ABOUT ME
I started climbing in 2010 at the age of 18. After a year or so of Trad and Sport climbing I quickly found Bouldering. I have been obsessed ever since. After just over a year of climbing in 2011 I climbed my first 7C+/V10. A year later I had climbed my first V11. After graduating University in 2013 I began to dedicate myself to climbing and training. I realised that just having strong fingers was not going to carry me up the world class problems I aspired to try. I began to devise plans for my training and put significant emphasis on improving my strengths, but also removing my weaknesses.
Between 2013 and 2014 I made a significant step up in my climbing. Having only climbed a single 8A before graduating in July 2013, I made a goal to climb 8B the following year. In 2014 I climbed 21 8A’s, my first 8A+ followed by 3 more, and my first 8B. From here I realised that I had made significant progress, but there was a huge amount more to do if I wanted to operate in the upper Font 8’s. All was going well until 2015 when the injuries began to come, with a ruptured pulley in May 2015, and a significantly torn one in January 2016. The latter put finger strength improvement firmly off the table for the majority of 2016. 2017 held another serious pulley injury, which lasted right through until the spring of 2018.
Fortunately, injuries like these offer an opportunity to do one of two things; Quit, or improve in other areas. I chose to pick up weight training, gymnastic rings, heavy core work and stretching to improve key weaknesses. In 2016 I went from doing only a single one arm pull up, to doing 5. I also ticked a training goal of a 2.5x bodyweight Deadlift. I also vastly improved my tension and control while climbing.
In April 2018 I laid my most frustrating injury to date to rest, by climbing a dream problem, New Base Line 8B+ in Magic Wood, Switzerland. Climbing this problem, without any mental pressure, stress or a prolonged siege showed me a glimpse of what I could be capable of, but also showed me how all the small things I had done through the years had made an impact. I firmly believe that these small factors, while not obvious and often overlooked, play a huge role in stacking the deck in your favour. It’s not just about pulling hard, or putting in the physical work, it’s about the mindset, the tactics and the small techniques that nobody ever sees.
​
After climbing 8C/V15 in late 2019, and another one at the start of 2020, it's now my goal to continue to improve, and reach the elusive grade of V16/8C+. While doing this, I also want to start to help other climbers short cut on the mistakes and learning I made. If I knew then what I know now...
​
​
​
