The proj...

Yap, it´s pretty rad! I´ve been trying "Damengambit" at the Schleierwasserfall for three days now and it´s starting to feel doable! It´ll for sure be a matter of a few more days to build up the necessary power endurance but I think I have a chance of actually doing it!

Thanks to Bene Pirchmoser, who snapped the pic! Bright colors anyone? I wasn´t expecting pics being taken…

Out!

Fall update!

Okay, the past weeks have been quite a whirlwind! I had to leave my position in Hollfeld and have since gone back to being a teacher in Munich - zooming in for my final round of exams to come in December. I survived the first round of exams with psychology and pedagogics pretty well, scoring A in psychology and something else in pedagogics, making for a total grade of B - I can live with that. I´ve also gone back to commuting and well, it´s strenuous but I wouldn´t live in Munich, so it´s worth it. I need to be able to hike and climb and big city life would drive me nuts!
On the climbing front, I managed to climb one of my fall objectives last weekend! Considering that Deuterium is quite crimpy and pretty vertical except for a first section, for which I fortunately found some pinch beta, I´m pretty damn happy about that. I can´t deny that climbing yet another 5.13b / 8a graded route got me psyched just for the number reason as well. It wasn´t the primary reason, I wanted to find out if I could climb something that would give me a hard time but I also admittedly wanted to find out if I can climb that grade in a style that´s not my favorite!
Turns out I can!
Yesterday I went to the Zillertal with my new girlfriend - we haven´t made it official but to me, kissing has always been a sign of a relationship starting, so I´m pretty positive on that - and had a wonderful day, despite fucking up my knee same as I did in the valley back in 2009. Same as in 2009, I´ll stick to Libby Sauter`s advice: "Ibuprofen that shit!"
Here´s to you Libs! I´ve been doing it tonight and it has improved!
Let´s see what´ll be up next!
Out!

Old dog, new tricks...a retrospective!

Climbing at the Freiwand yesterday - despite pouring rain the upper tier remains dry for at least three days - I couldn´t help but smile looking at "Old dog, new tricks". The route and basically the complete lower tier were soaked and I wonder, actually doubt if they will dry up this season again.

When I bolted the line last year, I was immediately amazed by two things: how much the line fit my style of climbing and how much the project soon started to mean to me. Ripping of the only jug that was to be found on the climb`s upper part came as a devastation since it meant I´d surely not be able to climb the project relatively quick. It also meant something else however: it meant that I got really motivated, decided to train harder, focus more and return next season for a second round of attempts. What I had envisioned as a pretty fun, steep route I might be able to put down in two days had changed into something hard, into something that forced me to rethink what I wanted to achieve and how much I wanted to invest.

The rest is pretty much history. On my first day this year, I found out I could link all the moves - and sent the whole thing on August 18th, on a hot and humid day that wasn´t exactly made to send a hard route - or maybe it was? It for sure was the last day I´ve seen the line completely dry and actually the only time there wasn´t a single wet hold on the climb out of five days of effort I put into the rig this and last year. Maybe conditions suggesting I didn´t have a chance were what I needed to stay relaxed and to not put too much pressure on myself. I just gave it a go - and ended up clipping the chains. I gave myself a birthday present before my actual birthday on August 26th.

I also ended up seizing the moment that had to be seized. That´s what I´m most happy about. I had one chance - and used it. Usually I´m pretty good at screwing things up when it all comes down to seizing a moment or not but this time I was lucky. I´ve been lucky a few times since. Maybe I´ve finally found out how to make the most out of what talents I have...stubbornness, psyche...and a little bit of talent and vision thrown in for good measure.

Drip on, my baby! I can finally see the rain pour and not worry. Oh well, I guess I´m a very happy man. Consider yourself privileged if those are your personal worries. But why not soak up some happiness if it comes your way...

Peace, Chris

Old dog, new tricks - Photo update!

My good friend and excellent photographer Daniel Bähring took pics of me on my baby, my recently faed former project "Old dog, new tricks".
I´d like to thank all involved parties, Johannes Loidl for the belay today, Daniel Bähring for the pics and of course Thomas Rupprecht for all the patient belays during my workout sessions and during the send itself!

Old dog...new tricks!

Okay...writing this one feels pretty damn good! Yesterday was a day quite anxiously awaited after talking to Julian Meyer the days before - he had told me that Bergen was completely dry, meaning that my project - not one of the many but the big one, yes that one! - would probably be dry as well!
The project no longer is a project. It´s a route called "Old dog, new tricks". I sent the damn thing!
I bolted the line last year and got close to sending it - ripping of a crucial hold on my second day of efforts. Since I was scheduled to go to the Frankenjura for a year, I refused to quit, sucked it up and started working on the new and substantially harder upper crux - no dice! I didn´t even have a chance. I red tagged the project, vowed to return and did so about four weeks ago. I found out I could link all the moves from the fourth bolt on with one hang, actually climb the whole thing with one hang, so I was confident that I might pull the whole thing off sometime this year...if I ever managed to find it dry again! The project´s only downside: it gets wet easily...and takes very long to dry and be climbable again!
Yesterday, things were drier than ever! I wasn´t even sure of whether to attempt the project or not, considering it was quite warm and humid - not the conditions you want to have for wide pinches and slopers in a close to 40° overhang! But then I decided to hop on, put in the first three draws and shaking out before heading into the first hard section decided to make it a send go!
It all feel into place perfectly! I hit every move absolutely right, all heel hooks and tricks worked out perfectly and I clipped the chains! It´s the hardest thing I´ve climbed and calling solid 8a or 5.13b/c on it seems like a good guess! The fact that it´s a first ascent is the icing on the cake!
The line climbs out of a little cave! It´s the steepest and to me the most intriguing line of the area - and it offers amazing climbing on wide pinches and slopers, which are some of my favorite holds! As a little pun on me zooming in on my 31st birthday on August 26th this year, I decided to name the climb "Old dog, new tricks". This one taught me a lot about climbing and reminded me to keep up my level of psyche and determination at times when things were a little bit rougher on the edges. The next months will be tedious and full of exams, chores and at times frustration. I don´t mind. Been there, done that. So far, I´ve always come up with a new trick!
I´ll return to the rig as soon as possible for a little photo shooting session! Some pics will be posted as soon as I have them!

Photos of the day...

Okay...I´ve finally been mailed some photos. Last year we were shooting pics for a new guide book. After a whole day of climbing I was made to change my shirt and climb this one, which is a pretty classic enduro pitch! I was feeling pretty damn shot - psyched I don´t look half as tired as I actually was...

My personal best 2012/2013 - a subjective Frankenjura selection.

Okay, first of all, I´m not that qualified. I´ve seen a few, spending a year up here working as a teacher but anyway, if someone feels tempted to actually try them - I enjoyed them! Of course I´ve climbed more, those twenty however make the top list. They´re not ordered by difficulty and not ranked, just a very general list. I do think however that my descriptions actually are quite accurate.

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Dumbo / Klinge / 7b : Starting with a fun campus section, this one gets you a little pumped before a first crux on small holds - things get slabby here - leads you to a good shake out. Recompose and climb the final headwall, which is gnarly since you´ll have to pull some small holds. I call that a classic. Oh, the rock quality is amazing and the protection bomber.

Chicken Modul / Klinge / 7b+ : After a serious campus entry, a vertical section on amazing pockets leads to a good shake out. Use it, screwing up the overhanging but easy top part would suck. Actually, the top´s not that easy since you don´t have a lot for your feet. Except a heel hook. Which I´m good at.

Abseitsfalle / Püttlacher Wand / 6c : Obviously uber classic and it deserves to be. Vertical, techy and fingery...and run out! It´s not dangerous but falling before the second bolt has been clipped is not an option. Which is why many people leave it pre - clipped. Which I don´t condone, it´s an easy walk up to that clip (6a max!) and if you´re trying a classic, do it the classic way - or leave it! As soon as the second bolt has been clipped, you´re home free!

Jumanji / Andeltodrom / 7b+ : Short but surprisingly pumpy - and a new school classic. Why? Good pocket moves, steep, good protection and a frustrating crux up high. It´s a tad sharpish but that´s all that can be said against it! You can even out in your draws from the neighboring 6c warm up. The only downside is that you maybe will need to queue up - yap, new school classic!

Knupper Ged.-Weg / Rote Wand / 6b : Old school classic and hard as fuck! It´s just big holds but quite a number of those in a row. You can safely assume you can climb 6b if you can do this one. Almost 30 meters long and quite overhung, this one reminded me of classic enduro routes in France! It´s run out in the beginning - easy section here, you can use the first two bolts of the neighboring 6a to have some extra protection - but well protected on the upper part aka the business section. Full value!

Jonathan / Bandstein / 7a+ : Three stars in the book and I´m writing a description? Well, it makes sense!
The guide doesn´t tell you the following: the first crux comes between the second and the third bolt and if you feel like onsighting this, bring a good belayer. After that it´s pretty much just pumping on okay holds before you get to the ledge after more than 3/4 of the route. Oh well, crux coming up! You can quite easily clip the last bolt but making it past that and to the final chains clip turns out to be quite cruxy after more than 30 metres of pulling.

Beavis & Butthead / Diebesloch / 7b+ : Ultra steep, ultra powerful and more or less pumpy. Oh well, and notoriously wet. If it´s dry, it´s amazing. Too bad it isn´t dry too often!

Kalypso / Loreley / 6c+ : A slightly more obscure crag - with amazing routes! All are pretty run out, pretty much not chalked up and offer an interesting mix of crimpers and pockets. This one´s the best of all of them - imho! I didn´t even try the crag´s 7c+, it was wet and locked like a good opportunity to deck on a ledge, which I´m scared of.

Strohdach / Weissenstein / 7b+ : Uber classic. Polished. Not well protected on the first 6 meters - that´s when you get to clip the first bolt. Bring a strong head or a pad. Or leave the first bolt pre - clipped as I did. From that point onwards, it´s simply put big moves on good holds. Oh well, John Bachar got the FA. Here´s to you, Johnny Rock! RIP!

Rocky´s Home Zone / Lichtenfelser Dach / 7c : Okay, I might be biased. Roofs just rule my world! This one is fun - if it´s dry! Apparently, it seldom is! A three bolt intro leads to a fun and very tension oriented roof boulder on slopey holds. Heelhooks might help - they actually do! Again, I might be biased, since I was the only guy heel hooking on that thing out of three people trying it that day! I was the only one to send though, so I guess I was right! HAH! The top needs some resistance, the last pinch drop knee is a potential heartbreaker...

Saus und Braus / Klinge / 6b+ : Well, another Klinge one...for a reason! This one´s pretty classic since it starts with a fun campus problem, gets you pumped, offers some monos in the middle part and presents you with a mean shut down crux right at the top - I like that pattern! The route´s two neighbors, Bärway to Heaven and Basic Instinct could be on the list as well. Oh Klinge goodness!

Muskelprotz / Stadelhofener Dunkelkammer / 7c : Okay, it´s a traverse. But: it has a route grade and climbs like one, so it makes the list! Steep, good holds, burly moves, pumpy! I like!

Strahlentod / Hintere Stadelhofener Wände / 6b : As good as it gets. Classic! An easy intro, followed by a hard traverse section with the route´s crux hold, a two finger pocket. Pull it and climb to glory! 6bs don´t get better than this!

Käptn ` Nemo / 7a / Jules Verne Wand : Used to be the easy warm up on the wall...quite a good one at that. About 15 meters of 6c climbing take you to a good shake out, from where on you have to climb an overhanging head wall. Clip the chains, look down and be amazed. That´s called a line! Oh, rock and protection are superb.

Woodcocks in Time / Hintere Stadelhofener Wände / 6b+ : Okay, you can deck. Okay, you could find easier 6cs, quite a few actually! So why climb it? Because it´s classic and damn good. It´s not over until you´ve clipped the chains. Routes never are! But this one remains straight in your face. I climbed it slightly wet...this might have contributed, but I had to pull for this one! And damn, it was worth it!

Back to the beginning / Altes Schloß / 7a : This one´s for boulderers...a hard traverse section from the first to the second bolt, from that point on it´s a cruise to the top. That´s what I thought. Turns out I was wrong. I´ve never shook out so much on a 7a! It was the last route of the day but hey...IT FELT HARD!

International Bolt Conspiracy / Rote Wand / 6c : Full Value. Easy intro to a hard vertical section to an amazingly overhung headwall! Long, sustained and what a line! If you want to put in your draws for a flash go, you need to do Knupper Ged.-Weg. Which can be found in the list as well. Yap, two amazing ones right next to each other. That´s called a quality crag!

Blutspur / Diebesloch / 6c+ : Wanna get pumped? Wanna climb a roof? Wanna be fooled by all the comments on climbing.de? Well, it´s not over after the first bolt. It´s about to get hard! I might have missed a few tricks since I onsighted it but that didn´t feel too easy!

Westwand / Rotenstein / 6c : Yap, techy, vertical and fingery can be cool! What does it need to have? Old school protection on bomber glue ins, a few monos and a fun shoulder crux move! Oh, let´s not forget the easy mantle!

Wishing on a Star / Terrarium / 7b : Well, hard as fuck! Maybe because I´m keeping the proposed grade despite it being nonsense but anyway. Pockets in a 45° overhanging shield. Sharp ones. My beta sucks, I have two goes until that damn right hand pocket slices my finger. Oh well...AMAZING!

Projects...

Well, I´ve always been a project climber. Today, I took the opportunity to work on two of them, one, the one in the picture I bolted last year, the other one about two weeks ago. I knew that the one shown above was hard but kinda hoped the other one wouldn´t be and more of a sendable-in-a-day thing. Turns out I was wrong. It climbs amazingly, both actually do, one being really overhung, pinchy and slopey - the one in the pic, the other aka the new one essentially boiling down to a really crimpy traverse section. Challenge accepted. I reached a new high point on the overhanging one today, so it was a good day. I´m hoping for some cooler weather...
We´ll see what happens tomorrow. I´m Zillertal bound, projects there as well...time to finish some off!

Wrapping things up...

Well, that was a fun year. It wasn´t all fun, life never is, but on a general basis, I couldn´t have asked for a better year in Hollfeld. Simply put, I really grew to like the classes I taught, even though at times they probably struggled with my style, that puts an emphasis on enabling kids to ask the right questions rather than displaying answers on the quick. I don´t think that we can provide all the answers - what we need to do in school is enable teenagers to ask the right questions and come up with ways to answer them on their own, supervised, coached, monitored, whatever. I don´t believe that handing out check lists is the right thing. I don´t believe that grading everything is the right way. I think that we carefully and measured by common sense have to help young people realize that they indeed know something - and if not, they should feel welcome to ask.
Enough of that. I can spew all these things out in my thesis. For now it should be sufficient to say that all my classes rocked, we got along well - I think so - and that some pupils improved in a major way. Not just skill wise but also personality wise. That´s all I can ask for.
In terms of climbing I didn´t get to climb as many projects as I wanted to. That´s life. My preferred rope partner broke her foot and my other rope partner blew his shoulder. I climbed a ton of boulders though, sent a bunch of ultra classic Frankenjura lines and thus won´t leave with a bad feeling at all. I didn´t get any pics, didn´t see lots of visits by my friends - talking about going somewhere seems all the rage these days - but had fun anyway.
I guess that´s what matters in the end.

Some of my most memorable boulder achievements can be seen in the following short clips...

http://vimeo.com/58125772
http://vimeo.com/54098868
http://vimeo.com/53609734

Signing out.
Peace!

Frankenjura Pics...

Okay...so I have been mailed some of the pics that were taken last weekend and here there´re some. I managed to pull of a second go ascent of an ultra classic, steep pocket pulling fest faed by John Bachar in 1982. Psyched. I woulnd´t have bet on myself after I almost froze my fingers off hangdogging it, so I threw a round of cappuccinos later that day! Officially psyched! After a tedious day of prepping for my upcoming exam next Thursday, I´m allowing myself a break! Counting down the days... Out!

Soon...

Soon...the season will begin! It actually started this weekend, with a few of my friends visiting, which made for some fun days cragging. I wasn´t feeling in top shape due to a minor cold - small wonder, considering the weather this "spring" so far - but nevertheless, it´s all too obvious that spending the winter bouldering in my beloved Frankenjura caves has left me quite in shape! I have an important exam to pass on April 11th and then it´ll be on! The past weekend I actually managed to second go send one of my lifetime wishlist routes and even got some pics taken, which was nice! They´ll be up as soon as I get them! Out!

Bring your Guns!

Okay, I brought mine. Early in 2012, Tom and I put up a slew of new problems right next to the road...turns out, those were some hidden gems we hadn´t checked out all the years. One of the problems put up soon became a nemesis of mine. I tried it once in good conditions but then gave up to save skin for Yankee Bayonet, of which I got the FA that day. All other attempts either occurred in bad conditions or were marred by my increasing frustration about the problem which felt harder every time I tried it. After drinking a bit too much celebrating New Year´s, I hiked up around noon on Jan. 1st and...just did it. It took two goes. Admitted, it was cold and sunny aka prime conditions but anyway, the epic is over. I can finally walk up to that boulder and not feel instantly compelled to try it despite being annoyed the moment I set my eyes on it.