no shortcuts - don't cheat yourself

instead of a glorious send of the super classic "insanity of grandeur, 8C" (we don't take "webby-grades" too serious, do we? he's supernatural... ;) - i am back at the start again... : after falling on the second last move to the lip on "insanity" and powering through the super hard start sequence up the four times a day i knew something was "wrong" - i never ever was able to "cruise" this start sequence so many times before in a session. did i got that much stronger? well that would be nice. but honestly i don't think so (even if i feel stronger, but not THAT much stronger).

close-up from the intermediate-"hold" from which i do have to move my feet:

 before the breake it was super bad,

as it broke it got quite "juggy", making it possible to suddenly control this heinous start sequence

and changing the character of the two existing boulders way too much.

so i glued the broken part back - it's pretty heinous again... ;)

late last spring i broke a part of this not so good intermediate hold - making it better. i did not think that it was much of a difference but kept the broken part at home. obviously i was wrong and it was quite a big difference. i nearly could cross now on what was just a really bad intermediate before. so i glued the broken part back - AND got hammered. it took me another two sessions to just get through this three start moves again... and it feels as desperate and insecure as it felt before the break! then it took me another two sessions to get back one move below my highpoint. three weeks "lost" and i may will not send this season anymore. but it felt like "cheating" and "wrong" to keep climbing with the bigger hold as i knew how hard it was before. hopefully i did not loose too much time. i finally feel like the "resistance"-power is coming back again and i don't get suddenly tired anymore. it's nice to feel strong again ;)

now that rain should stop next week and if i am lucky (for once) i get a few more decent (not too cold) days and will be able to finish up "insanity" before winter hits - if i don't i don't mind too much as it's just such a brilliant piece of climbing. but then there is this "big cat" waiting on the left as well... :)

where i went down some days ago: three more moves and this nasty mantle.
epic in full swing again.... ;)

back on track...

it was COLD up there at sustenpass - but so beautiful with snow and the road closed

nothing better then great people, great climbing and great food... :) on may way back... crazy solo session up at sustenpass. 80min hike, 3C and 60+km/h wind (flying pads).... perfect friction... but bit too cold... froze off the last move of highlander again - and then got even some good links in "fetter hase project"....

went down on the match.... after freezing off two times after the 8B part... i made it to the second last move (before the mantel) of "insanity" on my third try of the day... why not on my first try?! thanx for that great (night) session prisca and nico!!!

making good progress on "big cat" (standstart) -
 if you are tall you miss all this crazy "midget-moves" on the "mellow terrain".... what a shame ;)

2more moves on insanity... and making good progress on the "easy" (8B? for my size) super cool standstart of "big cat". so i am on that point again on going down on the last move of everything...  would be nice to finish off something before winter will def. close the season. so when this shitty weather (record rainfall in ticino the second week in a row...) would for once turn nice again i may even could send something this season - looks like mid next week the rain will finally stop... going insane or be sane is the question... ;)

had a great day with my friend jesse (check out his blog). we had a great climbing day and a great dinner at "defanti" in lavorgo (chironico) :)

giving in is not an option - no matter what... ;)

better days to come

i got quite some feedback about my latest blog post. thanx everybody! people were wondering what the hell was going on with me. well nothing too special. you know that life can really su*k. but mostly it's about your life, cause everybody else seems to have a hell of a good time. thats what you get when you follow your "friends" on facebook, or 8X.nu (no i am not on fb nor on 8X.ohno). on fb (climbing) life is just so easy, all boulders are soft, everybody is super strong, everything is second go and 6A+ at max... , there are 2day epics (sic)... but yes there are also other (climbing)people out there which don't have 24/7 the greatest fun, struggle to balance work,climbing,life - and (climbing)life can really su*k sometimes... and as it is in real life there are better days to come - that's it, that's al.