I have been so busy lately that I didn't have time/forgot to blog/felt bitter after losing what I'd written twice after not saving it properly to write about my 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th weeks - so here is an update on my recent adventures in which I have been mostly climbing, competing, working and...laughing! A few weekends ago (it all rolls into one at the moment!) I was off to Chamonix to compete in my second Coupe de France round in Difficulty and last weekend I was a bit closer to home in Echirolles to compete in the Coupe de...

I'm now officially over half way through my stay here in Grenoble - 5 weeks down, 5 to go! Last week was a short working week due to Toussaints/All Saints on the Thursday, so I had a 4 days off to fill with climbing! 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...

How time flies when you're having fun! I am fast approaching the halfway point of my stay here in Grenoble and I still can't get my head around how much I've done and how much there is still left to cram into the next 6 weeks or so. Yesterday I took part in the first round of the Coupe de France, which took place in the Mineral Spirit Polygone hall in Valence. 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...

I seem to be spending my life in the Vercors these days, not that I'm complaining - it's easy to see why I could find myself going back there, and in the case of this last week, going there twice in one weekend! The cold, crisp mornings of the week before disappeared and the fresh cover of snow on top of the 3 Massifs rapidly melted away almost overnight as temperatures soared, just in time for my 3 day weekend on rock! The Vercors from Pierrot Beach I had another enjoyable week at work and trained on the Tuesday night at...

I'm now into my 3rd week of 10 here in Grenoble, and so far the last week has definitely been the most full-on - I've barely had time to breathe! It's getting much colder here now and this morning we woke up to snow-topped mountains over in the Belledonne Massif and across the Chartreuse. This weekend I was in the Serre-Chevalier valley and around the Briançon area, and I am still in awe at the beauty of this area of France. On a separate note entirely, I have also just got back from the supermarket and I can announce that Brie...

Grenoblog 2!   It doesn't feel like I've been here for just over a week - the last few days have been so jam packed full of exciting activities that I've lost track of time, I've barely had time to think! I definitely feel very much at home here and am surrounded by a great bunch of people in an amazing environment. The weather started to brighten up on Tuesday and it's been a few glorious days of sunshine, picnics at lunch, climbing on rock and wandering around the beautiful town centre admiring the mountains and absorbing the culture of Grenoble....

I am now four days into my 10 week stint in Grenoble, France and already it feels as though I've been here for considerably longer! I am working for Entre-Prises Climbing Walls France and have had a great first few days getting to know the team and learning a bit more about the company. Anyone who has an interest in indoor climbing will be aware that Entre-Prises is a leading manufacturer of climbing walls and holds - if you head down to your local climbing centre you can be sure of finding at least one hold or maybe even a wall...

Back in the day - all of 10 years ago - I would have loved to have taken part in an event which offered both competition and fun in equal measure, and one which was delivered as professionally as I experienced at the SYCC on Saturday. When I was about 8 or 9, the only local youth competition that I had to look forward to was the BRYCS, (the ancient form of the YCS) and meeting up with fellow young, keen climbers was a rare treat. David + Robert discussing their route The outstanding facility that is EICA:Ratho didn't even exist,...

It's just over a year ago since I climbed my first 8a outdoors. Having focussed primarily on indoor training for the majority of my climbing career up until that point, it felt like a big achievement for me. When you first break into a grade it inspires confidence in your ability to climb more routes of the same level, and since completing my first 8a in Siurana last April, I have now climbed 12 in total. Whilst climbing in Ceuse last year I broke the 8a+ barrier, which both took me by surprise yet also made me wonder whether I was...

I am currently lying on our air bed enjoying the last few hours of the evening sun before we cook dinner. This has been our first week of travelling and climbing in France. Time has passed so quickly that it's hard to believe we have been out for that long. It certainly doesn't feel like we have done that much, but driving and general moving around has eaten up a lot of our climbing time. However, we have still been having fun living the dream in Alex's big orange van - swimming in rivers, visiting  pretty villages and pulling hard on...