European Youth Cup Update

Route 1, EYC Voiron

After a fantastic start to the EYC in Ratho with a 4th place I must admit to being disappointed in my results at EYC Voiron and Linz. I get really nervous when competing abroad and have been trying to work on this, taking positives away from each experience.

This weekend I was competing in Linz, Austria. I didn't climb as well as I would have liked on my first route but I managed to stay relaxed and focussed on my second managing a credible joint 6th on that route. Although still disappointed in my overall position I really enjoyed the trip as my good friends Sarah Pashley and Billy Ridal (who I went on my Spanish trip with) were also competing. The weather was hot (35 degrees!) but the hotel had an outside pool so we spent Friday relaxing and swimming after our long journey to Linz. The food was also excellent and I tried some of the local Linztorte.

Only Jonny Stocking made the finals in Junior male and finished in 8th place - well done Jonny! On reflection though I am happy to have the opportunity to compete for team GB at the European Youth Cup and must remind myself that I am on a long term athlete develpoment program.

Our flight was delayed by 1 hour on the way back so we didn't arrive at Manchester until 12.30am. It was 3.30am Monday before I got back home and I had to sit my GCSE English speaking exam  that same day!

Next stop the British Bouldering Championships at Cliffhanger next weekend where I hope to retain my Junior title...... can't wait!

P.S. Thanks to Wild Country for my new T-Shirts!

RocFest 2012

RocFest qualifying route

Yesterday I took part in the RocFest bouldering comp at Rockover in Manchester (www.rockoverclimbing.co.uk). The junior qualifiers started at 10.30 with 3 and a half hours to climb 30 routes. I managed to gain 228 points out of a maximum of 300 and finished in 1st place after the qualifiers. The routes were well set and some were very challenging.

After spending around 40 minutes in isolation whilst the routes were set for the Junior finals we were off again. I was last out to climb (it was in reverse order form qualifying position) and flashed all my routes which put me in first place. Afterwards, I watched the senior finals as it was a great opportunity to see some of the world's best boulderers.

It was a great day and I'm hoping to go back next year!!

Problem 1 in the final

EYC Ratho 2012

Photo by Alex Messenger/BMC

The first of the European Youth Cup events was held at Edinburgh International Climbing Arena, Ratho on the 19th and 20th of May.

The qualifiers were on Saturday where we had to climb two routes. My first route was on the old competition wall - technical and balancy. I managed to top out but fell 2 thirds of the way up my second route on the main comp wall as I didn't have too much time to warm up and got flash pumped. I had to wait nervously for an hour to see if I had made the final but in the end managed to qualify comfortably in 6th place. Molly also qualified in 7th place and Team GB did well with 6 members of the team making the final - the most we have had in the finals so far!



Reading the route in the finals.
 Photo by Alex Messenger/ BMC

Sunday morning started with a nervous breakfast then onto EICA Ratho. Isolation opened at 8.45am and route reading was at 10am with the Youth B girls out with the first group to climb.  It was good having a GB team mate to read the route with as last year I was the only British competitor.
I was 5th out to climb (it goes in reverse qualifying order) and managed to cruise through the first crux where a lot of the previous competitors had fallen.

Cruising the first crux on the final route.
 Photo by Alex Messenger/BMC

I finished in 4th place - just missing out on a podium position (by 2 moves!!) but was really pleased with my performance. A good start to the 2012 competition season and I am now looking forward to the next EYC in Voiron, France in 2 weeks!

In the meantime - back to studying for my GCSE's which started with biology on Monday morning at 9am!!

2012 Leading Ladder Final - Reading Climbing Centre

Yesterday was the leading ladder final at Reading Climbing Centre. The routes were set by Tom Randall and Zippy and they ranged from 6a to 8b depending on the group.

I was in group C - elite under 16 female and had to climb 7a, 7b, 7c, 8a, and 8b. I flashed the 7a, b and c and got the bonus hold on the 8a which put me first in my group.

The day was great for onsight practice on competition routes and Reading was a great venue for the final.

GB Regional Team Training - 7th April 2012

On Saturday 7th April Tom Randall and Adam Harrison held regional GB team training in Sheffield. We began at Tom's house where we were assessed on our finger strength. Then on the lattice board we were assessed on our aerobic capacity, anaerobic capacity and aerobic power. Everyone had improved their finger strength and we varied on the lattice board but the atmosphere was positive.

After lunch we went to the Edge Climbing Centre (www.sheffieldclimbing.com) to get some comp/onsight practice. We were all feeling positive by the end of the day, as well as rather tired! All in all it was a great training day.

Thank you to Tom and Adam for organising the day!

Trip to Costa Blanca

On the 11th February 2012, me and some friends (most of which are from the British Team) went sport climbing for one week in Costa Blanca. We stayed in a villa in Moraira near the coast. This was a perfect location as it was near to many climbing areas.

Sunday was our first day climbing, and though our minibus said it was 5 degrees, it snowed! We went to 'El cajon de los cuartos' and 'Sector Colp de Cot and Marion' in Sella. I didn't try anything too hard, as it was my first time sport climbing in over a year. I really enjoyed being on proper rock and was ready to try some harder stuff on day two.

On Monday we went to Sierra de Toix on 'Toix Far Oeste' in the morning. None of the routes were very challenging, so, after lunch, we drove to Los Pinos where the routes were generally a lot harder. I onsighted a one star 7a+ called 'Route 3' and redpointed a one star 7b on my second go called 'Paprika'. Though we all wanted to stay longer to tick more hard grades, we had to go back as it was getting late.

For our third climbing day we decided to go to Bernia, however after driving around for one hour to find ourselves on the wrong side of the valley, we changed our mind and went to Murla instead. At Murla there was a wide range of grades depending which sector we were on. 'Sector Empinado' was extremely exposed to the wind and was therefore too cold to climb at. For example I tried to climb a 6c+ yet failed miserably because of numb fingers. Around the other side of the crag - 'Sector Crazy,Crazy' - the wind was far weaker, yet the grades were quite easy. After not that long we had to leave because we were all numb and miserable and it begun to rain.

On Wednesday we went to Wildside. Unfortunately it was in the shade and so we were climbing in our down jackets, however I managed to flash a one star 7a called 'Si te dicen que cai'. I worked two 7b's (in my opinion they were undergraded), one of which had such huge runouts it was almost like doing a solo!

Thursday took us to Gandia, where it was nice and warm as it was exposed to the Sun. We went to 'Sector hidraulics' and 'Sector Potent'. I flashed a three star 7a+ called 'Don Diego' and did some other easier routes, including a 5 called 'Pequeno saltamontes' which went up through a hole in the rock!

On our last day we went back to Gandia and climbed at 'Sector Fundicio'. I did some easier stuff, then tried a 7c called 'Dia de borratxera', where I got to the top section before my skin almost got shredded on a line of four sharp pockets. I didn't do much on the last day because my skin was sore.

Overall the trip was great and I'm really looking forward to the next one wherever and whenever that'll be.

my first EYC

This was my first European Youth Comp and I finished 6th...