Just some climbing,training,struggling again on my project in Cornalba and other not really important things...
But...
I just came back from the Frankenjura! I spent three weeks with good friends and great weather. First week was just perfect, cold and dry and on my second day there I could climb a small project I left last year: the route is called Pain makes me stronger,every day! and it is an 8c+ opened by Markus Bock!
This year already at my first try on the route I felt much stronger than last year and in a couple of goes I could clip the chain!
After this good start of the trip I wanted to find something harder to spend some more time on... So the next day we drove to Luisewande where I could try The Essential a Markus Bock's 9a repeated only once by Adam Ondra. I've already tried this route a couple of times in the past years so I knew what it was all about... a really hard slab start,some really small pockets and a smeary and technical part at the end!
First tries back on it were dedicated on finding a good beta for the first slab... This was the only part I couldn't resolve in the past years. I watched a few times the video of Adam Ondra on it but I really couldn't move with his beta... he basically uses a small piece of rock with his thumb and he climbs this part with a crazy shouldery sequence!... too weird and morphologic for me!
After a few tries I resolve the enigma by using the hold Adam uses with the thumb as an undercling with the other hand and going a bit right to get a bad slopey sidepull!! Yes now I can finally see the light and I might see me climbing this route to the top since I can climb all the second part without big problems!!
So after a day of rest I am back on The Essential with good skin and high syke!
I climbed three times in a day through the first part but every time something went wrong... on my last go with the last power I had I managed to climb until the last hold but I couldn't get the last pinch properly and I fell...next day I said to myself!
Next day was almost the same but the skin was more trashed... I fell at the last hard move a couple of times... I need some rest I said to myself!
After a rest day I'm back again but the weather totally changed... It was hot as hell and muggy in the forest... I knew I only had one good go and my skin would have been fucked again! So I gave everything I had A Muerte but at the same last stupid move I decided to change a foot beta and I fell!... and to finish the day in the perfect way I also splitted two tips... fuck off I said to myself!...
So I decided to take a week of break from the project so I could rest my skin,my head and wait for better conditions to come!
During this "warm" week I wanted to find an "easier" and faster project less fingery, more physical than The Essential and more skin friendly.
A friend of mine was trying Boiling Point a classic 8b in Krottensee Turm the big and famous crag with Wallstreet. The traverse extension of this 8b is called Zugzwang and graded 8c+(11-/11) in one guidebook and 9a(11) in the new one... also Adam Ondra said it could be a possible 9a...but his beta to do the crux is one more time totally crazy!!
After a couple of days of tries (4 tries) in not best conditions I clip the chain of this great route for its 3rd ascent!
After one more rest day I'm back at Luisewande again with a great crew! Ema and Steo my tripmates,Marcos Costa a good Brazilian friend I knew in China last year, Les Ducs Enzo Oddo and Gab Josseron and the photographer Francisco Taranto!
The syke was super high and I did the usual warm ups.
So I was on for the first try! Maybe I was still not warm enough and I climbed well but a bit shaky and once more I fell at the last hard move with the hand in the final slot jug!! WTF!!??!! It was the fifth time I fell there!
For the next half an hour or so I tried to stay relaxed and chill with the friends. After a while it was time for another go. It was saturday and in that weekend there was a climbing festival so the crag was pretty packed and I was under pressure. Plenty of people watching me... I'm kinda used but it is always difficult...
But this time everything went perfectly and suddenly I was clipping the chain! Great feeling as always when you climb a hard route under pressure!
After the ascent and some more routes it was time to celebrate with some beers and a great party at the Marmot Event in Betzenstein for the Frankenjura Kletter Festival!!! Perfect timing!...
until the next time!
