Monday, 28 November 2011
Sunday, 27 November 2011
Saturday, 26 November 2011
Chorro day 1
Hot and sunny here!!!
Friday, 25 November 2011
Swinging around with the Stone Monkey
Mr. J Dawes... the 'stone monkey'
Moving differently... his next handhold is the big yellow sloper on the left of the shot!
I just spent the evening with Johnny Dawes at TCA Glasgow on a climbing movement workshop... and movement is the right word!
The Original Stone Monkey and a real climbing legend his approach to climbing initially seems radical... bizarre even... but it obviously works for him! Over the couple of hours though listening to him talking about 'what how and when', 'end shapes' the 'face' you have have on a climb, the 'voice of a move' and trying various problems he set, I could see a truly organic approach to the same themes many climbing coaches work with (only he is MUCH better at applying them than most of us). I recognised a great deal of what I would think of as 'use of centre of gravity to generate momentum'- and not just in 2 planes but rotational too. Lots of 'deadpointing' to get to places. A huge amount of focussed 'visualisation' and work on the importance of 'perfect practise'. All delivered in his own unique style. Open your mind and try a workshop and you might be surprised.
The climbers I was on the workshop with... and Johhny for that matter are all a head shorter than me so one problem saw me headbutt a hold that no-one else was near and another saw me scrape my forehead off the wall taking a half inch strip of skin off... who says you don't need helmets at bouldering walls :-)
I've also been reading his book ('Full of Myself') which gives an amazing insight into his climbing and the period of our history when he was at the top of his (and arguably anyone else's) game. It's not always easy reading (like his ideas on climbing- so natural to him that they are hard to communicate to clumsy earthbound mortals that they takes a little effort to follow) but well worth persevering with to learn a little about this climbing legend.
He's also a nice bloke and was freely sharing ideas with many folk at the wall, talking to parents about their kids climbing etc.
Off to El Chorro tomorrow... I'll leave you all with the early snow!
Wild weather and low snow.
The storm continues... I was almost blown off my bike on the way home from the swimming pool this morning and there is a dusting of snow on Druim Fada above Corpach (700m).
Thursday, 24 November 2011
Summit 64 article and my holidays.
Sorting and packing today. Tomorrow I'm off to Glasgow to attend a climbing workshop given by Johnny Dawes at TCA Glasgow. Then on Saturday i'm off to El Chorro (staying at the excellent Olive Branch) for a very quick 5 day climbing hit. Back to Glasgow for 24 hours and then its off to California to visit Santa Barbara (a family trip but climbing kit might find its way in ;-).
Winter will be here when I get back in Mid December its straight into snowy work with Staff Training at Glenmore Lodge, winter mountaineering (it is on the way) and then on Sunday the 18th of December I hope to be delivering an MCofS FUNdamentals of climbing workshop in Aberdeen at Transition Extreme. These workshops previously available south of the border are being rolled out here in Scotland after a great deal of work from the MCofS. The workshops have been designed to introduce the first stage of long term participant development and introducing the core elements of climbing movement to beginners on slabs and vertical surfaces. As well as this the MCofS courses differ a little from the BMC ones in that we have decided to introduce the concepts of how to coach (the coaching process) as well as just what to coach. Exciting times ahead as the FUNdamentals will be linked possibly as part of, or as accredited prior learning to the new MLT Coaching Awards due to appear next year.
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