Bat route

On UKC at the moment are some videos of Adam Ondra at Malham, including one of his onsight of Bat Route. Obviously I watched it intently, hoping to pick up some beta, and watching the world's best climber attempt a route I have spent (to date) seven days on.

Once I'd picked myself off the floor, I watched it again, and gleaned some useful and interesting ideas for the section through the roof above Seventh Ardvaark. This section has some tough and beefy moves on undercuts, and was punishing me out of all proportion to it's difficulty. Sam can cruise it. Mawson cruises it. Obviously Steve cruises it. I don't so much cruise it as crash heavily into the pier. In the UKC video, Adam uses a brute force and ignorance method which had obvious appeal...

So on Saturday we head off to Malham. It is hotter than the Sun, so a late start is in order, and when we arrive (at about 3pm) conditions are only absolutely awful. The perfect opportunity to train with a weighted bat, so to speak. So I bust up to the roof and try Adam's sequence and, whaddya know, it works! It has the slight disadvantage of occasionally sending me towards the Seventh Aardvaark belay at high speed and head first, but I can live with that. It looks like we are game on apart from a) a bird has made its nest in a 'crucial' heel hook and b) there's still a desperate move on the headwall that I'm worried about. I work out a sequence ignoring the heel hook, but the headwall move remains stubborn. Adam is no help as he lanked past it. Cheat.

After camping at the crag overnight, we climb at Kilnsey on Sunday. It is colder than Hell; the delights of climbing in the UK. At one point Jules flakes out completely and runs away to the trout farm for nourishing sustenance and hot beverages, leaving me huddled in my sleeping bag, sat on my camping chair. I am the only one rocking the sleeping bag/chair combo, and it attracts lots of sarcastic comments. I am warm for my redpoints though, so the last laugh is on me. Anyway, I hear that big issue chic is making a comeback this year. It is of no help on Indian Summer; two redpoints see me falling off the last move. Again. Frustrating route this; it feels well within my abilities, but obviously isn't, or I'd have done it. Maybe next week?

I have an exciting week this week; I am engaging Tom Randall as a coach, and this week is my assessment session. I imagine I'll get told off a lot, and he'll laugh at my hip flexibility. I just hope there's some front levers on the exam, to reclaim some ego...