Too scared to climb. Stuck on the Climbing Plateau.

I've just bought The Rock Warriors Way by Arno Ilgner: haven't read it yet but its in the post. However, I have read this article by one *Cider Nut* on UKC. Its a very good article, go read it. Its inspired me to write this entry.

My fears have defeated me time and time again and I've always got an excuse to avoid going climbing or avoiding the routes I really want to climb. For me the fun in climbing always came after the fact - I felt totaly stoked after I'd climbed but never during. Why? Because I'm afraid.

I guess this is why I love bouldering so much, the fear factor isn't present for me, although I've seen it in other people, and I can experience the pure joy of moving across rock. God how I wish I could have that joy on lead. But I've always had an excuse to stay in my comfort zone. Here's some of the more common ones.

• I'm shy. Being a shy person is a great excuse to avoid climbing as its necessarily social. "You need a belayer and I don't mix well" (accept I do).


• I've been too busy. Another great one. "I haven't being training so there's no way I could climb that!". In fairness we're talking single-pitch E1 routes here, how strong do you need to be?


• I'm too weak. See previous point.


• I'm tired, I'm dehydrated, I've a sore toe. - Various physically handicapped excuses.


• I'm not able for that.


• I'm a shit climber.


• I haven't climbed enough recently so my gear will fail. - Again we're talking E1 here: How poor is the gear going to be?


• Various other whingey complaints.


• I'm bored with Dalkey. - I haven't been in Dalkey in a year and its a gem of a crag.

The really noticable thing missing from that list is the following:

• I'm really fucking scared.

This, in truth, is the only honest excuse I have and I never acknowledge it. This is not like me, I'm honest with myself and don't avoid emotional issues. Except I do avoid them it would seem. As I've re-read that list I've realised just how poor and downright ridiculous those excuses are. I'm shy ... WTF?! I know half the climbers in Ireland and, this is something I found suprising this last year, half the climbers in Ireland know me. And what about all those people I boulder with? Shy my ass.

So what's to be done? I need to push my comfort zone - I need to embrace the fear and start enjoying it. I'm going to avoid climbing routes I've already climbed. I'm going back to Dalkey, then the Burren and the Mournes and Fairhead and all the other fantastic crags we have on our wee island. So here's my plan of attack for now.

• Push my comfort zone by climbing new routes at the limit of my current game. This is HVS at present. Cider Nut made the point that a situation is more familiar the second time around hence your comfort zone expands.


• Climb more.


• Train train train - all the training techniques I've learned this last year will come in useful. I'm going to need lots of stamina.


• Keep bouldering - it will remind me of the joy of moving across rock and I can combine that with some NLP techniques to help me when I'm scared.


• Climb with as many people as possible - this will open me to new techniques and more importantly give me lots of oppurtunities to go climbing.


• Climb more.


• Read read read - nothing more inspiring than a good mountaineering book. I can recommend loads.

One last point I should mention, its from Dave MacLeod: He recommends shifting your working life to compliment your climbing life - not the other way around. To heed his advice I've quit my job! I'm planning on being unemployed for a couple of months only but it should be enough to get me to that coveted E1 grade.

So if anybody wants to go climbing with me, I'm based in Dublin, and will be free all week long from July 11th. Can climb about E1, good at multipitching, and I love climbing.