Flower Power

Hey Guys,

Well since my last post about triangles and using them to affect my climbing performance, I have been over in Germany. Unfortunately two days before I was due to fly over I woke up unable to lift my left shoulder above my head. Without going into too much detail mainly for fear of exposing my lack of anatomy knowledge, my shoulder was I suspected being impinged during a flexion movement. A panicked trip to a physio ruled out a more serious tear, well as far as they can without a MRI, however it still left me partially crippled. Aside from lifting my arm issues, I couldn't push away with it either. Essentially pushups or packing bags with heaps of stuff were out of the question. Great timing for travel.

Anyway, long story really short. 

I've only just started climbing in the last week or so, after 5 weeks of rotator cuff exercises and a massage ball. Apart from some fun sessions in some of the best climbing gyms I've seen (Boulderwelt Munich - East and West) thanks to my mate Dave Cato, my return to climbing is a punishing regime of Frankenjura pockets. Bloody hard way to get back into the game. Needless to say I've not sent anything hard, haven't had the greatest time cause of the lack of power, but it's all part of the game. I just need to remind myself of that some times, while climbing some awesome classics put up by Kurt Albert and of course Wolfgang Guellich. 

A few days before I woke up with dead arm, I did have a good run with a few routes back home. 

I was able to send Snap Dragon, 31 - possibly the most amount of attempts falling at the same move ever. Fell from the last hold more times than I want to think of. Leaps and Bounds, 31 a little Dave Jones route on the Bluffs at Araps. And my hardest send to date, Flower Power, 33. Malcolm bolted it, Nathan climbed it and its a classic test piece. I can only think of 3 people who have done it and maybe a 4th (5 now I guess) - Nathan Hoette, Dave Graham, Nalle Hukkataival and Alex Megos? I know that the visiting crushers did it quickly, but yeah they are strong as, well world class crushers. 

I had come really close to doing Flower Power last year, having linked the entire crux to the top several times. However I got sick with the shingles and had to leave it for a bit. The plan for 2014 was to get back to that level. With the amount of rain we had over winter I didn't think it was going to happen. But if you'd read my last post you would have had a glimpse into the game plan. Diamonds need a shit ton of pressure, and well leaving it until 2 days before I left the area was enough pressure I guess. Oliver Miller, Scotty Clark and I headed up to Muline during a brief break in the rain. Oliver and I had already taken shelter in my Van for 30 mins after an early attempt at walking up. The eagles were out for my first attempt -  no one ever sends when they are cruising around. Next go, they stayed in bed and I knew it was on. So psyched. Here is a little video that Oliver and I threw together from that day.

And excuse the shitty animations - learning how to make stuff on a rest day with limited internet access and battery power is difficult haha. 

Sweet, more news from Germany when I have something to let you know about. 

- Grosey

2 out of 3 Ain't Bad

Well the last 6 weeks has flown by in a little bit of a whirl that seemed to drag on forever. Oxymoronic I know, however it should make more sense in a minute.

After finishing up as a full-time paramedic in Horsham at the start of July I moved into my van in order to save some money before heading off to Germany and North America. The next two months consisted of a trip to Nowra in NSW and multiple short stints in Melbourne. I also managed to secure a month of casual “work” in Stawell for all of August. While this helped make the bank account look a little healthier for the trip, it simultaneously made it feel I was never going to leave. In the end I became complacent and although tickets were booked I took a long time to getting around to things like cancelling contracts or getting teeth pulled, which I left, typically, to the last minute…well the last 2 days anyway.

As mentioned in my last post this winter for some reason I found it very difficult to get up anything. I would warm up well, (maybe too well?) but still numb out halfway up routes or in the middle of cruxes. I’ve now concluded winter and summer are just wastes of time for climbing in the Wimmera. Yeah sure you get the odd good day or two. My hardest routes last year were done in almost 40 degrees but it takes a lot of energy and psyche to keep pushing through when you’re sweating or that said shivering.  In the midst of this, I had several conversations with Gerd and Grug that at times got a little complicated. I.e. how much rest, types of training and nutrition and how they have affected what is happening in a real time scenario. I think my time as an Ambo, and a chilled one at that, has allowed me to simplify things to be at least for me a little easier. So I started formulating a new performance assessment tool. Fancy name for something that is really basic but I have put into practice for the last 8 weeks and found it to be helping. It is really early days though, and it something I’ve done for myself. Here it is, but if you don’t like it that cool cause I do.

2 out of 3 Ain’t Bad or the Triangle Theory

Basic premise is this;

Performance (having fun is part of this) can be broken into 3 categories that all interrelate, I’ve included some examples.

Physical Health State

-          Nutrition

-          Weight

MS paint to the Rescue Injuires

-          Sleep

-          Skin
-     Injuries

2.       Mental Health State

-          Psyche

-          Stress

-          Fatigue

-          Motivations

-          Peers

3.       Environment

-          Location

-          Crags

-          Climbing Partners

-          Weather

As I said these are very simplistic but this is the key, they are like post-it notes that you can remind you of the details later. So now imagine that each of the three categories is a point of an equilateral triangle, and the inside of the triangle represents your best current performance potential, as in right now.

Cool, you got it now right? Well I’ll continue if you’re a little slow. So if you were to say feel totally psyched and come of a couple of months of training but the next week or weather looked like Ireland, then your performance triangle may  be skewed a little. See where I’m going with this slowpoke?

Here’s the beauty of it – 2 out 3 Ain’t bad. Having an equilateral triangle is far from impossible, but for most people it doesn’t make up the majority of the year. I am talking from personal experience here, so if you are a lucky S.O.B. and have a perfect threesome of arbitrary headings then you can piss in your perfect hat somewhere else. At least for me there are times when I’m tired or unpsyched or just can’t be fucked. Generally we are also anchored to our location due to work commitments or family etc, one thing that I am now in the position to have a great effect on, since resigning work.

In practice

My winter performance was less than desirable, while I could have trained on the woody more I found it difficult too due to working late hours and there being no power at the gym. On top of that with Malcolm injured and Dave J getting in early while kids were at school, it was often a solo head torch affair. That said I thought I was physical in ok shape. I was psyched when Gerd and Grug came down but after 6 weeks of being cold, wet and stressed about van conversion/job resignation/trip planning and money I lost this psyche. Performance went pear shaped. This was the first time I implemented the triangle.

What was working in my favour?

-          Physically ok

What wasn’t?

-           Environment (weather), Psyche (stress, motivation)

What could I do to most easily/quickly get 2 out 3?

-          Go somewhere warmer.

 So I went up to Nowra in NSW where the sun was shining and the crags offered accessible routes close to the car. After a severe case of mild man flu and a few days of more moves in a day than a month in the Grampians, I was able to get my bum up Beefmeister 32 at Rosie’s.  The send was one of the best moments I have had in a while. I had tried this route a couple of years ago, and made a trip up last winter to do it but got totally shut down for the 2 days I was on it. Initially it felt pretty hard but I put that down to the cold I had. I ended up resting several days out of my week that I was there, and extended my trip by half a day. 

The send came on the last day I could possibly stay before driving 12 hours back to Stawell for work the next morning. The sun was all over the wall and I felt a little bit of last day pressure. I didn’t want to make that drive south without having climbed anything again. However while nervous the triangle told me that not only I was psyched to be there, that physically I was in good condition and conditions weren’t all that bad either. While the route was in the sun, the crucial sloper still had some shade on it. I had 2/3 of my triangle working for me and the 3^rd wasn’t far off. Set up and walked it. Felt so good. Pressure or no I just had a shit ton of fun and the drive to work for a 7am start didn’t even phase me.  So Rad.

Middle of Crux Sequence of Beefmeister 32

So, if you are like me in the past, and get bogged down on specifics, like how many pullups you should do in a session to do particular problem or how many heads of broccoli you should allow yourself to eat before cragging the next day, then this system could help you.

Give it a go and let me know what you think. Remember it is just a simple tool to help identify the easiest thing to work on.

Peace out Bitches

Bring on Spring

If you've been watching Game of Thrones, you'd be aware that winter can be hard. Well it seems like that's the implication of the morose catch phrase. And while I wouldn't say its been a hard as nails winter in the Wimmera, it hasn't been the rainbows and lolly pops everyone had been hoping for. That said I feel that I have had some experiences that I will learn from and that is pretty sweet.

Gerd on Flying Duck 32. Photo J.Kinder

Last post, I'd just sent Lord of the Rings 31 at Mount Arapiles. Such a sweet route. That was the last route of note that I have sent. Long time between drinks I would say. What happened? Well I was feeling pretty strong coming of a good cycle of hangboarding and campusing and my goal has been to have another nudge at Flower Power 33 at Muline. I'd come some close last year and felt that I was stronger, at least in the fingers. Instead of getting straight on it, I'd planned to do a couple of other routes first. Up first Flying Duck, 32. After working out a silly sequence I was falling off with my hand slapping the last hold you'd accept falling off. A few times of this, I moved on to Snap Dragon, 31. This sweet climb crosses some totally inspiring terrain and finishes with a hard heel or pounce move. I feel its like a 28 into a V5 or something like that. I'm not good with breaking things down like that, but after a quick session to work the moves, I then fell off the last move more times than I want to imagine. Off the rope I could do the move in about 3 different ways, from the ground, even when not pumped I could only watch as the lip fell away for another time. The Vertical Life boys took some footage while we were all there and used it in their promo video. The move looks easy. But, the hold that you use with your left hand is so pox, that I guess a slight drop in body tension makes the difference from the ground. Frustration to the max, only compounded by the fact that it was finger numbing cold, or wet for the last 6 weeks. Out at Mt Arapiles, I'd also tried Leaps and Bounds, 31. A Dave Jones testpiece on the back of the Bluffs. I found that I was too short and too tall for the two obvious sequences, and have come up with a slightly imaginative way to get through. Again, my high point was probably the last 'non-suicidal if failed' move.  

My Flapper from hitting the last move of Snap Dragon

So what else has been going on......

1) I quit my full time job - kinda stressful

2) Sold my Navara - stressful

3) Turned 30 - stressful although the party was bloody awesome

4) Converted a VW van - yep stressful at times

5) Found out that last few months of planning to be in South Africa was a waste - stressful

6) Moved house for the 20th time. - not as bad as some of the other shite

In a nutshell its been a hectic few months. I will admit that I can be a stress head at times, and all those things happening in such a short time sucked. Particularly number 5) as going to South Africa had, I can admit now been the driving force behind every thing else - all part of the plan so to speak. Except turning 30, I guess that was always gonna happen. Among all that I have hung out with a great bunch people, locals and travelers alike and have learned a heap from them. Gerd Dieter and Nicholas 'Grug' Perndt who I spent most of my time climbing with this winter, both know how to try really, really hard. That's something that I often forget to do. Watching them climb making all sorts of noises has been an inspiring wake up call. I also hung out with Joe Kinder (who I'd seen in videos for as long as I've been climbing) and Lindsey Tjian from the states. They were a ton of fun and so psyched, and similarly inspiring, with both ticking their respective projects on their last day of climbing in Australia, Joe in the pouring rain. So sick. It will be great to hang out with them again soon. Recently Lee Cossey and Andrea Hah came to Natimuk for a week or so and it was great hanging out with them again. I used to climb a lot with Andrea and it is great so see how strong she's gotten with my own eyes. So rad. Lee, well Lee is always bloody good. It was also super sweet to be able to bounce some training/climbing ideas off these guys. It reiterated that for me to continue to become a better/smarter climber I need to be surrounding myself with more like minded people - I'm not always as self motivated as I hope to be.  

Lee and Andrea - just cause they hate #hashtags

Shit, reading that back makes it sound so sad and gloomy.....on the contrary. I've had some great fun and meet some great people. New friends, and getting to know old ones better is something that I really cherish in climbing.

Simon Mentz re-enacting the squeeze drama

So, the next little while looks good. I'm up in Nowra at the moment, trying to get a bit of volume in for a week before heading back to the Wimmera for a few weeks of casual work. Then it gets exciting, remember how I mentioned I'd quit my full time job as a Paramedic, well for good reason. I'm going to finally do something I should have done years ago and give climbing a real good go. Not just moving to Natimuk, but traveling more and consciously making changes in order in improve. Natimuk was just what I needed at the time, access to climbing on rock, more than 4 days every few months that I was getting when working in Melbourne. And its been a great ride there, awesome people when they are around haha, and the best rock in Australia within 1 hours drive. Time to move on for a bit, and first stop is Germany. In the spirit of attacking my weaknesses, I'll be heading to the Frankenjura to get my arse handed to me by the powerful pocket pulling. After that, over to the States to learn how to climb on granite and cracks of course. 

Always inspired by the suburban feel - Nowra

Home for next while. - Blue Lucy

That's as far as I've planned but shits getting real now. My "normal" life is packed away in storage and I'm living in my van for next 5 weeks until I leave. Waking up at the moment with only climbing on the agenda and I'm loving it. 

Gerd on my Porta-Gym setup - complete with rings and weights

I plan to write more often now that I've gotten over my winter blues. Till next time 

- Grosey

Some Climbing News

So it's probably time I shared some climbing news.

Well summer has been an interesting one. After a mentally testing few months after my South African jaunt where I effectively 'one-sat' more than a handful of bucket list routes, I needed a break. I had already planned on having December off completely considering how busy that time of the year can be. My body didn't last that long however and by mid-November I was run down and sick. I contracted shingles from a patient at work - still not sure how but no more than 2 weeks after I dealt with him, I had an inexplicable pain down my left side. It felt as though I'd broken my ribs again. A few days later a full blown herpes rash. Yuck. To wrap this disgusting tale up, it last almost 9 weeks. I could hardly sleep, the nerve pain was too much and the slightest touch of a cotton sheet was enough to have me wide awake. Needless to say that whole time I didn't do any climbing. January came and went - hot as shit (up to 48deg) and then Rainbow Serpent festival which took out another week plus recovery. 

Originally 10 x each grade. Counting is hard

So 2014 climbing really didn't start until February, and it was a slow start at that. What little muscle I'd had before being sick had evaporated in the Wimmera heat. My head was still a way off trying anything too hard and it was still hot. Thus I came up with the idea to make a short video about a few of the bolder or obscure routes at Mt Arapiles. However I needed to some gear placing practice, and to do this set myself the challenge.  The 11 routes of each grade (no repeats) at Araps became the game. And what a fun game it has been. So many new routes I'd never done before. I've not done too many in the last 5 weeks or so due to work and other commitments that have taken me away from Natimuk but prior to that I was really getting my head back for onsighting gear routes. It could be said my interest in this style has been piqued. Originally I was hoping I'd have the video finished before the Goatfest short film festival, however for a few reasons it became apparent it wasn't going to happen just yet. The main reason is that I felt a little bit rushed and those routes are not to be rushed. 

Al Robertson on FA of First Blood, 31

Anyway the last couple of weeks I've been back in sport climbing mode, heading down to the Gallery for a few days to build up some fitness. After a shocking first day on the steep stuff I was able to run a bunch of laps on some previously done routes and repeat a link up of Chasing the Shadow and Monkey Puzzle aptly named Chasing the Monkey 29. Back at the mount a couple of days ago, I was also able to repeat Al Robertson's new wave classic, First Blood 31. Al bolted this route about 18 months ago on Voodoo Buttress, and I've been meaning to get my arse up it ever since he climbed it. He was actually bolting it the afternoon I was cleaning All the Kings Men V8 and fell off the top, breaking 3 ribs. You can see why there is a deep connection for me with this route. I'd tried the route about a year ago after Al had got up it. I was able to do it in a couple of sections pretty quickly however I found it very conditional with any moisture in the air leading to a slippery gaston at the beginning and subsequent failure. After an extended break I went back to it this year and found it to be a lot more within my comfort zone. Two weeks ago I had a quick reconnaissance and then came back to it this week, firing off the boulder first tie in. I'm talking it up cause its a great little route, and one that had been looked at by a lot of people before Al put the effort in. Not so many classy hard routes at the mount get put up, so get on it peeps. Below is a little video of it.

So next couple of weeks I'm going to be continuing with the fitness bandwagon as for half of May and June I'll have time off work. Of course the plan is to knock-off some skeletons from last year. Beyond that, I'm heading back to South Africa for some routes, boulders and to meet a girl before heading to the states. Not sure of how long I'll be gone but it's time for some adventures. 

Keep checking in for some more news in next couple of weeks. 

- Grosey

A New Blog From Your Old Friend.

G'Day Folks,

 Firstly let us get the official stuff out of the way;

Welcome to my NEW blog at 1 Forty Four Climbing.....not my first, but hopefully my last reincarnation.

 If you were unlucky enough to be subjected to my anarchic rants about issues in the Victorian climbing scene that have little if no cause for discussion you would remember the Captains of Crush blog.
The "Captains" blog started out as 4 friends who, while sharing some photos, videos and news could hold up a mirror and stick out our tongues. It was fun to write about stuff in that way. However some people have thought I took it too far, including some of the original members of the blog. One whom within an hour of my final post as my alter ego Barry, the last on the blog ever, informed me that he would no longer participate. I also received nasty messages from people I'd considered friends and who knew the context the blog existed in. I was disappointed to think that the original point of our jamboree had been lost. And although I considered reviving the 'Captains' blog, re-reading old posts still makes me giggle to myself, I feel that it's time to move on and at the very least not drag others down with me. More recently I wrote a number of posts about my movements on my sponsors blog Expedition Equipment Blog . However since my Rocklands trip last year and subsequent musings, I've not done much worth writing about and as a result I have forgotten the password. Easier to start a fresh, write what I think and hope people feel it's worth a read.

What do I hope to achieve with 1 Forty Four?

 I'm not really sure. I have been looking through some of the old posts from the last 5 years and they have brought back a lot memories. Some merely of the topic being ranted about, some more hazy rum filled recollections of evenings spent hamming it up, such as photoshopping James Kassay's head onto Bear Grylls' body. While I don't write very well I do find it cathartic and to some degree it's like a diary, albeit a public one, that I can look back on in the future.

So stay tuned for some climbing news, photos and videos that I want to get back into. I have some plans for next couple months and then some big ones come winter.

 - Grosey