Triumph - of sorts.

I am happier today than i've been in a while. My poor performance last week seems to have been due to illness. My son had a bug and i thinki got a bit of itl. It was just an underlying feeling of uurgh and it was only when i came out of it i realised i had been ill. Last night we went to Keswick wall. I'd been there earlier in the week working and thought it might be worth another chance. The routes are all fairly similar in style as they are only about 5m tall and seem to involve pulling hard but not much technique. I am not making any comment about why Jonny excelled here on-sighting a 7a+ and flashing a couple of 7a's. I think he just campussed up all the routes without using his feet.

On a more personal note i backed off a couple of 7's but eventually felt brave enough to go for a 7a. The first time i properly cranked down with my right hand i was a strange mix of worried but confident it would be OK. My finger felt fine and i'm sure i would have flashed it were it not for a hold having spun upside down making a positive crimp into a heinous sloper.

It was worth the wait. I'd almost forgotten what a great feeling it was to pull hard on a rope. Today it feels like a different world. I think one of the things that makes climbing so special to many is that it is a lifestyle sport. My holidays are planned round climbing, a lot of my clothes are climbing brands, i go on climbing web sites, most of my friends in Cumbria have been met through climbing. I like climbers, they're generally my kind of people ( as long as there are no Ron Hills, beards or lycra in sight ) and i love climbing. Just not being able to climb as well as i'd like has left me properly grumpy in the rest of my life.

I have some serious thinking to do about my goals, timescales and training time i have available to me now before i go to Spain. Tick lists and goals will have to be reviewed and google docs updated.