OK, 2010. Let’s face it. You were kinda screwed up. Not a tonne, but kinda off on certain places. Don’t get me wrong, we’ve had some awesome times. For instance, we’ve helped managed to coordinate the widest/biggest reach of GLBT climbers at the New River Gorge. It was so badass, we were in Dead Point Mag! FINALLY quit smoking in August. I admit, I’m still craving but so far so good. I haven’t gone this long without a cigarette since before starting. But overall, I admit, I was hoping for a bit more. Grandma is still sick. Work was kinda heavy. I didn’t get to climb outdoors as much as I had hoped nor did I crush as hard as I want to.
So I’m looking to you 2011. This is the year. This coming season is going to be the greatest season EVER! Off season training has already started. Heck,I’m even bouldering at the gym. And once this brainless idea of running a quasi-marathon is done, the snow will be gone! And despite my never ending love of sleeping in the shade at the crag, this season is going to be full of unprecedented CRUSHING EEEVVVER!
But how the heck am I going to get there?
Dale + Drop-Knee = Crushing
Thankfully, there are great ‘mo fauxs like Dale. In Toronto you might recognize him as “dude behind the customer service desk at MEC”. In the US, however, you might recognize him as the dude in the Burger King commercial.
Anyways, Dale is a wicked-awesome guy. Not only did he loan me his Red Rocks guidebook last year, he has also written a very inspiring article for Gripped Magazine titled “Think and Climb Hard – The Five Habits of Successful Climbers“. Thanks to the powers of social media, Dale was able to survey a tonne of pro/elite climbers from around the world and distill his findings into this great article. A definite job well done! Check it out HERE but don’t forget to come back here.
Why? Because Dale’s touches on some really awesome points as to why people start climbing in the first place. I know for me, I needed a means to get fit but I HATE the gym. At the time, climbing seemed fun and looked like a good solution. Little did I know how much I would LOVE it. Working out turned into a game. Working out the crux turned into awesome puzzles. And as I met more climbers, ever session turned into a hilarious game, like Jenga but more swearing, sweating, and falling. Which leads to another point Dale points out. The people around you at the crag or gym can really influence how you crush. I know for a fact, that if I don’t fully trust my belayer, I’m sure as hell not going to make a crazy move. Or if I’m cruxing and I’ve got a solid crew of people cheering me on, sometimes I can push myself that much harder. Basically, people can help forget the pump.
So Toronto, if you’re gonna “always be climbing” or if you’re just starting out, you’re in the right place at the right time.
On Saturday, January 8th, the Boulderz Climbing Centre session of Tour de Bloc is happening. If any of you are remotely interested, I suggest registering ASAP. Space is limited. For serious.
And if you still have crushing capabilities, the ‘mos will be cranking it at True North Climbing at around 3PM. This is a very beginner friendly place, so if you’re thinking about trying it out, this is your chance. Anybody who needs belay lessons should contact me so I can arrange lessons with the gym.
Facebook Event: New Year’s Resolution: Climb More. Or just climb, period.
Also looking ahead, I’m thinking about buying 10 passes to Boulderz to sign up for the Andrew’s Body Blast Sessions. If anybody else is interested, let me know. They’re every Monday night and pretty much guaranteed to work muscles you didn’t think you had.
So here we are 2011. I’ve finally bought a fresh bag of chalk and a role of tape. I’m 2 moves from sending that V5 but there is a lot of time. There are no plans to smoke, and a running schedule to make anybody cry. There are training sessions at the regular gym and the climbing gym.
There really isn’t much else to say except FLAME OFF, CLIMB ON.
