perfect conditions - epic on full swing

...but i missed it (again). back home from two weeks of nice holidays in the frankenjura and ticino there was "foen-wind" forecasted for sustenpass. that means a "warm" (12C that time) and very dry wind... the snow was gone, i felt strong... everything perfect... as it felt too cold for the "highander" i went to the left to try the "verschärfter base"-project again. it felt WAY better then before... looks like the franken-beer has made me stronger again... ;)

i got the crux-crimp, could take out my heel (crux) - felt solid and strong - but missed a tricky foothold-change - and down i was in the pads. as this footmove is not super hard but easy to f*ck up i started to look for better beta. the result after that 1hr-non-stop-beta-check was: i did found nothing better and i was wasted like hell... that was a bit a shame as just two days later even more crazy "foen-wind" was forecasted... and yep two days later it gripped like hell, never experienced something like that...

but with just one rest day... working during the day... closed road in the evening... consequently hiking up and down... all that made me feel super tired. that was just "GREAT"; perfect conditions and me tired as hell. WTF???!!!

on the hike up... the bad weather from the south lurking over the mountains...

as i felt way too tired for the hasi i just thought i would train bit "fitness" on the highlander. first try i went down at the very end of the traumlandstartmove...  nice warum up 8B that was ... ;)

setting up lights on the "highlander"....

second go i passed that move... felt tired... pressed on... got cold fingers... pressed on... got the ikarus part... even colder fingers... pressed on... went into the highlander-crux... could not feel (as so many times before) the hold anymore... pressed on... dry-fired off setting up for the last move..... BUMMMMMMMMMMMER!!!

at least i went for it..

but at least i went for it.... and considering the odds it was quite a good effort (never ever climbed so far before with just one rest day...). but it was so typical for me up there. every time one piece of the puzzle does not fit. if there are perfect conditions i am not ready (just one rest day, bad skin, not fit enough...) or i slip off. if i feel in perfect shape then conditions are bad, a hold breaks or i injure myself or whatever... i am still waiting for THE PERFECT DAY!!! and it looks like friday or saturday could be THE one... at this time of the year you never know when winter is coming. so i will be up there again - and it will be exactly one year since i injured myself so badly up there. would be perfect timing, wouldn't it?! EPIC in full swing again ;)

epic mode again

insane (9'ish) projects and other daily business... ;)

well there i am again... falling on the second last hold of my highlander-project... one year after ripping off my hamstrings on that boulder and half a year after tearing my meniscus in two parts... - it's not like before the injuries but it's really ok and i am very thankful to be climbing again and to be able to push it without thinking all the time to be careful because of my hamstrings and meniscus.. 

right now i am building up that specific resistance to climb this 17 hard moves in a row... starting to feel strong again.... good feeling... and if winter does hold back for another few weeks i think i have a good chance for a send ;)

going down on the second last move again... but building up... ;)

while working on the highlander-moves i checked out again a possible lower start to the beautiful "kein schneehasi". i already worked this moves with my friend ronny last spring. we could do all the moves but the first and i still could not do it as there was nothing there for the feet. well there was a good foothold, but there was a bit of a stone sitting right in front making it impossible to use it... so i started to dig this (small looking) stone out. as i was digging the stone got bigger and bigger. it took me quite some time but finally it was out and it was now possible to make use of the foothold (note; the foothold was not digged out, there was just a stone removed to make it possible to use it). i still had a hard time on the first move because my toehook slipped off all the time. back home i did put some more rubber/glue-paste (thanx 5.10) on my toe and on the next day up there my toe did not slip once - GREAT - there it was my new project... "verschärfter hase" its waiting... ;)

first move of the "verschärfter hase"-project... tension on your toe is what you need

the line is really good, its massive, 8moves just sidepulls, compression as it best, steep but not too steep, the moves are tricky and very physical at the same time (may the most physical ones i ever tried, my biceps ached for days...), the holds are quite ok but i am stretched out all the time to the max (for somebody taller it will be much easier, for somebody shorter way harder) its nearly perfectly my style and as i quickly reclimbed the "kein schneehasi" i thought it would be a matter of one or two days to do the full line...

at that point i already feel tired... but thats where the crux-moves start... getting that crimp and release the heel feels NAILS... (if you are tall its easy, if you are 1.80 its hard, if you are smaller its VERY hard...)

...but i quickly had to learn that this few moves made me so tired that the "easy" "schneehasi"-part suddenly got super difficult. i really was not looking for another project at my very limit..  really NOT - but well i will take it... and may when the temps drop an i get a bit stronger again... it may will be possible... we will see... ;)

doing the hard traumland-start-undercling-crux-move and climb left... the "bissiger hase" project... I LIKE ;)

to make things even more exciting i found a nice little beta to start at the traumland-start and climb left into my new project... (something around 8A+ itself) and again you climb some very physical compression-moves which made me so tired i was not even able to think about doing the first move of the "verschärfter hase" not to think about the crux-heelhook-move (pic nr.3) ... that would be a rad project... "bissiger hase" would be a nice name... ;)

coming from the very right... possible as i have climed all the sequences... but pretty sure 4ever very impossibel for me; the "fetter hase" project... 

and as that is possible it is also possible to start at the very right of the boulder (linking another 8A+) and do the full-low-line: the "fetter hase project" must be something 9'ish... and it is VERY possible, i climbed all the sequences... its crazy that something like this exists, soooooo powerful, 25 hard moves without any resting position... this will require a level of fitness i am pretty sure i will never reach during this life... - i will be a happy "hasi" if i can do the "easy" 8C-finish...  VENGA... ;) 

sweet summertime

sustenpass some 10days ago...

fall is coming and i can't wait for it to arrive... the crisp, clear and dry air... but the white stuff in the pic above from last week will hopefully hold back for some two more months...

nevertheless summer was nice. to give my knee some time to heal up my broken meniscus i decided to stop climbing for a month and instead had some great surf sessions in indo...

STYLE is everything ;)

but 3weeks is not even close to what i would need to be finally able to surf the waves that would make REAL fun for me. i would like to RIDE big walls for quite some time and not just a few seconds on some small closing-out-waves... but something tells me i may would never surf some 7+ft uluwatu... but never say never... ;)

small but very fun day in balangan... this wave is so fast (closing).... i need to improve my backhand or try goofy-foot next time ;)

back home i was greeted by rain - what else ;) but the next day i already was off to ailfroide in the french alps to spend a nice week togehter with my girlfirend. its a very beautiful place high up in the mountains. you can leave your car at the campground and within minutes you can go for a multi-pitch, sportclimbing and bouldering. so we mixed all up. went for a multipich in the morning and for some boudering at the evening... followed by some nice food, beer wine... we met some nice people and had a great time.

bouldering in the morning before it got too hot. then off with a rope for some....

first multipitch for angela ever - well done! 

then a little drive up the valley

There are a few very good looking hard lines but usually when its going to 7C and harder the holds are painful, the moves are not flowing. But may i was just on the wrong boulders and it was a bit warm for the harder bouldering as well. Nevertheless I had great fun playing around on very good intermediates and it was perfect to get used to bouldering on rock again. 

bit more bouldering in the evening

to finish the day with a nice french meal... - can't get much better... ;)

up and down and up again....

there was no rock climbing for the last 3weeks... but i still had a great time...

back home after surfing i had some good trainings sessions at the gaswerk and as soon as the weather turned better i headed out to for some fun days in magic wood at the second half of august. lots of people, but funny people...  first day was especially funny: at the start of the day i was not able to climb 7A.... at the end i did laps on a 7C.... nice progression for a day... ;)

cruising in magic wood - just the best :)

after two visits at sustenpass at the end of august i was super happy as my meniscus felt WAY better (still not ok... but way better) and i already was climbing through all the hard parts of the "highlander"-project from just two moves in... at my first day back on it...  with my meniscus allowing me to climb easier beta again... so i had all september and october  in front of me...

...but when checking out a SICK new project at sustenpass i managed to just slice all the skin off my tip...

was deeper then it looks here...

so off i was training indoors again...

so i had to rest and let my finger heal and then started to train again indoors...  i "lost" 3weeks of september at sustenpass...  - but i rented out a bike and had a great time crosscoutntry-biking in our backyard with my girlfriend... we even found boulders on one tour... - thanx to angie for the tour and the pics :)

what a nice backyard - and some big boulders waiting in the trees to the right ;)

and as it was so much fun and the bike just the killer (scott carbframe, 150mm/fox34/talas, remote for fork and rear shock, hyrdaulic remote seatpost, sram-xx1-crankset/derailleur). the "problem" then was: when you once have had the pleasure to ride such a bike, you don't want to miss one feature of it... so i consequently had to get THIS bike - took me some effort to find one with a reasonable price, but i found one... all mine now... :)

finally my tip has healed enough and weather forecast looks great for the next week... so i can't wait to go back up there to sustenpass... ;) we don't talk about my last weeks visit to the dentist which resulted in me walking home with two teeth less... let this heel quickly... i NEED to go back to rock.... before winter hits up there at the mountains!

back home - training again...

with added weight... ;)

last day - last try - finally i hit that hold

i was THERE - i got that last hard move (hold)

BUT

 could not hold the swing...

i tried everything to make it happen; rested for three full days to be fully rested and beeing able to climb on totally dry holds for once (that really helps!!!), did some light activation the day before (easy climbing), had fueled my carbo-tanks, slept good and enough over days... it was the perfect go... just this millisecond more power... but well then, it would have had been too perfect... not enough drama... the last day before my summer break... after 10years.... sever injury(s)....  i even had figured out some new "no-cold-tips-anymore-beta" ;)

a method to push the blood out of my fingertips (and therefore getting good circulation for the next few minutes) without having to climb an 8A+ boulder for "fingerwarmup"

next day i was off for my summer break 

(to rebook the flight would have had been some 700$... but weather forecast for sustenpass was bad... so off i was...) 

getting some nice (little) waves in balangan (bali)

- nice summer to everybody - 

can't wait to get back to swizzy though... miss my girl!!! and i have to finish up some business up there on sustenpass this fall... more epic to come for sure... ;)

note how "not-cool" that is;
neo (with under 3% bodyfat you FREEZ (must be cool to do so?! or why i see so many dudes shivering in the lineup, spasms...?! may i should get a nice belly for some comfy warmth...;), knee protection (ok broken meniskus), booties (1m water over a sharp reef), big board (as a beginner, do you want to catch waves or just look cool?!).
 but i  am the only one who touched the reef and did NOT get nasty scars (ok, not cool again to have no scars...) and as i am getting 36 and have the loveliest girlfriend you can imagine... i do not need to be sooooo coool for 24/7 anymore... happy surfing... ;)

1move left... 1day left... epic in full swing again!

the warmup felt heinous, it was pretty warm (close to 20C) but super windy... lost twice my toehook in the first part (8A+) cause i could not build up enough tension on the bad sloper (friction)...

... third go i pressed even harder - made my toehook stay - arrived at the undercling-move - did that one statically - felt super solid in the "traumland-part" -  did not get too cold fingers - did not get any swing preparing for the second-crux - still felt good - just two more moves to go - i went for the first one - got the crimp - YES!!!

EVERYTHING went perfect up to the very last hard move. i climbed just perfect, no stupid mistakes for once and felt strong and in control... just to have switched power off from one second to another exactly where i am on the pic above... on the last hard move...

- setting up for the last hard move - from one second to the other it was like somebody had turned off the power switch - lost all my bodytension and my fingers just did open the grip - all that happened so fast that i had not even a chance to try to "fight" against that sudden loss of control and power - so i went down like a wet sack of potatoes... BUMMER, did not experience such a sudden loss of power for quite some time... WHY NOW??? at least this time it has been a question of power and not because of cold fingers/wet holds/locking knees... or whatever...

second go i made it into the last moves of ikarus again but had super cold fingers again...  so i did let go to save the power for the final day before i will leave for a  3week surftrip... epic in full swing again - not that i expected something else... after 10years you get kind of "used to it"... ;)

setbacks... and a send :)

first try of the day; made it trough the undercling-move first try... BUT ICE-cold fingers - did let go here to save power for a second try... no way to climb through the upper crux with such cold fingers...

second try of the day ended here as well; made it again through the underclingmove but i pushed my left knee too much to the outside and down (watch the pic) - so my meniscus started to shift again and kind of locked... had to let it go again...

at least my girlfriend angela made use of the first really dry conditions since weeks in murg(s)tal and sent the very nice moves (on heinous holds) of "painful love" and did her first 7B+/C. i was again pretty impressed how much power she brings on such little shitty holds... WELL DONE!!!

angela stretched out to the max in the curx of "painful love 7B+/C" in murgtal.
movie-still from the send - believe me; you don't really want to hold on too much on that two-finger-right-hand-undercling/sidpull/pinch-pocket ;)

feeling strong BUT...

first try of the day... on the second crux again.. frozen fingers again.. thanx josé for the motivation - was pretty close - again...

despite doing the first crux on the first go and feeling really strong and light i fell off the second crux again. this time again with ICE COLD fingers (at nearly 20C) - again... ???!!!

i was fighting that problem for more then 7weeks already in fall 2011... and also on the "fisch-project" or on "the dagger" i kept falling for weeks with ice-cold fingers at the very end... its really annoying when you fall down again and again not because of bad beta or beeing tired but just because you can't fell anything anymore!

i tried EVERYTHING to get/keep fingers warm. i climb quite a lot for warming up but i have this  problem since years and its coming up whenever i climb more then 15 (hard) moves in a row. the problem is not the temperature its due to the pressure ont the holds that i push all the blood out off my fingertips (therefore the "cold sensation") and i just can not climb through small holds when just feeling "nothing". what works best is resting on a bigger hold and shake out. but when there is no resting hold... what worked best for me was to jog around for 10-15min to get my system/blood working till i started to sweat. that gave me some 3-4more moves before loosing sensation again. but even then i sometimes fell off with ice-cold fingertips and a sweating body and as i am dealing with a torn mensiscus at the moment i am NOT jogging right now...

second try of the day ended on this big move... was a great fight especially as i greased around the whole way up there

remembering back the last session when i was up there in the crux with (for once) NO cold fingers,  i may have a solution (i tried before as well). last session i went down 3times at the first crux, rested just for 10-15mins between each try and went again. on my 4th try that day i made it trough the first crux and had no super cold fingers on the upper crux. so it really does look like i have to climb an 8A+ in order to get cold fingers - rest not as long as i would like to - and go for the full line not fully rested... but may getting into the second crux with some blood left in my tips.

at least my fitness-level seems to increase again... nearly climbed the "ikarus-part" twice and afterwards did "reve de faire" and 5min after its standingstart to get used to climb the endingpart with tired arms... the numbers of the boulderproblems climbed that last day; ...7B,8A,8B+,8B/+,8B,8A... but it seems no matter what... i just don't get this last (two) moves together... i would prefer to do it just once with the two moves then 10times in a day up to this two moves... ;)

on a sidenote: it really does not help if you have to try to dry (but they continue to seep nevertheless...) half of the holds in the cruxes, but it makes you stronger... ;)


ps: such sad news, hopefully something like that will never happen again and the community can learn... rest in peace little tito :(

the perfect go - but there was this tiny DÄB...

well my knee did not like the heelhook-move on the "kein schneehäschen" too much - so that lowdownstart has to wait till fall (when my knee hopefully will be better again)...

good news is though that i finally figured out all the details of my new beta on the "highlander" so that my knee and hamstrings are not getting in troubles. i have to climb it def. HARDER now, but i am glad i can CLIMB at my limit again... ;)

despite beeing able to do the undercling-move even with some moves in front every time - it still gives me trouble when climbing into it on full link. it's not just hard it's also a pretty strange move...

the move giving me still troubles on link... so hard and strange to push into that undercling right hand...

 after falling down 3times at the underclingmove on link i was getting bit tired but went for another try. arriving at the crux-move my feet went off the biggest foothold of the entire boulder. it was just a very slight DÄBat the pad, but it was one. as i already felt pretty tired i just went for the move - doing some "training" and wondering if the move would work this time. and here we go; the "rabbit chasing the carrot-szenario" again. the two tries before i was fresh but could not do the move. then i was tired, i had a little dab AND  i just pulled trough it...  WTF????? but that was not everything: i went further up, then my toe slipped (as many times before), my legs and lower body started to propeller and i was prepared to go down to the pads (as many times before)...

getting some swing... (watch sven's face ;)

but to my big surprise i just pressed the swing away - i was not moving 1mm on the lousy holds - felt unreal... and so i was getting my feet back on the wall aiming for that last two moves - i had no cold fingers, perfect grip AND enough power left for the two moves... that WAS IT - IF NOT...

...i did had this tiny DÄB... - i must admit that i was tempted for a moment to climb on. i mean it was just a little tiny dab, nothing that helped at all...  

but i just jumped down... you really do not want to climb your 10-year-project with a dab, do you?!

what will go wrong next time?! i thought i already am trough all the possible failures... but this piece of rock still has its surprises for me...

see you again on the weekend highlander - *grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr*

getting in shape - "ikarus, 8B+" reclimbed...

... quo vadis? well i am not a 100% sure yet, but when i pay attention and when i avoid certain "leg-moves" i have no problems with my meniscus at all... so i figured out some new beta and went for a little climb... ;) despite i have to climb a lot of moves different and way harder (thanks to my recently torn meniscus & my hamstrings not fully back yet) i just managed to reclimb the "ikarus, 8B+"-part of my highlander-project again... but it's a bit a strange thing when pulling at your limit and always checking for how your knee responds... but it looks like my beta is solid now and i don't have to worry (too much).

"ikarus, 8B+" (ends at the "traumland-finishing-hold" one move to the right). in the pic i am already looking into the "highlander-crux"...
pic by angelawagner.ch

fred (yes THE fred) and a friend of him have been up there at sustenpass as well and they really pushed me trough the first crux (thanks for that bit of extra-engery ;) - and i just had a little too much swing going into the second crux - so just two more hard moves to go... :) on the one hand it's nice to climb so far into the project again, but on the other hand; i must have climbed that 8B+ part over 50times over the last years... but never was able to do that last two hard moves... and it did not matter if i was totally tired or feeling quite good - something went wrong ever time...  but you never know when this little window opens... and i'd better be there and ready if it does... ;)

and to not get too exited i did not manage to get past "trauland-crux" just once on the weekend. i can climb it from two hard moves in like 3times a day... with my new beta, it really looks i need to get even stronger... power can really help to solve such problems... ;)

later local powerhouse ronny (fresh from a very nice and haaaard FA in murgtal) joined in at the traumland-boulder as well and we figured out a very nice and powerful "low-start" (like a "depart bas" in font) to the "kein schneehäschen, 8B/+". just three more moves - but VERY powerful. now you feel already pretty tired getting into the original start - GREAT ;) can't wait to get back (and check if my knee does cooperate with the other moves) ....

getting into the crux-sequence of "kein schneehasi, 8B/+" - will be WAY harder from the new start - i like... ;)

Quo vadis?

i just had my first real outdoor-bouldering-day at the exact same place, on the same boulderproblem  i had my last boulder-session some 8months ago and on consequently on the same boulderproblem where i injured myself so badly. back to "work" on the "highlander" i was!

what a nice day up there in the mountains...

finally the weather got better and it was a brilliant evening up there in the mountains; 12degrees, wind, snow.... and some sun - just perfect... ;) i warmed up carefully, checked the footmoves if my hamstrings were ok with them. and they were ok ;) so i went on to test my actual fitnesslevel and started two hard moves into the hard part of the line, making roughly an 8B/+ boulder itself... to my big surprise i was literally chalcking up in the middle of the crux and instead of wildly swinging out i was going static through the next move as well... that was just crazy, i never ever experienced something similar - where did all that power came from?! and so i took a 15min rest - and did the same again... to finish up the day i climbed through the hard part of "reve de faire, 8B".... that was quite a first day... ;)

second and third session up there showed that due to my hamstrings not ready yet for hard heelhooking i was not able to climb my beta for the first part anymore. trying my other beta for that part i had to learn that my left knee (watch details below) was not ok with that. so i had to figure out another way for that first few moves. it took quite some time and effort but finally i found another way to climb that part... BUT with my old beta i was able to climb about 10times a day into the second part, NOW i did not manage to link it into the second part yet, just the single moves. that new beta bumped the grade for the first part from 8A to around 8B for me... despite my better over-all-power does that not really help to make the second crux-part much easier....

i still can't believe that this move (the hardest one) actually felt "EASY"!!! but the moves from the right got way harder due to my new beta i was forced to use - so as a result the move in the pic feels heinous again on link...

obviously the hard training paid all off and i am strong as never before (i even did my first one-armer's EVER...). all i would need are two or three more weeks of "resistance" training and a day with nice conditions and i am 100%sure i would (kind of) WALK that "highlander" home... even with the new harder first part! BUT it looks like (climbing) life has other plans with me.... three weeks ago i was training and boudering in the gym (due to once again a lot of rain). i was sitting on a very high and near left foot and may i had a bit of tension/turning moment to the outside (as a hold turned), a little scratch inside my knee and a fall into the pads... bit pain at the very moment, but not too much pain at all...

my left knee: there should be no white fragment (tear)  going into the black (meniscus).... damage clearly visible :(

pain set in the next day while getting up and down stairs... so i avoided stairs for some days and the pain was nearly gone. but some days later as i was playing with our cats on the floor of our flat and my knee suddenly locked at 90degrees, some days later again... otherwise no pain but a strange feeling in the knee... so i knew something was wrong and the results of the recent mri-pics unfortunately do not look good at all. (it's not that on the mri-pics it's clearly visible that as i child i must have damaged my acl, torn my outside and ripped off my inside ligament as well).

the actual problem is a torn mensicus that glides into my knee and blocks it when i bend over 100 degrees or twist my leg. due to the place and the kind of the injury there is no "easy" surgery to fix this mess (and even then just a 50/50chance the fixing would last and a good chance for collateral damage....). so it would be best to try if the body can heel himself (but with 36 thats not the same as with 13...). to give that process the best foundation my doc suggested 6-8weeks on crutches.... no guarantees that it will heel at all... but at least a chance. if this is not sucessfull; surgey (the 50/50 chance)...  if not sucessfull learn to live with it and avoid moves provoking a locking knee... if that does not work i have to get nearly all of my meniscus out.... that would mean that i would have to get a "knew knee" in some 3-5years and hope for i don't need to replace that one too soon.... not the best outlook into the (boulder) future...

so will try to take it easy, don't provoke any "locking" moment and give my body time to heal... but i am not sure about the crutches yet, as i have just no pain in daily life (but avoiding any high impact, no stairs and so on...). and even easy (and hard) climbing does not give me any problems as long as i don't bend or twist too hard...

up and doooownnnnnn....

i am getting close to 8months since surgery and finally i start feeling (somewhat) STRONG again with my hamstrings, even when its steep climbing and you have to push pretty hard. its not over yet, some disconfort here and there and not as strong as the other side yet, BUT i did my first heelhooks with quite some load and it feels SOLID ;)

getting STRONG - you know how to do it.... ;)

to not have an overdose of "good-news" i have some pretty BAD news a well. i somehow managed to crush my meniscus of the left knee (it was just a twisted knee after a little bump into the pads and its the "other", no-surgery-yet-knee). it's not too bad, no pain, just bit water in the knee. but it's not a good sign at all that my knee was completely locked already twice... 

after 8months of being super careful and 3-4times pt/week (100sessions...) and finally feeling somehow ready to go outdoors again i am def NOT READY for another 6MONTH REHABPLAN.... i will get an MRI on friday and hopefully will know more by then.... !!!