 6:30am, but it also focused my mind. I said it and laughed to myself until I believed I could tolerate the momentary pain, and on the next go I sent the boulder.
Fall 2024: Friends and First Ascents (?)
After an incredible summer season (yes, I'm claiming "summer season" is a thing), I was starting to feel a little bit lost in my climbing. Even with the certain promise of better conditions, I was afraid I couldn't live up my recent performances. I convinced myself I experienced a once-in-a-lifetime window of incredibly high stoke.
Burning the midnight oil on Luminary, V5. (FA?)
To take my mind off the self-imposed need to perform, I set my sights on some local boulders. Boulders that were, in fact, in my very own neighborhood! Having stuff that was nearby, potentially undone, and well under my max grade was a very welcome respite from hard bouldering. Many of the boulders did challenge me in terms of movement, and in the end I made a little guidebook for the area containing my many "first ascents".
While it is probable that some of these local boulder problems had been done before, my experience felt akin to someone finding and developing an area. With exactly zero information about the area, I spent lots of time identifying possible lines, cleaning problems, and working out cryptic sequences. In the end, that experience is what was really important to me.
And yet, I still felt an empty feeling in the pit of my stomach. It gnawed at me, and made me doubt whether all the success I'd had in the last year were meaningless. But it turns out the missing piece was a simple truth I'd forgotten: I love climbing the most when I can do it with other people.
I'd been prioritizing climbing alone because I'd incorrectly concluded doing specific, "hard" boulders in unseasonal conditions was more important than climbing with my friends. I'd put so much pressure on myself to perform against all odds that I'd neglected many of the people I love to do this hobby with. I decided I'd rather have a great day with friends and walk away with zero "V points" than to continue pushing myself so hard all alone.
Winter 2024: An Unexpected Send
And that brings our story up to this week. Below-freezing temps means that winter is officially upon us in North Carolina! (And what is that: snow?!) I'd been spending lots of time climbing with friends, and decided to take a couple of solo days out to go try a local boulder.
The very first time I went to check out the local boulders, I spotted an obvious, striking line. I walked up and touched the holds. I imagined the positions. Hell, I didn't even know if it had been done before! But I knew I wanted to do it. I looked past the unfortunately graffitied face and saw it for what it truly was: an incredible crimp line with some of the coolest nuanced movements I've experienced to date.
It was back in the summer when I first tried the boulder. The first move was pretty easy, but the second move felt impossible. One evening I rapped down the boulder to try everything after the second move. I didn't do a single move that session. I left feeling like this boulder was still a million miles away from my current abilities.
But as winter crept in, temps were getting good, and I was feeling psyched. I started researching the area, and found proof that someone had in fact done this boulder! It was just a single video of someone sending the climb, but I watched it obsessively. I burned the beta into my brain, trying to figure out all the nuances as though the climber was telling me all his secrets. (As it turns out, the guy climbs at my gym, so I probably could've just asked him in person ๐)
Early on in the projecting process, I brought my friend out to try the climb with me. We went out around 9:30pm and had a great session on it. We both did nearly all the moves on the boulder. The only move I couldn't put together was the second move, the same move that had felt impossible in the summer. It still felt just as hard.
But I wouldn't give up that easily! I decided to keep pushing on, finding subtleties in the start and end body positions, allowing myself to "mutate" to the rock. On my fourth session, I was able to finally execute the crux move. On my fifth session, I did the crux move twice and linked the boulder in three pieces. It was starting to feel so close! On my sixth session, I did the crux move multiple times and linked the boulder in two pieces!
Unfortunately, during that last and best session, I pulled a muscle in my right hip flexor. The first two moves revolve around an aggressive right heel hook at head height, and I overdid it. But after an incredible session, I was way too stoked and decided to have a full gym session the same day. I'll just take it easy on the ol' leg, I thought.
But my body couldn't handle the added physical stress. Mid-session I felt a weird "popping" sensation in my leg. Time to go home, I finally conceded while limping out of the gym. I didn't realize how bad it was until I woke up the next morning and could barely get out of bed. Lifting my right leg even a hair caused nauseating, excruciating pain to shoot down my entire leg. Every day, I stretched and focused on trying to recover, but the injury put me out for over two weeks, during which time I could only manage a couple easy sessions where I could hardly put weight on my right leg.
But as my leg started to feel better, I started to worry: what of Zurg Arete? I so badly wanted to go try it. To finish it before the end of the year. I felt so close, but mentally I felt like I was going to have to start over. I'd pushed myself too hard already in pursuit of that boulder. Was I rushing it by going back so soon?
Days went by, and I didn't climb. Temps were amazing, and I didn't climb. The forecasted rain held off, and I didn't climb. Over three weeks had passed since my leg injury. I woke up, and the weather was incredible. Probably the single best day to go try this boulder until the springtime.
Fuck it.
I showed up to Zurg Arete in a reasonably good headspace. I didn't have any expectations. I just wanted to climb on something cool that inspired me. But I was still afraid of getting hurt again. I spent the first hour or so simply stretching and warming up my legs. I got the heel into position, but didn't put weight on it. Then I put a little more weight on it, and a little bit more...
All the while, I was listening to a podcast. Aidan Roberts and Sam Prior were discussing the merits of having days on the rock where you just have fun. Days where there's no expectation of sending. Days where you can just enjoy doing what you love in nature.
I reflected as I readied myself physically. It was a perfect day out. The boulder in front of me was beautiful and inspiring. My cares and worries evaporated. As I pulled on, I knew I was going to have a great time.
2024 Summary
My main goal in writing this blog post was to reflect on an incredible year and consider the many lessons I've learned. There are too many joyful, heartbreaking, and perspective-shifting moments to capture in one blog post (even in one of this size). But if I had to sum up the most important lesson I learned this year, it is that limits are imposed by the mind, and that you can do things far beyond what you ever thought possible.
And just for fun, here's some short lists I put together! Thanks for reading ๐
Number of Ascents (2024), V0-V9
- V0: 100
- V1: 100
- V2: 93
- V3: 90
- V4: 66
- V5: 32
- V6: 18
- V7: 12
- V8: 2
- V9: 1
- Grand Total: 514 ๐ฅณ
Firsts of the Grade, V0-V9 ๐ฅ
- North Chewbacca, V0 (Moore's)
- Oh-V1-Kenobi, V1 (Moore's)
- Admiral Aretebar, V2 (Moore's)
- Pickles and Milk, V3 (Moore's)
- Donkey Kong, V4 (Moore's)
- Venom, V5 (Dixon)
- Razorburn, V6 (Dixon)
- Atlas, V7 (Dixon)
- Visor Low, V8 (Maibauer)
- Zurg Arete, V9 (Rosedale)
Favorite Climbs, V0-V8 ๐ฅฐ
- Black Betty, V0 (Moore's)
- Y-Axis, V1 (Dixon)
- Almost There, V2 (Moore's)
- Center, V3 (Maibauer)
- Lucifer, V4 (Dixon)
- Ansatzpunkt, V5 (Moore's)
- The Brain, V6 (Moore's)
- Stokes County Rodeo, V7 (Moore's)
- White Monster, V8 (Moore's)
Proudest Sends, V0-V7 ๐ค
- Left-Handed Stranger, V0 (Maibauer)
- Reach Hard Williams, V1 (Maibauer)
- Snake Head, V2 (Maibauer)
- White Stripes, V3 (Dixon)
- Globetrotter, V4 (Maibauer)
- Friction Addition, V5 (Moore's)
- Cop Out Low, V6 (Maibauer)
- Shrimp Boat Stand, V7 (Maibauer)
- Welcome to Dixon, V0 (Dixon)
- Hiddenite Lightning Strike, V1 (Maibauer)
- The Diamond, V2 (Moore's)
- Silver Linings Jump Start, V3 (Dixon)
- Plafond Face, V4 (Moore's)
- Super Creep, V5 (Hickory Nut Creek)
- Center Line, V6 (Maibauer)
- The Method Stand, V7 (Moore's)
Favorite FAs (?), V0-V5 ๐คจ
- Off the Wall, V0 (Rosedale)
- The High Life, V1 (Rosedale)
- Unsupervised, V2 (Rosedale)
- Rip Current, V3 (Rosedale)
- Book of Spells, V4 (Rosedale)
- Luminary, V5 (Rosedale)
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