Continued support...

Both Adidas Eyewear and Smartwool continue there support with my future plans. 

"I'm very grateful for the clothing and eyewear support, it just makes my journeys into the adventure world just that little more comfortable". 

All good intentions...

It was planned I was going to meet Gideon, to head out on the trails at Swinley Forest a little earlier than the others, to get some footage on the GoPro, to make a little video. Then hook up with the other guys and continue the ride.

The alarm went off, got my stuff together and headed off out... Something did not feel right. So I checked my phone and the exchange of texts from the night before. We confirmed 7 30 meet!! It was 8am and I'd only just left!! 1 hour behind, oops!

I arrived at Gideon's and after a quick coffee, loaded his bike on the rack and headed out.  

No more than 10mins of riding and I'm losing pressure in my back tyre... I run 'tubeless' tyres so added some air and carried on. After a minute or so I'm flat again... As I did not have any fluid that self seals my tyres, my only option was to put an inner tube on the wheel.

We pull over and Gideon and I get the tube on as fast as possible... At this point no footage has been taken as we were only just getting to the good sections of the forest. 

Tube on and ready to ride we head off on probably my favourite section in the forest. Railing the burns and getting air at any opportunity, we are in business. Or maybe not. I take a burn fast and my tyre is flat again. We pull over to the side of the trail to find I have a pinch flat. I have pinched the inner tube taking a corner. Great!

So now we have to fix a pinch in the tyre. Out comes the puncture repair kit. Quick repair and the wheel is back on the bike. I'm pumping the tyre and not getting any pressure. We take the wheel back off, we check the tube and we find a second pinch. That gets repaired and now we are back in business, again!

We ride to meet the others and then had an enjoyable hour or so ripping it up. No GoPro footage: all good intentions, but it was just one of those days. 

The trip to North Carolina has given me loads of confidence and I'm finding myself attacking the corners and hardly using my breaks. Which means I'm going fast, feeling the need for speed!

Had a lot of fun on the trails today after a very frustrating start. Looking forward to getting out again and hitting it harder and faster and getting the footage to make a kick-ass movie.

This two pictures sum up the ride...

ITV interview - Emma Welch, Everest Challenge

Please check out the ITV interview covering Emma Welch's Everest Challenge. 

http://www.itv.com/news/west/update/2013-11-25/radstock-girl-scales-the-height-of-everest/

Inspired...

Two and a bit months ago, I received an email from a young girl called Emma Welch, explaining a challenge she was going to embark on. 8848m on an indoor climbing wall... Yep, the height of Mt Everest on a vertical wall. I continued to read to find out she was only 12 years old and suffers from scoliosis of the spine. A mammoth challenge twice a week having to accumulate over 50 laps at each session.

The email also asked if I would attend the final day, where Emma would reach her target height and would I climb with her. What an honour and what an inspiration.

After my reply to Emma accepting the invitation, we stayed in contact and I followed her progress.

My wife Natalie and I, headed to Somerset yesterday and found a lovely little quant B&B in Radstock called 'The Post House'. We were directed to a local pub for some proper home made cooking and tucked into some local Ales. A nice stroll back to the B&B and we were settled in for an early night.

We arrived at the climbing wall this morning, welcomed by Emma's father Tony and immediately saw the support Emma had from friends, family and members of the community, all coming together to support this local heroine.

I was introduced to Emma and her mother, Lesley, who was belaying. We had a little chat and I could tell she was keen to tick off the laps so I let her carry on without much disruption. She then rested and we spoke further and after a little rest I had the privilege of belaying this little superstar, who just shot up and down, relaxed and got in the zone. After each lap we would have a little chat and then she would fly back up to the top of the route. Impressive stuff!

We then got to a point where Emma only had 9 laps to go and way ahead of schedule so another rest was planned. I had packed all my summit kit, boots, down suit, mitts, beanie and goggles and said to Emma about wearing it for her final 9 laps... she loved the idea and climbed in all the kit; she was melting!

It came to the final lap and Emma had packed a Union Jack flag to pin to the belay clip at the top of the route, a nice touch in completing what is an official World Record and an amazing achievement by a inspiring young lady.

We exchanged a high five at the top of the route and I congratulated her on this amazing feat. People cheered and applauded rom below. What a great achievement by a young lady taking herself out of her comfort zone and achieving something remarkable, inspiring many and raising funds for Brain Tumour Research.

So, Emma had completed her challenge and now the media wanted to hear what it felt like. ITV, BBC local radio and magazines were present and I must say she gave interviews and worked the camera like a pro. I had to rely on the latest editing suits to chop and cut and paste together my pieces to camera... Take, um, 5!

What a fun day meeting the local community and sharing this amazing day with Emma and her family.

We headed to the Centriniun for dinner with Emma and her parents and talked Everest, showed her hundreds of photos and answered all her questions she had about the mountain, the history, the environment, the technical side of climbing and the logistics, it was a very proud moment for me to share my summit with such an enthusiastic fan.

So wrapping this up, a big thank you to Emma and her family for inviting me to this event and sharing those last laps with you, it was a great privilege and an honour. I am inspired :)

Belaying Emma

Photo opportunity

Lesley, Me, Emma and Tony

Interview with the ITV

Getting Emma ready for the summit.

Emma abseiling.

Final lap and fully kitted up in summit apparel.

Perfect foot placement needed.

A high five and an amazing achievement.

Flying the Union Jack and descending the final lap.

Job Done, well done Emma.

Emma with a proud Mum and Dad

End of a fantastic day

East Coast MTB Trip

My brother and I headed over to North Carolina on the east coast of the United States to go mountain biking for a long weekend.

Hosted by Arvindh and Scott, two very keen bikers, it was destined to be an epic. 

We headed out from Heathrow T3 and lapped up the executive lounge, flying with big bro as its benefits. After a 7 hour flight we landed at Durham & Reliegh airport, picked up the Chevrolet Suburban and headed to Arvindh's house. 

After a quick chat and bike check, we headed to a cool Mexican joint downtown, to enjoy a few coronas and well needed nachos, I've never been a fan of aeroplane food.

An early night and an early morning had us en route to W.Kerr Scott Dam and Reservouir's trail system, home of 4 epic trails, Warrior Creek, Dark Mountain, Fort Hamby and Over Mountain Victory. 

We arrived at our camp site, set up and headed straight out on our bikes. Following a 3 hour ride on Warrior Creek, we headed back to camp. Arvindh had a fall towards the end of the trail and was suffering with his shoulder to the point where he could not lift his arm!! We lit a fire, got the cooler out and tucked into a Corona or two, followed by a BBQ on an open fire. It doesn't get much better. 

I had a few things to get used to on the US bike, firstly the brakes are on the opposite side!! Nightmare! Few trips over the handlebars and I still kept pulling the left brake! The set up of the gears and suspension also took a bit of time getting used to.

A good nights kip and we were up getting the fire started ready for breakfast. Arvindh could not move his arm so he was out of the days ride. Scott Andy and myself headed to Dark Mountain. After a night of rain and a lot of leaves on the trail it was going to be fun handling the bikes. We gunned it for 3 or so hours and enjoyed a fast, tight and flowing trail with loads of variety. A few falls but a fun day out. More beer, another BBQ and a few more beers finished the evening off. 

Unfortunately due to loads of overnight rain we were unable to get out Sunday morning. We packed up and headed to a micro brewery for a few beers and lunch, before a flight home to the UK... Oh and straight to work. 

Great weekend, great company and great riding. Looking forward to heading out next year, maybe for an extra few days... 

The Trails...

The beast, great car but drunk fuel like you cant imagine.

View from the camp site, the trails where the other side of the lake. 

Smokin!!! somebody stop me

Ready to ride out from the car park.

Enough wood for the evening Arv?? He thinks so!!!

Wood chopping begins!

Fire and thoughts

Andy and I, brothers on tour

It's been a while...

It's been a while since my last post, so apologies!

After getting back from the Himalaya in May, I set myself a goal to lead 7a by the end of the year. 

I was hitting the climbing wall once or twice a week and not really getting anywhere. I made a decision to dedicate more time and effort so I could build the technique and strength to reach this goal. 

My wife Natalie and I, moved to Walton on Thames and discovered a new climbing wall on the doorstep, The White Spider in Surbiton.

This facility has inspired me to train harder and its location allows me to make more visits because of the ease of access; as a result I'm moving much more efficiently, I'm stronger and climbing harder grades. I've also been given a few books to read on climbing, which has changed my thought patterns whilst climbing. 

I'm confidently leading 6b+ and making good attempts at 7a routes, so I'm knocking on the door to reaching my goal with 2 months to go... I'm sure it won't be long and I will crack it. 

I'm looking forward to finding a stint of good weather and getting out on natural rock ASAP and see if the hard work has paid off. I might have to hunt the good weather down though with a trip abroad, which would not be such a bad thing would it Natalie? ; ) 

So if you thought I was being lazy you were wrong... I've been training hard. 

 

Into the 4th quarter

21 September 2013 and it was time to celebrate moving into the 4th quarter of year 1 as a married couple. 

I thought a romantic weekend away in the British countryside would be perfect. I had been recommended by many the Peak District and a few folk had mention Bakewell as a place to stay. The history, home of the Bakewell Tart, that's as far as my history knowledge goes!

It so happened Bakewell is on the door step to Stanage, home of some gritstone and great climbing. 

I thought some team building was necessary and there's no better way than climbing. Working on trust, communication, belief and achieving success. What a great way to celebrate 9 months. 

We left London around mid day Saturday and made Bakewell in good time. We checked into The Peacock Inn and headed straight to Stanage, where we managed to get 1 climb in before having to get back for a resturant reservation. 

A monster steak, which I cooked on a very hot stone at our table, my first try of warm camembert and crusty bread (delicious), pints of Guinness and a good night sleep, perfect prep for a Sunday session on the grit. 

Sunday morning and by 10am we were strolling up towards the crag, sun blazing, the crag in front of us and it was set to be a great day. 

We set up camp at the bottom of our first route, went through a few bits and we were both ready to climb. 

I will admit, I thought the lower grade routes were pretty bare for gear, but I was confident in the moves, I moved up nicely most of the time, only placing 1 or 2 runners. Setting up good belays and then Natalie moving really nicely up behind. It was lovely to see her big smile at the top of each route, chuffed with the achievement of the climb. My only comment was that she'd make her life a lot easier if she used her feet more, but this will come from practice and improving techniques. For her first time out on rock I thought she did amazingly well.

We moved around finding low grade climbs to try and the wife had to like the look of the route before she would commit to climbing it. 5 routes on a sunny Sunday was perfect. 

Post climb we headed to the pub for dinner and a cold beer, before hitting the M1 and heading back. 

A lovely weekend spent with Natalie, sharing something I love so much.

 

It's time to capture

Prior to my last trip to the himalaya, I made an investment into an SLR. During my time in Nepal I captured some breath taking images and was blown away by the quality. 

I'll be honest, 85% of the shots were caught using the automatic setting not really understanding the use of aperture, shutter speed and ISO. 

It was my 30th birthday back in July and my brother and his family treated me to a Nigel Wilson Photography Workshop. 

Last weekend I spent 2 days with Nigel unfolding the magic behind my SLR and the ability to create depth/feeling and capturing the moment with my camera. 

Wow, I will never use Auto again. The photo quality and enjoyment in taking shots in manual where you are in complete control of everything is just brilliant.

I have already been practicing, and I have a tripod on order. I can't wait to get out and capture the mountains, hills, rock faces with a new light. 

Thank you Andy, Leanne and Bethany for such a great present. It will change the way I approach photography for life ; ) 

North Wales for 2 days with Libby Peters

With the goal to climb around the globe and some of the most famous/iconic routes in the world, I realised it was time to go back to basics. 

I called upon one of the UK's best female climber, Libby Peters, to coach me for 2 days in North Wales. 

I have trad climbed a few times but had no real firm knowledge/experience of this type of climbing. 

Placing gear and setting up bomber belays are essential to the safety of your climbs. Libby went through all this and much more in great detail to get me confident at leading and topping out. 

I found the 2 days extremely valuable and am now looking forward to climbing around the UK in the coming months, before travelling further afield in 2014. 

My rack (wires, cams, Hexs & carabiners) all arrived a day late for my visit to Wales, but I'm sure it won't be long untill they are being used. 

I'm really looking forward to exploring this type of climbing and the places it will take me. 

Getting out on the Mountain Bike

Since building my first mountain bike, the Cotic Soul, I have managed to get out on it twice a week thrashing it around Swinley Forest and The Look Out in Surrey.

It's tweaky, fast, and very responsive.  I'm having loads of fun on two wheels and really glad I took a step into this world.

It's also great for my aerobic fitness which will only help me in the mountains on future expeditions.  

Thought I would share a few pics from the trails. Enjoy. 

The Cotic Soul Build and First Ride

A week ago the mountain bike build began. I had all the components and it was time to make a monster of a hard tail. 

The frame, Cotic's Soul, running a Fox 120 front fork. A Shimano XT groupset and Shimano XT disc breaks with ice tech discs. Stans ZTR crest wheels with Hope hubs and for tyres Schwalbe 'Nobby Nics' on the front and 'Rocket Rons' on the rear, tubeless.  All the components where from Hope, bottom bracket, headset, stem and seat post. On paper this should be a super light zippy hardtail. 

2 visits to Gideons house putting the bike together and with a bit of tweaking and making it our own, we had the bike built and ready to ride. 

Gideon and I stood back and admired the look of the bike. Compared it with his hartail. My bike felt light, looked fast standing still and it was ready. 

Few laps round the block and a few tweaks to the gears, breaks and fork and it was running beautifully. 

Me being me I was now eager to get out and see what the bike was made of. 

We planned a 12 o clock meet at the 'Look  Out' for a few hours ride snd bit of fun. Fun it was zipping down single track through the forest. I absolutely loved it and with practice and a bit of confidence in the bank I see future rides being awesome.

I took a few falls, didn't make a few hills due to technique but becoming one with the bike will take time. 

I stacked it at about 0.5mph!!! And it hurt!! Oh and disc brakes are awesome. I remember back in the day squeezing the living daylights out of the breaks to stop.... Disc breaks are 1 finger and be gentle!!! Otherwise you nearly end up over the handlebars!!! ; ). It was a close one. 

The bike was fast, twitchy, light and looked the nuts. I'm one happy boy. It also weighed in at 23.5lbs. That's light. 

Not only have I designed and built my own bike, I did it all with a great friend and future riding partner. Massive thanks to Gideon for all his advise help and direction and of course the build.  My first hard-tail built by us. How cool is that. 

Now it's time for fun and adventure on two wheels. 

Entering my 4th decade......

So with turning 30 it was only right to be spoilt by my wife. With the weather absolutely glorious no matter what we were doing, it was going to be amazing, all I hoped for was that it was outdoors.

I was told on saturday morning we were going camping in the New Forest, pack the tent, sleeping bags and bring the slackline and power kite....

All packed we headed to the New Forest and en route pulled over at a little pub, we sat in the garden and took advantage of the amazing weather. After lunch and a few local ciders we made our way to 'Roundhill' camp site.

Deep in the New Forest this camp site has wild horses just strolling around, cows grazing whereever they wish and with the sun blazing, it was just perfect for a weekend away.

We set up the tent, the slackline and chilled out for a few hours playing around and just enjoying each others company. It was nice just to get away with my wife, no plans and just chill out.

After a few hours we headed to the local shop, brought a BBQ, prawns, lamb, salad and a bottle of wine and headed back to the campsite for dinner. Cooking dinner, lying on a blanket and enjoying an amazing bottle of pinot noir, things could not get much better.

A casual get up and we headed into Brockenhurst for breakfast in a quant little tea room, then took a walk around the village. we headed back to the camp site for an hour or two then my main present was revealed. We were heading for dinner and a night stay at 'The Pig'. I have always wanted to visit this place.

We arrived and were greeted with Champagne in the court yard and then tucked into a pizza cooked in their wood oven; it was so good I had to have 2. After a few cocktails and an attempt to work my way through their cider list, we headed to our suite to get ready for dinner and catch the last 3 games of Murray and Djokovic.

Dinner in the conservatory in the most beautiful setting, I tucked into fresh prawns accompanied with a glass of Presseco, then for main, Steak with chips done to perfection, accompanied with an amazing glass of Melbec. I was loving being spoilt and loving my birthday weekend.

Monday we headed to Mudeford, chilled out on the beach for a few hours and then enjoyed muscles and chips and white bait, fresh fish by the sea.... it does not get much better.

We headed home and straight over to my parents for a BBQ, what a fantastic way to finish my birthday weekend, all in all I was spoilt rotten and did not stop eating or drinking....