Stepping out from the Dug out with the Bases Loaded

It's a great feeling to come back to something that felt impossible for you and to have it feel possible. It's a good reminder of your progress and how quickly you improve when you really work at it.

I have a long standing project at the Road House in the Dug out cave that I went back to try again today for the first time in maybe a year or so. It's basically a link up of two problems I established about 2 or 3 years ago.' The extended line ' which is a long 15 move v7 into the crux of 'fast ball v9' which originally was a very low percentage double dyno move from two horrible holds to the sloping lip of the cave. At the time it was the only way I could see of doing it and basically threw myself at it for weeks on end until i finally stuck it. Then I started to work the link which for about 100 shots went like this;

Cruise through the fifteen or so moves that i had wired only to fall off slapping the finish hold. Arrggh the frustration! until finally i cracked it and left it alone until now.

So i was very happy when i worked out a different finish today. It wasn't that i had missed the holds or anything I just think at the time I wasn't strong enough to use them. It kind of consists of crossing under your body to a poor undercling then punching out to this little arete on the lip of the roof and slapping out that until you gain the lip. It's not easier by any means just more probable for me and now there are two ways to do fast ball to suit your taste.

I'm really excited to get back and finish the whole link off now and see it through to the finish. It is definitely the longest FA project i've had on the coast and would be awesome to realize that little dream.

All this project talk got me thinking about some of the hard unclimbed projects about the coast. They're out there ripe for the taking, just waiting for someone to come along a nab them.

Here's a few that come to mind
(I've pre-named them in my head, fucking sad I know)

The Window, The fort woy woy
Starts from a big hole then gain a slopey pinch, match a battle a desperate top out.

Sparrow, Blackwall Mt
Below the Kit Kat wall on Mt Blackwall is one of the best v7's on the coast, The Crow established by Gary Hamilton many years ago. To the left of this is it's angry little brother, come out the little roof on a variety of ok holds till you round the bulging face using a heel hook on a spike and two nasty nasty crimpers.

Pit Brick boulder Arete proper, Lara street
This has to be one of the best and hardest undone lines. Start as for the excellent mick's arete but instead of escaping right to the face, blast directly up the steep slopey arete.Will be v11 and up.

Mega pinch project, Lara Street
Also on the pit brick boulder, slightly over hanging face climbed via various bad pinches. The desperate top out has been done by Jas Piper as 12 monkeys V4 and is hard in it's own right.

Eldorado, Golden section
From the right of the cave climb into the finish of Goldie Horn via some crazy roof moves

Challenger Right, The cape
Similar to the classic v4 challenger left but start from the right side of the arete, has proven much harder.

Old man river proj, River bed
Then finish of the established traverse 'river of dreams v5' which finishing on a slot below the lip of a roof. Make a big move to the slopey lip then some how gain the better holds higher up on the face to to out. Will be classic!

Riot Act, Pearl Jam Cave
The link up of the hard v8 'dissident' then traverse left and finish up the dyno 'yield v5'

Road Side boulder, Wagstaffe
The obvious hard line on the first boulder you pass on the walk in right next to the road cutting. From the back of the black cave traverse out the right side to gain the big slopey break then punch the top without falling on the road.

Bases Loaded, Road House
Hopefully soon to be completed link up of 'Extended line' v7 and 'Fast Ball' V9

So many more too! My brain hurts, I'm going to bed.

The Hairy Banana

It's been a very eventful week! It all started with me booking my flights to Switzerland for the end of the year. It's really exciting to have it to look forward to, It's a place I've always wanted to visit and I'm sure it will live up to all expectations :)

Then it was off to the airport on Tuesday to drop off Katy, she's off to Europe for six weeks with her friends. It was sad seeing her go but I'm sure the time will fly by and she will have a great time. So it's just me and bear holding down the fort for a while.

So after a disgraceful week of late nights and weekend work I ended up at the Villas with a couple of problems in mind. The first was 'Hairy Joe's Banana Shack v11' a funny name for a funny problem which consists of a really awkward first move to gain a decent 1 pad edge then it's just a matter of getting stood up and lunge for the finish hold. I finally managed to send after sticking the crux first move last time and blowing the finish ;( argh silly man.

Then it was time to get down to business on Contact v12. This is coming along really well and I think next time, fresh I might have a good chance of finishing it, fingers crossed.

I've been training a bit differently over the past 3 months and it feels like it's working well. So now I've got 4 frantic weeks of hopeful sending then it's back through the grinder till Cressciano.

Hitting the top of Hairy Joe

My dog Bear

Slip Stream

I checked out a new cave underneath Woy Woy Bay road Yesterday, that I dubbed Slip Stream. I believe Anthony Alexander bouldered here years ago although i'm not sure of the extent, maybe next time I catch up with him I can get some more info. Any how I'm really excited because the rock is solid and really nicely featured and all steep and there will be some really hard lines here! It's a long low ball cave with rock texture that is reminiscent of Crumbly in Sydney. The main draw back is that it gets alot of run off from the road so I think it will be wet alot but it could be a great summer spot when it's dry cause it gets no sun. I'm hoping that with a bit of cleaning it will be a great area so I'll keep you posted.

Canberra

A bit of belated post from last weekend.

Headed down for a quick Canberra trip with Doug Roden, Stu Ellis & Simon Stevens. We drove down Friday night and stayed at Sutton, there's some nice little cabins there we've stayed at a couple of times now. After a freezing night we headed over to Corrin Dam Road in the morning and started off on george's boulder where we met up with Janz & Ashley, then (after I got lost, don't ask me how) up to the Glitz boulder to finish the day off.

We all had a good day & agreed to come back soon.
Janz had a good day sending Phone Sex v8 forwards then backwards, Shape Shifters v10, Cerebro v11, vendetta v7 and the jokerv6. He was also close to a line we came up with, starting up then joker then reversing Cerebro. Not a bad day at the office.
Stu Managed the joker, Doug did joker and Phone sex, Simon sent Phone sex, joker and was making some really good links on Cerebro.
I managed to climb phone sex backwards which we dubbed 'reverse charges' and got a P.B. on Cerebro falling just short of the end.

spooged

Me and my good friend James Crowther headed back down to sissy this morning. We got there early and were excited to find conditions to be excellent! After a lengthly warm up and some hold drying I finally sent spooged v10. I was really happy cause I had fallen from the final move so many times over the past few months, i ended up doing a bit of a variation climbing through using the Mavis sequence and finishing direct. I think it's about the same grade wise, the mavis sequence is a bit harder but more controlled for me.

James had a good session too, he's been working on vitamin C v6 and managed to stick the last move climbing through from about half way. It won't be long till he has it sent i'm sure.

I've also added some access details for Dark Forrest to the guides. Topo's will be soon