Week 49: change of plans

What I did:

The route I was trying in Lliber, El Desafio, did not spark joy. It started aggravating my injuries and the route wasn't that enjoyable to me - mostly because this type of technical climbing can be very difficult because of my hip impairment. My limited range of motion in the hips means I can't get my feet on the foot holds (or stay close to the wall), and as a result the route comes down to raw finger strength... which isn't much fun.

Meanwhile, a friend of mine said he'd be in El Chorro soon. So I started driving again! I booked the climbing camping called Olive Branch, so I was all set in terms of comfort (toilet, shower, washing machine, wifi, and of course awesome people). There I met a wonderful climber who recommended me Los Zauden in Bueno Sombra, Desplomilandia. I went to the crag to check it out, and WOW! What a beautiful location, what a stunning looking climb. I finally got some psych back!

First session on Los Zaiden felt terrible. The 7b to the first anchor already was super hard, and the 8a part felt imposible. What's worse, it's going to rain in Spain for the next 2 weeks... I started looking for alternative routes, but even the ones in the cave would end up wet. So Los Zauden is probably still my best bet. It feels much harder compared to Entre dos Caminos in Chulilla, and given the limited time I'm not feeling very confident... But I will give 100% regardless and see how far I can get!

It was dry a few days later so I managed to get in a second session. I sent the 7b part! And I had a few attempts on the crux of the 8a, a dyno from an undercling. This means I have something that kinda looks like a pyramid: I sent three 7a's, two 7b's, and one 7c this year. And fingers crossed, I'll get to do an 8a by the end of the year. Whether or not I'm succesful, next year I'll focus on the base of my pyramid and have fun doing 7's :)

Reflecting:  

I can say with full confidence that almost all of my struggles on the 7b were mental. I don't trust my feet just yet, and clipping feels super awkward. So I'll have to work on that; relax my arms, put more pressure on my feet, calm myself down before clipping, and of course; take loads of falls.

I managed to climb the 7b by toproping it twice on my first session, then send it on my first red point attempt on lead on the second session. I'm pretty sure I can send most 7b's in 1 or 2 sessions, a large amount of 7c's in 5-6 sessions, and I think I can send an 8a that fits my style in about 20 sessions. The problem is, with all of this rain... I'd be lucky to get 10 sessions in before the rest of the year. But I could still get lucky! Fingers crossed....  

What will I do next time:

I'll climb the 7b part bolt to bolt so I won't get too tired, so I can focus on the 8a part. I'll experiment with some tactics, like clipping the 3 bolts in the 8a, then down climb to the rest. If that works, it will significantly increase the chances of my doing the crux!

Another thing I will do is spend every session attempting the dyno crux a few times. Currently it is mostly a mental challenge, so I'll have to take baby steps and take loads of falls.

Every session, after a couple of attempts, I'll work the top section of the 8a, too. Because if I ever stick the dyno crux on a red point attempt, I don't want to punt :)

 All that is left now is hoping for good weather!  

Statistics:

Climbed 205 meters on real rock.

Climbed 0 meters of aerobic endurance laps (while doing movement drills).

Taken 2 falls while committing to the next move.