The week before Chamonix I had two boulder sessions at Ablok - I had heard that the wall was short and steep, and I trusted Yoann when he said it was going to be bouldery routes: "C'est du bloc!" I trained at Ablok with Yoann on the Wednesday where I was duly informed that I have no power in my legs and I was reminded that I have a tendency to do an uncoordinated flop rather than a controlled leap when I need to move dynamically upwards or sideways. I went again on the Friday with Fred from EP and we tried a problem which featured me making a hilariously cumbersome step out left to balance myself, not the most elegant I've climbed but at least I was trying! We tried another red which started on two slopers (EP Honeycombs ;) ) which taught us a lesson in not following what other people do. I did it the static way which seemed tenuous, then after a few tries using that method Fred decided to just jump - much easier! I had climbed a lot better in this session and the highlight of the day was finishing a red project which involved some power-screaming and grunting!

On the Saturday Yoann and I travelled to Chamonix via Co-Voiturage or car-sharing. I was due to be staying the night in a gite with fellow Scots Sheila, Julianne and Sophie alongside the Briançon team and was looking forward to a good weekend at the foot of Mont Blanc! We arrived in Chamonix valley and unfortunately Mont Blanc was completely covered in clouds and mist - there were some impressive glaciers though! We watched the end of the junior event at the wall and were inspired by the gutsiness and determination of the kids. Back to the gite it was and I was kindly fed and watered by Sheila and club ICE Briançon. I was also persuaded to try a glass of Briançon's finest red wine despite my best efforts to say "Nooo I am competing tomorrow!" I was also shown up by the girls in my card playing skills - apparently I can't add up to 21? Not time for bed yet though, the obligatory dance practice to the tune of Gangnam Style ensued, which resulted in an amusing video which will never EVER surface! At least I hope not...lights went out (after flashing the boulder problem to the top-bun bed without stairs - V3 at least? Nearly lost it on the mantel..) and off to sleep...

The next day we rose bright and early and arrived at the wall. Again a great atmosphere, and my first two routes went well, topping both and not feeling too tired. After a long wait, my semi-final was marked up and it looked like a route that I would enjoy. Lots of crimps on steep ground and volumes everywhere! Unfortunately, I once again didn't put my long legs to good use and instead of taking an crucial rest in the corner of the wall I powered straight through and tired out, falling not too far from the top but also too far to make finals - I was placed 9th and the top 8 went through. A silly mistake had cost me a potential place in the final, but next time I will know better - that's the fun in competitions, you always have something to take away with you, be it a prize or a lesson learned! We didn't stay and watch the finals as our lift (thanks Clément and Meije!) was leaving and it made sense not to get back to Grenoble too late. We had a lively journey home, made even more amusing when we saw a sign saying BIENVENUE with a bit of the E missing so it read BIENVENUF. It was funny at the time...

During the next week I had a session at EV2 with Fred and Jean-Charles from EP. We tried a variety of routes which tested our brains just as much as our strength! The routesetting here is so different to what I'm used to, lots of sequences within sequences and subtleties galore! I managed to onsight a 7c+ left me knackered for the rest of the evening, and I only just managed to complete the most technical 7a+ ever (with a LOT of route-reading mistakes). Thanks to Jean-Charles for shouting "ERREUR!!" whenever I was about to do something stupid so I could correct myself!) 

The following Saturday I competed in an event called "Nuit de la Vitesse" in Echirolles - a night of speed climbing which included the Coupe de France in Speed and the Championnat Départemental Isère for speed (Isère is the department of France which I live in for anyone unclear) I have dabbled in a bit of Speed climbing at Ratho and even won the British Speed Climbing Championships (but not very speedily!) so I was wondering how I would fare here. France has a very strong speed climbing set-up and is gradually gaining more and more interest as a discipline, thanks to the work of Sylvain and Jerome Chapelle and of course Mr "Scoot" himself, my housemate Yoann! I really enjoyed the evening and met more new people and recognised some from the other competitions. I was honoured to get a club L'ALE Escalade t-shirt from young Margaux, French speed champion and 3rd placed in the European Youth Speed Championships in Gemozac a few weeks ago! I climbed as quick as I could up the 13m official speed route but I didn't manage to put my legs to good use once again and felt like I was always relying on my arms - my best time was about 14 seconds, not bad for a lead-climber with a reputation for being slow (on the wall, I hasten to add!) :P Afterwards there was a fun mini-comp on the slab walls where I didn't do great but still had a good time trying to scamper up as fast as possible. We left quite late and went for an after-competition feast at McDonalds with some of the Chambery club. Congrats to Margaux and Margot from L'ALE for coming 1st and 2nd in the Senior event and to Yoann for coming 2nd in the Men's. I found out last week that I was placed 7th in the French Speed Cup and 3rd in the Departmental championships - not too bad at all :)

The day after I went to Pierrot Beach with "the other" Fred who I know from previous climbing trips. It was unfortunately a bit too wet and we were both tired and had sore skin after the speed event. I onsighted a 7a+ and worked an 8a+ and a 7c which were way too wet, but it was good to be out on rock again. I also took some nice pictures!

In week 8 I went out two evenings to the Grenoble mountain film festival - Les Rencontres du cinéma de montagne de Grenoble! The first evening I went with Lucy and Cecils from Edinburgh. It was unbelieveable - over 3000 people had turned up for the event, pretty much the entire climbing community of Grenoble and the surrounding area were there. I've never seen so many climbers in my life! We ended up having to sit on the steps as it was so packed, but it was worth it to see a range of exciting adventure films featuring climbing, alpinism, skiing...a bit of everything! My favourite film of the evening was by far Nico Favresse and Sean Villanueva O'Driscoll's film Jungle Jam - featuring their first ascent of a new multi-pitch route in Venezuela. It was hilariously funny and had me in stitches at almost every scene! I really admired the attitude that the team had for climbing - it's no good if you're not having fun with friends, so enjoy it! I also liked listening to the musicality of the Belgian accent which I've acquired a taste for!

On the Friday I had a session at EV2 with Fred (EP) which certainly tested my forearms - they had inflated threefold and even when belaying I was still pumped! I tried an 8a+/b which was very very powerful but not miles off, and a 7c+/8a which I couldn't really figure out in the middle. I got a bit stuck in a corner and couldn't get back out again. Seems I'm not having much luck with corners recently! I struggled a bit throughout the session as I had run out of lenses - climbing in glasses is completely alien to me so I was either climbing short-sightedly or a bit disorientatedly - either way not climbing in a very co-ordinated manner!

In the evening I went once more to the film festival with Mathieu (Of Edinburgh University Mountaineering Club fame!) where there were even more adventure films  - featuring climbing and mini-voiling in Ceuse and Riglos, mountaineering and the story of Lionel Daudet who toured around the circumference of France, sticking to the frontiers and using only non-motorised methods of travelling! It was also nice to see some images of Patrick Edlinger all along the walls to pay hommage to the great climber who sadly passed away a few weeks ago. 

The next day I went shopping in town and met up with the Edinburgh Girls to do a tour of the Christmas Market on its opening night. Lots of tartiflette eaten, some vin chaud drunk and plenty of gifts bought - all in all a very Christmassy evening! A magic moment was when Kate came out with the most Scottish phrase ever to be heard in Grenoble (or at east since I've been here!): "Was it pure jumpin' here earlier like?" Brought a tear to my eye - amazing! :P

After lots of food I woke up the next day ready to go back to Pierrot with "the other"  Fred and his girlfriend Aurelie. We made the usual trip to the Boulangerie beforehand and arrived to an almost fully dry crag! A quick warm up and I was ready to try and do Pan Bagnard 7c, the route I had tried the week before when it was wet. I managed to do it straight off and felt happy with how I had climbed it. Feeling strong, I had a go at Extreme Noise Terror 8a+ and finally worked out how to do the one niggly move that has been stopping me. A big shouldery throw with a high egyptian. I went for an attempt to complete the route and got past the crux, felt calm, until...my right hand slipped from a still-damp tufa. Oh well, next time maybe! I was very happy to have made so much progress with that move, and am keen to get back to the crag before I leave to finish the route. Afterwards, we did a bit of caving in the dried-out waterfall behind the crag - so many tunnels with amazing rock formations!

This week I climbed with Meta (my EP wifey :) ) at EV2 where we had to battle for a free line - so many climbers on a Tuesday night! I chose to do lots of mileage to keep moving through the routes as it was very busy! I also met Marlee who I had seen at the Chamonix competition, so it was nice to bump into her here! On Thursday Meta kindly invited me back to her house for soup where I met her adorable daughters - Femke had even made me a Percy Pig picture with the stickers I had given her! Afterwards we headed to Ablok for a boulder session but both of us were very tired so mileage was on the cards. I was due to be competing in the Departmental difficulty event on Saturday, so I didn't want to push it too hard either.

On the Friday evening I went to a Soirée Britannique (British party!) organised by Alice from Edinburgh and some of her friends. It was a very fun evening with Pimm's, trifle and Toad-in-the-Hole on offer. I met lots of new people from different countries and even ended up joining in on the conga line! I didn't leave too late as I had the competition the next day, up at 6:30am!!!!

Feeling as fresh as a daisy (or rather as fresh as a daisy that has been trampled on) I arrived at the climbing centre in Crolles, a pretty town not far away from EP's office. The wall was built by Entre-Prises and although it is an old gym I really liked its features (can't go wrong with a bit of Imprint panelling ;) ) My first 4 qualification routes went well and I topped them all, finding the last route (about 7a+/b) tricky at the top but not getting too pumped. I helped Margaux with her German homework - very hard to describe a German text in French, I found out! I went into the finals alongside a lot of L'ALE Escalade club members and isolation was good fun - Sylvain and Jerome bullying poor Yoann into submission and throwing his kit out of the iso area (which was taped off) to try and get him disqualified - awesome coaches! :P ) It was a long wait and card games, gymnastics, skipping and a bit of climbing helped take our mind off the waiting. Eventually we went out to view our routes and Margot and I read ours together. It looked do-able, but there was a section we weren't too sure about near the top. Back into iso and it was time to climb - I knew I had to climb fast in order to win due to the new time regulation, as I knew Margot would top out. As a member of the French Speed Team and a former member of the French Junior Team in Difficulty, I had seen Margot climb and knew she would be tough competition in the final. I also have a lot of admiration for the mental strength of speed climbers -it's not easy being head-head directly with another competitor, so I knew I had to keep confident in this situation. 

My turn came and I knew I had to climb fluidly and not hang around, but equally I didn't want to rush and make a mistake. My tactics worked out well and I topped the route fairly quickly. I had made one or two small errors but in all I was happy with my climb. I watched Margot who came out after me and as I expected she easily topped out and I had no idea who had won - it would be a close call! We didn't know until our names were read out on the podium - I had managed to win, but not by much I don't think! I won a nice trophy, a 15 euro voucher for Au Vieux Campeur climbing shop, a day ski-pass for Les Sept Laux, some Crimp Oil and a GriGr2 (which I gave to young Margaux, as being sponsored by Petzl I don't really need it!) Yoann won the Men's Senior category, so our house is home to the two Isère Difficulty champions! We also (quite randomly) got a frying pan off Sylvain and his wife - now we can eat well! Another fantastic French competition with a fun and friendly atmosphere - so glad I got my licence to compete here in France, I have learned so much! 

A trip to the supermarket to buy some celebratory drinks and dinner followed and we watched the live feed of the Legends Only event in Sweden, sponsored by Entre-Prises! 

Today I went bouldering at Ablok and had a great session - I managed to complete my first grey problem (by the skin of my teeth!) and had fun joining in with the locals and getting inspired by some well-known climbers.

I realise I haven't talked much about my work with EP in this post, but I'm saving that for another post later on. I've been having a lot of fun in the office and even had fits of the giggles the other day and couldn't stop! Lots of funny stories including chicken bones, apples, rats and genies. I will tell no more. It's Top Secret! 

Also.....IT'S SNOWING!

After the Coupe de France last weekend I was exhausted, and even a few days later I was still very tired. I decided not to climb for 3 days in order to recover - getting up at 5:30am and having a full-on day of competition with 4 different routes and getting back late had certainly taken its toll on me. However, as a reward for having  done so much and barely having stopped at all since getting here, I took it easy, ate a pizza and thought about what to do over the next 4 days!

As it happened, Frédéric (a French guy who Robbie and I have met several times on our tours of the world's finest crags) was keen to go climbing on as many of the days we had available as possible, although the weather was looking rather dubious in places. We initially decided to try Pierrot Beach on the Friday, and St Leger the next two or three days. However, when we arrived at Pierrot on the Thursday morning, it was completely sodden with rain. Black streaks everywhere, we headed back down to the car towards...St Léger!

St Léger

I had been informed by some members of Team EP who had been in the area recently that conditions were good, so we were looking forward to climbing in one of the best areas in the world for a few days! 2 and a half hours later, we arrived at La Baleine sector and it was soaked! Although the sun was cracking the flags/rock, the seepage from the rain a few days ago was coming through strong. Back to the car it was, and another drive to the main sectors. The valley was beautiful, and the sun was out which made it even more enticing to get on the wall and climb! By the time we got up to the main sector it was nearing 3:30pm, so unfortunately we only had time to do one route each - an amazing 6b+ with odd features in sector Nabab. It was a bit disappointing to have been rained off and to have sort of wasted a day, but I was just happy to have visited a fantastic crag and to have had a day of lots and lots of walking in the sun! We decided not to come back to St Leger as the weather looked too iffy to risk staying there a few days. Mention was made of Buoux, Gorges du Tarn...but in general everywhere was threatened with rain and bad conditions, and crags in Grenoble were still drying out after the 30cm of snow had melted! That evening we decided it would be best to stick closer to home and visit a local crag to Grenoble called St Ange. It would be much less risky, we thought...

It was a beautifully sunny day and the drive up to St Ange was spectacular, with a panoramic view of the 3 Massifs and being almost at eye level across the valley with the snow-topped Belledonne mountains. However, as Frédéric didn't have the topo with him, we had used the map to guess the location. This was a bad idea. We were lost. We asked an uncertain tree-feller if he knew of a "falaise St Ange." We were driving around a forest up windy roads...whilst simultaneously running very very low on petrol! Luckily there was a can in the back, but after the tank was filled a bit more we were met with a car refusing to acquiesce to our request to get moving. Eventually, once the petrol had levelled out a bit the car started, but we were still lost and GPS was failing us. We looked up at the mass of rock high up ahead of us, guessing which bits could be St Ange, but I had seen pictures and was unsure as to whether we were in the right place. After finding what could have been the car park, we decided to give up and go to Pierrot Beach, stopping off to pick up a topo on the way.

Pretty hanging houses!

Finally we had found a crag which was both accessible and dry(ish!). It was the safest bet, just over an hour away in case of epic rainfall. The weather held out, and although it was 2:30pm ish by the time we got there (after checking out the waterfall which comes from the caves deep within the crag) and we managed to warm up quickly on a 7a before Frédéric jumped on his 8b+ project, Hérésie. He looked strong on the moves and deep down I thought it looked like a route I would like to try. In all honesty, the grade scared me - I had never touched an 8b+ before and had only managed my first 8b a few months ago. However, there's nothing like bad conditions and gopping wet tufas and pockets to provide an incentive to get on something that's dry, even if it seems a bit out of your limit! The route looked fun and Frédéric assured me the holds were good and that I would like it...

Hérésie starts in the middle of this image and runs through the blank white bulge and straight up to the orange crozzle at the top. It's steeper than it looks though!

Hérésie is about 25/30m long and follows a steep section of rock at about 40 degrees overhanging! It is chipped so I wasn't expecting it to be one of the most organic of routes, but as long as the moves were interesting I didn't mind! Can't really complain as I've climbed enough on artificial routes in Gorges du Loup this summer! As the comical sign at the bottom of the crag says "TROUS EN FORMATION"(literally holes in formation - a road sign warning when the surface is uneven after winter) it's not exactly a secret that this crag has fake holds - it is even home to a bolt-on hold on one of the 7c+s!

I pulled onto the boulder problem at the start - small crimps for hands but poor feet, I took my time to do each move and find good positions. The moves were quite stretched for me, but soon I was at the cool-looking tufa section. It was a bit damp, but I figured out a knee bar and worked my way up to what looked to be one of the hardest, biggest moves on the route. Each hand had a positive pocket, and two poor footholds quite far below under a mini scoop of wall. The next hold - a good undercut flake - was fairly far away. I limbered up and started to swing, twisted my right knee and threw for the undercut, just latching it and swinging my feet up after it - WOW! It was such a fun move and I was pleased to have caught it on first attempt. I clipped and crossed over for the next good pocket with my left hand, feet up high on two tiny bobbles and then threw up dynamically for a three-finger (two if you have sausage fingers, sorry Robbie :P ) pocket with my right hand, poised a foot on a tiny edge and prepared to move - bloc! I took on the rope and tried to figure out the best finger orientation for the pocket - back three was the successful candidate! I made the thrutchy cross over to a gaston crimp with my left and prepared for the shouldery press/jump to a decent juggy flake. I clipped and rested, crossed over to another back three pocket with my right and did a massive rock-over and lock-off up to an undercut 3 finger pocket, egyptianed and threw for a good sidepull with my right, feet cutting loose and then grabbing the good jug with my left just above and matching. This is the best hold on the route, as it turned out, and you have to make the most of it! 

My new coach...

I threw up left for a good sidepull pocket, built my feet up and heelhooked the jug to reach up for a pinchy pocket with my right and clipped. I rested on the rope here and then worked my way up through the next bit - a big move to a gaston, match feet, grab the crimp and then leap for a good slot and match the mini-flake beside it. Now came the redpoint crux - 4 powerful moves on undercuts with awkward clips that may have to be missed! I took the good crimp, egyptianed up and right for a good sidepull, got my feet up high and powered for the undercut, smeared my feet on nothingness and pulled for the next undercut pocket...and failed! I worked this a few times, eventually getting it and throwing over for the next good flake with my left hand, feet daintily poised on tiny bobbles, I grabbed an intermediate pinch on the tufa with my right and launched again for a juggy one-hand pocket with my right. Left foot high, I slowly released my left hand ( I am kind of in a Crucifix position at this point, shoulders out of sockets stuff here!) and take all of my weight on my right arm, using the momentum to power over the top for another one-handed crack-like jug which I ended up jamming my hand in. I worked the next move - a difficult cross over up to an undercut, then high feet and up to a slopey sidepull and a deep egyptian up to a good edge. The thing about these holds is that although they are positive, there is little or no room for both hands and consequently no time for hanging around! The top section was tricky at first but then I found a method which worked better for me - cross to the next jug and reach up to a crozzly pocket with your left hand, high right foot and balance up to the next slotty pocket with right hand, clip, grab intermediate sidepull and throw for sidepull crimp, bring right foot under and heel hook a good edge with left foot to throw up again with left hand to an undercut pocket (back 3 again!) step up slowly and balance to reach a good sidepull, build feet up and jam left hand into another v-shaped pocket, grab intermediate crimp, bump again to another one then left foot high and step up to the finishing flake and clip! 

It was an amazing route, and I felt chuffed to have been able to do all of the moves on an 8b+. I was knackered afterwards, as it was so physical - lots of powerful, shouldery moves at the limit of my reach! What I had going for me was my ability to get my feet very high use my core strength and momentum to overcome the distance. The crozzly tufa rock at the top was so different to the smooth, glassy limestone at the bottom, it was really fun to be climbing on two different styles of rock and route in the one climb. Sadly after that one attempt the night was starting to fall, so we vowed to return the next day to get back on it...

On the Saturday conditions were sublime - we warmed up on THE classic route of Presles Legoland 7a. It even has a lego figurine at the bottom of it! Beautiful moves that seemed to flow into each other (no, it wasn't chipped!) and interesting holds. Afterwards I had my first run of the day on Hérésie. The moves felt more familiar and I managed to link a crucial 12 metre section in the middle. I still struggled with the throw to the undercut at the start, and needed to perfect the kneebar (Gorges du  Loup taught me well though!) and even the top section felt much better. My skin was starting to shred, yet despite this, we each did another 2 runs on the route. I never thought I would manage to even work my way up to the top 3 times in one session especially after having climbed the two days before, but somehow I managed! With each go I learned something new and took my time on the moves (see I do listen to you Robbie! :D ) and although I was exhausted by the end of the day, I was still keen to return the next day (today) to try again...

Ouch!

This morning I awoke with the back, biceps and shoulders of someone who has been launching between holds on steep ground - achy and stiff, and in need of tenderising! Yet I wasn't giving up - we drove once more along the scenic route to Pierrot (which I think I know by heart now, that's saying something knowing me and my directional abilities whilst on the road!) and arrived at the crag about lunchtime. We warmed up on Sanguine Joli Fruit 7a+ which I managed to onsight depsite finding a particularly big move in the roof tricky. Unfortunately the crag seemed wetter than the day before (seepage rather than rain) so we were restricted once again to trying the 8b+ (which was also slightly unclimbable for the first two or three clips). I had another run on it and pulled through the clips until the tufa and kneebar, and found a better position for my knee. I worked my way through the moves but struggled in some sections where pockets and flakes were seeping. Still, each move was completed and a bit more confined to memory. I was tired and Frédéric wasn't too keen for climbing in the rain, which started as I was half-way up. When I lowered, the clouds from across the valley were starting to surround the foot of the crag - how atmospheric! It was 3:30pm and time to head back to Grenoble. After 4 days of climbing my skin, muscles and brain were very tired indeed, but I can't wait to return to Pierrot once conditions get a bit better.

View from Pierrot across the valley, and the bottom of the waterfall...

Aside from the climbing, I have also been working for the French climbing webpage PlanetGrimpe.com and helping to translate articles and interviews for their new English language site, of which I have been put in charge! It's a lot of responsability, but it is great experience for improving my language skills (merci Charles!)

Back to work tomorrow with Entre-Prises, in the run-up to potentially competing in the next Coupe de France round in Chamonix next weekend (condition and cost dependent!) 

Roll on week 6! :D

Quel beau mur d'Entre-Prises! ;)

Firstly though, a brief description of the run-up to the competition since my outings at La Balme and Pierrot Beach last weekend. I decided to take a night off on Monday to recover from my craggy adventures of the Sunday, and settled into my 4th week of work chez Entre-Prises. On the Tuesday evening I had a training session at Espace Vertical 3 in the centre of Grenoble with Fréd and Léo from Team EP France. It was my first visit to this centre and I was impressed by the routesetting and the walls in general - they weren't very multi-faceted but were great for training continuous movements and endurance. After accidentally walking into the men's toilets and promptly running back out again, I started to warm up and we managed to rattle through around 8 routes each starting from 6a and up to 8a+. I was pleased to flash a 7c and 7c+ (although I tried not to watch Léo I inevitably saw some moves when shouting ALLEZ ALLEZ!! as is custom in France and nowadays every wall in the world it seems!) It was the first time I'd really pushed myself on some hard indoor routes in Grenoble, and thanks to Fréd and Léo's insistence that I needed to fall off something horrifically hard, I decided to try an 8a+ which looked rather tricky! We read the route together (always more of a challenge in French but good practice for chumming up to foreigners in comps!) and it appeared to have a weird crux fairly low down which turned out to be a bit of a nightmare! The rest of the route was still taxing but much less contorted than the crux, so after having a few attempts at the moves and failing I continued to try the rest of the route. We were knackered after a long day at work and an intense session...but I felt satisfied that I'd put in a good effort in the run up to the big event.

Wednesday was a day of rest climbing-wise, and after work I met up with Lucy from Edinburgh and a friend of hers for dinner and then a cinema session, where we saw the latest film of the French classic Astérix et Obélix. Lots of friendly jibes at the Brits which went down well and some funny Franco/Anglo accents which made it fairly easy to understand. The calibre of the jokes was along the lines of "What do you call a handsome British guy? A tourist!" :P On the Thursday I decided to rest and climb the next morning at Ablok for a final boulder session before the competition. I bumped into one of my new French friends Léa and we climbed a bit together (unfortunately not for long as I had already been there for a while before she arrived and was exhausted!) We agreed to meet up the next day and go to the cinema (yes, again!) to see a chick-flick called Elle s'appelle Ruby. All rested and raring to go, I returned to my house to settle down before the rude awakening at 5:25am...

"Tu as vu déhors?" Yoann, my housemate asked me as I walked out of my room. I looked outside and there was a thick covering of...wait for it...SNOW! Perhaps the most exciting news from the last week is that it SNOWED (I know how much everyone loves snow announcements, whatever age you may be!) and the irresistable prospect of building a bonhomme de neige suddenly distracted me from any pre-comp nerves. There was, however, a slight concern that we wouldn't make it/would be late for the competition. I was due to be out 7th on my first route, and it would be a shame to have a rushed warm-up in such cold weather! Yoann, Élodie (Yoann's girlfriend) and I marched out into the snow at 6:00am and jumped into the car. As we tried to clear the windows of snow, a massive barrier of thick, white snow fell into the car on Yoann's side, which prompted an uncalled-for snowball fight inside the car - a good(ish) warm up I must say! The snow was getting heavier and we couldn't see the roads - a bit scary, but Yoann assured me that I would be fine, as I had my doudoune (down jacket) and that would be sufficient in a snowstorm if we got caught! Hmmm...

The banging dance tunes on the radio at 6:00am received a mixed response from my brain - one half ready to go and climb but the other still in bed about 100 miles away. The familiar Polygone climbing centre awaited us as we bolted it out of the car towards the....cold climbing wall! It was just as cold inside, but my mind was telling me "What are you complaining about...this is HOME! This is just like RATHO!" I mustered up the courage to look at my routes and start "warming up" in the fridge of a warm up room. Don't get me wrong, but breezeblock - complete with gap-ridden doors - isn't the best of insulators! My first route looked very long and intimidating, until Yoann pointed out that it finished halfway up - phew! It was at this point that I met the one and only Sheila McCarron - a fellow Scotswoman who until this point I had only known through Facebook and internet chatrooms (it's a long story, I won't go into it!) It was great to hear another Scottish voice and to finally meet the face behind the name and the voice (of Bercy, as the World Championship announcer!) I also met her wonderful kids Julianne and Sophie - both exceptional climbers who were also competitors in this weekend's event. I warmed up and as soon as I got to the tie-in point I had a sudden realisation that I'd forgotten what it felt like to be on a wall competing, I hadn't done a lead competition in almost two years! I started to doubt myself, but as soon as I stepped on the wall it all started coming back to me. It's a strange feeling - to be so pent up with nervous and excited energy and then to be able to simmer down to a reasonably calm level whilst climbing. It's something that definitely comes with experience, but I also think  it comes easier to some than others. Being able to block out a massive crowd and music and a throbbing head full of thoughts certainly isn't easy. I felt calm on my route, and as almost everyone before me had topped I was reassured that there were no sneaky traps along the way. It was also comforting to know that I was climbing on a beautifully crafted Entre-Prises wall, which was embellished with Entre-Prises patented Imprint panelling and constructed in 2001. Ahem, moving on! I topped out and went off into the crowd. Thankfully Yoann and Sheila made me aware of the fact that I needed to collect a slip of paper from the judge to give to my next route judge, I also didn't realise I was running pretty much straight onto the next route in around 20 mins or so (don't do this at home kids -or abroad for that matter- always check the format of the competition! ;) ) 

First route gurn! Photo: Sheila McCarron

My second route was much longer and steeper but the holds seemed positive. Only one person had topped before me and it looked fairly tricky at the top. I pulled on and made it to the last few holds, I rested for a while and pushed on, matching the volume and getting resin-rash on my arms and then throwing for the jug - I made it!  I was relieved to have completed the first two qualifiers - along with 13 other girls from the 45 I went into the semi's in equal 1st. A long wait ensued and I started eating my entire bodyweight in food, much to the amusement of Élodie, who remarked that I had "brought the fridge along in my bag". Normally I don't eat much in competitions, but I was hungry! I belayed Yoann on his routes, he topped his first and put in a fine effort on the second. For a specialist speed climber, he did great in transferring his skills onto the difficulty wall. I know I wouldn't transfer so easily into the speed events, that's for sure! In the meantime I met Charles from Planetgrimpe.com, another friend on Facebook who I had never spoken to in person until now. I have done lots of translations in the past few years for PG and it's always good fun to translate interviews with some of the world's top climbers. 

Second qualifier! Photo: Sheila McCarron

The semis arrived and they were - bizarrely - in flash format. Normally I have climbed in semis which are onsight, so it was a nice change for once to be able to watch people! Nobody had topped yet and I was out 15th - the first of the 1st ex-aequo girls to climb as I don't have a French placement or ranking. I warmed up alongside young Julianne who was due to be climbing at a similar time in the youth event. I walked out of the freezing warm-up area and tied-in. There was a long, dodgy clip just under the roof which I attempted to hit and grab but felt a bit like a kitten failing epically to paw a ball of string, so I changed my tactics and decided to be bold and run it out another move! Oooh, scary! It was at this point when I stood on the Entre-Prises logo (a fully-permitted feature on one of the inserts, I hasten to add!) as there were no other footholds. I felt a bit guilty for having literally stepped on the company's name (and was duly (albeit jokingly!) reprimanded by Fréd today!) but it was, I feel, a necessary evil. I was resting in a corner and decided it was time to emerge - a few powerful moves later and I was onto the vertical headwall - complete with filthy crimps and very high-placed footholds. Il faut serrer! I pulled hard and made an awkward balancey move to an intermediate feature on the panel, and then bumped up again in a heartbeat to latch the second hold...and again...I caught the last hold. It was all very delicate - I wasn't exhausted but it was a tenuous section for the fingers and feet. I lowered down and Sheila came up to me and said "That was beautiful!" I don't think I've ever been told that one of my climbs was beautiful before, but it was certainly a good feeling to be the first to top and to have so much support from others. My belayer asked me which region I come from - I replied "Scotland" initially but then remembered that I do indeed have a "region" in France. After all, I was climbing for the ALE Escalade club in Échirolles, just on the outskirts of Grenoble. He said "C'est facile pour toi, hein?" It wasn't easy but I was glad to have overcome a tricky bit. It was strange to be competing abroad but also on 'home turf' in a weird sort of situation. It felt good though, I didn't feel all too foreign, and was introduced to everyone and their pals by Sheila and Yoann. Some familiar faces from youth competitions, and some stars from the senior competitions - I met Cecile Avezou and saw Alex Chabot!

Semi-final! Photo: Sheila McCarron

I knew for sure that i had made the finals and watched the rest of my group with interest. 6 other girls out of the 26 topped out too, and top 8 go would go through to the final. At this point I was happy to be able to say that I had made the final of a Coupe de France, but also wanted to do my best in the final. After some more food and trying to resist the temptation to wander around the gear and clothes stalls for fear of spending money, I entered isolation. It was bizarrely relaxed and light-hearted in isolation here compared to at British events, Julianne had made finals too so it was nice to have a friendly face around and I also got chatting to one or two of the women in my category. We went out to view the route, and I was pleased by the choice of line and the holds (Not EP though, disappointed!) and remembered having climbed on this part of the wall in the World Youth Championships in 2009. I tried to remember what to think of when on the wall, but then realised that really, the only thing you can think of is the next move! Not what the person before you might have done, not what you have done before and not someone else may do after you - it's all in the moment! I wasn't particularly nervous, I was very tired though. I was out second due to my non-ranking and was pleased to hear the Voice of Sheila calling out my name and describing me as a Scottish-Francophone ( a Scottish person who speaks French, or in my case, is trying my best to! :P ) I tried to focus on my pace, as I knew with the new ruling that if anyone reached the same point as me, it would go down to time taken to reach said point. This was the first time I had competed in a final with this new ruling in mind, and I really wasn't sure how it would pan out. I moved briskly through the bottom, paused briefly under the roof, then thought FAST! I started moving very quickly, and took quick shakeouts between moves. I clipped from a few strenuous positions but kept fighting. Something which I am prone to experiencing in competitions or on any route is summit fever - getting over-excited or maybe even slightly deranged near the top. I often have fairly low expectations on routes and sometimes when I surprise myself it turns into a bit of an "Ok, that isn't bad, I can't go much further" kind of game. I sometimes think I give up too easily, even when it feels like I am going for it it always feels like I could go 10% further. This time I kept going with a decent level of tenacity, I hugged the blobby volume (more resin-rash! Thankfully I had also taken my bracelets off for more friction!) and threw for a good crimp, then looked to the next big pinch - which seemed miles away, I threw for it and touched it, completely powered out! I had reached about the 6th hold from the top, which I was pleased with, but I also knew I could have paced myself a bit better. I watched as some of France's best female climbers very nearly topped out, inspiring me to push harder and maybe even take part in the next round in Chamonix in two weeks! Cecile Avezou was the well-deserved winner, followed by the young and supremely talented climbers Salomé Romain and Julia Chanourdie. I was placed 5th, narrowly avoiding 6th by having climbed to the same point just 8 or 9 seconds faster than Candice Gauthier - I really thought I had taken too long in the first rest! I was very happy with my result and grateful to be able to have taken part in such a prestigious event.

I met up with Julianne who had just climbed her junior route and eventually finished 3rd! A fantastic effort in her first Coupe de France, along with her younger sister Sophie who also made finals and finished in 8th place! At the end of the finals (and after goodness knows how many hours of awakeness) it was time to return home to Grenoble - we hoped, anyway. As long as the snow wasn't 10m deep we would be fine. We walked out and the snow had all disappeared, yet it was still freezing - cue the chorus of "brrrr's" resounding from Yoann, Élodie and me. "Brrrr! " appears to be a word/noise which transcends all language barriers - universal speak for "I'm rather chilly!". The drive back to Grenoble included multiple playings of Gangnam Style on the local radio - an amusing end to a fun-filled day of climbing. 

I've definitely caught the competition bug again, so here's to the next round in Chamonix in two weeks - if anyone has a spare room/couch/floor/kennel or rooftop going for a night, let me know...:P

The Vercors from Pierrot Beach

I had another enjoyable week at work and trained on the Tuesday night at Espace Vertical 2 and the Thursday evening at Ablok, where I met Léo from work and also quite unexpectedly bumped into a friend of mine and Robbie's who we have encountered at various crags on our travels around Europe. Frédéric offered to take me climbing at the weekend, so all in all a productive trip to the wall!

First though, the main event of the week was an adventure in the Vercors with my workmate Meta, where we had the intention of completing a 250m long multi-pitch route called "La Dame de Coeur", graded at TD+, très difficile +. With 8 pitches up to 6c, I was looking forward to completing my first multi-pitch sport route. Meta picked me up at 9:30am and we made the drive to Presles in the Vercors, admiring the scenery and chatting about anything and everything. We arrived and got kitted up ready to climb - taking the bare minimum of equipment. After a brisk walk downhill to the foot of the route we were met by another party of Dutch climbers who were starting up the first pitch of our route. They were not intending to do the same route as us which meant things freed up a little bit.

La Dame de Coeur

The first pitch was an easy scramble up a 6a. I seconded up after Meta and met her at the belay, where she taught me how set up a proper belay of my own. She had already gone through it all with me on the ground, and I already had a good idea of what to do, but it was necessary to be shown on the wall just to make sure. I was impressed with myself in that for the whole day, we had conversed solely in French - which adds to the potential for confusion when learning how to do something you are not sure about in another language (don't worry, I was almost always aware of what was going on and checked if I wasn't!) Meta lead the second pitch to allow me another chance to see her belay set-up and then it was up to me to lead the third and hardest (by grade) pitch on the route - a 6c. It had a powerful start on pockets with some big moves on a steep section, then eased off a bit. I made it to the top where there was a big ledge, conveniently comfortable for setting up my first belay (and for posing for photos and eating lunch afterwards!) I made the belay fine and admired the view as I brought Meta up. The panorama of the Vercors was amazing and I felt very at ease despite being about 100m+ up. I was excited at the prospect of having to climb another 150m of rock which loomed above us before we would reach the top. I also saw a lizard on the ledge as I was making the belay and he gave me the thumbs - or claws - up in agreement, so I knew my belay was safe...

The next pitch, at 6b, turned out to be the sac à sable of the route! I started up on lead and pulled on some layback/sidepull slopers at the start of a crack. It was steep with not much for feet. What lay ahead was an amusing mixture of contortion and perplexity - I jammed, twisted, kneebar-ed, chimneyed, backstepped, bridged and used just about every trick in the book whilst generally climbing like a sack of spanners. I made it though! Once my heart rate had settled and I was no longer in the splits position things calmed down and I made my second belay. Safe! I was relieved to hear that Meta too had found it a tad tricky for 6b - "C'était un peu pourrie ça - pas 6b!" ie "That was a bit minging - no way 6b!" Although it was a bit awkward, I rather enjoyed the challenge of climbing something a bit out of the ordinary and completely different. I may yet become a crack climber! 4 pitches remained - all of which were supposedly easier than what we had just done - luckily for us!

Each pitch seemed to increase in quality - we even had a friendly 5c to look forward to just before the finish. I lead one more pitch and then it was up to Meta to complete the final 6a to the top of the crag, 250m up. We could see a wall of grey rock reaching up about 20m above our heads. The end is in sight, we thought. Meta started up and eventually was just at the apparent apex of the curved rock. She's there, I thought, that's the top. Oh no, there was another 20m of rock on top of that!  A 40m pitch was our last hurdle, it seemed. I seconded up, and although knackered absolutely loved it. It was a great feeling to have summited amidst the panorama of the valley. I felt the sense of height as I saw a rockface just across the valley which I remembered seeing on the walk down to the crag and thinking - that is massive! I hadn't actually seen the size of the crag we had climbed up, but that gave me a rough idea. We were both tired, but had enough energy for the walk down to the car (no need to rappel, thankfully!) and a good French chat in the car. I arrived home to a dinner cooked by my housemate, which was very welcomed as I was very low in energy!

On the Saturday I rested in anticipation of climbing with Frédéric the next day. I wandered around town in the sun, bumped into Alice from University, bought a French SIM card and some postcards and stamps (not sending one to everyone, be warned!) It's amazing to be able to wander around a picturesque town centre with your H&Ms, McDonalds and at the same time be in the middle of the mountains! I have found that I am very good at navigating here because I can use the Vercors, Belledonne and Chartreuse Massifs to guide me. The Dent de Crolles is particularly useful as a navigation tool!

On the Sunday I met up with Frédéric and we decided to go to La Balme (de Yenne) where I had already been this year with Robbie and Alex in the summer. It was much less hot this time round but also very strange to be back there again and see our little van site where we stayed for a night. Sentimental feelings aside, it was a productive morning in which I ticked a 7a which had spat me off in the summer (due to the heat and Robbie and Alex's insistence that I try a kneebar - which didn't work for me! :P ) and then I onsighted a classic 7b+ called Cathédrale - a long, pumpy route filled with tufas and big juggy pinches which get less juggy near the top! I was really happy to onsight this, but afterwards we decided to head towards Pierrot Beach (another crag in the Vercors/Presles region as some of the harder routes were wet at La Balme. After about 2 hours in the car (we took a wrong turning!) we arrived at Pierrot at about 5pm. By now I was feeling very tired and the rock was still in the heat of the sun and unbelieveably hot. We warmed up on a 7a and then Frédéric attempted his 8b+ project, getting fairly high and inspiring me to try somehard routes here (just not today, as I was knackered!) 

Good view of Pierrot Beach

Instead of trying an 8a+ which looked good, I fancied my chances on a 7b+ which I wanted to onsight. It wasn't too long but looked thin in places! I began to climb and felt re-energised - the sun had gone down a bit further and I was in the shade. I made it to a good rest and checked out the next few clips - a definite crux! I chose a sequence and went for it - no hesitation, just fight. I got throught that section and did the same for the next. Composure and aggression. The moves went fairly quickly and I was at another rest not far from the top. The next section looked tricky but more technical than physical. Luckily I was right, and although having to disturb a rather large spider with an even larger web, I made it to the chain - my second 7b+ onsight of the day! I was content but tired, and ready to go home after giving Frédéric another belay. We drove back to Grenoble listening to some old school Groove Armada tracks, which was a great soundtrack to the drive through the valleys, the lights starting to turn on and the outlines of the cliff edges just visible against the pastel-painted sky. 

Presles!

My day wasn't over just yet though - I got back home and within ten minutes was welcoming Lucy into my house for dinner. Lucy is a fellow Edinburgh University student of French who has got into climbing here in Grenoble! She has even bought her own climbing shoes - watch this space! We chatted (in English - a nice change considering how immersed in French I otherwise usually am!) over a tuna slop (my speciality) and agreed to meet up again this week for a jaunt to the cinema. 

Today I started back at work, just another day in the office - mountains all around us, lunch outside complete with Clairette de Die champagne (ok, sparkling wine!) and chocolate gateau, and then a little detour by a circus complete with llamas and donkeys on the way home in Crolles. It's nae too bad here like!

My work at the EP office is still just as enjoyable if not even more so than it was in my first week. I am now doing more creative things such as producing bigger texts for the new brochure in English and doing lots of varied translation work for both Meta and Fred in the international sales and marketing department. It sounds very big when I call it a department, but at EP France it is just Fred and Meta in their office, who work very hard in multiple languages and also find the time to help me out with the work they give me!) Today we also had some EP workers from the UK and Spain, so it was strange to hear a mix of French and English today in the office and at lunch, but also nice to see everyone crossing the language barrier. It's still very much a friendly, almost familial atmosphere and it is especially apparent at lunch when jokes and climbing chat take over. The French certainly do enjoy making the most of lunchtime and eating a big meal - I still worry everyone by not eating as much as they would :P Today, however, Meta, Léo and I went to the supermarket to get some stuff for lunch, and we came back with some raspberry tarts for me and Meta - they were a good buy indeed! On the way home Fred said that I will be appearing in the next EP newsletter, watch this space!

I climbed twice indoors last week, once on Monday when I did routes at EV2 with Meta and François, and then on Wednesday at Ablok (bouldering centre) I found the style of the routes to be very different from those at home - smaller moves with more balance and thought required. At Ablok I managed to do two red problems - the problems are divided into coloured difficulty ranges - which was an improvement on my zero red score the week before. I saw some very well-known climbers there and got talking to a few of them, all in all a good few days training! 

On the Thursday evening I decided to rest and went out with some friends from Edinburgh University, who also brought some other Edinburgh people with them and some new friends, so it turned out to be a good night out. We went to a small bar in Place Notre Dame and then Lucy and I went off to a snowboard garden party in the Parc Mistral, where we met up with some other Edinburgh students. There were many stalls filled with snowboarding equipment and some videos of snowboarders, but the funniest thing was watching people attempting to dance to the music. It looked to me as though there were quite a lot of climbers there too, you can always tell a climber from the way they look! It was a good laugh, then it started to rain very heavily and seeing as I had my medical consultation in order to get my French competition licence the next day, I decided to leave a bit earlier (getting home looking like a drowned rat: note to self - never say "I don't need my umbrella" when in Grenoble...

On my day off, I unfortunately had to get up early to go to the doctors for the examination, but it didn't take long and I passed with flying colours. I even got a print out of my electrocardiograph results! The doctor managed to guess that we have a wood fire at home just from the scent on my clothes, I was embarrassed and apologised, but she claimed that she loves the smell! Maybe a market for Parfum Feu de Bois? That evening at 7pm I took the bus from Grenoble to Briançon to go climbing with my Swedish friend David for the weekend. I was disappointed to have to leave so late as it meant it was getting dark by the time I was getting out of the city and I couldn't see any of the landscape which I guessed would be amazing! Never mind, I knew I would be able to see it properly when I would be returning on the Sunday.

Heart in working order!

I arrived at around 9:15pm and it was FREEZING! At around 1300m in altitude I should have guessed it, but it was a bit of a shock coming from the normally fairly muggy Grenoble. It was very fresh indeed, and I was glad when I  could jump in the car when David met me at the bus stop. I walked into David and his family's home and it was wonderful - like an alpine chalet with wooden beams and ceilings and a balcony. I was introduced to his wife Camilla, who I had met briefly in Ceuse, and his son and two friends from Sweden (and their lovely and very excitable dog, too!) Camilla cooked spaghetti bolognaise which was delicious and we had cheese and fruit for dessert. The topics of conversation at the table made for amusing listening and participation, and it was quite nice to hear Swedish language being spoken, of which I know a little bit and can sometimes understand what is being said. In a mix of English and Swedish and very little French the night went on and eventually it was time for bed, of which I was glad as I was very tired after the journey.

We had planned to go to St Leger or Ceuse over the next two days, but due to weather and time availability we thought it would be best to stay local. On the Saturday we went to Les Freissinières, just past Briançon. The valley was breathtaking, and David filled me in on all the best climbing and ice climbing spots. We made a bit of a blunder on the walk in (David had never been there before) and took about 40 mins or so to get up a 15 minute walk in, but it was very good exercise! I was also starting to get a cold which made the walk more taxing but we made it to the crag eventually! At the foot of the cliff we met some friends of David and Camilla's and it was good to be able to speak a bit of French at the crag again. Their friend Fred was with a group of Club Alpin Français kids who looked very strong - this was one of their weekly crag jaunts to a local area! Fred helped us pick out some good routes and we started on a 6a, then we went on an ungraded route (about 6c we thought). I rested a while and decided to go for a 7b+ round the corner which we were recommended. I would be putting the clips in and trying to give it my best go on the on-sight. It followed a dihedral corner and then crossed the arete and into a flat section just below a roof - I thought it looked ok but the corner looked like it could have some hidden surprises! I started calmly and eventually found myself over the corner section and resting on the flat bit. David's encouragement was very helpful as I tried to keep a cool head. I find that when onsighting, it is very much about keeping your calm and not panicking if you misjudge something or if you are slightly out of your comfort zone. There were some very technical moves but I overcame each one of them slowly but surely, and finally I could see the final roof and slab just before the chain. One last hard move, I took a deep breath and went for it. I was well recovered and hit the move first time, and then creeped my way up the slab to finish and clip the chain. I was happy with a 7b+ onsight, a grade that can be very difficult to onsight, yet I am always happy with whatever route I onsight as even in the lower grades there can be moves which will spit you off if you get complacent! We had been lucky with the weather - quite hot in the sun and just a bit cool in the shade.

 On a 6c at Les Freissinières

For the rest of the day I tried a desperate 7c with two massive moves that I couldn't get past. I tried it twice and still couldn't get past them on the second go, so decided to give in and do some easier mileage. We finished off on a 6c and then took the - much shorter than before - path back to the car. We walked past crags where there have recently been some 9a's and other hard stuff bolted, and we even saw a well-known French climber (according to David, anyway :P) Apparently there are 5 or 6 climbers in that valley that have climbed 9a, crazy! That evening we had another great meal cooked for us by Camilla and we settled down to watch a movie before bedtime. It was a very long day and we were knackered...

6c at Freissinières

The next morning the weather looked just as good and we decided to go to Mont Dauphin, Secteur Raph to do some onsighting before catching the bus at 4:30pm. Mont Dauphin is a bizarre island of conglomerate rock surrounded by limestone cliffs - it really was quite a strange formation, but as I had never climbed on conglomerate before I was eager to give it a go. The valley was beautiful and just opposite us was a waterfall that seemed to be coming out of nowhere, just rolling off the edge of a flat plain. I warmed up on a 7a and quickly started to fall in love with the type of climbing on the conglomerate formations. There was a massive pebble/stone sticking out like a volume in one place, and lots of fiddly pockets complete with thousands of footholds. It was quite difficult to source the holds but eventually I got used to spotting where they might be. I topped out and felt very much warmed up, with some help from the sun too! I rested for a while and decided to go for a 7c which david said was good and reasonably onsightable if I climbed the way I did the 7b+ the day before. I tied in and started up the via ferrata (the start is about 8m of via ferrata/an easyish scramble until you reach the proper start). It was quite scary/strange to switch onto the lead rope after completing the via ferrata but once I put the first quickdraw in I was on my way. I knew it would be harder putting the clips in too but I was willing to take on the challenge. The sun was out and I climbed the first bit slightly quicker than normal - it was 40m long and vertical to slightly overhanging near the top, so I knew I had to move reasonably fast. There were a few tricky sections at the bottom but afterwards there was usually a poor rest which allowed me to get something back. If there's one thing I'm not too bad at, it's finding good body positions to rest in! The holds may not have been great but I did my best to take my weight off my arms and onto my feet. Peu à peu, I was edging towards the final section. I was managing the pump better than I expected but was starting to feel generally fatigued and a bit trembly - I must have done a LOT of moves by then! I kept breathing and tried to keep thoughts of success or failure out of my head and just focus on each individual move. I started to get more pumped in what I think was the crux just near the top. I powerscreamed and crossed over a bit awkwardly to a hold, thinking I would be off as I had no idea how good it was, latched it and managed to curl my fingers around a good minijug inside a pocket. I was surprised to say the least and looked up - the chain was in sight - the next clip! The top looked tricky and there was no chalk. I have a tendency to fluf f the top of routes, especially on the onsight, as I get tired and nervous and in my frusttration sometimes just give a half-hearted effort. it's easier to give up trying than to lose a fight sometimes, but this time I was stoically determined. I tried to climb up to the chains but couldn't see any holds. I climbed back down to recompose myself and then convinced myself that the only way was to get my feet high and bear down on some small slopey crimps...I did it! My first 7c onsight, putting the clips in at the same time as well! I was shaking with fatigue and nerves and had to rest before cleaning the gear out. I lowered down and David was very happy for me. Thank you so much to him for the support and belays! Afterwards I did another 7a and then decided that was enough for the day, so we went back to the house for lunch and then it was back on the bus home...

Eyeing up the route/camera

The views from the bus were fanatastic and I was able to reflect on what had been a great weekend of climbing. It was intense but I am so glad I went, especially considering I was feeling a bit rough with the cold on the Friday I left. I am now looking forward to the next week, some more climbing, more work and more fun! 

 View from the bus

I arrived in Grenoble on Saturday evening after a pleasant journey with no hiccups and was filled with a mix of excitement and a bit of anxiety as to what was awaiting me. One of my colocataires (housemates) Fabrice (a French tutor)came to meet me at the station with his girlfriend and took me to my new home. It was strange being thrown in at the deep end and having to speak solely in French, but after the short car journey (stopping for pizza on the way!) I was starting to feel more at ease. We arrived at the house and it was even nicer than I had imagined, and we settled down to eat our pizza before heading off to watch a film at the cinema. 

The next day was a Sunday so there wasn't much to do other than try and get my bearings and of course pay a visit to the local wall! I didn't climb as I felt tired from the day before and wanted to be reasonably fresh for work. I also figured out where I would be meeting my lift the next day, just 15 minutes down the road. In the evening I met my other housemate Yoann, who I sort-of knew beforehand as he is a member of the French speed climbing team! We had been to a few of the same competitions but had never spoken in person before, and it was quite by chance that I managed to find a room in his house. It was great to be able to talk to a climber in French and get some more practice before starting work...

I got up earlier than necessary as is compulsory when one starts something new or has a big day ahead of them! I walked to the rendez-vous point and met Fred a few minutes later. Luckily we recognised each other from Facebook photos (and also I doubt there would be many people waiting to be picked up from this particular point - I did get some funny looks from people in cars!) It took us half an hour or so to arrive in St Vincent de Mercuze and unfortunately the cloudy weather prevented me from seeing the mountainous Massifs which were all around us. After a good chat about climbing, Scotland, Grenoble and all things Entre-Prises we arrived at the offices. I was welcomed by a donkey and a pony which were outside in the yard! 

Friendly donkey...shy donkey...I think I scared it! :(

It was amazing being at the centre of one of the most influential climbing companies in the world. I walked through the door (which had a hold as a handle) and was given a brief tour of the premises by Fred. There was the workshop complete with a small training board and lots of boxes of holds (although the holds are no longer produced in France) and lots and lots of climbing posters and paraphernalia decorating the walls and desks. The staff members in the small team of 12 people were all really friendly, and I still have to meet one or two! I was immediately offered a cup of tea and was being told all about the company and its history. I sat in the office with two other Natalie B's - that's right, I'm the third Natalie B to arrive at the EP-France offices! I was given nicknames such as "Natalie la jeune", "Natalie sans 'h'", "Natalie la grimpeuse" et "Natalie la troisième" in order to distinguish me from the other NB's! I was starting to feel very at home and was gaining confidence with each word spoken. 

It took a while to get my office set up and my computer accounts ready, but I was too busy being distracted by the collection of random objects around me. I had my own hold on my desk (from the Club 3 set, by the way!), as everyone in the office does. I decided to use it as a pen holder or Stoats bar holder! I also had a pop-up model of a climbing wall on my desk and my own box of green tea (how did they know I love green tea? :P) Eventually I started working on translating the Sales Texts for the database of holds ready to be put into the next brochure. This involved translation from French-English and vice-versa and also some text production in both French and English. I am fortunate in that I happen to know a lot of the EP holds very well, but I was also able to make good use of the latest brochure and the EP website to help me in writing the descriptions. I had worked fairly efficiently and managed to finish the French-English translation by lunchtime. I got to know the rest of the team a bit better as a group of us sat around the table eating lunch and I was offered apples, yoghurts and all sorts of edible things as I had only eaten a small pasta dish that I had bought in the UK - the shops weren't open on Sunday I wasn't able to do any shopping! :P I wasn't bothered but it showed me how friendly and welcoming everyone was. After lunch it was back to work, and my climbing hold vocabulary was expanding already, as was my knowledge of the entire EP range! With over 100 holds/sets to work my way through I was kept busy for the rest of the day, feeling quite tired by the end of my shift through so much concentrated effort in two languages! I already had offers to go climbing on rock and indoors and I felt very warmly welcomed into the team. I got a lift home from Léo this time at about 6:30pm and once again it was good to be able to get to know a different team member and talk about climbing and non-work related topics. After a brief visit to the supermarket (I now have a quilt and more importantly - FOOD!) I went back to the house and chatted with Yoann and Fabrice for a while before heading to bed. All in all a great first day in the office!

Casual climbing stuff on my desk...as you do!

Stoats Hold-er!
Today was a slightly shorter day and a beautiful one at that. The views this morning were spectacular as we passed through the Chartreuse and the Belledonne Massifs. I had met Fred once again at the crossroads (in the little Entre-Prises van!) and settled into my desk upon arrival. I found out that I now have my own company email address (not giving it to any of you as I know you will spam me! ;)) and my own phone. After a mini panic due to the Excel file having been saved in a weird location (we had problems with my account the day before and things were a bit mixed up) and me thinking I had lost all of yesterday's work, luckily everything was safe and tucked away in a different folder and I continued my work on the database. Fred and Leo went off to climb in the afternoon and I stayed and worked until 4:30pm after having a picnic in the sun with Meta, Jean-Charles and Christophe (on a really cool table with Entre-Prises carved into it!). I got a lift home from Francois and decided to check out the local wall properly and go bouldering. After making what could possibly be the worst omelette in the world - Robbie would be very disappointed, for he is the King of Omelettes! - I headed off to Espace Vertical 2. 20 seconds or so later I was there, and luckily for me now that I am in the Entre-Prises team I get free entry to the wall, as EP are associated with the centre and all staff are entitled to free entry. I found this out yesterday and am very grateful for the fact that working for a company I really admire also helps me to continue training whilst I'm abroad. The bouldering wall was better than I thought it would be and I enjoyed moving on the wall after not having climbed for over a week (quelle catastrophe!) Tired and now with less skin on my hands, I made the awfully long journey of 100m or so back to the house and chatted to Fabrice for a bit. It's good to have so many different people of different ages, occupations and nationalities to practice speaking with. I now have omelette-envy after Yoann made himself a much better one than I created/destroyed earlier, and am looking forward to my 3rd day at work tomorrow, a meet-up with Alice later in the week (fellow Edinburgh University student on year abroad) and a climbing session on rock at some point over the weekend with Meta and maybe some others from Team-EP. 
 

L'Equipe EP-France: Florelle, François, Fred, ?(not met yet! :P), Jean-Charles, Meta, Nathalie B (1), Mickaël, Nathalie B (2), Yves, Claude and Léo! (and Christophe who is missing...)

It is amazing how quickly you can adapt to new surroundings if you are somewhere with friendly people who share a common interest. Maybe it's because I'm used to going abroad a lot and constantly meeting new people through climbing, but I also know that I'm very lucky to have been able to come here in the first place. As I was told before I left for Grenoble, I certainly have "landed on my feet" after all the changes and confusion that occurred when my initial placement fell through! J'ai de la chance…à plus!

You can't get rid of the guy below...he even speaks French?! :P

David + Robert discussing their route

The outstanding facility that is EICA:Ratho didn't even exist, and was merely a seed about to be borne in the minds of its creators. I'm not in any means attempting to play down my early years, as I believe they were a great education in both my climbing life and life in general, but I have to admit that a young me would be very envious of the emerging youth scene here in Scotland. Envious isn’t the word now, however, as I am excited by so much potential and proud to see it developing on home turf. There is definitely a feeling in the air that something big is about to happen in climbing, brought about not only by the news of the 2020 Olympic Lead Climbing bid (which is fantastic, don't get me wrong!) but rather a sensation that something a bit closer to home at grass-roots level is gradually working its way upwards, past the crux and about to reach the top...Calum Forsyth demoing

I arrived at EICA:Ratho bright and early on Saturday morning, but unfortunately not early enough to accommodate for the numerous excitable kids and parents who welcomed me as I was rushed over to warm up for demonstrations. That was something I made a mental note of - none of the kids seemed particularly anxious or pent up with nerves. Boys were running around chasing each other, girls were gossiping, and parents were chatting amongst themselves amidst the hustle and bustle of their children.

Jodie Brown confidently leading her final routeThese differing approaches to competitions fascinate me, and I think the ability to be having fun with your friends one minute and then the next be putting on a straight(ish) face the next as you are faced with a gutsy few minutes of climbing is a very admirable quality. Bleary-eyed and certainly not bushy-tailed, I put on the straightest face one can muster at tooearly o’clock in the morning and completed my demos, a straight face broken only by Calum’s mischievous whispers of “Do it for Stoats Nat! And Scarpa! And Petzl! And Blurr!” I apparently managed to make the routes look deceptively easier than they felt for me and even found a (rather unnecessary but novelty) kneebar on one of the routes! I filled the rest of my day after demos with judging, taking photos, giving out Stoats bars, encouraging the kids and being inspired by lots of amazing performances.

David Miedzybrodksi on his final routeThroughout the qualifiers there were some very spirited performances from the younger kids in the competition. I watched as 11 year old Connor Moore breezed his way up the black 6c+ that I had demoed, making it look all too easy until a tricky dynamic move just shy of the top. Fresh from climbing his first 7b project just a few days ago, Connor was looking on top form and would be hard to beat in the finals. He topped his second route with ease and showed great focus throughout the day despite having to pose for this portrait with his younger sister Katie!

Katie + Connor eating tic tacs :PKatie takes after her big brother both in nature and in climbing – she is dynamic, strong and determined, and always bubbling over with excitement to be climbing in a big competition. Katie topped her first qualifier and did very well on her second which put her through to the final – Team Moore had had a successful morning! The Harland-Sendra brothers Sam and Leo had also proved themselves worthy competitors in reaching the finals, and were one of many sibling duos taking on the walls at this competition. The Miedzybrodskis, The Bosis , The Freireichs, The Davidsons…climbing must be in their genes!

Perhaps the award for Most Tenacious Climber of the Morning should go to 8 year old Stephanie Millar, who refused to give up on her second route and hung in there until her arms eventually gave in. These younger climbers very rarely seem to need any lessons on determination, something which really inspires me to try harder when I am climbing!

Kirsten Taylor on her final routeMy protégées Kirsten Taylor and Jodie Brown did themselves proud in the qualifiers. Despite her recent ankle sprain Kirsten did very well in persisting with climbing as best she could, but understandably she was a bit distracted and more cautious than normal with the pain in her foot. I have no doubt that she will get back up and climbing again soon as she always has done after a setback – her willingness to do her best  and take part alongside her friends is certainly something to be admired. Rebecca Kinghorn, Emma Powell and Kirsten Gray were leading this category and it was particularly exciting to see Kirsten returning from injury looking so strong on the wall.

Eilidh Vas Payne battling it out for glory on her final route!Jodie was her usual gutsy and resilient self and showed how far her leading has progressed in recent months, onsighting 6cs now and putting her Dad to shame!  Just kidding Dave!  Her routes were those that I had demoed, so I had a rough idea as to how she would fare on them. As usual and as is particularly evident when climbing in a competition, Jodie surpassed my expectations. On the tricky, techy green 7a+ she moved past the first crux and fought hard on the tough upper section before succumbing to the pump. On the black route the slopey pinches caused her more difficulty but I was proud of her attempt nonetheless.

YUMMY STOATS GOODIES!!!!A few more Stoats bars and photographs later and I was watching the older boys and girls on their second routes. William “4^th in the World!” Bosi,  Angus “I’ve grown almost as tall as Nat :O” Davidson easily topped both routes alongside Irish bouldering legend Dom Burns, causing everyone to hedge their bets on an exciting final! Equally as close-run is the Youth A girls category, with Rachel Carr, Eleanor Hopkins and Rebekah Drummond, who have all been climbing at a very similar level recently, so I was expecting a neck and neck, (or neck, neck and neck?) situation all the way through. I hope these girls continue to pursue their competitive climbing career through the next few difficult years of school and life in general, which seem to result in a high drop-out rate for girls in particular. Stick with it is what I’d advise, but when academia comes along it is difficult to concentrate on one thing when your mind is on two, three, four, five or maybe 20 things at once!

Rory Cargill winning his category (Youth C Boys)In the oldest categories Calum Forsyth miraculously transformed from EICA worker to competitor and back throughout the day and still managed to give it his all on the wall! Who could miss his bright orange/pink/now yellowish stripe on top of his head and bright orange t-shirt to match? Juggling Jess McCaskey performed well on some tricky routes and kept the ever-waning Junior Female flame burning – where did all the girls go? Please come back!

It was time for the finals and after preparing the prize hampers which were kindly donated by Stoats I was ready to sit  down (with camera and iPad in hand) and watch the best young climbers in Scotland battle it out for the podium positions. Passing through isolation assured me that the mood was just as hyperactive and energetic as it was in the morning, and I was looking forward to a good show. The youngest were the first to emerge from the loony bin/isolation and seemed tiny in comparison with the 20+ metre “Justice” wall. Matthew Fall, victor of Youth D BoysWhat they lacked in stature they more than made up for in spirit as they tackled the 7a+ route. Little Leo climbed well through the first groove until a tricky section on pockets caused him some trouble. Ben Freireich powered his way up towards the top to clinch Gold and Leo placed 3^rd after a strong young climber from Durham. Katie Moore fought past some big moves and also took bronze – a strong category for the Scotland South Team!  Katie’s brother Connor walked out calmly from isolation and topped the route with the poise and control of a climber who is capable of doing a lot more. Watch this space! The supremely talented Matthew Fall also topped out and due to his faster climbing style took Gold - it was 1^st and 2^nd and 3^rd Place for EICA: Ratho climbers, with Euan Farmer taking Bronze. Rory Whyte from Glasgow put in a stellar performance but unfortunately injured his finger whilst on the route - GET WELL SOON RORY!!!

On the same route Rhiannon Freireich took Gold once more (her trophy cabinet must be at breaking point just now!) and EICA’s Holly Davis took a worthy 2^nd place on what seemed to be a very long and technical route. Rebecca Kinghorn placing 2nd in Youth C GirlsGirls Youth C is a category which makes me wonder what these girls will be capable of when they enter Youth B and potentially start competing abroad in European and World events. Emma Powell, Rebecca Kinghorn and Kirsten Gray are all very promising young climbers who were up against a crimpy 7b route on the “Justice” wall. Rebecca climbed smoothly and in control up towards the top and lowered to rapturous applause. Kirsten Gray climbed to a shouldery press move, struggling to find the power to overcome it. Emma Powell climbed quickly and efficiently up to the crux and made it look frighteningly easy – she even dyno’ed for the last hold and caught it! Emma is a fellow Lyon Equipment team member, so it was great to be able to support her at this event.

Boys Youth C is an equally intriguing category, with the up and coming Sam Harland Sendra, David Miedzybrodski and Rory Cargill being the top climbers in Scotland (and some of the best in Britain) for their age group and showing bags of promise. On the day Rory fought through to the slopey crux of the route shared with the two older girls categories – which looked about 7c/+ - to victory, closely followed by David and Carson Carnduff from Team Ireland, another incredibly strong climber who can frequently be seen training at Ratho. Sam unfortunately didn’t make the podium, but it won’t be long until he is up there again soon, no doubt about it!

Boys Youth C Podium (Rory Cargill 1st, David Miedzybrodksi 2nd, Carson 3rd)

Then it was on to Boys Youth B – a very exciting group to watch, including 4^th in the World William Bosi, multiple British Champ Angus Davidson, European Youth Bouldering Champion Dom Burns and fellow strong Irishman Jamie Rankin. With each boy getting gradually higher in succession it made for a nailbiting final, and William proved himself worthy of his new world status with an impeccably smooth top-out of a filthy technical masterpiece! Girls Youth B was dominated once more by the ever-smiling Eilidh Vass Payne and followed by Megan Saunders and Emily Eadie. A well-deserved win from Eilidh, even if she did steal my shoes!

Youth B Boys Podium (William Bosi 1st, Angus Davidson 2nd, Dominic Burns 3rd)

By now our necks were sore from looking up but spirits were high in the arena as Youth A entered. In the girls Rachel Carr pipped Eleanor Hopkins and Rebekkah Drummond to 1^st place, putting her bouldering power to good use on a particularly bouldery route.  GB Team member Connor Byrne came up from England to take gold in the male category, followed by Scott Keir and Jack Gomersall (in his fantastically Orange Edelrid trousers) on the horrific green route shared with Youth B boys. 

Youth C Girls Podium (Emma Powell 1st, Rebecca Kinghorn 2nd, Kirsten Gray 3rd)

Finally, the Juniors – all 4 of them across the male and female categories – put themselves to the test. Jessica McCaskey had a comfortable win, matching the efforts of the younger girls in the A Category and falling in the top slopey section.  Calum also won by a good margin despite finding a loose hold on the Boys B and A route – the combined strength of these boys was obviously too much for the T-Nut to handle!

Youth B Girls Podium (Eilidh Vas Payne 1st, Megan Saunders 2nd, Christie Macleod 3rd)

The Speed climbing provided a great spectacle, with fastest climber of the day being the unbeatable Alexander Bosi, who looks set to achieve some sub-13 second times very soon!

The awards ceremony followed and the kids were still full of energy, in contrast to some weary-looking parents and coaches! Our 1st placers were very keen on their Stoats hampers, and I doubt they would be willing to share it out with friends…or maybe that’s just me and Robbie? Joking aside, a big thank you must go to Stoats for providing us with the hampers and samples which were given out throughout the day. One of the funniest moments of the day must have been when David Miedzybrodski attempted to jump onto the podium and just missed it, stumbling and falling over! I think Robbie needs to give him some podium-climbing training!

Youth E Boys Podium (Ben Freireich 1st, Joseph 2nd, Leo Harland-Sendra 3rd)

Yet another well-organised and well-attended youth event run by the MCofS and EICA:Ratho – congratulations to all of the kids who took part and hopefully learned something about their climbing or perhaps a little life lesson to carry with them along the way. If not, at least they had fun doing something they love. If lead climbing does win the Olympic 2020 bid, then Scotland’s ever growing hotspot of youth climbing will have something even bigger to aspire towards…

Geek: Do you need a brush Busby?

The night before we were due to try the route again, Robbie and I drew our own route maps and rehearsed the sequence in the field of our camp. We must have looked like martial arts enthusiasts - eyes closed, limbs moving in all directions yet our movements were always executed with poise and control (if only they worked that well on the rock every time!) The route still felt difficult and there was a day or two when I seriously started doubting myself. I simply wouldn't be able to link all of these moves together, there is too much to think about!  I kept at it and gradually with each try I was inching closer and closer. So near yet so far. In three consecutive attempts I fell off one hold higher each time, working out a better foot sequence after falling. With every attempt I felt I would need to give so much more in order to overcome the difficulty of the route. However, one day everything fell into place and I somehow found myself at the chains, clipping the rope in and sighing in relief. Maybe I had waited for the perfect moment, or maybe I just believed that little bit more in myself. It was one of those glorious moments when something which felt so hard along the journey to completion eventually felt within my capabilities, yet still required my absolute and undivided attention. It hadn't quite hit me yet, but I'd just completed my first 8b. After a good few years of setbacks with injuries and a feeling of stagnation I had finally moved forward and pushed my climbing to a level I had always wanted to achieve. Onwards and upwards!