Bishop=Challenge

photos by Kyle George Photography

I can't help it. I'm really proud of myself for unlocking v10. I truly believe that it was something in my mind that was holding me back. A couple weeks ago, my little family and I met up with a rad posse of climbers: Ana Burgos, Jill Church, Nick Vosbein, Lisa Rands, and Matt Birch, for some beautiful granite climbing in Bishop. My first day out I sent Slow Dance (v10) at the Happies on my 4th try. What is it about a problem that attracts you to it? Lets be honest. Sometimes, climbs look a lot better than they climb and vice versa. The most classic lines in my book not only look great but are great. Slow Dance is not a classic but it was a great climb. I was initially attracted to a sculpted looking hole that I could barely fit two finger tips in. Upon further inspection I felt a hidden thumb catch on the side and was sold. I'm a huge fan of pockets so I have fun at the Happies. The sit down felt a little ridiculous because you basically start laying on your back. Well, maybe it's just me because I can barely reach the foot holds which are tucked into a little cave that flows all the way to the base of Acid Wash (You could really scare someone popping out of that hole which Ava quickly discovered!). The rest of the climb was fun and it provided me with all the necessary challenges, but I had it in my mind to go and challenge myself on some harder problems. I have been repeatedly told that I should just climb what I want and not pay attention to grades. Yea, duh but if I stuck to that I wouldn't be challenging myself. I've noticed that I have a "style" which is all well and good but I need to branch out a bit!! So Lisa and Matt and I took a tour of the Buttermilks and I tried a handful of v11/12's and had the best day I can remember in a long time. Not that I sent anything..not even close! But I was so worked for the next 4 days that I could barely move my right hand. That was exactly the day I'd been looking for! Challenge!!!